Blue Cheer was an American rock band that initially performed and recorded in the late 1960s and early 1970s and was sporadically active until 2009. Based in San Francisco, Blue Cheer played in a psychedelic blues rock or acid rock style, and are also credited as being some of the earliest pioneers of heavy metal, with their cover of "Summertime Blues" sometimes cited as the first in the genre. They have also been noted as influential in the development of genres as disparate as punk rock, stoner rock, doom metal, experimental rock, and grunge.
Vincebus Eruptum is the debut album of American rock band Blue Cheer. Released on January 16, 1968, the album features a heavy-thunderous blues sound, which would later be known as heavy metal.
Love Among the Ruins (1997) is the sixth studio album by 10,000 Maniacs and the first album with their new lead singer, Mary Ramsey, after Natalie Merchant left in 1993. The two singles from the album, a cover of Roxy Music's "More Than This" and "Rainy Day", were not originally intended to be included on the album. John Lombardo had just written "Rainy Day", which was deemed more radio-friendly than the other songs, and the record company insisted that the band record a cover song for inclusion. The band chose to credit the songs as group collaborations so that all members would receive equal royalties. Ramsey and Lombardo shared the lyric writing. Ramsey wrote the music to "All That Never Happens". Lombardo wrote "Rainy Day", "Even with My Eyes Closed", "Big Star", "Shining Light" and "Across the Fields". Lombardo shared a writing credit with Jerry Augustyniak on "Girl on a Train". Rob Buck wrote "Love Among the Ruins", and Dennis Drew wrote "A Room For Everything". A live version was also included on their 2016 album Playing Favorites.
Richard Allan Peterson known as Dickie Peterson was an American musician, best known as the bassist and lead singer for Blue Cheer. He also recorded two solo albums: Child of the Darkness and Tramp.
Best of the 'B' Sides is a compilation of B-sides by the British heavy metal band Iron Maiden, released on 4 November 2002 as part of the Eddie's Archive box set. Each track was remastered and the set came with a running commentary from Rod Smallwood. It covers all of their singles from their first to 2000's "Out of the Silent Planet", although several of the band's original B-sides were excluded from the collection: "Total Eclipse", "Mission From 'Arry" ; "Bayswater Ain't a Bad Place to Be" ; and "I Live My Way". Also missing are the band's cover of Thin Lizzy's "Massacre" and a number of live B-sides.
Anthony Christopher Hicks is an English guitarist and singer who has been a member of the British rock/pop band the Hollies since 1963, and as such was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2010.
Andrew "Duck" MacDonald is an American heavy metal/hard rock guitarist, who has played in several bands, the most well-known of which being Blue Cheer.
After Dark is the second and last album by Los Angeles chicano rock band Cruzados, released in 1987. This album is lesser known to its 1985 preceder, as is the line-up for the band, which features guitarist Marshall Rohner in the place of Steven Hufsteter. The album featured fewer elements of blues, and featured more acoustic songs and even experimented with pop-rock and folk rock. The album's songwriting was also mainly done by rhythm guitarist and lead vocalist Tito Larriva, with help from bassist Tony Marsico on a few songs.
Outsideinside is the second album by American power trio Blue Cheer. Philips Records released the album in August 1968, only seven months after their debut LP, Vincebus Eruptum.
New! Improved! is the third album by American rock group Blue Cheer. Released in March 1969 by Philips Records, it is their first without original guitarist Leigh Stephens. The album features songs recorded by two different group lineups: in addition to bassist and vocalist Dickie Peterson and drummer Paul Whaley, side one includes Bruce Stephens on guitar and Burns Kellogg on keyboards; while side two includes Randy Holden on guitar and vocals.
Blue Cheer is the fourth album by American rock band Blue Cheer. It was recorded at Wally Heider Studios in San Francisco and released in December 1969 by Philips Records. Gary Lee Yoder contributed songwriting for the opening and closing tracks and would later join the group as guitarist on their next album The Original Human Being.
The Original Human Being is Blue Cheer's fifth album. It was released in 1970 and shows Blue Cheer exploring a more psychedelic and laid‑back rock and roll with horn sections on a few of the songs. This album features a very unusual, and different, song for Blue Cheer: "Babaji ", which features extensive use of sitar and synthesizer. These instruments were only used one other time in the song "I'm the Light" on the album Oh! Pleasant Hope.
The Savage Resurrection was an American psychedelic rock band from the San Francisco Bay area, and were active in between 1967 and 1968. The band were known as one of the youngest psychedelic rock bands in the area, with their 16-year-old lead guitarist, Randy Hammon, who is the cousin of Blue Cheer drummer Paul Whaley. There was only one member of the band who wasn’t a teenager, and it was Steve Lage who was 21.
Eric Albronda is an American musician, best known as a co-founder of the band Blue Cheer. Along with Jerry Russell, Albronda initially organized the San Francisco-based band in 1966 and provided financing. Albronda was also the first drummer for the band, prior to being replaced by Paul Whaley. He then was involved in Blue Cheer's management and produced or co-produced five of the band's albums. He also co-produced Red Weather, the first solo album by former Blue Cheer guitarist Leigh Stephens, as well as the eponymous sole album by one of Stephens' post Blue Cheer bands, Pilot.
Oh! Pleasant Hope is the sixth, and last, album by Blue Cheer until 1984 album The Beast Is Back. It features less psychedelia and hard rock and includes more folk rock elements. This is an unusual Blue Cheer album in that Dickie Peterson only sings lead on three songs. Another unusual aspect is that the song "I'm the Light" features extensive use of the sitar and synthesizer, although on the previous album The Original Human Being the song "Babaji " also featured extensive use of the aforementioned instruments.
Highlights and Lowlives is the eighth studio album by American rock band Blue Cheer, released in 1990 and produced by Jack Endino. The bonus track Blues Cadillac is on some versions/releases and can be hidden on some of the CDs.
What Doesn't Kill You... is the tenth and final studio album recorded by American rock band Blue Cheer. It includes a remake of their song "Just a Little Bit" originally from their album Outsideinside and a cover of the classic blues song "Born Under a Bad Sign." David Fricke has called the album "a strong studio calling card." The album features Pentagram drummer Joe Hasselvander on half of the album's tracks while the other half features original drummer, Paul Whaley. The title alludes to the Nietzsche quote.
Paul Gene Whaley was an American drummer best known as the drummer for rock band Blue Cheer. He was the son of country music singer Paul Edward Whaley. He grew up in the towns of Vallejo and Winters, California. He played drums with a Davis, California band called the Oxford Circle. Whaley is credited on the Oxford Circle album Live at the Avalon 1966. When he left the Oxford Circle to join Blue Cheer in 1967, the former band dissolved. He was the longest-standing member in Blue Cheer following Peterson's death at age 63. Whaley died of heart failure in 2019 at the age of 72.
Dining With the Sharks is the ninth studio album by American rock band Blue Cheer. It features a cover of Jimi Hendrix's classic "Foxy Lady".
Blitzkrieg Over Nüremberg is the first live album by American blues-rock band Blue Cheer. It features a cover of Jimi Hendrix's classic "Red House".
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