They have had a number of hit singles, their biggest hit being "You Keep Me Hangin' On", a slowed-down, trippy, hard-rock cover of a song originally recorded by The Supremes, which particularly featured Appice's energetic drumming. One follow-up to this hit, "Take Me for a Little While", was an original composition with a very similar sound both in musical themes and treatment, but it said something quite different from its forerunner. While it did not do nearly as well commercially, it did attract some airplay, making it a rare instance of a band successfully parodying their own work.
The members of Vanilla Fudge were great admirers of The Beatles, and covered several of their songs including "Ticket to Ride", of their version of which The Beatles were quite fond.
Vinnie Martel was invited to play with Jimi Hendrix, but Hendrix died a month later.
Bogert & Appice also played with jazz/rock guitarist Jeff Beck on their self-titled album in 1973. (Beck replaced Eric Clapton in the Yardbirds in the late 1960s.)
Stein and Appice revived the band in 1984, with very minor success. The band has not recorded, but has played some concerts since. A live concert recorded in Chicago in 1987 has been released recently.
Ramble On
Vanilla Fudge Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Its time I was on my way.
Thanks to you, I'm much obliged
For such a pleasant stay.
But now its time for me to go,
The autumn moon lights my way.
For now I smell the rain,
And its headed my way.
Ah, sometimes I grow so tired,
But I know I've got one thing I got to do,
Ramble on,
And now's the time, the time is now
To sing my song.
I'm goin' round the world,
I got to find my girl, on my way.
I've been this way ten years to the day, ramble on,
Gotta find the queen of all my dreams.
Got no time to for spreadin' roots,
The time has come to be gone.
And tho our health we drank a thousand times,
Its time to ramble on.
Ramble on,
And now's the time, the time is now
To sing my song.
I'm goin' round the world,
I got to find my girl, on my way.
Ive been this way ten years to the day, ramble on,
Gotta find the queen of all my dreams.
I ain't tellin' no lie
Mines a tale that cant be told,
My freedom I hold dear;
How years ago in days of old
When magic filled the air,
Twas in the darkest depths of Mordor
I met a girl so fair,
But Gollum, and the evil one crept up
And slipped away with her.
Her, her....yea.
Ain't nothing I can do, no.
Ramble on,
And now's the time, the time is now
To sing my song.
I'm goin' round the world,
I got to find my girl, on my way.
Ive been this way ten years to the day, ramble on,
Gotta find the queen of all my dreams.
Gonna ramble on, sing my song
Gotta keep-a-searchin for my baby...
Gonna work my way, round the world
I cant stop this feelin in my heart
Gotta keep searchin for my baby
I cant find my bluebird!
Id listen to my bluebird sing but I cant find my blue bird
A-keep-a ramblin baby
The lyrics of Vanilla Fudge's "Ramble On" describe a journey of a man who has been living somewhere for a long time and enjoyed the hospitality of someone who he is now thanking. It is time for him to leave and even though he knows that the road ahead may be difficult, he is determined to "ramble on" and find his true love who he lost to the darkness. The references to "Mordor" and "Gollum" relate to the story of "Lord of the Rings", which is an allusion to the epic journey that the singer of the song is undertaking. He feels that he must keep searching to find the queen of his dreams and nothing can stop him from this.
The song has a melancholic tone throughout, with a sense of longing and yearning that is expressed in the lyrics. The leaves falling symbolize the passage of time and the seasonality of life, where things come and go, as the man prepares to continue on his way in search of love. The lyrics also suggest a sense of detachment from society, and the need to be free to wander the world, unencumbered by possessions or obligations. The song is essentially about the freedom of the soul, which can only be attained by leaving behind the things that hold us back.
Line by Line Meaning
Leaves are falling all around,
The fall season is here and the environment is changing
Its time I was on my way.
It's time for me to leave and move on
Thanks to you, I'm much obliged
For such a pleasant stay.
Thank you for the wonderful times and memories
But now its time for me to go,
The autumn moon lights my way.
The moonlight is guiding me on my journey
For now I smell the rain,
And with it pain,
And its headed my way.
Trouble and hardship are coming my way
Ah, sometimes I grow so tired,
But I know I've got one thing I got to do,
I may be tired, but I still have a task to complete
Ramble on,
And now's the time, the time is now
To sing my song.
It's time to go on a journey and fulfill my destiny
I'm goin' round the world,
I got to find my girl, on my way.
I'm traveling the world to find the love of my life
I've been this way ten years to the day, ramble on,
Gotta find the queen of all my dreams.
I've been on this journey for a decade, and my goal is to find my soulmate
Got no time to for spreadin' roots,
The time has come to be gone.
I don't have time to settle down or get comfortable, I must keep moving
And tho our health we drank a thousand times,
Its time to ramble on.
Even though we shared good health and drank together, it's time for me to continue my journey
Mines a tale that cant be told,
My freedom I hold dear;
My story cannot be put into words, but my freedom is important to me
How years ago in days of old
When magic filled the air,
In ancient times when magic was present, something important happened to me
Twas in the darkest depths of Mordor
I met a girl so fair,
I met someone special in a dangerous and dark place
But Gollum, and the evil one crept up
And slipped away with her.
Her, her....yea.
Ain't nothing I can do, no.
Unfortunately, she was taken away from me by evil forces, and there's nothing I can do
Gonna ramble on, sing my song
Gotta keep-a-searchin for my baby...
I must continue my journey and search for my lost love
Gonna work my way, round the world
I cant stop this feelin in my heart
Gotta keep searchin for my baby
I cant find my bluebird!
I'll keep traveling around the world because I can't ignore the feeling in my heart, but I cannot find my loved one
Id listen to my bluebird sing but I cant find my blue bird
A-keep-a ramblin baby
I would love to listen to my loved one's voice, but I must keep moving
Contributed by Hudson W. Suggest a correction in the comments below.