I can still remember back in the fall of 1999 (I think), when I won an Iron Butterfly 45RPM record single on eBay. This is a rare one, with two songs that were not included on any of the band's albums (up to the early '90s). Side A contains the single version of "I Can't Help But Deceive You, Little Girl." This is a good song on it's own, although the full version heard on "Light and Heavy" is better in my opinion. In the single version, Erik's "main" solo was cut short, and the song fades out as opposed to running it's full course. But that's not the reason I created this page.
Side B of the 45 in question contains a little ditty entitled "To Be Alone." It clocks in at a few seconds over three minutes. The first time I heard it, I was immediately glad I bought the record. Here is a song that showcases the Butterfly in what I consider to be their prime (The "Ball" album on until "Metamorphosis"), where the crew from "Vida" was still present and the music was tight. After I listened to the song on the record once and copied it onto cassette to preserve said record, I couldn't tell you exactly how many times I listened to the song in the first few days after receiving the record. Suffice it to say, I listened to it often. I couldn't get over just how good the song as a whole sounds. Doug is in fine form here as usual, although the lyrics themselves are pretty simple (Ingle is the one credited with writing this song). Everything sounds tight here, from Doug's organ introduction to Erik's guitar and Lee's bass. It's hard to describe the song, even today. It's got a melancholy feel to it for sure, but it still manages to make me feel good whenever I listen to it.
To put things simply, "To Be Alone" continues to be my all-time favorite Iron Butterfly song. You may have your "In-A-Gadda-Da-Vida," "Iron Butterfly Theme," "In The Time Of Our Lives," or most any other track from the band, it's all good music. But "To Be Alone" seems to speak to me in a way that no other Butterfly song (with the possible exception of "I Can't Help But Deceive You, Little Girl") has. Since I first heard the song, I've managed to get my hands on a German CD (Repretoire Records) version of "Heavy" with the song as a bonus track, and an MP3. And it still sounds as good as it did that first day I played the record. To hear a RealAudio clip of "To Be Alone" by Iron Butterfly, click here.
PLEASE NOTE: This section is under construction until further notice.
