Alchemy: Led Into Gold (Part 2)

..when it is cast ... does fully perfect them in the very projection...

~The Mirror of Alchemy, by Friar Roger Bacon  

Mage Music 23

A table of alchemical symbols
from Basil Valentine's
The Last Will and Testament, 1670

Alchemy was the forerunner of chemistry, with a metaphysical twist that modern chemists eschew. Like any good scientist, an alchemist researches to find out what might work and what might not, and why. After gathering the tools and the raw materials, both chemist and alchemist combines and manipulates the components in precise ways with the intention of producing a specific end product.

Today chemists might be trying to create the world's next greatest breakthrough in personal deodorant or the ultimate biodegradable plastic. Alchemists, on the other hand, seek to create perfection in life and soul via discovery of a catalyst (an Elixir, according to Roger Bacon, a.k.a. the Philosopher's Stone) that takes imperfect matter and makes it perfect. The methodology of the alchemist is like today's chemist, in that it is very calculated and precise, and many records are made of every step so the process can be duplicated. Unlike today's chemists, however, alchemists' intentions are not merely to produce gold, but to produce a catalyst that will perfect anything, including the human soul.

Microcosm vs Macrocosm
Chemists intentionally limit their focus to the task at hand. Issues of the larger world are basically irrelevant to the chemical processes. Theirs is a microcosmic view.

Alchemists, on the other hand, take the macrocosmic view. Their physical labors are intended to impact the world of the non-physical and their work is multi-layered (multi-realitied) and complex. Far from experimenting to simply discover chemical reactions that produce a single physical property or object, the alchemist chooses each alchemical element not only for its physical properties but because the element embodies other qualities in the Universe, and the intention is to generate results on many levels. The physical generation of gold simply provides evidence of success in creating perfection from the imperfect components, and the catalyst that has been generated can then be used to create perfection of the soul.

The Alchemy of Music
Mage musicians are obviously not alchemists - at least as far as their music is concerned. They don't stand on the stage with flasks and burners, boiling and steaming noxious chemicals - but they are mixing components with the intention of creating perfection from imperfection.

2007 O2 Concert
movie trailer image

Jimmy Page spent many years as a session musician and with various bands sampling materials, practicing techniques and assessing other musicians, as revealed in Dave Lewis' playlist from Part 1, last week on this blog. This week's playlist, also from Dave Lewis' book, Led Zeppelin: A Celebration (Omnibus Press, 1991) is entirely Led Zeppelin music.  It represents the results of years of research, an alchemical-like selection of components that are meticulously blended and heated to the perfect temperature to create the elixir of Mage Music, music that is transformed to something more.

Through the careful selection of gifted musicians who could and would push the envelope, with the added ingredient of Jimmy Page's own incredible talent with guitar and in the studio, and with Mr. Page's powerful desire and intention, Led Zeppelin opened an alchemical door and Mage Music stepped through.

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Future post :
Led Into Gold (Part 3), with more of David Lewis’s History of Guitar Master list
The Chicken/Egg quandary (the neurophysics of music)

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YouTube Playlist - Led Into Gold - The Led Zeppelin Years

Individual songs 

1969 Dazed and Confused (studio) Album: Led Zeppelin. Dave says: "From its sonic signalling intro, right through to its mesmerising climax, 'Dazed And Confused' remains one of [Jimmy Page's] most complete performances."
1969 Whole Lotta Love (studio) Album: Led Zeppelin II. Dave says: "Every inch of drama is compressed into the arrangement... "
1970 Since I've Been Loving You (studio) Album: Led Zeppelin III. Dave says: "...[Jimmy Page] had by now switched from the Telecaster back to a Gibson Les Paul guitar and the choice of instrument brings a sustained fluency to his playing, particularly during the tortured solo, that is quite breathaking. "
1970 Tangerine (studio) Album: Led Zeppelin III. Dave says: "A perfect illustration of the light and shade of [Jimmy Page's] expansive style. "
1973 No Quarter (live) No Quarter MSG -The Song Remains The Same. Dave says: "...this track took on an extra dimension when played live as it became an extended vehicle for John Paul Jones and Jimmy Page not only to flex their respective talents but to play off each other by weaving melodies together."
1975 In My Time Of Dying (studio) Album: Physical Graffiti. Dave says: "...a showcase for Page's bottleneck banshee wailings. "
1975 Kashmir (studio) Physical Graffiti. Dave says: "...a clear example of the potency of the Led Zeppelin chemistry..."
1976 Achilles Last Stand (studio) Album: Presence. Dave says: "...a new level of urgency and intensity..."

Celebration Day Movie Premiere Oct 9 in Manhattan

On Oct. 9 “Celebration Day” will have its premiere at the Ziegfeld Theater in Manhattan. That event will be preceded by a news conference at the Museum of Modern Art with the founding Led Zeppelin members Robert Plant, Jimmy Page and John Paul Jones. Stepping in for John Bonham, who died in 1980, will be that drummer’s son, Jason Bonham.  Read more...

Also John Paul Jones, Jimmy Page and Robert Plant at London’s Hammersmith Apollo for a special premiere screening of Celebration Day on October 12th 2012. Very limited number of tickets available here.

You can also pre-order your copy of Led Zeppelin: Celebration Day at http://www.ledzeppelin.com/buy/
Link for the pre-order is also at the Led Zeppelin: Celebration Day tab above so you can easily find it again.

Alchemy: Led Into Gold (Part 1)

…all went into the melting pot...  ~ Jimmy Page, Interview Musician Magazine November 1990

The Alchemist in Search of the Philosopher's Stone, 

by Joseph Wright, 1771

Mage Music 22

From saints to scientists, some of the world’s most brilliant thinkers also studied alchemy, including St Thomas Aquinas, Pope Innocent VIII, Martin Luther, philosopher and Franciscan friar Roger Bacon, and Sir Isaac Newton. Philosophers, scientists, physicians, religious theorists and occultists round the world have studied and practiced the art and science for thousands of years. 

From chemistry, medicine and nuclear physics to psychology and the arts, alchemical-like research still goes on today. The goal of transmutation (changing of the form, appearance, or nature of something, especially to a higher form) is all, in a sense, the search for a Philosopher’s Stone, an object (or some other, depending on who’s answering the question) that can turn base metals into silver or gold.

Why Bother?

You would think with all those great minds invested in alchemy, there would have to be more to it than just making expensive metals. After all, you have more likelihood of success with panning for gold in a stream than you do creating it using Magick. Even the gold produced by physicists who have converted platinum atoms via nuclear reaction has only lasted for a few seconds: A lot of effort for not much result.

Of course, true Magickal alchemy is not really about gold, but rather is about something very different. Like with so many of the other Magickal traditions (shamanism, Kabbalah, Thelema, Wicca, divination, etc.), when practiced by the most advanced Mages, what you think you are seeing of the Magickal alchemy is not what is really happening.

More than just the transmutation of lead into gold, alchemy’s core is spiritual. The Magick is in the personal transmutation of the human soul to a higher, more perfect and enlightened state.

The Philosopher’s Stone is not unlike the Grail and other transformational objects, such as the Cup of Jamshid, in that they all represent hidden spiritual truth or power that enables the Mage to change not just the outer world, but the inner. The difference between the Philosopher’s Stone and the Grail or Cup, however, is that the alchemist has to discover how to create the Stone - and that, too, is hidden knowledge, just as the locations of the Grail and Cup are.

While there have always been those alchemists who just wanted to create a Stone that would enable them to transmute gold from base metal, the great thinkers understood the terminology and apparatus of alchemy to be symbolic of the higher quest, a way of talking about the search for knowledge and enlightenment without sharing the information with the rest of the world.

Remember the lesson of Lucifer: Throughout human history people have been broken on the rack and burned at the stake for using Magick openly. Being secretive has often been the safest bet for the brilliant.

The Alchemy of Music

Many of the arts have used the quest for the Philosopher’s Stone as a basis for their work, as subject and plot devices as well as a Magickal alchemical process of transmutation. Painters and other visual artists have incorporated alchemical thought and symbols in their work. Music, too, has been influenced by alchemy. In fact, of all the arts, music is perhaps the most suitable for transmutation of the soul.  That is why, in the hands of a Mage, music can be such powerful Magick.

Kimiya-yi sa'ādat (The Alchemy of Happiness)
a text on Islamic philosophy and spiritual alchemy
by Al-Ghazālī (1058–1111).

A masterful selection of the components of any substance and the artistic touch in combining the components is part of the task of the alchemist. The alchemy of any group of people – such as in a band, and yes, I’m talking about Led Zeppelin – is such that if there is the right selection of people and an artistic touch in combining their musical output, the music can be transformed from pitch, volume, tone, rhythm and all the other acoustic factors into something much greater. In the vision of a Mage, alchemical process transmutes sound into Magick.

Although he was talking about the rapport between a bass player and a drummer, when John Paul Jones said it was “…quite uncanny sometimes; we would both pick an off-the-wall phrase and put it in at exactly the same time and it would end up totally in synch….”, he was talking about successful alchemy (Musician Magazine interview, November 1990). We know that Robert Plant, John Bonham and John Paul Jones were extraordinary musicians as part of Led Zeppelin, however it was the Mage Musician in the form of the guitarist Jimmy Page, who selected and mixed using his vision and his art, that created a musical Philosopher’s Stone of their music.

Rather than provide my own playlist, here the first ten of a playlist recommended by Dave Lewis in his book, Led Zeppelin: A Celebration (Omnibus Press, 1991). Mr. Lewis selected these songs “…to demonstrate the achievements of Jimmy Page as a guitar player.” These selections are meant to provide examples of Jimmy Page’s work spanning every stage of his career. “You will discover an aural history of a guitar master and his art,” wrote Mr. Lewis.  This first half of the playlist provides the search for the components. The second half of the playlist will appear in this blog next week and will contain the artistic touch that creates the Philosopher’s Stone.

Don’t listen to lyrics, don’t listen to style - don’t listen to anything but the guitar to get a glimpse into the evolution of this alchemist’s Mage Music. All of it went into the alchemical melting pot.

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Future posts:

Led Into Gold (Part 2), with more of David Lewis’s History of Guitar Master list
The Chicken/Egg quandary (the neurophysics of music)

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YouTube Playlist - Led Into Gold (Part 1)

Individual songs (URLs)

1963 "Your Mamma's Out Of Town", Carter Lewis and The Southerners.  Dave says:  "…young Jimmy can be heard subtly undercutting the innocent pop beat of the day with some clever acoustic picking."

1963 "Money Honey", Mickie Most.  Dave says:  "…an early and aggressive flexing of the Gibson Les Paul custom guitar Page used during his session days…"

1964 "I Just Can't Go To Sleep", The Sneekers.  Dave says:  "…Page's early deployment of guitar effects.  Fuzz, distortion and wah-wah…"

1964 "Once In A While", The Brooks.  Dave says:  "…Jimmy injects a series of sizzling runs culminating in a brief but quite brilliant solo that is years ahead of its time."

1965 "She Just Satisfies", Jimmy Page.  Dave says:  "… early example of Page's ability to manipulate a simple guitar riff and stretch it over the framework of an entire song. "  Jimmy Page plays all the instruments on this song except drums, and it appears that he sings as well.

1966 "Happenings 10 Years Time Ago", The Yardbirds. Jimmy Page sharing guitar duty with Jeff Beck.  Dave says:  "…largely responsible for the song's arrangement [Page] takes credit for the jerky rhythmic chording and the eerie police siren effects…"  The solo is Jeff Beck.  Dave further says:  "… a yardstick for some of the adventurous and unorthodox guitar arrangements that were to follow…"  John Paul Jones, bass.

1967 "Little Games", The Yardbirds. Dave says:  "…represents the subtle beginnings of the Page/Jones guitar/stricg section interplay that would manifest itself years later and to much great effect on their composition, 'Kashmir'."  Also, "On the fade-out Page, by now using a Fender Telecaster, plays a beautifully sustained note that echoes above the strings."

1967 "Tinker Tailor Soldier Sailor", The Yardbirds.  Dave says:  "…concentrate on the slashing simmering guitar chordings that drive the song along.  It's very similar to the layered effect on Zeppelin's own 'The Song Remains The Same'".  Note the use of the bow to produce "… the atmospheric, almost majestic, sound that was to become the highlight of almost every live Zeppelin concert during 'Dazed And Confused'".

1967 "White Summer", The Yardbirds.  Dave says:  "…the first flowering of Jimmy's flirtation with a finger-picked acoustic guitar," and "…the first master-stroke on a trilogy of Page studio performances that would continue with 'Black Mountain Side' and climax with 'Kashmir'".

1968 "Think About It", The Yardbirds.  Dave says "…a stepping-off point from which Jimmy Page was able to transfer his musical identity and relocate it within the framework that was to become Led Zeppelin's first album."

R.I.P. Bonzo

One of the world's best drum solo ever, by one of the world's best drummer, who was a member of one of the world's best bands.

Bonzo's Montreux (studio) Album: Coda

John Henry Bonham (31 May 1948 – 25 September 1980)

Mage Music 21: The Devil Made Me Do It

Have sympathy for the devil, for he does not exist...

How many times have you read that rock & roll is connected with devil worship?  How many times have you read that Stairway to Heaven involves satanic backmasking?*   Black magic is scary, isn't it -  especially when it’s the music you love that is delivering the soul-eating content.  But, ahem…

I know this will break some hearts and maybe crush a few cherished beliefs (or fears), but the truth is that there is no such thing as Black Magick.  For that matter, there’s no such thing as White Magick, either.  I will wait while you wipe the tears from your eyes.

Magick Is Not 'Just Like Magic'

Quite early on I posted that Magick is not about stage shows or illusion, but rather is about transformation of a Mage’s personal reality through supernatural means or through knowledge of occult laws.  The word “occult” means, among other things, “hidden”.  In the case of Magick - although a lot of people like to believe that this means secret - in fact it just refers to the fact that the unknowable of the infinite is hidden from finite human senses.  A Mage is a person who can access the normally unknowable through use of a process incorporating desire, focus and ritual.  No tricks, no illusions… just Reality.

How simple it would be if all a would-be Mage had to do was sell his/her soul to the devil to gain the power of transformation, but alas, it isn’t so.  In fact, Magick turns to seem an awful lot like <gasp> work.

Yes, Magick is Work

I’m fond of definitions because they help us to stay on the same page when we're trying to communicate.  So let’s start with the definition of work: "Activity involving mental or physical effort done in order to achieve a purpose or result”.  This is, of course, a human-centric definition that includes not just the common tasks humans do in everyday life to bring home the bacon, but also the process and end result of an artist's or Mage's efforts (e.g. the work of Picasso or Beethoven, the Works of Aleister Crowley).  Not only that, but the word is used in physics to describe the transfer of energy in the known (to humans) universe - and in Magick it describes the same process in the hidden universe.

Work describes the process of change, regardless of what it is applied to.  Work requires energy - a basic law of the Universe that there is no way around.  It is also a law - and mystery - of the Universe, that although energy appears to be consumed, it is actually never used up.  It only changes form.  From the human-centric point of view of life on this planet it can be said that all things eat, all things are eaten.  Who's doing which matters to individuals involved, but the sum is no energy loss. It takes energy to live - one must eat to live, to live means to change (for example: repairing, replacing, growing cells), which means consuming energy.  Even the sun consumes energy as it burns its own gasses - but that energy is put out as heat and light.  No gain, no loss, just change.

You are there... somewhere

In metaphysical terms - Magick - work is the same.  The exchange of energies obeys the same laws of the Universe.  A Mage has the ability to affect how the energies change in the Universe, and thereby brings about change in the Mage's reality.  The core/central concept to Magick - and life - is that it is all transformation of energy.  In the Big Picture, the Universe knows that everyone who's eating is going to be eaten eventually so it doesn't ultimately matter much about the details.  So far, no devil involved here.

You Say Tomatoes, I say …

Bad boys are not evil boys. 

The notion of good and evil is a human one, used for convenience's sake so we can make sense of what each other is talking about.  These words are descriptions of our preferences, not about the actual properties of the things we’re describing.  A “good” thing is something a person has positive feelings about; a “bad” thing is something a person has negative feelings about.  Unfortunately, humans have a tendency to take the descriptors for their internal preferences and transfer them to external reality.  It doesn't make any difference.

A fact of life is that in a zero sum universe everything has a duality about it:  What’s good for one thing may be bad for another.  When a zebra is killed by a pride of lions, it’s “bad” for the zebra but “good” for the lions because they need to eat.  Nothing lives forever – death is not “bad”, it’s just something humans don’t happen to like very much, although studies of Near Death Experiences (NDEs) now challenge even that point of view.

Human preferences aside, the change from living to dead, from here to there, from young to old, from silence to guitar solo is ultimately just work, the change of form of energy.  When Mages change the nature of their own reality, that’s just work, too, even if we put a capital W on the word.  There is no law of the universe, like that of gravity (okay, okay, I know it's all theory) for good and evil.  Just look once more at that photo of our small, lonely planet Earth, then turn around and look at the next nebula over.  Human preferences only apply when there are humans present.  And thus while there is energy throughout the universe, there is no good or evil there.  That means that there is nothing intrinsically good or bad about a Mage's Work since Magick is a process for using the energy of the Universe, which itself is neither good nor bad – it just is.

Humans: Tool Users

What Mages or musicians or mathematicians plan to do with their work is something else entirely.  It’s all about intent, that is, why they are doing the work and what the desired outcome is.  A surgeon uses a knife to slice open a person to save a life; a murderer uses a knife to take a life.  The good or bad is not in the tool but in the intent of the tool user.  The gift of Lucifer was that of knowledge, symbolized by light.  We know Jimmy Page to be a deliberate and exacting musical artist - it can be no accident that he chose The Hermit, bearing light, to represent him in The Song Remains The Same. If this isn't a clear message about intent, then what is?

Intent is part of the Magickal process; the Mage’s intent is what determines the outcome – and it is up to the individual impacted by it to decide whether it is good or bad, black or white.  Devils?  Demons?  If they exist at all, they are the outcome of a Mage’s choice - not the source of the Magick.  Angels?  Fairies? Beauty, after all, is in the eye of the beholder.

And that, my friends, is why we all should have sympathy for the devil, for aside from human choice, there is no such thing.  Aside from human intention, there is no evil.  There is only energy of the Universe that Magickal processes use to perform work.  Whatever flavor of Magick it might appear to be, Magick is much, much more than the little labels humans give it.

[Note: Backmasking is a recording technique in which a sound or message is recorded backward to convey a subliminal message.  Ironically, Led Zeppelin isn't one of the groups listed as backmasking satanic content in Wikipedia’s list of same.  And even more ironically, the one song that is constantly cited for backmasking of satanic content everywhere else is Stairway to Heaven - the only song of Led Zeppelin's other than Houses of the Holy that has anything in its title containing spiritual words (good or evil).] 

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Future post:  Hmmm.  I'm thinking maybe it's time to talk about alchemy.  But I might change my mind between now and next week.

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This playlist: A little bit of naughty, then to heaven and beyond.

YouTube Playlist - The Devil Made Me Do It

Individual Songs 

1969  Led Zeppelin The Lemon Song (studio) Album: Led Zeppelin II

1975 Led Zeppelin Custard Pie (studio) Album: Physical Graffiti

1976 Led Zeppelin For Your Life (studio) Album: Presence

1977 Led Zeppelin In My Time Of Dying (live) Cleveland

1971 Led Zeppelin Stairway to Heaven (studio) Album: Led Zeppelin IV

1979 Led Zeppelin In The Evening (live) Knebworth August 4 1979  (Jimmy Page's every note here seems to be the cry of a living animal!)

1986 The Firm Dreaming (studio) Album: Mean Business (I'm not a Paul Rogers fan, but Jimmy Page's guitar work here is a nice close to this sequence of songs)

Sept. 21 Press Conference

Audio on Soundcloud of September 21, 2012 Celebration Day press conference with Jimmy Page, Robert Plant, John Paul Jones or download directly [16.2 MB]

(These links also appear on the Celebration Day tab, above)

Mage Music 20: Let's Celebrate!

The O2 concert is coming!

To me, any day I can listen to music of Led Zeppelin – or, more specifically, Jimmy Page – is a Celebration Day, but I've been really, really happy with the news that finally the 2007 Ahmet Ertegun Tribute Concert, featuring a reunited Led Zeppelin (with Bonzo’s son, Jason Bonham, on drums) will be available in movie theaters in October and on DVD in November.

The movie opens on six continents (apparently not in Antarctica) on October 17, 2012 and you can check to see where online at the official Led Zeppelin website. Some locations are already offering tickets – I’m sure that getting them early is a good idea because although there are 1500 theaters world-wide showing Celebration Day, there are millions of Led Zeppelin fans. Just like the O2 show, there will likely be folks who want to get in who won’t be able to get a ticket. Me – well, the nearest theater is a couple hundred miles away so I might have to wait for the DVD.

The DVD (and other formats) is scheduled for release November 19.  I hope I can order in advance.  I'm thinking I might need to order multiple copies, because... well, just because.

Till October – or November – there’s the Led Zeppelin: Celebration Day DVD/movie trailer to tide you over and to whet your appetite.

I’ll be posting info as it I learn of it on a page of its own here on the Mage Music blog that I've created just for that purpose (check out the tab at the top of this page) so it’ll be easy for you to find.  Plus I've posted some stills from the movie trailer.  You might want to bookmark the page.  Heck, it's my own blog and I've bookmarked the page!  CLICK HERE

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Future post: I'll be returning to regularly scheduled programming next weekend, I promise!  Meanwhile, use the links below to listen to the studio versions of the setlist for the O2 concert.

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YouTube Playlist - Studio versions of O2 setlist plus the Led Zeppelin: Celebration Day trailer and also studio version of Celebration Day.

Individual songs (in the O2 setlist order)

1969 ‘Good Times Bad Times’ Album: Led Zeppelin
1969 ‘Ramble On’  Album: Led Zeppelin II
1971 ‘Black Dog’  Album: Led Zeppelin IV
1975 'In My Time Of Dying' Album: Physical Graffiti

1976 'For Your Life'  Album: Presence
1975 'Trampled Under Foot'  Album: Physical Graffiti
1976 'Nobody's Fault But Mine' Album: Presence
1973 'No Quarter'   Album: Houses of the Holy
1970 'Since I've Been Loving You' Album: Led Zeppelin III
1969 'Dazed And Confused'  Album: Led Zeppelin

1971 'Stairway To Heaven'   Album: Led Zeppelin IV  

1973 'The Song Remains The Same' Album: Houses of the Holy 

1969 I Can't Quit You Baby' Album: Led Zeppelin

1971 'Misty Mountain Hop'  Album: Led Zeppelin IV
1975 'Kashmir' Album: Physical Graffiti
1969 'Whole Lotta Love'  Album: Led Zeppelin II
1971 ‘Rock And Roll’ Album: Led Zeppelin IV