Iron Butterfly's "In a Gadda Da Vida"

Jun 10, 2020 by apost team

If you are a fan of classic rock radio, you may know the secrets of Iron Butterfly's 1971 song "In a Gadda Da Vida". If not, you might want to check out this tune once you hear some of the stories that surround it.

Chuck Ingle, a church organist's son, wrote the song. He planned to create something shorter than the 17-minute long track that ran on the album. They managed to cut quite a bit of that length out in order to release it as a single. In concert, the band was known to stretch the song out to 35 minutes to fill an entire set.

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Record company executives supposedly thought the song was something deep in another language. At the time, Indian gurus were hip and even The Beatles were singing about Hare Krishna. As they couldn't understand the lyrics either, they could market the tune as something deep and meaningful. There is a hidden spiritual bit to the song. If you listen closely to the keyboards in the second half, you can find Ingle playing a bit of the Christmas Carol "Good King Wenceslaus".

In-a-gadda-da-vida honey, Don’tcha know that I love you? In-a-gadda-da-vida baby,

Don’tcha know that I’ll always be true? Oh won’tcha come with me, And take my hand?

Oh won’tcha come with me, And walk this land? Please take my hand… Let me tell ya now.

What is he saying? Probably, "In a Garden of Eden" but nobody knows for certain. The meaning? It certainly reads like a love song and maybe it would be if it didn't offer each member of the band a chance to solo in the middle.

Everyone that listens to this song will likely come up with their own interpretation of the lyrics. Some say that 'Gadda da Vida' sounds reminiscent of 'garden of life' in Spanish: 'jardín de la vida.'

What do you think? Let us know in the comments and be sure to pass this article along if you enjoyed it, we would love to hear what your friends think about it.