Vanilla Fudge was one of the first American groups to infuse psychedelia into a heavy rock sound to create “psychedelic symphonic rock,” an eclectic genre which would, among its many offshoots, eventually morph into heavy metal. At first, the band did not record original material; they were best known for their dramatic heavy, slowed-down arrangements of contemporary pop songs which they developed into works of epic proportion.

Originally, Vanilla Fudge was a blue-eyed soul cover band called The Pigeons, formed in New Jersey in 1965 with organist Mark Stein, bassist Tim Bogert, drummer Joey Brennan and guitarist, vocalist and US Navy veteran Vince Martell. At that time, the East Coast, in particular New York and New Jersey, had developed a sound uniquely its own. Inspired by groups such as The Rascals and The Vagrants (fronted by guitarist Leslie West later of Mountain fame), The Pigeons reworked many of their own existing arrangements of covers to reflect their unique interpretation of this “East Coast Sound.” They built a following by gigging extensively up and down the East Coast and earned extra money by providing freelance in-concert backing for hit-record girl groups. In early 1966, the group recorded a set of eight demos that were released several years later as While the Whole World Was Eating Vanilla Fudge.

In late 1966, Joey Brennan moved out to the West Coast, and The Pigeons immediately drafted drummer and vocalist Carmine Appice, a disciple of the renowned Joe Morello (Dave Brubeck Band) and a seasoned veteran of the club scene to take his place. In early 1967, The Pigeons’ manager Phil Basile convinced producer George "Shadow" Morton (producer for The Shangri-Las and Janis Ian) to catch their live act. Impressed by their heavy-rocking, trippy, psychedelic version of The Supremes' hit "You Keep Me Hangin' On," Morton offered to record the song as a single. This resulted in a deal with the Atlantic subsidiary ATCO, which requested a name change.

The band settled on Vanilla Fudge; they were a white group singing and playing with the soul of the brothers. The band toured extensively behind its covers-heavy, jam-oriented debut album, Vanilla Fudge, to expand their fan base. Vanilla Fudge, the album, was released on June 2, 1967, the day after The Beatles’ released their Sergeant Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band. The Vanilla Fudge album rose up the charts to #4 without the aid of a hit single.

In 1968, Vanilla Fudge headlined the Fillmore West with Steve Miller. The group then performed "You Keep Me Hangin' On" on The Ed Sullivan Show and released their second album called The Beat Goes On. Despite its avant-garde conceptualization and execution, the LP was a hit and climbed into the Top Twenty. That summer, ATCO reissued "You Keep Me Hangin' On," and the second time around it climbed into the Top Ten. It was followed by Renaissance, one of Vanilla Fudge's best albums, which also hit the Top Twenty. The band had three albums in the Top 100, two of which were in the Top Twenty, as well as a Top Five Single.

The band toured with Jimi Hendrix, played dates equal billed or headlined with groups such as Cream, Janis Joplin, Jefferson Airplane, among many others; late in the year, they toured with the fledgling Led Zeppelin as their opening act.

In 1969, while immersed in extensive touring, ATCO released the expansive, symphonic-tinged record, Near the Beginning. The group made appearances on many of television’s legendary shows, among them Dick Cavett, Merv Griffin Show, David Frost and Where The Action Is. They also did a TV commercial for Braniff Air and recorded a radio commercial for Coca Cola with guitarist Jeff Beck as a fill-in for Vince who was unable to be there that day.
This event gave rise to the eventual creation of a Cream-styled power trio featuring Beck, Bogert and Appice.

Exhausted by the constant touring, Vanilla Fudge decided that their late 1969 European tour would be their last. Following the release of their final album, Rock & Roll, they played a few U.S. farewell dates and disbanded in early 1970.

Bogert and Appice first formed the hard rock group Cactus, and then later formed Beck, Bogert & Appice. Appice went on to become an active session and touring musician, working with a variety of rock and hard rock artists.

Mark Stein formed Boomerang and went on to tour with Alice Cooper, Dave Mason and The Tommy Bolin Band. Vince continued to perform, record, teach and host his own radio shows in the tri-state New York area. In 1995, Vince's guitar work on the intro to "You Keep Me Hangin' On" was rated the #4 heaviest guitar riff of all time in classic rock by Guitar Magazine. Tim’s unique combination of melodic ingenuity and gutsy roaring speed brought new dimensions to the role of the electric bass player. Tim went on to become a milestone teacher at Musician’s Institute in Los Angeles, and he is considered a bass legend.

Vanilla Fudge reunited in 1984 and recorded a new album, Mystery, which also featured Jeff Beck as a guest artist. In the summer of 2006, the original Vanilla Fudge reunited to tour with The Doors of the 21st Century; it culminated in a VH-1 special called “Decades of Rock.” In August of 2007, they performed at Radio City Music Hall with Deep Purple: another opening act for the Fudge in the ‘60’s. Critics praised Vanilla Fudge’s performance that night as one of their greatest.

On October 15, 2006, Vanilla Fudge were inducted into the Long Island Music Hall of Fame by Felix Cavaliere for their contribution to music history. Among the other inductees were Billy Joel, Joan Jett and Twisted Sister. In 2006, they recorded a tribute to their old friends Led Zeppelin by creating their own interpretations of their music on the CD, Out Through The In Door.

After a half century, Vanilla Fudge is still rocking the world in 2015 with concerts in the U.S and Europe, performing at festivals and theaters, and an appearance on Jimmy Fallon’s Late Night TV Show. With a new CD on Cleopatra Records, Spirit of ’67, Vanilla Fudge are ready to rock the world in 2015!!