In-A-Gadda-Da-Vida

This article is about the song. For the album, see In-A-Gadda-Da-Vida (album). For the video, see In-A-Gadda-Da-Vida (video).

"In-A-Gadda-Da-Vida"
Song

"In-A-Gadda-Da-Vida" is a song by Iron Butterfly, released on their 1968 album In-A-Gadda-Da-Vida.

At slightly over 17 minutes, it occupies the entire second side of the In-A-Gadda-Da-Vida album. The lyrics are simple, and heard only at the beginning and the end. The track was recorded on May 27, 1968, at Ultrasonic Studios in Hempstead, Long Island, New York.

The recording that is heard on the album was meant to be a soundcheck for engineer Don Casale while the band waited for the arrival of producer Jim Hilton. However, Casale had rolled a recording tape, and when the rehearsal was completed it was agreed that the performance was of sufficient quality that another take was not needed. Hilton later remixed the recording at Gold Star Studios in Los Angeles. The single reached number 30 on the U.S. Billboard Hot 100.

In later years, band members claimed that the track was produced by Long Island producer Shadow Morton, who earlier had supervised the recordings of the band Vanilla Fudge. Morton subsequently stated in several interviews that he had agreed to do so at the behest of Atlantic Records chief Ahmet Ertegun, but said he was drinking heavily at the time and that his actual oversight of the recording was minimal. Neither Casale nor Morton receives credit on the album, while Hilton was credited as both its sound engineer and producer.

Overview

The song is considered significant in rock history because, together with music by Blue Cheer, Jimi Hendrix and Steppenwolf, it marks the time period when psychedelic music began to form heavy metal. In 2009, it was named the 24th greatest hard rock song of all time by VH1.

A commonly related story says that the song's title was originally "In the Garden of Eden", but at one point in the course of rehearsing and recording, singer Doug Ingle got drunk and slurred the words, creating the mondegreen that stuck as the title. However, the liner notes on 'the best of' CD compilation state that drummer Ron Bushy was listening to the track through headphones, and could not clearly distinguish what Ingle said when he asked him for the song's title. An alternative explanation given in the liner notes of the 1995 re-release of the In-A-Gadda-Da-Vida album, is that Ingle was drunk, high, or both, when he first told Bushy the title, and Bushy wrote it down. Bushy then showed Ingle what he had written, and the slurred title stuck.

Musical composition

Riff.

Riff.

The first six minutes of the song are dominated by a memorable, "endless, droning minor key riff", a guitar and bass ostinato. It is used as the basis for extended organ and guitar solos, then silenced to make way for a drum solo, one of the first on a rock record and one of the most famous, because of its surreal tribal sound. Bushy removed the bottom heads of his tom-toms to give them less of a resonant tone, and during the recording process, the drum tracks were subjected to flanging, producing a slow, swirling sound. It is followed by an ethereal polyphonic organ solo (which resembles variations on "God rest you merry, gentlemen") to the accompaniment of drums (beginning around 9:20 into the piece). There are then interludes in cut time and a reprise of the original theme and vocals.

Edited versions

"In-A-Gadda-Da-Vida" was released as a 45 in the US and other territories. The 17 minute original version was edited down to 2:53 minutes. This version contains the intro, two complete verses, the repeat of the main theme very near the end, a short break and the closing segment. There is nothing at all left of any of the solos.

In the Netherlands (and perhaps other territories too) a different, longer 4:14 minute edit was released first on a 45 with catalogue number 2019 021 and later on an EP with catalogue number 2091 213. This edit features only one verse, a large portion of the drum solo, the final verse and the closing segment.

A European compilation album on the EVA label (EMI, Virgin, BMG, Ariola) entitled Pop Classics 2, features a 10:26 edit of In-A-Gadda-Da-Vida. The original soundtrack CD of the movie "Manhunter" features an 8:20 minute edit of In-A-Gadda-Da-Vida. In these edits, it's mostly the guitar solos that were edited out.

Live version

A live version reaching over 19 minutes long was released as part of their 1969 live album. This version lengthens the drum solo by roughly four minutes and the organ solo by about one minute. It also omits the bass and drum solo jam (heard from 13:04–15:19 on the studio recording).

When Doug Ingle wrote the song, he had not intended for it to run 17 minutes long. However, Ingle said that he "knew there would be slots for solos". During live renditions, Erik Brann's (guitar) and Ron Bushy's (drum) solos varied from performance to performance, while Ingle's organ solo remained the same.

In popular culture

Television

• The Simpsons at the beginning of the episode "Bart Sells His Soul", under the guise of a church hymn distributed by Bart, with the title "In the Garden of Eden" (referencing the popular story about the mondegreen) by "I. Ron Butterfly", and sung by the unwitting parishioners. After a 17 minute skip, the organist collapses from fatigue. It also comes on during Stark Raving Dad in season 3 where it comes on Apu's radio.
• In the first episode of Bobby's World, "The Visit To Aunt Ruth's", Martha Generic states that there's no sign of civilization on the way to Aunt Ruth's. Bobby daydreams about the stone age featuring a prehistoric version of Iron Butterfly.
• Home Improvement in the episode "Flying Sauces", Brad and Randy attempt to convince their younger brother Mark that they were actually aliens, whose alien parents would arrive to retrieve them from the backyard in the middle of the night. The boys' parents Tim and Jill arrange a counter-prank by blaring the song while using spotlights to give the appearance of a UFO, before emerging dressed as aliens to chase the terrified duo around the yard.
• That 70's Show Fez and Hyde smuggle the record into Fez's house by putting it in a Pat Boone album cover.
• Criminal Minds at the beginning of season 1 episode "The Tribe".
• Rescue Me on bagpipes during a funeral in the series finale.
• Supernatural in the opening scene of season 1 episode "Skin".
• The A Team episode "Beneath the Surface" background music during a party scene.
• Beavis and Butt-head, season 4, episode 32: the title is referred to on TV.
• The Wonder Years Season 3 episode "Night Out". Playing when Kevin and Winnie Cooper are headed to the "Makeout Room" at their first couple's party.
• Futurama Season 6 episode "In-A-Gadda-Da-Leela", a spoof on the song's title.
• House Season 3 episode "The Jerk". The song is playing while a patient is on a monitored mushroom trip to relieve cluster headaches.
• Roseanne Played on / referred to in several episodes.
• Der Alte Instrumental portion from the long version (solo drums, then joined by organ) plays at the end of the episode "Betriebsunfall" (1989) as the credits roll.
• Seinfeld Season 9 episode 7 Elaine is trapped in her apartment and the radio is playing to drown out the sound of the neighbor's meowing cat.
• Kenan & Kel The episode "Safe and Sorry" has Kenan performing a magic spell that goes, "Dippity Doo In-A-Gadda-Da-Vida Baby."

Film

• Manhunter climax.
• Freddy's Dead: The Final Nightmare briefly.
• Resident Evil Extinction road trip sequence.
• Ocean's Twelve replay of staged fight in train.
• Mike Mendez’ Killers opening song.

Music

• The song is a part of "Polkas on 45" from 1984, the first of "Weird Al" Yankovic's numerous polka medleys.
• Nas' song "Thief's Theme" featured an interpolation of the famous riff from "In-A-Gadda-Da-Vida" performed by Incredible Bongo Band. Nas would use the same sample again on the 2006 single "Hip Hop Is Dead".
• Frank Zappa spoofed the song with a track called In-A-Gadda-Stravinsky.
• On the Rollins Band album Do It, at roughly 5 minutes and 15 seconds into the song "Move Right In", the band breaks into the familiar riff from "In-A-Gadda-Da-Vida", playing it for roughly a minute before returning to the original song.
• Blind Guardian - Fly - 03 - In a gadda da vida (Iron Butterfly cover)
• In Ricky Martin's song Livin' La Vida Loca, this song is referenced slightly in the end.

In the Chase song "Get it On: (1971), the brass instruments quote the last six notes from "In-A Gadda Da-Vida" to end the song. It was not clear whether Iron Butterfly sued Chase for plagiarizing the song

Games

• Leisure Suit Larry: Love for Sail! during the cut scene after Larry gets drugged and is on an acid trip.
• Landstalker: The Treasures of King Nole a "song" is sung by a princess to open a secret passage; the final phrase is "In-nah Gad'da da V'idda".
• The song is downloadable for the music video game Rocksmith.

Guided By Voices version

• Guided By Voices performed the song during their final tour (pre-2010). Their version was 30 seconds long.

Boney M. version

"In-A-Gadda-Da-Vida"
Song

"Children of Paradise" / "Gadda-Da-Vida" is a 1980 single by German band Boney M. Intended to be the first single off the group's fifth album Boonoonoonoos (scheduled for a November 1980 release), the single was ultimately never included because the album release was delayed for one year. "Children of Paradise" peaked at number 11 in the German charts, whereas it became the group's lowest placing in the UK at number 66 only. Boney M. would use the double A-side format in this period, typically with the A1 being the song intended for radio and A2 being more squarely aimed at discos. The sides would usually be switched on the accompanying 12″ single.

"Gadda-Da-Vida" became a controversial Boney M. record since none of the original members sang on it. Because of a fall-out between producer Frank Farian and the group, he had session singers La Mama (Cathy Bartney, Patricia Shockley and Madeleine Davis) sing the female vocals while he did the deep male vocals as usual. The group only promoted it once on TV. Two different single edits were done of the full 9-minute version that appeared on the 12-inch single. "Gadda-Da-Vida" was the A-side in Japan. Only the French release correctly stated the song title as "In-A-Gadda-Da-Vida".

Releases

7″ singles

• "Children of Paradise" (Farian, Reyam, Jay) - 4:40 / "Gadda-Da-Vida" (Ingle) - 5:18 (Hansa 102 400-100, Germany)
• "Children of Paradise" (Final mix) - 4:28 / "Gadda-Da-Vida" (Final mix) - 5:05 (Hansa 102 400-100, Germany)

12″ single

• "Gadda-Da-Vida" (Long version) - 8:56 / "Children of Paradise" (12″ mix) - 5:18 (Hansa 600 280-100, Germany)