Iron Butterfly – Fillmore East 1968

Rhino Handmade is the division of Rhino Records that issues extremely limited editions of hard to find rarities. These editions are known to sell out quickly as they are highly prized by music fans and collectors alike.

I received an e-mail from Rhino today promoting the pre-order of a double CD, Iron Butterfly, Fillmore East 1968. These are the  live recordings of the Iron Butterfly early and late shows at the Fillmore East captured  on April 26 and 27 1968.

Iron Butterfly are heard in mid-flight on this double CD as they transition from their first album, Heavy to In-A-Gadda-Da-Vida, which was released two months later.  In-A-Gadda-Da-Vida has sold over 30 million units worldwide and is the 31st best-selling album of all time. Certainly it is their signature recording which made them infamous.

There were also several revolutionary innovations that In-A-Gadda-Da-Vida brought to rock music. This album introduced the transition point from psychedelic rock to heavy metal. It was the first album to reach platinum sales status. It was the first extended jam to hit the mainstream.

The Rhino mailing rekindled my dormant interest in Iron Butterfly. It has been a few years since I have played or thought about their psychedelic rock music. I recall how every rock band we saw at dances jumped at the chance to play In-A-Gadda-Da-Vidda. It was fun dancing for 17 minutes or more to an improvised jam.

Iron Butterfly recorded 6 studio recordings and one live record in their day. Iron Butterfly still tours with Ron Bushy on drums and Lee Dorman on bass from the original group. Doug Ingle the keyboardist is pursuing a separate career direction. I would love to see Iron Butterfly play in concert with a light show behind them

Image via Wikipedia