Iron Butterfly is an American rock band formed in San Diego, California, in 1966. They are best known for the 1968 hit "In-A-Gadda-Da-Vida", providing a dramatic sound that led the way towards the development of hard rock and heavy metal music. Although their heyday was the late 1960s, the band has been reincarnated with various members with varying levels of success with no new recordings since 1975. Their second album, In-A-Gadda-Da-Vida (1968), remains a best-seller, and Iron Butterfly was the first group to receive an In-House platinum album award from Atlantic Records. Their music has found a significant impact on the international rock scenes, influencing numerous acts such as Black Sabbath, AC/DC, Rush, Alice Cooper, Mountain, Uriah Heep, Soundgarden, Stone Temple Pilots, Slayer, King Gizzard & the Lizard Wizard, and Queens of the Stone Age.
Links to Peel[]
An Iron Butterfly album was among the records Peel recommended in his International Times: Perfumed Garden Column in issue 26 of IT, published on 16 February 1968. The DJ played a track from their LP "Heavy" on the first Night Ride show, on 06 March 1968, commenting that they were one of the new American bands who had been influenced by Cream. He played a few other tracks from the band in the late 60's but didn't seem to feature anything by them after that, though, and indeed their period of commercial success was quite short.
Their 1968 album, "Heavy" (probably the one JP recommended in his IT column, although he forgets to give the title), was displayed as part of Peel's Record Collection: V&A LPs between 2016 and 2017 in London's Victoria & Albert Museum. The organisers no doubt saw it as a representative recording of its era.
Shows Played[]
- 18 February 1968: Possession (album - Heavy) ATCO 33-227
- 06 March 1968: Possession (album - Heavy) ATCO 33-227
- 1969
- 09 February 1969: Real Fright (album - Ball) ATCO SD 33-280
- 09 March 1969: Soul Experience (album - Ball) ATCO SD 33-280