Rating: 8/10

Track Amount: 6

Running Time: 36 minutes and 10 seconds

Genre: Psychedelic Rock

Personnel: Erik Brann (guitars and vocals), Ron Bushy (drums and percussion), Lee Dorman (bass guitar and vocals), Doug Ingle (organ and vocals)

Producer: Jim Hilton

Recording Location: Gold Star Studios, Hollywood, California and Ultra-Sonic Studios, New York, USA

Record Label: Atco/Atlantic Records

Art Direction: Loring Eutemey and Stephen Paley

Best Tracks: In-A-Gadda-Da-Vida

Quick Verdict: A schizophrenic album release that is interesting and inspiring

No band has released such a schizophrenic release as this one in the history of music, except possibly for the phenomenal album by The Beatles, Abbey Road (1969). Or at least, arguably so. Pink Floyd also came fairly close, although their releases in the 1970s were more like existential works of art than a divided listening experience altogether. This album by Psychedelic Rock group Iron Butterfly is notable for the first side of the album filled with some typical songs of the era expousing Hippie values, and with the title track jam filling up the second side of the album, as a 17-minute-long piece. The name of the album title and the main song was allegedly inspiring by a night of intoxication between the band members. Sure, this was an unusual music approach, but the 1960s was not your average music era. In any case, let’s dive into this album and see if it remains consistently interesting today.

1. Most Anything You Want begins this album with some very 1960s-sounding music and keyboards galore. This launches into some good vocal harmonies and sounds like a piece of music that is a parody of the music of the time. Even so, this is a good start to the album, and is a fairly average representation of the Hippie flower power sort of music from the time. A strange song, but not a million miles away from the trends of the moment. A weird guitar and organ solo is present on this song, which sounds different. The bass guitar playing is excellent as well, as is the drumming. A good and interesting Pop/Rock tune from the late 1960s that would appeal to those on the West Coast of the USA, in particular. Simple, yet effective, this isn’t revolutionary or groundbreaking, but sounds neat all the same. A good but not great start to this album. The outro has some fine playing from the band without vocals, and sounds very neat indeed.

2. Flowers and Beads is very, very Hippieish. It begins with acoustic guitars, soaring harmonies and macho male lyrics about being in love and romantic overall with women. This is seriously music for the counterculture at hand. The singing is straightforward, and the melodies are irresistibly enjoyable. This is a much better song than before that is perfect for that 4/20 sesh with your best friends. Quite clearly, based on the Hippie ideals overall, this is as enjoyable and awesome as it can be. The guitars, intricate drumming, keyboards and intelligent bass guitar playing make for a very excellent listen overall. Near the end is an organ and gorgeous harmonies to conclude with. Sweet.

3. My Mirage begins with keyboards, sounding a lot like The Doors. It builds up with drums and guitar-based melodies, sounding quite different overall. The music is punchy, decent and melodically different. Vocals enter, and this unique and pretty LSD trippy Hippie Music emerges. The late 1960s Hippie counterculture was all about recreational drug use at hand, and this song is no doubt intended for that purpose at hand. In any case, regardless of if sober or high, listening to this song, this does have a unique sort of appeal to it all. Sure, this is the side of the album less discussed in music circles, but this is a good song on its own. A keyboard solo section is present, leading back into the main section of music at hand. A seriously awesome listen throughout, this sounds articulate and pretty. The singing returns on this song, comparing a lady to a mirage in one’s view. A better song than one would think, this Hippie Music piece is fantastic to listen to, in its own way. A very solid listen, and wonderful to hear as well. Decent to hear. Not a dull moment here for a five-minute-long tune. The drumming at the end is absolutely fantastic.

4. Termination begins with some fuzzy instrumentation and quickly launches into a good Pop/Rock piece from the era. A good but fairly bland song for the late 1960s is at hand. The guitar work is quite good, but again, this isn’t hugely perfect music. Even so, there is a subtle magic by Iron Butterfly that sounds really focused and determined on this album so far, even if this is merely a fairly average collection of Psychedelic Pop/Rock tunes at hand. This is a song about death, rather than getting the sack overall. It has a neat and unique organ section with some electric guitar arpeggios throughout. Nice to hear, and there are wind chimes at the end as well.

5. Are You Happy is the final song of side one, and has some pounding drums and some descending melodies from within. This sounds a lot like proto-Deep Purple at hand, and it is possible that they were influenced by this sort of music at hand. A swell and interesting song about meeting a lady for a date, and this music is quintessentially 1960s in its musical orientation. This music may not be the overall best, but it has some powerful drumming, interesting melodies and sound effects galore in the band’s playing. A seriously fresh and sweet piece of music that sounds super cool. This is a transformational tune with some tasteful singing that sounds good, but just like every other Hippie band of the era. No need to skip ahead, though. The drumming throughout, in particular, is solid gold stuff to listen to. The music and playing are A-Grade, even if these songs lack a sense of inspiration about them all as so far. Even so, this is listenable. It has a neat jamming section towards the end, which sounds really cool to hear. An awesome and fine listen throughout. A weird song, but it is okay in its own way. The outro is super interesting, however.

6. In-A-Gadda-Da-Vida is the main moment of the album that we have been waiting for. It launches into action with keyboard, drums and bass guitar, followed quickly by electric guitar. This music launches into a song about Biblical delights and being faithful to a lady. This is a good listen throughout, which, althoughit doesn’t sound like it now, was very innovative at the time. The singing and guitars drive this song along, and the music is very good for a Hippie jam band tune that is chock full of melodicism galore in it. The music and playing sounds really top to listen to, and this evolves into a good and glorious instrumental jam that sounds quirkily different. The main melody is extremely catchy throughout. It is worth it to get to this point of the album to listen to this amazing and awesome song. This gradually evolves into a trippy, Hard Rock sort of tune with some neat progressions and wah-wah guitar soloing at hand. A seriously nice listen throughout, and one of the definitive Hippie Music pieces to be recorded. This is no doubt designed for LSD heads to trip hard on. The performances are well structured and thought out. Soon enough, there is a fuzz-laden guitar solo that follows the wah-wah guitar solo, which sounds neat and unique to hear. A very magical and interesting listen that sounds killer, to this very day. The jam continues on, sounding like a true product of mankind. A forward-thinking and awesome instrumental jam is present. All in all, really awesome music is present. It gets quite subtle towards the midsection, and the bass guitars and drums are the last left standing, before a drum solo starts very nicely. A multitude of drum rolls and percussion are used here, which sounds super awesome. A winner of a track. This jam is one of the better pieces of music that one can listen to today. The drumming goes on nicely for some time, and sounds absolutely dynamic and terrific. A cool and killer tune is at hand. This perfectly evokes The Garden of Eden from the Old Testament of the Bible, which sounds seriously decent and cool in a musical way. This continues on very precisely and excellently. Eventually, this piece of music gets into a drum riff of sorts, and the keyboards return. This music definitely sounds amazingly great, and its appeal and suspense are strikingly awesome. As it continues along, it becomes very catchy and sounds very amazing for a tune of its sort. A seriously good listening experience that has colour, light and shade throughout. The music continues on very nicely, and just sounds superb. It sounds very dark and different in the second half, with some freaky guitar sounds and keyboards prominent over the pounding drums. A decent and innovative piece of music, this does sound like The Doors if they tripped out for hours on end and wrote a jam band tune in the process. Nonetheless, this music is a futuristic tune in the sense of innovation. Soon enough, the main melodies on bass guitar return and the electric guitar solos away wildly. This is the best way to spend 17 minutes of your life. A drum solo returns, and clanging bass guitar re-enters, along with muted electric guitars. Keyboards re-enter, and this lively tune really gets going. If LSD can open one’s mind up to a new world of possibilities, this jam is proof of that. Some squealing electric guitar leads then return, and this all comes alive very nicely. The bass guitar also plays some neat melodic lines, amongst superb drums and percussion. Towards the end of it all, it leads back into the main melody at hand. A great listen, period. The singing resumes, and we are back into a grand and pretty conclusion to finish up with. A series of key changes occurs, and the band pull off a fantastic listening experience. It ends with the main melody being jammed along nicely, and a sensationally good conclusion at hand, finally finishing in a suspenseful way.

This album is, true to the thoughts of critics of the time, very schizophrenic. However, having said that, it is overall a decent album listening experience that has style, flair and Hippie ideals that made this album popular and well-loved. The music and sounds throughout are not the most original. Despite that, this is still a good listen if you love the Hippies, and the title track is undeniably awesome. Should you listen to this album? Give it a shot if you love music from the 1960s, but if you hate flower power, avoid this one.

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