1 00:00:00,440 --> 00:00:22,000 Speaker 1: Disgraceland is a production of Double Elvis. This is a 2 00:00:22,079 --> 00:00:27,680 Speaker 1: story about a house, about hallways that whisper in staircases 3 00:00:27,760 --> 00:00:32,600 Speaker 1: that creak under footsteps that aren't yours. It's about a 4 00:00:32,640 --> 00:00:37,040 Speaker 1: fire that burns in her hearth while something unseen breathes 5 00:00:37,240 --> 00:00:40,760 Speaker 1: in the shadows. It's also a story about a band, 6 00:00:41,560 --> 00:00:44,479 Speaker 1: about a guitarist with a taste for the occult and 7 00:00:44,520 --> 00:00:47,760 Speaker 1: a drummer too frightened to sleep at night. It's about 8 00:00:47,800 --> 00:00:50,640 Speaker 1: the biggest rock and roll group in the world whose 9 00:00:50,720 --> 00:00:56,880 Speaker 1: members went into something supposedly haunted and emerged with multiple masterpieces. 10 00:00:58,560 --> 00:01:02,320 Speaker 1: And since this story is about led Zeppelin, and this 11 00:01:02,440 --> 00:01:07,960 Speaker 1: is also a story about great music, unlike that music 12 00:01:08,000 --> 00:01:09,440 Speaker 1: I played for you at the top of the show 13 00:01:10,280 --> 00:01:13,800 Speaker 1: that wasn't great music. That was a preset loop for 14 00:01:13,920 --> 00:01:20,160 Speaker 1: my melotron called Big Snakes in Big Lakes MK. Two. 15 00:01:20,440 --> 00:01:22,920 Speaker 1: I played you that loop because I can't afford the 16 00:01:23,000 --> 00:01:27,880 Speaker 1: rights to Maggie May by Rod Stewart. And why would 17 00:01:27,880 --> 00:01:31,279 Speaker 1: I play you that specific slice of May December Cheese? 18 00:01:31,400 --> 00:01:35,520 Speaker 1: Could I afford it? Because that was the number one 19 00:01:35,560 --> 00:01:40,000 Speaker 1: song in America on November eighth, nineteen seventy one, and 20 00:01:40,000 --> 00:01:42,440 Speaker 1: that was the day that led Zeppelin released their fourth 21 00:01:42,520 --> 00:01:46,319 Speaker 1: and biggest album to date, an album that may have 22 00:01:46,400 --> 00:01:49,400 Speaker 1: cast its own spell on the surroundings in which it 23 00:01:49,440 --> 00:01:56,360 Speaker 1: was made. On this episode, pentagrams chalk circles, strange noises, 24 00:01:56,640 --> 00:01:59,880 Speaker 1: a gray man on the stairs an old house called 25 00:02:00,040 --> 00:02:05,440 Speaker 1: Headley Grange. And this our part two episode on led Zeppelin. 26 00:02:06,280 --> 00:02:30,760 Speaker 2: I'm Jake Brennan and this is Disgraceland. 27 00:02:34,040 --> 00:02:37,480 Speaker 1: Nineteen seventy twenty six year old Malcolm Debt aimed as 28 00:02:37,520 --> 00:02:40,880 Speaker 1: flashlight at the front door of the imposing eighteenth century manner. 29 00:02:42,000 --> 00:02:45,000 Speaker 1: There in the light, he inserted an old key into 30 00:02:45,040 --> 00:02:48,400 Speaker 1: the lock. He heard the volt retract and pushed the 31 00:02:48,440 --> 00:02:52,560 Speaker 1: door open. It made a long, creaking sound, as if 32 00:02:52,600 --> 00:02:56,480 Speaker 1: it had been closed for years, a deep, eerie moan 33 00:02:56,600 --> 00:03:00,640 Speaker 1: that echoed inside the darkened foyer, And then he stepped 34 00:03:00,639 --> 00:03:03,680 Speaker 1: into the house just as a cold wind kicked up 35 00:03:03,800 --> 00:03:08,720 Speaker 1: from nearby lockness. Malcolm was here on behalf of led 36 00:03:08,800 --> 00:03:13,559 Speaker 1: Zeppelin guitarist Jimmy Page, who had hired him as caretaker 37 00:03:14,040 --> 00:03:18,720 Speaker 1: upon his purchase of what was known as Bolskinhouse, formerly 38 00:03:18,760 --> 00:03:21,880 Speaker 1: owned by one of the Scottish Highland's most notorious residents, 39 00:03:22,360 --> 00:03:29,279 Speaker 1: the famed occultist Aleister Crowley. It was Jimmy's growing fascination 40 00:03:29,919 --> 00:03:35,240 Speaker 1: some would say obsession with Crowley that led to this purchase. Sure, 41 00:03:35,320 --> 00:03:38,200 Speaker 1: the Beatles had included Crowley's face on the collage cover 42 00:03:38,360 --> 00:03:41,360 Speaker 1: art of Sergeant Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club band, but Jimmy 43 00:03:41,400 --> 00:03:44,520 Speaker 1: Page went one step further. As Jimmy did when it 44 00:03:44,600 --> 00:03:48,120 Speaker 1: came to his obsessions. He bought the creepy dude's thirty 45 00:03:48,120 --> 00:03:53,000 Speaker 1: five acre estate. And now Malcolm here didn't share Jimmy's 46 00:03:53,040 --> 00:03:55,960 Speaker 1: belief in the power of Alistair Crowley or it is 47 00:03:56,000 --> 00:04:00,000 Speaker 1: so called magic, and that's magic with a K understand, 48 00:04:00,080 --> 00:04:05,840 Speaker 1: and so none of that David Copperfield bullshit again magic K. 49 00:04:06,080 --> 00:04:09,280 Speaker 1: I'm talking about the real stuff, the dark stuff, the 50 00:04:09,320 --> 00:04:12,920 Speaker 1: stuff that can change your life if you harness it correctly, 51 00:04:13,840 --> 00:04:17,440 Speaker 1: or so the thinking one. And at first when Malcolm 52 00:04:17,480 --> 00:04:21,080 Speaker 1: walked inside, he wasn't stealing himself for things that went 53 00:04:21,120 --> 00:04:23,880 Speaker 1: bump in the night. He was six foot something, a 54 00:04:23,960 --> 00:04:27,040 Speaker 1: rough hewn London boy. He could hold his own. A 55 00:04:27,120 --> 00:04:30,480 Speaker 1: no bald bow tide long dead boogeyman was going to 56 00:04:30,560 --> 00:04:34,080 Speaker 1: rattle him. Malcolm was just a skeptic fumbling his way 57 00:04:34,080 --> 00:04:37,760 Speaker 1: through the dark. And I mean that literally, because there 58 00:04:37,800 --> 00:04:42,120 Speaker 1: was no working electricity at Bolskine House. In fact, the 59 00:04:42,160 --> 00:04:44,640 Speaker 1: whole place was dilapidated and looked like he could fall 60 00:04:44,680 --> 00:04:48,520 Speaker 1: down at any moment. Malcolm pointed his flashlight to the 61 00:04:48,600 --> 00:04:52,880 Speaker 1: right as another gust rattled the windows. A long, empty 62 00:04:52,960 --> 00:04:56,560 Speaker 1: hallway waited his footsteps, and so he walked until he 63 00:04:56,600 --> 00:05:00,560 Speaker 1: came upon a large dining room, and as he used 64 00:05:00,600 --> 00:05:03,560 Speaker 1: his flashlight to look around, he saw something he'd never 65 00:05:03,600 --> 00:05:07,919 Speaker 1: seen before, at least not in the flesh. There on 66 00:05:07,960 --> 00:05:12,320 Speaker 1: the floor was a large pentagram, hand drawn or maybe 67 00:05:12,400 --> 00:05:16,039 Speaker 1: even carved into the hardwood and enclosed inside a circle 68 00:05:16,440 --> 00:05:22,600 Speaker 1: with a makeshift altar at the center. Malcolm suddenly get 69 00:05:22,600 --> 00:05:26,279 Speaker 1: a feeling he never experienced before. He was confused and 70 00:05:26,360 --> 00:05:29,360 Speaker 1: ill at the same time. It was a feeling of dread. 71 00:05:30,160 --> 00:05:34,440 Speaker 1: His hands began to shake, and then suddenly his flashlight 72 00:05:34,480 --> 00:05:38,400 Speaker 1: went dead. Fucking hell, he muttered, slapping the side of 73 00:05:38,400 --> 00:05:42,400 Speaker 1: the metal casing with the palm of his hand. The 74 00:05:42,440 --> 00:05:46,680 Speaker 1: flashlight sputtered back to life. As it did, Malcolm could 75 00:05:46,680 --> 00:05:51,159 Speaker 1: hear something coming from elsewhere in the house, heavy belabored breathing, 76 00:05:51,760 --> 00:05:56,760 Speaker 1: panting almost and then the panting turned into something else, grawl, 77 00:05:57,200 --> 00:06:00,560 Speaker 1: a snarl, low, and a horse, and then came a 78 00:06:00,600 --> 00:06:04,560 Speaker 1: scratching sound, long nails like talons running up and down 79 00:06:04,600 --> 00:06:08,240 Speaker 1: the length of a wall. Malcolm scanned the room and 80 00:06:08,279 --> 00:06:10,560 Speaker 1: there was nothing else, no one, no one that he 81 00:06:10,560 --> 00:06:16,279 Speaker 1: could see. That is, something was lingering here and he 82 00:06:16,320 --> 00:06:19,640 Speaker 1: certainly couldn't ask Jimmy Page where it was. The city 83 00:06:19,680 --> 00:06:22,680 Speaker 1: of Inverness was over five hundred miles from London, so 84 00:06:22,760 --> 00:06:24,880 Speaker 1: it's not like the guitarist just popped in whenever he 85 00:06:24,920 --> 00:06:28,520 Speaker 1: felt like it. Jimmy bought this place to buy the 86 00:06:28,560 --> 00:06:32,840 Speaker 1: place to feed his obsession, not to live there. And 87 00:06:32,920 --> 00:06:38,280 Speaker 1: again no electricity. There wasn't even a telephone. Damn man. 88 00:06:38,520 --> 00:06:42,400 Speaker 1: Malcolm thought, if only Jimmy were here, he'd be asking 89 00:06:42,440 --> 00:06:45,960 Speaker 1: his boss a lot of questions, because as the scratching 90 00:06:46,000 --> 00:06:50,120 Speaker 1: sound grew louder and closer, Malcolm was beginning to question 91 00:06:50,360 --> 00:06:58,160 Speaker 1: everything he thought he knew. Forty miles south of London, 92 00:06:58,160 --> 00:07:01,640 Speaker 1: in Hampshire, a big, boxy silver van rumbled slowly up 93 00:07:01,640 --> 00:07:04,240 Speaker 1: a the colic country road before coming to a stop 94 00:07:04,279 --> 00:07:07,800 Speaker 1: in front of a large, three story stone building. The 95 00:07:07,880 --> 00:07:12,040 Speaker 1: van housed the Rolling Stone's mobile recording studio, trailing behind 96 00:07:12,080 --> 00:07:15,400 Speaker 1: a few more cars carrying Jimmy Page, Robert Plant, John 97 00:07:15,440 --> 00:07:19,080 Speaker 1: Paul Jones and John Bonham, collectively the group known as 98 00:07:19,200 --> 00:07:22,640 Speaker 1: led Zeppelin. The members of the biggest band in the world, 99 00:07:22,720 --> 00:07:25,679 Speaker 1: stepped from the vehicles, all four of them sporting newly 100 00:07:25,720 --> 00:07:29,680 Speaker 1: grown beards, and gazed up at the impressive English manner 101 00:07:29,760 --> 00:07:34,680 Speaker 1: known as Headley Grange. The place was being swallowed by 102 00:07:34,760 --> 00:07:39,240 Speaker 1: lush green vines, snaking and slithering like the rings of 103 00:07:39,280 --> 00:07:44,080 Speaker 1: a tree. The overgrowth told of Hedley's history, the backbreaking 104 00:07:44,160 --> 00:07:47,040 Speaker 1: toil of the workers who built the house years ago 105 00:07:47,120 --> 00:07:50,520 Speaker 1: in seventeen ninety five, the hordes of the sick and 106 00:07:50,560 --> 00:07:53,920 Speaker 1: the old, for whom it was built, poppers and orphans, 107 00:07:54,160 --> 00:07:57,720 Speaker 1: motherless bastards and other dickenzie and unfortunates who once came 108 00:07:57,760 --> 00:08:03,960 Speaker 1: here seeking refuge, then died here, died as unknowns, as 109 00:08:04,000 --> 00:08:07,520 Speaker 1: the forgotten, the ones who had been cast from society 110 00:08:07,560 --> 00:08:14,360 Speaker 1: and life and now were cursed to hump. Or perhaps 111 00:08:15,040 --> 00:08:17,400 Speaker 1: it was just Jimmy Page who is now thinking of 112 00:08:17,520 --> 00:08:21,720 Speaker 1: these things. Because Jimmy Page got good and giddy when 113 00:08:21,760 --> 00:08:24,600 Speaker 1: he looked up at this place and all it's ruinous glory. 114 00:08:25,560 --> 00:08:28,480 Speaker 1: He could think of nothing more exciting than unleashing his 115 00:08:28,600 --> 00:08:33,320 Speaker 1: band inside such a historic structure, overrun with ghosts of 116 00:08:33,400 --> 00:08:39,439 Speaker 1: centuries past, and that was exactly the plan. Here inside 117 00:08:39,520 --> 00:08:43,320 Speaker 1: the walls of Headley Grange, Zeppelin would rehearse and possibly 118 00:08:43,360 --> 00:08:47,360 Speaker 1: even record songs for their new album, led Zeppelin three. 119 00:08:47,600 --> 00:08:49,920 Speaker 1: You Know, if the Walls could talk and all that. 120 00:08:52,480 --> 00:08:55,520 Speaker 1: Earlier in the year, Jimmy Page and Robert Plant had 121 00:08:55,559 --> 00:08:59,360 Speaker 1: decamped to a place called Bronrh, a remote cottage outside 122 00:08:59,360 --> 00:09:02,280 Speaker 1: a small market town in Wales where Robert used to 123 00:09:02,360 --> 00:09:06,240 Speaker 1: vacation as a child with his family. Inspired by their 124 00:09:06,280 --> 00:09:09,520 Speaker 1: surroundings and far away from the metallic grind of the city, 125 00:09:10,040 --> 00:09:12,760 Speaker 1: this was where Jimmy and Robert first pivoted from the 126 00:09:12,800 --> 00:09:16,800 Speaker 1: heaviness they trafficked in to a more pastoral acoustic sound. 127 00:09:17,520 --> 00:09:19,240 Speaker 1: This is where they wrote many of the songs that 128 00:09:19,280 --> 00:09:23,040 Speaker 1: would make up led Zeppelin III, songs like Friends, Tangerine, 129 00:09:23,400 --> 00:09:27,960 Speaker 1: That's the Way and Naturally veran Rastam. It's also where 130 00:09:27,960 --> 00:09:29,719 Speaker 1: they began to work on songs that would come out 131 00:09:29,760 --> 00:09:32,760 Speaker 1: on future albums, like Over the Hills and Far Away, 132 00:09:33,240 --> 00:09:37,280 Speaker 1: Down by the Seaside and the Rover. They enjoyed it 133 00:09:37,320 --> 00:09:39,680 Speaker 1: so much that they wanted to actually record there with 134 00:09:39,720 --> 00:09:42,600 Speaker 1: the band, but it was too small, So the goal 135 00:09:42,640 --> 00:09:44,760 Speaker 1: became to find a place that could accommodate them all 136 00:09:44,800 --> 00:09:48,600 Speaker 1: but still retain that very specific vibe, and thus, with 137 00:09:48,679 --> 00:09:51,720 Speaker 1: the help of their manager, Peter Grant's secretary, it happened 138 00:09:51,800 --> 00:09:59,120 Speaker 1: upon Henley Grange. Now leaving the white walled, sterile environment 139 00:09:59,200 --> 00:10:02,079 Speaker 1: of a professionals studio for a house in the countryside 140 00:10:02,320 --> 00:10:05,959 Speaker 1: wasn't a new concept for rock bands ever since the 141 00:10:06,080 --> 00:10:09,440 Speaker 1: band hit the scene two years earlier in nineteen sixty 142 00:10:09,440 --> 00:10:12,440 Speaker 1: eight with music from Big Pink, the world of rock 143 00:10:12,480 --> 00:10:16,640 Speaker 1: and roll had pivoted toward a more homegrown, earth bound model. 144 00:10:16,720 --> 00:10:19,760 Speaker 1: But Jimmy Page and Robert Plant and led Zeppelin had 145 00:10:19,760 --> 00:10:22,640 Speaker 1: their own way of doing things. They weren't going on 146 00:10:22,679 --> 00:10:26,199 Speaker 1: a pilgrimage to Woodstock, as George Harrison had, hunting down 147 00:10:26,200 --> 00:10:28,720 Speaker 1: the Bam like a lost soul seeking the hermit's guidance 148 00:10:28,800 --> 00:10:32,760 Speaker 1: on the mountaintop. Jimmy, for one, served as own master. 149 00:10:33,600 --> 00:10:36,960 Speaker 1: Jimmy did what thou wilt. Besides, when it came to 150 00:10:37,000 --> 00:10:40,720 Speaker 1: George Harrison and the Beatles, they were yesterday's news. Led 151 00:10:40,760 --> 00:10:44,080 Speaker 1: Zeppelin had just topped the reader's poll in the UK's 152 00:10:44,240 --> 00:10:48,200 Speaker 1: very influential Melody Maker magazine, the first band in eight 153 00:10:48,320 --> 00:10:52,360 Speaker 1: years to push the Fab four from the number one spot. 154 00:10:53,200 --> 00:10:57,199 Speaker 1: Jimmy threw open Headley's front door almost instantly, he was 155 00:10:57,280 --> 00:11:00,720 Speaker 1: hit with a potent stench, like something at the fermenting 156 00:11:00,760 --> 00:11:04,400 Speaker 1: for decades, and theodor went to Jimmy's head. He was 157 00:11:04,480 --> 00:11:08,640 Speaker 1: drunk on it. Robert ambled in behind him, arching his 158 00:11:08,720 --> 00:11:10,880 Speaker 1: neck and looking to the high ceiling that stretched all 159 00:11:10,920 --> 00:11:14,520 Speaker 1: the way up the winding three floor staircase. With his 160 00:11:14,640 --> 00:11:17,520 Speaker 1: raggedy beard and now this castle of a home to 161 00:11:17,559 --> 00:11:20,480 Speaker 1: make music in, he felt like a character right out 162 00:11:20,480 --> 00:11:24,400 Speaker 1: of Tolkien's Middle Earth. Robert was followed by a Zeppelin's 163 00:11:24,440 --> 00:11:28,760 Speaker 1: rhythm section. Jonesy and Bonzo walked in with these puzzled 164 00:11:28,800 --> 00:11:31,959 Speaker 1: looks on their faces, like here, this is where we're 165 00:11:31,960 --> 00:11:34,520 Speaker 1: going to be hanging out for the next few weeks. 166 00:11:35,600 --> 00:11:39,160 Speaker 1: The place was damp, It was dank. It was lacking 167 00:11:39,200 --> 00:11:41,640 Speaker 1: all the creature comforts that a band like led Zeppelin 168 00:11:41,679 --> 00:11:45,120 Speaker 1: figured they should be indulging in. Bonso had twenty one 169 00:11:45,160 --> 00:11:48,040 Speaker 1: cars for Christ's sakes. For him and for Jonesy, Headly 170 00:11:48,040 --> 00:11:50,480 Speaker 1: looked like some dump you'd squat in when you were 171 00:11:50,520 --> 00:11:54,040 Speaker 1: barely getting by on the come up. But Jimmy Page 172 00:11:54,200 --> 00:11:58,400 Speaker 1: obviously saw something else in the place. He just smiled 173 00:11:58,440 --> 00:12:03,280 Speaker 1: and said, let's get the work voice. Robert nodded, Jonesy 174 00:12:03,280 --> 00:12:06,720 Speaker 1: and Bonzo shrugged their shoulders. Little did any of them 175 00:12:06,760 --> 00:12:09,800 Speaker 1: know that when Jimmy talked about work, he was talking 176 00:12:09,800 --> 00:12:13,600 Speaker 1: about more than just making music. He was talking about 177 00:12:13,679 --> 00:12:18,360 Speaker 1: reviving a spirit that laid dormant inside these walls. Jimmy 178 00:12:18,360 --> 00:12:46,520 Speaker 1: Page was talking about waking something up. The notion of 179 00:12:46,559 --> 00:12:50,600 Speaker 1: a stately house or sprawling manner in the English countryside 180 00:12:50,600 --> 00:12:53,360 Speaker 1: which is very very old, and which also happens to 181 00:12:53,400 --> 00:12:57,640 Speaker 1: be very very haunted, is hardly a novel. One do 182 00:12:57,720 --> 00:13:00,520 Speaker 1: a quick Google search and you'll find more samples of 183 00:13:00,559 --> 00:13:03,360 Speaker 1: haunted houses in the UK. Then you'll know what to 184 00:13:03,440 --> 00:13:06,079 Speaker 1: do with and better yette. I'll just give you a 185 00:13:06,120 --> 00:13:12,160 Speaker 1: few examples. There's Blickling Hall in Norfolk, built in sixteen sixteen, 186 00:13:12,679 --> 00:13:15,920 Speaker 1: where Anne Boleyn, one time Queen of England and the 187 00:13:15,960 --> 00:13:18,920 Speaker 1: second wife of Henry the eighth, still walks around with 188 00:13:19,000 --> 00:13:23,040 Speaker 1: her severed head in her hands. And there's Temple Newsoman 189 00:13:23,320 --> 00:13:26,240 Speaker 1: in West Yorkshire, where he can still hear the screams 190 00:13:26,240 --> 00:13:29,120 Speaker 1: of a nursemaid who was suffocated to death by a 191 00:13:29,120 --> 00:13:33,360 Speaker 1: fellow servant in seventeen oh four. And then there's Little 192 00:13:33,360 --> 00:13:37,240 Speaker 1: Cot House in Berkshire, where a midwife witnessed the murder 193 00:13:37,280 --> 00:13:40,760 Speaker 1: of a baby in fifteen seventy five, and where that 194 00:13:40,880 --> 00:13:43,360 Speaker 1: same midwife can now be seen as a phantom who 195 00:13:43,360 --> 00:13:45,720 Speaker 1: sits in the corner of one of the house's bedrooms, 196 00:13:46,240 --> 00:13:52,760 Speaker 1: rocking an infant against her breasts. This was the tradition 197 00:13:52,920 --> 00:13:55,560 Speaker 1: Jimmy Page was buying into when he moved his band 198 00:13:55,640 --> 00:13:58,040 Speaker 1: out to Headley Grange for sessions in the middle of 199 00:13:58,120 --> 00:14:02,000 Speaker 1: nineteen seventy, and while Jonesy and Bonzo never really warmed 200 00:14:02,080 --> 00:14:05,360 Speaker 1: up to the place, Headley's charms did factor into the 201 00:14:05,400 --> 00:14:09,560 Speaker 1: early stages of great new songs like Immigrant Song, Gallows 202 00:14:09,600 --> 00:14:12,480 Speaker 1: Pole and Out on the Tiles, just to name a 203 00:14:12,520 --> 00:14:15,320 Speaker 1: few of the things they started working on there. But 204 00:14:15,440 --> 00:14:19,280 Speaker 1: before long the urban heads prevailed and the band quickly 205 00:14:19,320 --> 00:14:22,520 Speaker 1: returned to London, where they finished making the album at 206 00:14:22,560 --> 00:14:28,400 Speaker 1: a studio on Basing Street owned by Island Records. When 207 00:14:28,440 --> 00:14:31,640 Speaker 1: Led Zeppelin three was released in October of nineteen seventy, 208 00:14:32,160 --> 00:14:36,000 Speaker 1: many Zeppelin fans focused on Jimmy Page's wizard like production techniques, 209 00:14:36,040 --> 00:14:40,440 Speaker 1: which now included experimental bits of tape echo fly on 210 00:14:40,480 --> 00:14:43,920 Speaker 1: the Wall segues between songs in a blend of electric 211 00:14:44,000 --> 00:14:48,640 Speaker 1: and acoustic instrumentation that masterfully fused the darkness with the light. 212 00:14:49,360 --> 00:14:53,200 Speaker 1: But just as many complained that beyond Immigrant Song, the 213 00:14:53,240 --> 00:14:56,000 Speaker 1: record was lacking in the kind of meat and potato 214 00:14:56,080 --> 00:14:58,440 Speaker 1: rock and roll that their first two albums served up, 215 00:14:59,160 --> 00:15:02,160 Speaker 1: that the boys had gone soft with all that bearded 216 00:15:02,200 --> 00:15:07,040 Speaker 1: folky bullshit. Jimmy Page, on the other hand, saw Zeppelin 217 00:15:07,120 --> 00:15:11,400 Speaker 1: three as a creative success. It proved that in the 218 00:15:11,480 --> 00:15:15,240 Speaker 1: right environment, Led Zeppelin could pull powerful music out of 219 00:15:15,320 --> 00:15:19,680 Speaker 1: thin air. To his ears, the new song sounded better 220 00:15:19,720 --> 00:15:23,040 Speaker 1: than anything they'd ever recorded in a London studio alone, 221 00:15:24,600 --> 00:15:28,760 Speaker 1: and so just a few months later, Jimmy Page convinced 222 00:15:28,800 --> 00:15:31,400 Speaker 1: the band to return to Headley Grange, where he was 223 00:15:31,440 --> 00:15:36,080 Speaker 1: convinced they would make the biggest, most impactful musical statement 224 00:15:36,480 --> 00:15:42,800 Speaker 1: of their career. January nineteen seventy one, at least a 225 00:15:42,840 --> 00:15:46,040 Speaker 1: dozen cables streamed out of the Rolling Stones mobile recording van. 226 00:15:46,760 --> 00:15:49,200 Speaker 1: They threaded across the ground and snaked through one of 227 00:15:49,240 --> 00:15:52,520 Speaker 1: Headley Grange's open windows. All the way into the lobby 228 00:15:52,640 --> 00:15:56,880 Speaker 1: where John Bonham's drum kit was set up. Outside it 229 00:15:57,000 --> 00:16:01,280 Speaker 1: was cold. Inside Headley it was cold, and inside the 230 00:16:01,360 --> 00:16:06,960 Speaker 1: rolling Stones van was also cold. Audio engineer Andy john 231 00:16:07,080 --> 00:16:09,880 Speaker 1: sat in the back of the van, shivering, trying in 232 00:16:10,000 --> 00:16:12,160 Speaker 1: vain to stay warm, while listening on a pair of 233 00:16:12,200 --> 00:16:15,560 Speaker 1: headphones to John Bonham laying down the drum track to 234 00:16:15,600 --> 00:16:20,480 Speaker 1: when the levee breaks. Beginning in Headley's lobby, a large 235 00:16:20,520 --> 00:16:23,320 Speaker 1: staircase wrapped all the way up to the third floor, 236 00:16:23,880 --> 00:16:26,120 Speaker 1: which meant that the ceiling of this particular part of 237 00:16:26,160 --> 00:16:29,520 Speaker 1: the house was three stories high. When a musician says 238 00:16:29,560 --> 00:16:32,880 Speaker 1: that a room has great acoustics, this is the kind 239 00:16:32,920 --> 00:16:36,320 Speaker 1: of thing they're talking about. Two microphones hung from the 240 00:16:36,440 --> 00:16:40,800 Speaker 1: railing on the second floor, dangling above Bonzo's kit. The 241 00:16:40,880 --> 00:16:46,200 Speaker 1: sound of the drums was huge. Back in the van, 242 00:16:46,800 --> 00:16:50,040 Speaker 1: Andy Johns gave that sound a boost. He ran the 243 00:16:50,080 --> 00:16:53,720 Speaker 1: signal through a Binson echo wreck, an old delay effects unit, 244 00:16:54,400 --> 00:16:57,480 Speaker 1: and this is what gives Bonzos drums that slapback sound 245 00:16:57,560 --> 00:17:01,400 Speaker 1: on when the levee breaks. But the fatality of this 246 00:17:01,520 --> 00:17:04,560 Speaker 1: sound of one of the greatest drum tracks of all 247 00:17:04,680 --> 00:17:08,040 Speaker 1: time the environment in which it was recorded, and how 248 00:17:08,040 --> 00:17:12,080 Speaker 1: it was recorded. You couldn't replicate that in some antiseptic 249 00:17:12,160 --> 00:17:15,320 Speaker 1: recording studio back in London. You had to create it 250 00:17:15,720 --> 00:17:19,119 Speaker 1: here in a busted old building that was cold and 251 00:17:19,240 --> 00:17:24,879 Speaker 1: damp and creepy. And that night Andy John's got his 252 00:17:24,920 --> 00:17:32,359 Speaker 1: first taste of creepy. The day's session had gone extremely well, 253 00:17:32,880 --> 00:17:35,000 Speaker 1: and by the looks of the empty bottles littered all 254 00:17:35,040 --> 00:17:38,680 Speaker 1: over the floor, the after party had gone well too. 255 00:17:38,880 --> 00:17:42,000 Speaker 1: In just a few hours, the sun would be up. Andy, 256 00:17:42,080 --> 00:17:44,200 Speaker 1: like everyone else, was dead asleep in one of the 257 00:17:44,240 --> 00:17:47,480 Speaker 1: bedrooms until he was jolted awake by a loud dud. 258 00:17:49,320 --> 00:17:52,600 Speaker 1: He propped himself up on his elbows, his hair a mess, 259 00:17:52,800 --> 00:17:56,800 Speaker 1: his eyelids weighing a ton, and then he heard it. 260 00:17:58,080 --> 00:18:02,040 Speaker 1: The sound of furniture moved around the room directly above him, 261 00:18:02,160 --> 00:18:09,399 Speaker 1: heavy furniture, slow deliberate scrapes. Then the sound stopped. Andy 262 00:18:09,400 --> 00:18:12,760 Speaker 1: sat up straight, and for a moment all he could 263 00:18:12,800 --> 00:18:14,760 Speaker 1: hear was the ringing in his ears from that day's 264 00:18:14,800 --> 00:18:20,080 Speaker 1: recording session. And suddenly the noise upstairs started again, and 265 00:18:20,200 --> 00:18:24,320 Speaker 1: this time louder and faster than before. Andy shot out 266 00:18:24,320 --> 00:18:26,800 Speaker 1: of bed, ran out of his room and bounded up 267 00:18:26,840 --> 00:18:29,200 Speaker 1: the stairs, busting through the door of the room directly 268 00:18:29,240 --> 00:18:38,080 Speaker 1: above his hand. Nothing. The room was completely empty, no furniture, 269 00:18:38,880 --> 00:18:44,160 Speaker 1: not even a single chair. The next morning, over cups 270 00:18:44,200 --> 00:18:47,200 Speaker 1: of hot tea, Andy told the band about the strange 271 00:18:47,200 --> 00:18:50,040 Speaker 1: sounds he'd heard in the middle of the night. Robert 272 00:18:50,080 --> 00:18:53,480 Speaker 1: listened with great interest, and Jonesy was silent, taking it 273 00:18:53,520 --> 00:18:57,040 Speaker 1: all in, and Jimmy just sat back, smiling and nodding 274 00:18:57,040 --> 00:19:02,120 Speaker 1: his head. But John Bonham was aside himself because he'd 275 00:19:02,200 --> 00:19:06,280 Speaker 1: hurt things too. Someone breathing in the corner of his room, 276 00:19:06,480 --> 00:19:08,840 Speaker 1: and no, it wasn't the creaking of an old house 277 00:19:09,320 --> 00:19:12,120 Speaker 1: or the wind or whatever the fuck. Instead, all night 278 00:19:12,200 --> 00:19:17,480 Speaker 1: long there was this deep inhale exhale of another person, 279 00:19:18,320 --> 00:19:21,840 Speaker 1: but there was no one there, and it freaked Bonzo out. 280 00:19:22,440 --> 00:19:26,080 Speaker 1: And Bonzo, being the hulking giant that he was, wasn't 281 00:19:26,080 --> 00:19:29,159 Speaker 1: one to get freaked out easily. He was going to 282 00:19:29,240 --> 00:19:32,560 Speaker 1: sleep downstairs from now on, even if that meant sleeping 283 00:19:32,560 --> 00:19:37,560 Speaker 1: on the floor. Jimmy, on the other hand, wasn't interested 284 00:19:37,600 --> 00:19:42,680 Speaker 1: in sleeping. Hedley didn't make him uneasy, quite the opposite. Actually, 285 00:19:43,359 --> 00:19:46,560 Speaker 1: the energy here got him high. He grabbed his harmony 286 00:19:46,600 --> 00:19:49,680 Speaker 1: acoustic guitar and wandered off to the quiet parts of 287 00:19:49,720 --> 00:19:53,959 Speaker 1: the house. He sat cross legged in cold, unlit rooms 288 00:19:54,000 --> 00:19:58,440 Speaker 1: and messed around with different tunings. He paced hallways while 289 00:19:58,480 --> 00:20:02,040 Speaker 1: strumming new cord patterns. Then he listened as the sound 290 00:20:02,119 --> 00:20:05,000 Speaker 1: from his instrument bounced off the walls and returned to 291 00:20:05,119 --> 00:20:09,480 Speaker 1: his ears. The sounds spoke to him, And then one 292 00:20:09,520 --> 00:20:15,600 Speaker 1: afternoon it happened. Jimmy was in Headley's sitting room, seated 293 00:20:15,640 --> 00:20:18,919 Speaker 1: on a chair next to the fireplace. The boiler in 294 00:20:18,960 --> 00:20:21,800 Speaker 1: the house no longer worked, so this was the only 295 00:20:21,840 --> 00:20:25,000 Speaker 1: way to keep warm. When the fire crackled as Jimmy 296 00:20:25,040 --> 00:20:28,840 Speaker 1: fingerpicked a new chord progression, it was a whining, hypnotic 297 00:20:28,920 --> 00:20:32,359 Speaker 1: ladder of notes, and it inspired Robert, who was sitting 298 00:20:32,359 --> 00:20:36,520 Speaker 1: next to him and began scribbling lyrics in a notebook. Later, 299 00:20:36,720 --> 00:20:39,119 Speaker 1: Robert would say that it was like he wasn't writing 300 00:20:39,119 --> 00:20:43,760 Speaker 1: the words himself, he was the vessel someone or something 301 00:20:44,160 --> 00:20:50,879 Speaker 1: was writing through him. Right then, the fire popped, the 302 00:20:51,000 --> 00:20:54,520 Speaker 1: log shifted, collapsing inward, and set the spray of red 303 00:20:54,560 --> 00:20:58,119 Speaker 1: sparks into the air. Jimmy didn't look up from his guitar, 304 00:20:58,640 --> 00:21:01,720 Speaker 1: and Robert kept writing and by the time the fire 305 00:21:01,840 --> 00:21:09,320 Speaker 1: died down, the song Stairway to Heaven was readied. Weeks later, 306 00:21:09,840 --> 00:21:13,240 Speaker 1: led Zeppelin was back at the studio in London recording 307 00:21:13,280 --> 00:21:15,800 Speaker 1: some final overdubs for the album that fans would come 308 00:21:15,840 --> 00:21:19,760 Speaker 1: to know as a led Zeppelin four. This included Jimmy's 309 00:21:19,760 --> 00:21:23,480 Speaker 1: now iconic guitar solo for Stairway, which he played while 310 00:21:23,560 --> 00:21:27,679 Speaker 1: leaning against a speaker, no headphones on, just playback at 311 00:21:27,800 --> 00:21:32,360 Speaker 1: full blast, his body absorbing every sound while a cigarette 312 00:21:32,440 --> 00:21:36,600 Speaker 1: smoldered in the headstalk of his Dragon telecaster. I just 313 00:21:36,640 --> 00:21:41,560 Speaker 1: winged that solo, really, Jimmy said, Only Jimmy Page could 314 00:21:41,600 --> 00:21:44,960 Speaker 1: wing a solo like that, A solo that unfolded like 315 00:21:45,000 --> 00:21:47,919 Speaker 1: a good book or a good movie, one that had 316 00:21:47,960 --> 00:21:52,320 Speaker 1: a beginning, a middle, and an end, very definitive, super dramatic, 317 00:21:52,840 --> 00:21:55,200 Speaker 1: far out and locked in at the same time, one 318 00:21:55,240 --> 00:21:57,600 Speaker 1: that sounded like it had lived inside of him and 319 00:21:57,640 --> 00:22:03,399 Speaker 1: then escaped and changed everything around him, just like he'd 320 00:22:03,440 --> 00:22:08,120 Speaker 1: lived inside Hedley Grange and changed it. And the next 321 00:22:08,119 --> 00:22:10,920 Speaker 1: time Jimmy went back to that place, it was more 322 00:22:10,960 --> 00:22:15,000 Speaker 1: than obvious that the old house had changed too. In fact, 323 00:22:15,600 --> 00:22:25,240 Speaker 1: it had learned something new. We'll be right back after this, 324 00:22:25,480 --> 00:22:45,920 Speaker 1: We're We're Where. In November of nineteen seventy three, exactly 325 00:22:45,960 --> 00:22:49,680 Speaker 1: two years after it was originally released, Led Zeppelin four, 326 00:22:50,080 --> 00:22:53,679 Speaker 1: the album with Stairway to Heaven as its centerpiece, was 327 00:22:53,840 --> 00:22:57,920 Speaker 1: still riding high on the charts, as was its successor, 328 00:22:58,200 --> 00:23:01,280 Speaker 1: the most excellent Houses of the Holy, which had been 329 00:23:01,320 --> 00:23:06,359 Speaker 1: released just months earlier in seventy three. As usual, it 330 00:23:06,400 --> 00:23:09,080 Speaker 1: didn't matter if a writer for Rolling Stone called Houses 331 00:23:09,119 --> 00:23:11,560 Speaker 1: of the Holy quote one of the dullest and most 332 00:23:11,600 --> 00:23:15,840 Speaker 1: confusing albums I've heard this year unquote, which they one 333 00:23:16,560 --> 00:23:19,840 Speaker 1: did say, can you fucking believe that the song remains 334 00:23:19,880 --> 00:23:23,800 Speaker 1: the same the rain song, over the freakin' hills and 335 00:23:23,920 --> 00:23:28,400 Speaker 1: far away? Dull and confusing? None of it mattered because 336 00:23:28,440 --> 00:23:32,680 Speaker 1: Led Zeppelin were untouchable. Zeppelin where Reggie Jackson and Pete 337 00:23:32,760 --> 00:23:37,120 Speaker 1: Rose combined, untouchable, and to continue with the sports metaphor, 338 00:23:37,520 --> 00:23:40,720 Speaker 1: the same year, they played shows in ballparks and football 339 00:23:40,760 --> 00:23:43,439 Speaker 1: stadiums on a godlike scale. I'm talking about shows like 340 00:23:43,440 --> 00:23:45,680 Speaker 1: the one in Tampa, Florida, where they played for over 341 00:23:45,760 --> 00:23:49,120 Speaker 1: fifty six thousand people and raked in over three hundred grand, 342 00:23:49,119 --> 00:23:52,560 Speaker 1: which at the time was the single most profitable performance 343 00:23:52,880 --> 00:23:57,119 Speaker 1: in the history of show business, steamrolling a record previously 344 00:23:57,160 --> 00:24:02,480 Speaker 1: held by the Beatles, and were rock and roll gods, 345 00:24:02,640 --> 00:24:05,680 Speaker 1: and they were bringing the hammer down night after night. 346 00:24:06,280 --> 00:24:09,520 Speaker 1: And a big part of this unprecedented success, as Jimmy 347 00:24:09,520 --> 00:24:13,359 Speaker 1: Page saw it, was their unorthodox decision to continue to 348 00:24:13,400 --> 00:24:20,040 Speaker 1: go back to the well at Headley Grange. But when 349 00:24:20,040 --> 00:24:23,080 Speaker 1: they returned in the spring of nineteen seventy four to 350 00:24:23,160 --> 00:24:26,439 Speaker 1: begin work on their sixth studio album, none of them 351 00:24:26,520 --> 00:24:30,480 Speaker 1: knew it would be their final visit. Robert, Jonesy and 352 00:24:30,560 --> 00:24:34,280 Speaker 1: Bonzo did know that this time would be different, and 353 00:24:34,320 --> 00:24:36,800 Speaker 1: then all three of them refused to stay at Headley 354 00:24:36,840 --> 00:24:40,960 Speaker 1: Grange anymore. The place was deteriorating worse than ever, and 355 00:24:41,080 --> 00:24:45,119 Speaker 1: the vines outside were thicker. The dampness was now wetness. 356 00:24:45,440 --> 00:24:50,400 Speaker 1: It smelled of slimy stone and rotten and plus Bonzo 357 00:24:50,480 --> 00:24:55,560 Speaker 1: wasn't fucking around anymore with disembodied breathing. So while the 358 00:24:55,600 --> 00:24:58,119 Speaker 1: three of them checked into the Posh Friends and Pond 359 00:24:58,160 --> 00:25:02,040 Speaker 1: Hotel and spa three mile up the road, Jimmy held 360 00:25:02,080 --> 00:25:07,000 Speaker 1: down the ford at Headley alone, and by day the 361 00:25:07,080 --> 00:25:10,560 Speaker 1: quartet tracked the new record by tapping into that magic 362 00:25:11,000 --> 00:25:14,080 Speaker 1: magic were the k the telepathic bond that made them 363 00:25:14,119 --> 00:25:17,200 Speaker 1: who they were, that made them better and more successful 364 00:25:17,359 --> 00:25:20,160 Speaker 1: than all the rest of the bands, a bond strengthened 365 00:25:20,200 --> 00:25:23,639 Speaker 1: and driven by whatever spirit Jimmy Page had revived up 366 00:25:23,640 --> 00:25:28,160 Speaker 1: there at Headley Grange. The songs kept coming. Custard Pie 367 00:25:28,280 --> 00:25:32,160 Speaker 1: in the Light, trampled under foot, Cashmere and by night 368 00:25:32,760 --> 00:25:36,520 Speaker 1: Robert Plant, John Paul Jones and John Bonham. They packed up, 369 00:25:36,800 --> 00:25:40,439 Speaker 1: leaving Jimmy Page to his own devices at Headley, and 370 00:25:40,560 --> 00:25:47,840 Speaker 1: that's when the house really started to come alive. You 371 00:25:47,920 --> 00:25:51,280 Speaker 1: hear it first on the wind, not unlike the wind 372 00:25:51,280 --> 00:25:53,720 Speaker 1: that blows in off lockness at your placed in the 373 00:25:53,760 --> 00:25:57,359 Speaker 1: Scottish Highlands, where Malcolm Dent is learning to live with 374 00:25:57,440 --> 00:26:01,600 Speaker 1: the things that the naked eye can't see. Long, low 375 00:26:01,800 --> 00:26:05,440 Speaker 1: moans drift from the hall upstairs, and then you hear 376 00:26:05,440 --> 00:26:10,639 Speaker 1: footsteps and they're slow, pacing back and forth, like someone 377 00:26:10,720 --> 00:26:15,000 Speaker 1: is walking a guard shift. You grab not a flashlight 378 00:26:15,480 --> 00:26:18,920 Speaker 1: but a candle, because it fits your mood, it fits 379 00:26:19,320 --> 00:26:23,919 Speaker 1: Headly's mood. You light it and walk, guided by the 380 00:26:23,920 --> 00:26:27,200 Speaker 1: flickering light, from the sitting room over to the lobby 381 00:26:27,560 --> 00:26:32,680 Speaker 1: to that big winding staircase once you heard Bonzo playing 382 00:26:32,720 --> 00:26:35,400 Speaker 1: the shit out of the drums right here, and now 383 00:26:35,480 --> 00:26:42,600 Speaker 1: you just hear the house. Then up ahead, look there, 384 00:26:42,600 --> 00:26:45,680 Speaker 1: going up the stairs to the second floor, you see it, 385 00:26:45,800 --> 00:26:50,720 Speaker 1: a tall, thin figure, a gray man, shimmering and translucent. 386 00:26:51,520 --> 00:26:55,200 Speaker 1: You can feel it beckoning you, calling to you. If 387 00:26:55,240 --> 00:26:58,520 Speaker 1: it's speaking, it's not a language that you can understand, 388 00:26:58,560 --> 00:27:02,719 Speaker 1: but you can make out the intent. It's set telepathy 389 00:27:03,480 --> 00:27:07,840 Speaker 1: magic with that big king. He pulls you and you follow, 390 00:27:08,359 --> 00:27:11,520 Speaker 1: the flame on top of your candle, nearly extinguishing as 391 00:27:11,560 --> 00:27:14,440 Speaker 1: you hustle up the first flight of stairs. You get 392 00:27:14,440 --> 00:27:18,679 Speaker 1: to the top and keep following the gray man ahead, 393 00:27:18,720 --> 00:27:21,000 Speaker 1: coming in and out of focus, stucking into that room 394 00:27:21,000 --> 00:27:25,280 Speaker 1: that Andy John's investigated years ago, the one from which 395 00:27:25,400 --> 00:27:28,199 Speaker 1: loud noises arose in the middle of the night, but 396 00:27:28,280 --> 00:27:32,879 Speaker 1: where there was nothing, well, one man's nothing being another 397 00:27:32,920 --> 00:27:36,680 Speaker 1: man's everything. You follow in the gray man's footsteps, and 398 00:27:36,760 --> 00:27:39,520 Speaker 1: the flame in your hand burning brighter and hotter now, 399 00:27:40,240 --> 00:27:42,920 Speaker 1: and then as you pass through the threshold, the door 400 00:27:43,040 --> 00:27:53,159 Speaker 1: slams shut behind you. Audio engineer ron Nevison arrived at 401 00:27:53,160 --> 00:27:57,240 Speaker 1: Headley Grange early the next morning outside the mobile recording 402 00:27:57,320 --> 00:28:00,240 Speaker 1: van owned by Ronnie Lane, former bass player for the 403 00:28:00,240 --> 00:28:03,320 Speaker 1: Small Faces, and then just the Faces was ready to 404 00:28:03,400 --> 00:28:06,199 Speaker 1: roll tape. The rest of the band wasn't due in 405 00:28:06,280 --> 00:28:09,800 Speaker 1: for a little longer, so Ron found Jimmy still alone, 406 00:28:10,240 --> 00:28:14,200 Speaker 1: moving microphones around in the dining room. Ron greeted Jimmy 407 00:28:14,200 --> 00:28:16,879 Speaker 1: good morning, and then his attention was driven to the floor, 408 00:28:16,920 --> 00:28:22,800 Speaker 1: where he could see the chalk markings geometric, deliberate circles 409 00:28:22,800 --> 00:28:27,399 Speaker 1: and intersecting lines. What's that, Ron asked, pointing at the 410 00:28:27,400 --> 00:28:32,119 Speaker 1: spot on the floor. Jimmy grinned Mike placement. He said, 411 00:28:32,480 --> 00:28:37,800 Speaker 1: gotta it sound right, Mike placement. Ron thought patterns seemed 412 00:28:38,400 --> 00:28:44,360 Speaker 1: too intricate for that sort of thing, too intentional. Weeks later, 413 00:28:45,080 --> 00:28:48,320 Speaker 1: Ron had forgotten all about it. Led Zeppelin packed up 414 00:28:48,360 --> 00:28:51,080 Speaker 1: and left with eight songs in the can for what 415 00:28:51,160 --> 00:28:56,040 Speaker 1: would become their fifteen track double album, Physical Graffiti. And 416 00:28:56,120 --> 00:28:59,320 Speaker 1: as I said earlier, they never went to Headley Grange again. 417 00:29:00,200 --> 00:29:04,480 Speaker 1: But the ghost stories didn't stop. In fact, they multiplied, 418 00:29:05,240 --> 00:29:09,320 Speaker 1: and the question became not is Headley Grange haunted? The 419 00:29:09,440 --> 00:29:31,880 Speaker 1: question was Headley Grange was haunted by what? Before we 420 00:29:31,880 --> 00:29:34,360 Speaker 1: get into the rest of this Headley Grange story earlier 421 00:29:34,440 --> 00:29:36,800 Speaker 1: in this episode, you might have heard me talking about 422 00:29:36,840 --> 00:29:41,120 Speaker 1: Malcolm Dent, the caretaker for Jimmy Page's Bolskinhouse in Scotland. 423 00:29:41,560 --> 00:29:44,160 Speaker 1: We included that scene here to set up the general 424 00:29:44,200 --> 00:29:47,160 Speaker 1: themes in our bigger story in this full episode that 425 00:29:47,200 --> 00:29:50,480 Speaker 1: you're listening to now about Headley Grange. However, if you 426 00:29:50,520 --> 00:29:51,920 Speaker 1: want to hear more on this, if you want to 427 00:29:51,960 --> 00:29:54,680 Speaker 1: hear the rest of the creepy story about what Malcolm 428 00:29:54,760 --> 00:29:59,040 Speaker 1: Dent saw and heard during his time at Jimmy Page's Bolskinhouse, 429 00:29:59,120 --> 00:30:03,720 Speaker 1: the place formerly owned by occultist Alistair Crawley, you can 430 00:30:03,800 --> 00:30:07,560 Speaker 1: hear that entire story in a brand new mini episode 431 00:30:07,600 --> 00:30:11,240 Speaker 1: of Disgraceland, which is easily available for our All Access 432 00:30:11,240 --> 00:30:14,160 Speaker 1: members to go to disgrace sampod dot com slash membership 433 00:30:14,200 --> 00:30:17,800 Speaker 1: to sign up with Patreon or Apple Podcasts. That's to 434 00:30:17,840 --> 00:30:21,640 Speaker 1: hear the rest of that led Zeppelin, Malcolm Dent, Alistair 435 00:30:21,680 --> 00:30:26,760 Speaker 1: Crowley Bullskinhouse story. All right, however, this story about led 436 00:30:26,800 --> 00:30:31,080 Speaker 1: Zeppelin and Headley Grange, let's get right back into it. 437 00:30:34,240 --> 00:30:34,600 Speaker 1: I'm going to. 438 00:30:34,640 --> 00:30:36,920 Speaker 3: Fast forward now and you can kind of get a 439 00:30:36,920 --> 00:30:39,840 Speaker 3: feel for the song. Very mellow, you know, almost pretty 440 00:30:40,160 --> 00:30:41,600 Speaker 3: very interesting guitar. 441 00:30:41,720 --> 00:30:46,600 Speaker 1: I noticed one little phrase here, because you know, sometimes 442 00:30:46,760 --> 00:30:48,920 Speaker 1: words have two meanings. 443 00:30:49,160 --> 00:30:51,320 Speaker 3: That's in the second verse there that really caught my 444 00:30:51,800 --> 00:30:54,800 Speaker 3: and I thank you. You know, we've proved that tonight 445 00:30:55,160 --> 00:30:58,720 Speaker 3: Revolution number nine, number nine has sisterning on dead man backwards, 446 00:30:59,080 --> 00:31:02,240 Speaker 3: two meanings. Other pieces in here. There's a feeling I 447 00:31:02,240 --> 00:31:05,200 Speaker 3: get when I look to the west, and in medieval times, 448 00:31:05,200 --> 00:31:06,560 Speaker 3: the west was the direction of hell. 449 00:31:08,520 --> 00:31:13,360 Speaker 1: All right, now play this backwards, right, I've. 450 00:31:13,240 --> 00:31:15,840 Speaker 3: Actually taken the exact piece of tape that you just 451 00:31:15,880 --> 00:31:18,240 Speaker 3: heard it off of. I reverse thread the machine and 452 00:31:18,280 --> 00:31:25,680 Speaker 3: I'm gonna play that exact piece of tape backwards. Now, yeah, Bana, 453 00:31:26,200 --> 00:31:26,760 Speaker 3: you've done it. 454 00:31:27,000 --> 00:31:36,040 Speaker 1: Well, I'll get it. That was him. You're here, ns. 455 00:31:36,440 --> 00:31:38,760 Speaker 3: Well, I'm here as they're play putting in Acia. 456 00:31:40,680 --> 00:31:44,480 Speaker 1: What you just heard was actual audio from Christian televangelists 457 00:31:44,520 --> 00:31:47,480 Speaker 1: in nineteen eighty two, who painstakingly proved to their own 458 00:31:47,520 --> 00:31:51,840 Speaker 1: satisfaction at least, that, when played backwards, led Zeppelin's Stairway 459 00:31:51,880 --> 00:31:56,920 Speaker 1: to Heaven revealed hidden Satanic messages, most striking among them 460 00:31:57,000 --> 00:32:02,200 Speaker 1: being the phrase my sweet seat. Of course, this is 461 00:32:02,600 --> 00:32:07,120 Speaker 1: utterly preposterous. The only thing that playing Stairway backwards truly 462 00:32:07,160 --> 00:32:10,840 Speaker 1: reveals is that Jimmy Page's guitar solo was fucking badass, 463 00:32:10,880 --> 00:32:14,640 Speaker 1: even in reverse. But it's objectively laughable to think that 464 00:32:14,720 --> 00:32:18,320 Speaker 1: led Zeppelin planned out all this subversive backwards speak on 465 00:32:18,320 --> 00:32:21,880 Speaker 1: one of their biggest hits. However, I am also in 466 00:32:21,880 --> 00:32:25,120 Speaker 1: no way saying that Jimmy Page was not creating music 467 00:32:25,160 --> 00:32:27,920 Speaker 1: in the nineteen seventies while under the spell of some 468 00:32:27,960 --> 00:32:31,600 Speaker 1: weird occult shit, because well, just ask Kenneth Anger and 469 00:32:31,720 --> 00:32:36,280 Speaker 1: he'll do the debunking for us now. Kenneth Anger, an 470 00:32:36,320 --> 00:32:40,440 Speaker 1: alevant garde filmmaker and fellow Alistair Crowley Obsessive, a guy 471 00:32:40,480 --> 00:32:44,080 Speaker 1: who had Lucifer tattooed across his chest, once said this 472 00:32:44,120 --> 00:32:47,240 Speaker 1: about Jimmy Page and the occult, and I quote, Jimmy 473 00:32:47,320 --> 00:32:49,600 Speaker 1: was just a dabbler, a rich kid who liked to 474 00:32:49,640 --> 00:32:53,440 Speaker 1: play dress up, and hey, what do you know, Jimmy 475 00:32:53,480 --> 00:32:57,120 Speaker 1: Page agreed. In twenty seventeen, during a live Q and 476 00:32:57,200 --> 00:33:00,320 Speaker 1: A at the Oxford Union, a student asked Jimmy about 477 00:33:00,360 --> 00:33:03,760 Speaker 1: his involvement in the occult, and Jimmy's response downplayed the 478 00:33:03,760 --> 00:33:07,120 Speaker 1: whole thing. He said he was merely interested in Eastern 479 00:33:07,160 --> 00:33:09,800 Speaker 1: and Western mysticism as a young man and so he 480 00:33:09,840 --> 00:33:12,640 Speaker 1: read a couple books about it, No big Deal, which 481 00:33:12,760 --> 00:33:16,080 Speaker 1: is a slightly calmer reaction to that question. Then he 482 00:33:16,120 --> 00:33:19,440 Speaker 1: gave to the writer Chuck Klosterman, who profiled Jimmy for 483 00:33:19,480 --> 00:33:25,240 Speaker 1: GQ magazine three years earlier in twenty fourteen, clostera quote, 484 00:33:25,520 --> 00:33:28,680 Speaker 1: was your interest in the occult authentic? Did you ever 485 00:33:28,760 --> 00:33:34,080 Speaker 1: actually attempt magic? Jimmy, Well, we can finish the interview 486 00:33:34,080 --> 00:33:37,680 Speaker 1: with me saying I won't answer that question. So that 487 00:33:37,680 --> 00:33:40,760 Speaker 1: brings me to another quote, this one by journalist Nick Kent, 488 00:33:41,040 --> 00:33:44,680 Speaker 1: who once said Jimmy Page is very contained. He's always 489 00:33:44,840 --> 00:33:47,640 Speaker 1: editing himself, and inevitably most of what comes out of 490 00:33:47,640 --> 00:33:54,280 Speaker 1: his mouth is very guarded, like he's got something to hide. 491 00:33:54,360 --> 00:33:58,240 Speaker 1: Back in nineteen seventy four, after Zeppelin vacated the premises 492 00:33:58,320 --> 00:34:02,120 Speaker 1: to Headley Grange, the band Genesis moved in. This was 493 00:34:02,160 --> 00:34:04,600 Speaker 1: when Peter Gabriel was still the lead singer with the 494 00:34:04,600 --> 00:34:08,280 Speaker 1: weird reverse mohawk, and Phil Collins was still only the drummer, 495 00:34:08,840 --> 00:34:11,000 Speaker 1: and they were there to rehearse material for what would 496 00:34:11,000 --> 00:34:13,919 Speaker 1: become their classic prog rock double album, The Lamb Lies 497 00:34:13,960 --> 00:34:19,280 Speaker 1: Down on Broadway at Headley Grange, Phil Collins couldn't sleep 498 00:34:19,360 --> 00:34:22,799 Speaker 1: a wink all night long. He'd listened to the footsteps 499 00:34:22,800 --> 00:34:25,959 Speaker 1: of people who weren't there, and he smoked so much 500 00:34:26,239 --> 00:34:29,439 Speaker 1: he refused to close his eyes. I don't know, Maybe 501 00:34:29,480 --> 00:34:32,840 Speaker 1: drummers are easily freaked out or something. Anyway, Peter Gabriel 502 00:34:32,920 --> 00:34:36,240 Speaker 1: heard those footsteps too, and whenever he'd leave a room 503 00:34:36,440 --> 00:34:39,120 Speaker 1: and then return a short time later, he'd find that 504 00:34:39,200 --> 00:34:44,560 Speaker 1: the furniture had all been rearranged. Now before arriving there, 505 00:34:45,120 --> 00:34:48,400 Speaker 1: Peter Gabriel and Phil Collins and the Guys and Genesis 506 00:34:48,400 --> 00:34:51,040 Speaker 1: had been told that the place was haunted after all. 507 00:34:51,400 --> 00:34:54,400 Speaker 1: This was part of its charm, so to speak. But 508 00:34:54,480 --> 00:34:57,640 Speaker 1: Peter Gabriel, like Jimmy Page before him, was in a 509 00:34:57,640 --> 00:34:59,840 Speaker 1: different state of mind from everyone else in his group. 510 00:35:00,760 --> 00:35:03,200 Speaker 1: At the time. He was in direct communication with the 511 00:35:03,200 --> 00:35:07,719 Speaker 1: director William Friedkin, who was seriously pursuing Peter Gabriel to 512 00:35:07,760 --> 00:35:12,560 Speaker 1: write the screenplay for his upcoming adaptation of the Exorcist novel, 513 00:35:13,520 --> 00:35:16,520 Speaker 1: and through this lens of demonic possession in the occult, 514 00:35:16,800 --> 00:35:20,160 Speaker 1: Peter Gabriel believed that the haunting of Hedley Grange had 515 00:35:20,200 --> 00:35:23,560 Speaker 1: only begun a few years prior upon the arrival of 516 00:35:23,719 --> 00:35:29,920 Speaker 1: Led Zeppelin in nineteen seventy. According to Peter Gabriel, Headley 517 00:35:30,000 --> 00:35:35,960 Speaker 1: Grange was quote partly haunted by Jimmy Page's black magic experiments. 518 00:35:37,560 --> 00:35:41,920 Speaker 1: If correct, that would mean the Headley Grange wasn't haunted 519 00:35:42,320 --> 00:35:45,759 Speaker 1: like all those other old English estates. That would mean 520 00:35:46,239 --> 00:35:51,920 Speaker 1: Headley Grange wasn't haunted before led Zeppelin. Headley Grange was 521 00:35:52,000 --> 00:36:00,880 Speaker 1: haunted by led Zepplins. I'm Jake Brennan and this Disgraceland. 522 00:36:12,520 --> 00:36:14,440 Speaker 1: All right, thanks for hanging out with me, guys on 523 00:36:14,480 --> 00:36:19,040 Speaker 1: this special spooky edition of Disgraceland. Listen, question of the 524 00:36:19,080 --> 00:36:21,200 Speaker 1: week for you here on led Zeppelin. I want to 525 00:36:21,200 --> 00:36:24,600 Speaker 1: hear your haunted house stories, your spooky stories that time 526 00:36:24,640 --> 00:36:26,600 Speaker 1: you were hanging out, whether it was in your house, 527 00:36:26,600 --> 00:36:30,399 Speaker 1: someone else's house, recording studio, wherever, whatever the structure, when 528 00:36:30,440 --> 00:36:33,520 Speaker 1: things got a little weird six one seven nine oh 529 00:36:33,560 --> 00:36:35,239 Speaker 1: six six six three eight. You don't have to be 530 00:36:35,280 --> 00:36:38,680 Speaker 1: Jimmy Page to have experienced some sort of haunting. Get 531 00:36:38,719 --> 00:36:40,600 Speaker 1: at us on voicemail and text and let us know, 532 00:36:40,680 --> 00:36:42,480 Speaker 1: and you might hear your answer on the next after 533 00:36:42,560 --> 00:36:45,800 Speaker 1: party coming up after this disgrace lampod on the Socials 534 00:36:46,000 --> 00:36:48,359 Speaker 1: Disgrace lampod at gmail dot com to send me an 535 00:36:48,360 --> 00:36:50,680 Speaker 1: email If you guys want to hear that mini episode. 536 00:36:50,719 --> 00:36:53,840 Speaker 1: Become an All Access member today. Go to disgrace lampod 537 00:36:53,960 --> 00:36:56,759 Speaker 1: dot com slash membership to sign up. You'll get a 538 00:36:56,760 --> 00:36:59,239 Speaker 1: little more led Zeppelin this week in your feed. I 539 00:36:59,239 --> 00:37:01,120 Speaker 1: get to get out of here. Here comes some credits. 540 00:37:03,120 --> 00:37:05,920 Speaker 1: Disgraceland was created by Yours Truly and is produced in 541 00:37:05,960 --> 00:37:09,360 Speaker 1: partnership with Double Elvis. Credits for this episode can be 542 00:37:09,360 --> 00:37:13,000 Speaker 1: found on the show notes page at disgracelampod dot com. 543 00:37:13,080 --> 00:37:16,160 Speaker 1: If you're listening as a Disgraceland All Access member, thank 544 00:37:16,200 --> 00:37:18,880 Speaker 1: you for supporting the show. We really appreciate it. And 545 00:37:18,960 --> 00:37:21,239 Speaker 1: if not, you can become a member right now by 546 00:37:21,280 --> 00:37:25,600 Speaker 1: going to disgracelampod dot com slash membership, Rate and review 547 00:37:25,640 --> 00:37:28,040 Speaker 1: the show and follow us on Instagram, TikTok, Twitter, and 548 00:37:28,120 --> 00:37:32,200 Speaker 1: Facebook at disgracelampod and on YouTube at YouTube dot com 549 00:37:32,200 --> 00:37:41,479 Speaker 1: slash at disgracelanmpod, rock a rolla, He's a Land