What does In-A-Gadda-da-Vida mean?

Iron Butterfly: In-A-Gadda-da-Vida Meaning

Album cover for In-A-Gadda-da-Vida album cover

Song Released: 1968


In-A-Gadda-da-Vida Lyrics

In-a-gadda-da-vida,honey
Don't you know that i love you?
In-a-gadda-da-vida,baby
Don't you know that i'll always be true?

Oh,won't you come with me and take my hand?
Or,won't you come with me and walk this land?
Ah, please take my...

  1. anonymous
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    Apr 8th 2021 !⃝

    My long lost true love and l were stoned to the bone when we first heard it in 1969 we both thought In A Gadda da Vida was Russian for killing of all Americans

  2. anonymous
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    May 5th 2020 !⃝

    I always thought it was about the garden of Eden.
    All was perfect in the beginning,then Adam and eve sinned against God....
    They were driven from the garden, God was not happy with them, the garden was destroyed, all the animals fled as well, you can hear the elephants trumpeting during the chaos...
    That's what I perceived it to be,I never did any drugs,but really got into the song!

  3. anonymous
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    Dec 12th 2019 !⃝

    After reading all this and knowing the song, I believe it’s tongue for “in a garden of evil baby”..... so they told you one thing, it’s nice to hear how kids actually interoperated it in the her and now!

  4. anonymous
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    Dec 12th 2019 !⃝

    After reading all this and knowing the song, I believe it’s tongue for “in a garden of evil baby”.

  5. anonymous
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    Mar 6th 2016 !⃝

    In the garden of life is the translation

  6. anonymous
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    Oct 26th 2015 !⃝

    When Doug Ingle (keyboard, songwriter) wrote the song he was quite intoxicated.
    The next morning he told Ron Bushy (base player, lead vocalist) that he (Doug) had written a new son. Ron inquired what the title was. Doug seemed to resist telling Ron the information he asked for. After several minutes of no response, Ron said something to the effect of, "I'm in this group, we share our ideas. Why in the f---
    won't you tell me the title to the f----- song? Doug blurted out, "In-na-gadda da vida."Ron responded, "What the h--- does that mean?" Doug responded,"In the garden of life." Ron quipped, "Sounds cool! Can't wait to hear it!" Doug later shared with a producer that he didn't have a title and blurted out that response to get Ron off of his back. (This story is on the jacket of the In A Gadda da vida CD or the greatest hits CD.)

  7. anonymous
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    Feb 25th 2012 !⃝

    There is an island in the British Virgin Islands named Anegada. The story is that when Iron Butterfly was in concert in Miami a girl from Anegada named Davida Chinery was invited backstage and eventually that meeting made it to song.

  8. anonymous
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    Jul 3rd 2011 !⃝

    When I was in Jr. High in the early '70s we would discuss this song at slumber parties. Our take on it was as follows: A girl is at the funeral for her boyfriend. She hears him calling for her from his casket, begging her "oh won't you come with me and take my hand", etc. All of a sudden, she is swept up by his friends and placed in a casket next to him. The drum solo starts out fast, signifying her heartbeat, which slows down as the drumming slows down. There's even some screeching noises in the song - her fingernails clawing at the casket lid. She dies. Then the song picks up again, they are together again, in death.

  9. anonymous
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    Apr 17th 2011 !⃝

    The song was supposed to be "In the Garden of Eden" but the singer was really stoned and mumbled the wrong words. Their manager said to leave it that way becouse it would be fun listening to all the people coming up with a idea of what the words meant.

  10. anonymous
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    Mar 17th 2011 !⃝

    Tried to record a song titled "In The Garden of Eden". The singer was too high or drunk, and when they played the recording back it sounded like he was saying In-A-Gadda-Da-Vida.


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