Well, first, to start at the beginning..
Paul wrote the song after reading a magazine article about The Who's newest single, called "I Can See For Miles".
In Paul's words:
"Umm, that came about just 'cause I'd read a review of a record which said, 'and this group really got us wild, there's echo on everything, they're screaming their heads off.' And I just remember thinking, 'Oh, it'd be great to do one. Pity they've done it. Must be great — really screaming record.' And then I heard their record and it was quite straight, and it was very sort of sophisticated. It wasn't rough and screaming and tape echo at all. So I thought, 'Oh well, we'll do one like that, then.' And I had this song called 'Helter Skelter,' which is just a ridiculous song. So we did it like that, 'cuz I like noise." ~ Paul McCartney
Critics tended to like the song, although one did say that the song will "scare and unsettle" listeners, due to its "undercurrent of violence" and Paul's "savage vocal delivery."
We all know that Charles Manson misunderstood the intention of the song, though I'm going to leave Manson out of this, because *he* is scary and unsettling.
Back to the question of what does "helter skelter" mean? Well, some people use it as a way to say that something is in disarray or chaos - "the clothes were flung about all helter skelter" for example. There is also an amusement park attraction called "Helter Skelter" which seems to be referenced in the first verse of the song, literally or otherwise:
"When I get to the bottom
I go back to the top of the slide
Where I stop and turn
and I go for a ride
Till I get to the bottom and I see you again"
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