Jimmy Page, Kenneth Anger And The Curse Of Led Zeppelin

ANDREW ARNETT

30 Jun 2024 • 7 min read

It was a rough time for Led Zeppelin. It really should have been the best of times but you can say, in the history of the band it was the worst which culminated in the band's ultimate demise.

I am referring to the period starting in 1976. The band by then had just come through the peak of their artistic and commercial prowess. Arguably the peak of rock and roll for that matter. The year prior Zep had dropped the epic double album Physical Graffiti and a world tour ensued. They were the kings of rock and hardly anyone (sans Rolling Stone Magazine) could argue about that.

But just one year later the trajectory of the mighty Led Zeppelin started going awry and if it didn't exactly explode like the Hindenburg in one dramatic fireball it nonetheless ended up that way over the course of the next few years. And what is most interesting is the hidden cause behind it all. It is alleged, by those in the know, that the band succumbed to black magic, alluded to in Rock and Roll lore as the Curse of Led Zeppelin.

The cause of this curse was said to derive from occultist filmmaker Kenneth Anger. Believing this to be more than mere hyperbole, let's take a closer look at the mechanics of this curse for, according to Aleister Crowley, Magick is defined as "the science and art of causing change to occur in conformity with will."

There's more than a few factors at play here and more than a few magicians, so let's began with our principal - Jimmy Page. World famous rock star who's latest standing in Rolling Stone of greatest guitar players of all time has Page firmly ensconced at the number 3 spot. As well, his band, Led Zeppelin continues to outsell everyone else except for the Beatles.

Going back to his early days, as a teenager, Page has had two overriding obsessions (drugs aside) which are music and the occult. He read Aleister Crowley's Magic and Theory in Practice, at the age of 15. Later, he described the experience as, "Yes, that's it, my thing, I found it."

Page would ostensibly weave his occult beliefs with his music using his guitar as a type of magical wand. Page joined the Ordo Templi Orientis (O.T.O.) and has been a lifelong member. Jimmy would go on to purchase Boleskine House on the edge of Loch Ness in Scotland. This was a house that once belonged to Aleister Crowley himself and the site of many uncanny, if not unsavory happenings.

Legend has it that Jimmy Page, one day early on in the band's career, summoned the other members of the band and invited them to perform a magic ritual. This ritual would involve the conjuring of spirits and demons to assist in the cementing of Led Zeppelin in rock and roll history with all the accoutrements of fame and money that goes along with it.

It has also been noted that Zeppelin bass player John Paul Jones opted out of said ritual and, as a result, emerged relatively unscathed by the karmic blowback that such a "pack with the devil" would inevitably leverage against the band.

Such matters wouldn't come ahead however until a chance encounter mid 1970s between Page and underground filmmaker Kenneth Anger at an auction house selling Aleister Crowley collectibles. Anger himself was as much of a Crowley acolyte as Page and the two got caught up in a bidding war of which Page, with his deep pockets, won. The two bonded nonetheless and Anger commissioned Page to compose the soundtrack for his occult infused film project, "Lucifer Rising."

At that point, "Lucifer Rising" had already a turbulent production history. Its lead actor, Bobby Beausoleil, had abruptly quit the project leaving Anger quite pissed-off. Beausoleil of course had his hands full as a member of the Manson Family.

Regardless, Anger exacted his revenge by constructing a magic talisman with Beausoleil merged with a toad. Within one year, Beausoleil was in prison for life on the charge of murder.

To cement their partnership, Page invited Anger to stay at his Boleskine House rent free. However, as the project wore on without tangible results for both parties, the fleeting harmony descended into acrimony and slander. Page was only able to deliver 20 minutes of soundtrack music of the 40 promised.

Anger's constant haranguing frayed the nerves of the rock star and Page soon gave him the eviction notice. Anger, in subsequent interviews, described his ordeal whilst living in the Page residence:

“He’s a multi-millionaire miser. He and Charlotte, that horrible vampire girl – the druggie that got him on heroin – they’re both junkies. They had so many servants, yet they would never offer me a cup of tea or a sandwich. Which is such a mistake on their part because I put the curse of king Midas on them. If you’re greedy and just amass gold you’ll get an illness. So I did turn her and Jimmy Page into statues of gold because they’ve both lost their minds. He can’t write songs anymore.”

Soon after the curse was cast, ill fortune befell the band. During a holiday in Greece, Robert Plant drove his car off a cliff, seriously injuring himself and his wife and son who were in the vehicle. He struggled from a wheelchair for the recording sessions of "Presence." The subsequent sold out tour that was scheduled was canceled due to Plant's bout with a serious case of laryngitis.

When the tour did finally get off the ground, it was beset with numerous troubles. Backstage during a concert, a fight broke out between members of Led Zeppelin's entourage and the promoter's staff. This resulted in drummer John Bonham, manager Peter Grant and two other's being arrested and put in prison.

Soon after, Plant received a call informing him of the tragedy of the death of his 5-year-old son Carrick. The band immediately canceled the remainder of the tour. Plant flew to the West Midlands of England and became a recluse. Page on the other hand, withdrew further and further into cocaine and heroine addiction, leaving him a virtual zombie for days on end.

John Bonham became increasingly volatile as his alcoholism worsened. In 1980, after a day of binge drinking about 40 vodkas, Bonham died in his sleep in Page's Windsor mansion. After that the band was done, releasing the statement:

“We want it to be known that the loss of our dear friend and the deep respect we have for his family, together with the feeling of undivided harmony that we and our manager feel, have led us to decide that we can't continue as we were, rather than replace our drummer.”

Was the demise of the band a result of a curse, or was it just the fallout from an excessive rock star lifestyle? You decide.

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Andrew K. Arnett is a writer and producer. He has been published in Paranoia Magazine, New Dawn, Nexus, Konbini and Alien Buddha Press. He lives in Brooklyn, NY and hunts ghosts with the Brooklyn Paranormal Society. Find him on Twitter: @AndrewArnett

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