http://youtu.be/QexOuH8GS-Y
The Los Angeles band Canned Heat was featured at the seminal Monterey Pop Festival in 1967 and headlined at Woodstock in 1969. Plus they had three giant hit songs; "On the Road Again," "Let’s Work Together" and "Going Up the Country," which became the unofficial theme of the Woodstock movie and an anthem of the Woodstock Generation.
Ordinarily a bio of a band deals with the personnel, but over the years 45 people, at most recent count, have played with Canned Heat. I'm not that ambitious and although I'm crazy, I'm not THAT crazy. But I'll have to deal with several very important people to do justice to the band.
http://youtu.be/3doBiU6nN0k
Without Alan "Blind Owl" Wilson and Bob "The Bear" Hite there would be no Canned Heat. The two Blues historians and record collectors joined together in 1965 to play the music they both loved and were soon joined by fellow record collector Henry "The Sunflower" Vestine, a former member of Frank Zappa's Mothers of Invention. The group took their name from a 1928 song by Tommy Johnson.
http://youtu.be/vitY5HSP37k
In 1967 the group added Adolfo "Fito" de la Parra on drums and he remains with the band to this day. "Fito" more or less leads the band and is their spokesperson and he’s a delightful representative, as I found out when Canned Heat played the Greeley Blues Jam.
Some members have not been so lucky. Tragedy has hit the band several times. Both of the founding members have died. Alan Wilson committed suicide in 1970 and Bob Hite fell dead from a heart attack in 1981. The group's third member, Henry Vestine died right at the end of a 1997 European tour. One more loss came in 2007 when 2008 singer and harmonica player Robert Lucas overdosed on drugs.
And yet Canned Heat soldiers on, surviving through changing musical times and tastes. But a strong following keeps the band touring for a surprising number of days every year. Now as always, their dedication to the Blues carries them on and uplifts their many fans.
