On 24 September 1980, Led Zeppelin’s drummer, John Bonham, was picked up by the band’s assistant, Rex King, to join the others for rehearsals at Bray Studios, where they were preparing for their long-awaited North American tour set to begin on 17 October in Montreal. It was to be their first tour since 1977. On the way, Bonham asked to stop for breakfast, where he drank four quadruple vodka screwdrivers—16 shots in total. The day passed with Bonham continuing to drink heavily as they rehearsed. That night, they all headed back to Jimmy Page’s home, the Old Mill House in Windsor. Sometime after midnight, Bonham, exhausted and deeply inebriated, fell asleep. A friend helped him to bed and placed him on his side. But by the following afternoon, when bassist John Paul Jones and tour manager Benji LeFevre checked on him, Bonham was unresponsive. At only 32 years old, John Bonham was gone.
An inquest held on 27 October revealed the heartbreaking details: Bonham had consumed nearly 40 shots of vodka within 24 hours, a staggering amount that ultimately caused him to choke on his own vomit—a tragic condition called pulmonary aspiration. It was ruled an accidental death, and the post-mortem confirmed no other recreational drugs in his system. Rolling Stone reported that Bonham, who had recently managed to overcome a battle with heroin addiction, was taking medication for anxiety and depression at the time, an all-too-common struggle for musicians of his era. But despite these personal battles, Bonham had returned to his music with renewed dedication—a comeback that would, heartbreakingly, never be realized.
On 12 October 1980, Bonham’s remains were cremated, and his ashes were laid to rest in the peaceful churchyard of St. Michael’s Church in Rushock, Worcestershire. Friends, family, and bandmates gathered in a quiet farewell to one of rock’s most powerful drummers. In losing Bonham, Led Zeppelin lost more than a drummer; they lost a brother, a dear friend, and a core part of their identity. His thundering rhythms, the soul of their music, would now only echo through their memories.
On 4 December 1980, Led Zeppelin announced a decision that stunned the music world but was born out of the purest respect: they would disband. Their statement read, “We wish it to be known that the loss of our dear friend and the deep respect we have for his family, together with the sense of undivided harmony felt by ourselves and our manager, have led us to decide that we could not continue as we were.” With those words, Zeppelin closed a chapter in rock history, their legacy forever marked by the absence of John Bonham.