Who in the world would have thought that seminal 60's psychedelic hard rockers Vanilla Fudge would have reunited, yet alone record a new CD? Well folks, it has happened. Original members Carmine Appice on drums, Tim Bogert on bass, and Vince Martell on guitars and vocals, are joined by new organ player Bill Pascale, for a fun collection of tunes that prove to be a look to the past combined with some newer material.
Vanilla Fudge probably started the whole guitar/organ thing which was later popularized by bands like Deep Purple, Iron Butterfly, and Uriah Heep. Drawing mainly from covers of other artists material, Fudge turned the R&B hit "You Keep Me Hangin' On" into a huge hard rocking hit back in the late sixties with heavy organ and guitar riffs, plus oodles of psychedelic vocals. It is a formula that the band continues today, although with the new advances in studio techniques, the band sounds much more polished than they did thirty years ago. A few of the bands early hits are re-recorded here, like "Season of the Witch" and the already mentioned "You Keep Me Hangin' On", plus other classic rock tunes like "Eleanor Rigby", the Zombies hit "She's Not There", and "People Get Ready." The biggest surprise is the choice of recording kick ass heavy versions of the Backstreet Boys and N'Sync hits "Tearin' Up My Heart" and "I Want it That Way." Who would have thought that these poppy boy band tunes could ever have this much testosterone? Featuring HEAVY organ and driving guitars, I actually had a smile on my face and banged my head a bit to these two tunes. There are also a couple of new originals as well, which further cement their hard rock style.
This is a fun and amusing CD at the same time, and a great piece of nostalgia so to speak. The band is touring the US this summer (minus Bogert who has taken ill, and is being replaced by popular bassist TM Stevens) which should bring new attention to the band.
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