Featuring Mark Stein (vocals, organ), Vincent Martell (guitar, vocals), Tim Bogert (bass, vocals) and Carmine Appice (drums, vocals), the band were originally known as The Pigeons and gained notoriety thanks to their radical, slowed down and heavy interpretations of current hits. They signed to Atco Records, a division of Atlantic in April 1967 and changed their name at the insistence of Atlantic founder Ahmet Ertegun to Vanilla Fudge. Their radical cover version of The Supremes’ hit “You Keep Me Hanging On” was issued as a single in June 1967. Dominated by the hard hitting approach of their rhythm section and the powerful Hammond organ playing of Mark Stein it became a US top 10 hit. 

The band’s self-titled debut album was released in August 1967 and was a psychedelic rock tour-de-force, featuring a seven-minute version of ‘You Keep Me Hanging On’, it also featured imaginative cover versions of compositions by The Beatles, The Zombies and Curtis Mayfield among others. Over the next two years, VANILLA FUDGE would record a series of albums that would evolve from psychedelic rock to heavy rock and influence many emerging bands, among them Deep Purple, before disbanding in 1970. 

This nine CD boxed set has been remastered from the original Atco tapes and features the albums ‘VANILLA FUDGE’ and ‘THE BEAT GOES ON’ (in both mono and stereo versions) and ‘RENAISSANCE’, ‘NEAR THE BEGINNING’ and ‘ROCK & ROLL’. It also features a complete concert recorded at the Fillmore West on New Year’s Eve 1968 / 1969 over two CDS and a host of session out-takes and singles. 

The set also features an illustrated booklet with new essay featuring exclusive interviews with Mark Stein and Carmine Appice.

TRACK LISTING

DISC ONE

Vanilla Fudge
The Mono album – Released August 1967
1 Ticket to Ride
2 People Get Ready
3 She’s Not There
4 Bang Bang
5 Illusions of My Childhood Part One
6 You Keep Me Hanging On
7 Illusions of My Childhood Part Two
8 Take Me for a Little While 9 Illusions of My Childhood Part Three
10 Eleanor Rigby
Bonus tracks
11 You Keep Me Hanging On (single version)
12 Illusions of My Childhood - Eleanor Rigby Part One (UK single 1967)
13 Eleanor Rigby Part Two (UK single 1967) 

DISC TWO

Vanilla Fudge
The Stereo album – Released August 1967
1 Ticket to Ride
2 People Get Ready
3 She’s Not There
4 Bang Bang
5 Illusions of My Childhood Part One
6 You Keep Me Hanging On
7 Illusions of My Childhood Part Two
8 Take Me for a Little While 9 Illusions of My Childhood Part Three
10 Eleanor Rigby
Bonus tracks
11 Ticket to Ride (unissued single mix)
12 Take Me for a Little While (1967 single version) 

DISC THREE 

The Beat Goes On
The Mono album – Released February 1968 1 Sketch
2 Intro: The Beat Goes On 3 Eighteenth Century: Variations on a Theme by Mozart
4 Nineteenth Century: Old Black Joe
5 Don’t Fence Me In
6 12th Street Rag
7 In the Mood
8 Hound Dog
9 The Beatles: I Want to Hold Your Hand / I Feel Fine / Day Tripper / She Loves You / Hello Goodbye 10 The Beat Goes On
11 Beethoven: Fur Elise & Moonlight Sonata
12 The Beat Goes On
13 The Beat Goes On
14 Voices in Time
15 The Beat Goes On
16 Merchant / The Game is Over
17 The Beat Goes On 

Bonus tracks 

18 Where is My Mind

19 The Look of Love 

DISC FOUR

The Beat Goes On
The Stereo album – Released February 1968
1 Sketch
2 Intro: The Beat Goes On
3 Eighteenth Century: Variations on a Theme by Mozart
4 Nineteenth Century: Old Black Joe
5 Don’t Fence Me In
6 12th Street Rag
7 In the Mood
8 Hound Dog
9 The Beatles: I Want to Hold Your Hand / I Feel Fine / Day Tripper / She Loves You / Hello Goodbye
10 The Beat Goes On
11 Beethoven: Fur Elise & Moonlight Sonata
12 The Beat Goes On
13 The Beat Goes On
14 Voices in Time
15 The Beat Goes On
16 Merchant / The Game is Over
17 The Beat Goes On 

Bonus tracks 

18 You Can’t Do That (recorded 1968)
19 Come by Day, Come by Night (B-side of single) 

DISC FIVE

Renaissance
Released June 1968
1 The Sky Cried – When I Was a Boy
2 Thoughts
3 Paradise
4 That’s What Makes a Man a Man
5 The Spell That Comes After
6 Faceless People
7 Season of the Witch Bonus tracks
8 Take Me for a Little While (1968 single remix) 9 Season of the Witch – Part One (A-side of single) 10 Season of the Witch – Part Two (B-side of single) 11 Break Song (studio version) 

DISC SIX 

Live at The Fillmore West 1st January 1969
1 She’s Not There (live)
2 Shotgun (live) 

3 People Get Ready (live) 4 You Keep Me Hanging On (live)
5 Season of the Witch (live)
6 Break Song (live) 

DISC SEVEN

Live at The Fillmore West 1st January 1969

1 Good Good Lovin’ (live) 2 Ticket to Ride (live) 

3 Medley: Moonlight Sonata / Fur Elise / Eleanor Rigby (live) 4 Take Me for a Little While (live) 

5 Like a Rolling Stone (live) 

DISC EIGHT

Near the Beginning Released February 1969

1 Shotgun
2 Some Velvet Morning
3 Where is Happiness
4 Break Song
Bonus tracks
5 Heartache Jam
6 Shotgun (single edit) (A- side of single)
7 Good Good Livin’ (B-side of single)
8 People (B-side of single) 9 Some Velvet Morning (short version)
10 Good Good Livin’ (unedited version)

11 Love Jam 

DISC NINE

Rock & Roll
Released September 1969
1 Need Love
2 Lord in the Country
3 I Can’t make it Alone
4 Street Walking Woman
5 The Church Bells of St. Martins
6 The Windmills of Your Mind 7 If You Gotta Make a Fool of Somebody
Bonus tracks
8 Movin’ On
9 Studio Jam
10 All in Your Mind
11 Need Love (mono single version)
12 I Can’t Make It Alone (single version)
13 Lord in the Country (single version)