Details on the meeting between David Bowie and William Burroughs were found at http://www.rollingstone.com/music/news/beat-godfather-meets-glitter-main man-19740228 (accessed July 1, 2014).
The quote “nature throwing up,†regarding the music of Killing Joke is from http://www.killingjoke.org.uk/aid/articles/1987-1991/torontostar210489.html (accessed July 1, 2014). Other Killing Joke material related to the fanzine interview is from http://www.radcyberzine.com/text/non-rad/kj.81.int.html (accessed July 1, 2014).
CHAPTER 5: SPACE RITUAL
Material on Hawkwind is from Hawkwind: Sonic Assassins by Ian Abrahams (London: S.A.F. Publishing, 2005) and the remarkable website The Archive: a history of over thirty years of UK festivals (ukrockfestivals.com) and “Crushed Dreams: The 1970 Isle Of Wight Festival—40 Years On†by Dave Smith, posted on live4ever.uk.com, August 25, 2010 (accessed May 8, 2014).
Some Michael Moorcock information and quotes are from London Peculiar and Other Nonfiction by Michael Moorcock (Oakland, CA: PM Press, 2012) and from an email interview with Moorcock.
Quotes by Sun Ra are from “Interview: Sun Ra Pt. 2†by John Sinclair, Ann Arbor Sun, April 1967; “Sun Ra: Space Is the Place†by Andy Gill, NME, August 7, 1982; and “Sun Ra and His Myth-Science Arkestra†by John Sinclair, Creem, November 1972.
I received a complete education on the history of electronic music from The Sound of Tomorrow: How Electronic Music Was Smuggled into the Mainstream by Mark Brend (London: Bloomsbury, 2012) and Electronic and Experimental Music: Technology, Music, and Culture by Thom Holmes (New York: Scribner’s, 1985).
Material on Robert Moog is from the essential 2005 documentary Moog, directed by Hans Fjellestad, and a phone interview with Herbert Deutsch.
Stewart Brand quote is from “Making It†by Evgeny Morozov, The New Yorker, January 13, 2014. Quotes by Karlheinz Stockausen are from a May 1972 lecture at the Oxford Union found at http://youtu.be/nTeLI5dUzKw.
Interview with Florian Fricke is from a 1996 interview found at http://www.eurock.com/features/florian.aspx.
Quote from Bettina Waldthausen is from an interview with Jason Gross at Perfect Sound Forever (www.furious.com), August 2013.
Historical details and other facts on progressive rock are Mountains Come Out of the Sky: The Illustrated History of Prog Rock by Will Romano (Milwaukee, WI: Backbeat Books, 2010). Anecdotes and quotes are from phone interviews with Roger Dean and Greg Lake. Some related quotes are from Progressive Rock Reconsidered by Kevin Holm-Hudson (New York: Routledge, 2001), Bill Bruford: The Autobiography by Bill Bruford (London: Jawbone Press, 2009), and “Yes†by David Laing, Let It Rock, February 1974.
Quotes and some information on G. I. Gurdjieff are from Shadows of Heaven: Gurdjieff and Toomer by Paul Beekman Taylor (Newburyport, MA: Red Wheel/ Weiser, 1998).
Quotes regarding Pierre Schaeffer from John Mowitt are from his book Radio: Essays in Bad Reception (Berkeley: University of California Press, 2011).
CHAPTER 6: THE GOLDEN DAWN
Henry Rollins’s quote is from “How Rockers Helped Free the West Memphis Three†by Patrick Doyle, Rolling Stone, September 15, 2011.
Mitch Horowitz is quoted in “Jay-Z: A Master of Occult Wisdom?†National Public Radio, September 19, 2009.
Quotes on the contemporary occult scene and music are from an email interview with Raymond Salvatore Harmon and a phone interview with Stephen O’Malley. Some insights into theories around Madonna’s Super Bowl appearance are from “‘Ye Shall Be as Gods’: Madonna’s Super Bowl Occult Satanic Ritual†posted at beginningandend.com, February 8, 2012 (accessed May 8, 2014).
Papa Emeritus quotes are from “Show No Mercy: Ghost B.C.†by Brandon Stosuy, pitchfork.com, April 12, 2013 (accessed May 8, 2014).
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
First and foremost, thanks to my editor, Mitch Horowitz, for pushing me to get this just right. I had little more than an idea and he helped turn it into a book. A bigger mensch you will never meet. Of course, I wouldn’t even have thought the idea any good if it wasn’t for my agent, Matthew Elblonk, who has been a constant support, a kind critic, and a steadfast advocate. Thanks to the brilliant Arik Roper for the cover of my dreams. I was a fan for years, and now am proud to call him a friend.
Thanks to all the folks who contributed their time by way of interviews, suggestions, and support, including Rodney Orpheus, Robert Fripp, Arthur Brown, Greg Lake, Genesis Breyer P-Orridge, Nik Turner, Zeena Schreck, Emil Amos, Aubrey Powell, Roger Dean, Bernie Worrell, Herbert Deutsch, Bill Laswell, Stephen O’Malley, Mark Pilkington, Simon Reynolds, Raymond Salvatore Harmon, Richard Metzger, David Metcalfe, Pam Grossman, Mark Fraunfelder, Chris Bohn, and Cosey Fanni Tutti.
Special thanks to Ethan Gilsdorf, whose fellowship and writerly support were with me all the way. My deepest gratitude to Scott Korb for his rigorous editorial input, spiritual guidance, and unwavering friendship. To my dear friend Joe Gallo, for being there when it all started. And to Ezra Glenn for his loving companionship.
There are too many friends and family to name, but there are some who had a particular impact on the writing of this book, including my Sunday night D&D group (J. P. Gluting, Michael Marano, Janaka Stucky, et al.), Seth Riskin, Amy Ross, Jim Lopez, Tony Tauber, and Tim Halle.
Thanks to my sisters, Karen Bebergal and Lisa Mead, to my fantastic extended family, Judy Ashworth and the entire Neill clan, with special fondness in my heart for Emily and Sarah. And to the memory of Byron, Ruth, and Eric Bebergal.
Thanks to my buddy and son, Sam, who offered some excellent advice, who kept me laughing, reminding me to take time to play, and who is the light of my life.
But how to thank my wife, Amy? She is my guiding star, my home, and my heart. Her humor, insight, and love kept me afloat. The poets tell of nine muses. But I will lay my flowers only at the feet of Amy.
INDEX
The page numbers in this index refer to the printed version of this book. The link provided will take you to the beginning of that print page. You may need to scroll forward from that location to find the corresponding reference on your e-reader.
Abbey Road (Beatles), xiv, 58
Abrahams, Ian, 179
acid rock. See relax and float downstream
“acousmatic,†184
Acoustical Society, 180
“Adam in the Garden,†17–18
“Addis†(Om), 229
Adorno, Theodor, 179
advertising and rock art, 44
Aethenor, 222
Affenstunde (Can), 189
African traditions, xxii, xxiii, xxvi, 2, 3, 4, 5–6, 10–20, 26, 75
Aladdin Sane (Bowie), 153, 154
Albarn, Damon, 221–22
album cover art, xiv, xv, xvii
devil rides out, 84, 99, 100–101, 106, 118–19, 120, 121
relax and float downstream, 58–60, 68, 84
space ritual, 191–92, 192–93, 197–98, 200, 201, 203
tree of life, 142, 153
(you make me wanna) shout, 27
See also occult influence on rock
Alice Cooper, 136–37, 138, 151, 152
Alien (movie), 198
aliens, xiv, xxiii, xxvii, 139, 141, 142, 143, 144–45, 153, 174, 175, 176, 178, 180
“Allegro Barbaro†(ELP), 199
Alpert, Richard (Ram Dass), 38, 39
Alpha Centauri (Tangerine Dream), 190
Altamont Concert, 84, 115, 172
Amboy Dukes, 68
American Front, 166
American South, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6–9, 14, 16–17, 27
American witch trials, 117, 136
Anaheim Convention Center, 128
Ancient of Days, The (Blake), 47
Anderson, Greg, 223, 224
Anderson, Jon, 201–2
Angels? (Chick), 123
Anger, Kenneth, 81–83, 85, 86, 102
Animals, 54
Anthology of American Folk Music, 27–28
Apple Records, 62
Aquarian Age, 65, 84, 107, 172, 174
“Aquarius,†67
Archies, 69
“arcs of sound,†173
Arena, 149
Aristophanes, 41
Arkestra, 176, 177
Armstrong, Neville, 187
Art Nouveau, 40, 42–43
“art rock,†196
Aryan perfection, 148, 149
Asch, Moses, 26–27
Asher, Jane, 48
Ash Ra Tempel/Ashra, 190
Asmodeus, 124, 227
Astaire, Fred, 51
“Astral Chant, An†(Pink Floyd), 36
“Astral Projection†(Garson), 186
“Astronomy Domine†(Pink Floyd), 36
“Astro Zombies†(Misfits), 120
Ataraxia: The Unexplained (Musical Expressions of the Occult) (Garson), 186
Atem (Tangerine Dream), 190
“Atropos†(ELP), 197
“Attack of the Demon†(Black Widow), 116
“At the Mountains of Madness†(H. P. Lovecraft), 68
Augustus Caesar, 228
“Aumgn†(Can), 189
Aurora Plastics Corporation, 106
Autobiography of a Yogi (Yogananda), 201
automatons, 205
Baalzebul, 124
“Baba O’Riley†(Townshend), 92
Bacchae, The (Euripides), xxxii
Bach, Johann Sebastian, xxviii, 183
back-masking, 100, 103
Baez, Joan, 172
Baker, Phil, 80
Baker, Robb, 125
Bakshi, Ralph, xiv, 96
Balance, John, 164–65, 166
Balch, Antony, 159
Baldwin, Jason, 210
Ballard, J. G., 179
Bangor, North Wales, 50, 51
Bangs, Lester, 95–96
Baphomet, 104, 212
Baraka, Amiri (LeRoi Jones), 8
“Barbarian, The†(ELP), 199
Barrett, Syd, 31–32, 32–34, 36–37, 45–46, 47
Barrett (Barrett), 46
Bartók, Béla, 199
Battelle, Phyllis, 22
Baudelaire, Charles, 26, 42, 85, 87, 148
Bauhaus, 168
Bay City Rollers, 13
Baynes, Cary F., 36
BBC News Magazine, 109–10
BBC Radiophonic Workshop, 187
BBC Television, 77
Beach Boys, 57, 63
Beardsley, Aubrey, 41–42, 163
Beat Generation, 25–26, 28, 39–40, 49
Beat Instrumental, 116
Beatles, xiv, xv, xvi, xxiii, xxiv, 32, 44, 48, 50–54, 55, 56, 57, 58–62, 74, 84, 91, 96, 99, 100, 101, 193
Beausoleil, Bobby, 82–83, 102
Beaver, Paul, 186
bebop, 26
“Be-Bop-A-Lula†(Vincent), 97
Bee Gees, 13, 167
Beggars Banquet (Rolling Stones), 77
“Bella Lugosi’s Dead†(Bauhaus), 168
Ben Hur (movie), 200
Bennett, John G., 204, 205
Benson, Ezra Taft, 101
Berg, Philip, 216–17
Bergier, Jacques, 143, 149
Berkeley, 182
Bewitched (TV show), 72
big band music, 26
Bikram yoga, 227–28
Birthday Party, 168
Bishop, Bainbridge, 132
biting head off bat (Osbourne), 105
“Black Corridor†(Hawkwind), 179–80
Black Flag, 211
Black Mass (Lucifer), 186
Black One (Sunn O)))), 223, 224
Black Sabbath, xiv, xxiv, 105, 108–13
“Black Sabbath†(Black Sabbath), 110
Black Sabbath (movie), 108
Black Sun, 165–66
Black Widow, 115, 116–17, 118
Blake, William, 26, 47, 134
Blavatsky, Helena Petrovna, 48–49, 65, 131, 133, 148–49, 166
Blizzard of Ozz (Osbourne), 106
Blount, Herman (Sun Ra), 176–78
blues, xx, xxi, xxiii, xxiv, 2, 3, 7–9, 10, 12, 19, 21, 32, 78, 97
bodhisattvas, 25, 28–29
Bogan, Lucille, 7
Boing Boing (webzine), 223
Bolan, June, 34
Bolan, Marc, 151
Boleskine House, 93, 94
Bonham, John, 103
Bonnell, John Sutherland, 57
Boone, Pat, 23, 32
Boston Gardens, 202
Boston Globe, 115, 196
Bowen, Michael, 64, 65
Bowie, Angela, 146
Bowie, David, xiv, xvii, xxiv, xxxiii, 139–43, 144–47, 148, 149–51, 152, 153–55, 161, 219
Boyd, Joe, 40
Boyle Family, 43–44
Bradbury, Ray, 193
Brain Salad Surgery (ELP), 197–98
Brand, Stewart, 182
Branwyn, Gareth, 223
Brend, Mark, 185, 187
Brian Jones Presents the Pipes of Pan at Joujouka, 160
“Bride of Evil†(Slayer), 120
Brim, 44
Briscoe, Desmond, 187
British folk music, 199
British Invasion, 32–33, 47
Brock, David, 173
Brown, Arthur, xiv, 43, 125–29, 132, 133, 134–35, 135–36, 138–39, 146, 173, 180, 219
Brown, Barbara, 63
Brown, Jerry, 63
Bruford, Bill, 200–201
Bruno, Giordano, 129
Buckley, William F., 115
Buddhism, xix, 25, 37, 39–40, 49, 57, 66, 127
Bulgakov, Mikhail, 85
Bulwer-Lytton, Edward, 143, 149
Burdon, Eric, 54–55
Burial Hex, 222
Burroughs, William, xxv, 144, 145, 157–59, 160
Butler, Geezer, 108, 111, 112
Byrds, 54
“Cabala†(Garson), 186
California’s State Assembly’s Consumer Protection and Toxic Materials Committee, 103
call and response, 17
Can, 189
“Candlewolf of the Golden Chalice†(Sunn O)))), 223
Carter, Chris, 155, 156
Catholicism, 4–5, 23, 74, 109, 212–13
Cave, Nick, 168
Celestial Monochord (Fludd), 27
Celtic mysticism, 71, 95, 98
“Chant of the Ever Circling Skeletal Family†(Bowie), 153
“Chapter 24†(Pink Floyd), 36–37
Charge of the Goddess (Valiente), 117
Chariots of the Gods (Von Däniken), 175
Chicago Tribune, 23–24, 125
Chick, Jack, 123
Child, Francis, 27–28
Child Ballads, 27–28
Childhood’s End (Clarke), 100
“chord of the pleroma,†133
Choucha, Nadia, 159
Christianity, xix–xx, xxi, xxii, xxiii
devil rides out, 81, 86, 105, 110, 111, 113, 114, 117, 122, 124
relax and float downstream, 57, 61, 64, 71, 72, 74, 75
space ritual, 175
tree of life, 129, 130, 167
(you make me wanna) shout, 2, 3, 4–5, 5–6, 7, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 19, 23, 24, 25, 28
See also occult influence on rock
Christopherson, Peter, 155–56, 161, 164–65, 222
Christy, David, 5
Church of Satan, 114–15, 122, 165
Cipher Manuscripts, 131
City Lights, 24
Clapton, Eric, 77
Clarke, Arthur C., 100
Close That Bedroom Door! (Schuyler and Schuyler), 19–20
“Clotho†(ELP), 197
Coast to Coast AM (radio), 213–14
cocaine, 145, 146, 150
Cohen, Allen, 64
Coil, 164–66, 222
Coleman, Jaz, 166–67, 168
Coleridge, Samuel Taylor, 35
Collins & Aikman, 72
colored lights, 125, 128, 132–33
“Come to the Sabbat†(Black Widow), 116
comics (horror), 106–7, 118
Coming Race (Bulwer-Lytton), 143
Commercial Appeal, 210
commercialization of rock, 172–73
Compendium Maleficarum, 117–18
Comus, 222, 223
Conner, Scott, 223, 224
“control,†158, 159, 166
Cooke, John Starr, 64, 65
Cooper, Alice (Vincent Furnier), 136–37, 138, 151, 152
Corpus Hermeticum, The, xxvii, 118
COUM, 155–56
Council of Foreign Relations, 213
Coven, 115–16, 117, 118
Crazy World of Arthur Brown, The, 43, 125, 128–29, 133
creation myth for rock association with occult, 1–3, 4, 9–10, 97
Creature Feature/Creature Double Features (movies), 107
Creem, 178
Crimson, King, xiv
Criss, Peter “Cat,†137
cross in musical horror movies, 105
“Cross Road Blues†(Johnson, R.), 2–3
crossroads legend, 1–3, 4, 9–10, 97
Crowe, Cameron, 139, 145
Crowley, Aleister “The Great Beast,†xiv, xxv, xxvi, 65, 72, 82, 88, 89–91, 92–94, 95, 96, 102, 113, 116, 133, 142–43, 148, 157, 163, 168, 169, 189, 195, 214
Season of the Witch : How the Occult Saved Rock and Roll (9780698143722) Page 24