Blue Cheer

[LEDMAN]

Here's a band that was way ahead of the times. Probably the only song that most of you may know is their cover of "Summertime Blues" There's so many other cool tunes that this band performed and I think they should be mentioned in the top classic rock bands of all time.


D i c k i e Peterson and Leigh Stephens just performed at a benefit concert in San Francisco and if anyone on the board was lucky enough to have caught this special performance I would be excited to here your opinion.

[Music Wench]

Yep, the only song I know is Summer Time Blues. Guess I'll have to make a note to look in to them a bit more.

[DocRock]

...i liked "the hunter" from the "outside inside" lp... "fruit & icebergs" & "sweet lower lemons" from "NEW! Improved"...also liked Leigh's stuff in Silver Metre.... some folks liked "Hello L.A. Bye Bye Birmingham" from the fourth album...didnt suit me though... thought they had lost what had made them interesting....

[Rock On!]

I've had Vincebus Eruptum for years, and I've listened to their other albums.

A decent band that was somewhat influential in their time, but they never could break into the big time.

Nowadays they're pretty much just a footnote in various rock encyclopedias.

[squeedle53]

In their early stages, they took "wall of Marshalls" to new heights.

Curious personal piece of trivia: I was once walking through a local strip mall, it was raining and the local "underground" radio station was doing a promotion from there. As I walked past their closed up tent, an arm came out holding an album. I grabbed it and kept walking without breaking stride. Lo and behold, it was Vincebus Eruptum! Loved it and have been a Cheer fan ever since.

[pooldude]

I saw the Blue Cheer @ the Fillmore & Avalon Ballroom many times back in ’67-’68, with the original 3 piece line-up of Paul Whaley, Dickie Peterson & Leigh Stephens. They were one of the very 1st power trios that played full out Proto Heavy Metal.

Nov ’67 Fillmore: Blue Cheer



Blue Cheer were famous for being the LOUDEST band of their time. They were also noted for not being the best of musicians (somewhat like Grand Funk Railroad later on)…but the band did have chemistry.

…In fact, the band was noted for their chemistry!

Augustus Owsley Stanley, the notorious Bay Area LSD chemist financed them, bought their equipment, did their sound, & was credited on their premier album “Vincebus Eruptum”. He even named a little blue pill after the group, or was it the other way around?

It was their association with Owsley that got Blue Cheer on many gigs with the Grateful Dead. They lost their backing when Owsley went to prison later in ’68.



Drummer Paul Whaley was famous for demolishing drum stix; stix would be flying thru the air @ all times, like a manic juggler. Bassist & vocalist Dickie Peterson had one of the rawest shouting voices of any band up to that time. Guitarist Leigh Stephens was heavy into feedback. They really weren’t all that musical, but they were still impressive as hell to me when I was 17!



Their most famous songs were their remake of “Summertime Blues” & “Sittin’ Down Here on Parchman Farm”. Believe it or not, even in the liberal, stoned out atmosphere of 1968 Haight Ashbury, the young guys in Blue Cheer were somewhat looked down upon for being drug addicts!

[newdawnfades]

Pooldude, when you die they are going to cryofreeze your brain and put it in the Smithsonian.

[India_Blue]

BC's cover of Summertime Blues was great. It was different too. I love all the guitar distortion in the song.

[Magic]

Blue Cheer founder and legend Dickie Peterson dies at the age of 61 on October 12, 2009.

He had been battling prostate and liver cancer for some time and contracted a fatal infection after a surgical procedure. The music world will sadly miss him and his contributions. May he live on forever in vinyl and MP3

His influence on the late 1960s scene was huge, and the debut Blue Cheer album, 1968’s Vincebus Eruptum, remains one of the most important rock albums of the past four decades. Quite possibly the first heavy metal album





Blue Cheer website

[Flower]

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[Foxhound]

Very sad.

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[Emrock]

Sad to hear of Peterson's passing. I still have a copy of Vincebus Eruptus stashed away somewhere. I put it on the turntable (plays those old black plastic disks) years back to give it a listen. The first thing I noticed was that it had obviously been the focal point of many parties judging by the scratches etc.. Amidst the distortion and feedback, however, it was hardly noticeable. The album moved me when I was seventeen, I don't have the same reaction four decades later.

[Sweaty]

My friend was raving about them the other day, one of the pioneers of heavy metal I believe.

[Groovy Man]

When Dickie Peterson passed away last year, I made this video tribute to his memory. I hope you all enjoy watching.

(Use the ''full screen'' option on the bottom right of the player)

Groovy Man's Blue Cheer Tribute (Dickie Peterson September 12, 1948 October 12, 2009)

Songs used in the video:
Summertime Blues; Hello L.A., Bye Bye Birmingham;
Fruit and Icebergs; Gypsy Rider

[Odysseus]

Originally Posted by Groovy Man When Dickie Peterson passed away last year, I made this video tribute to his memory. I hope you all enjoy watching.

Indeed, real nice Groovy Man! I've never seen so many cool rare pics of the band all in one place.