Cactus is an American
hard rock
Hard rock or heavy rock is a loosely defined subgenre of rock music typified by aggressive vocals and distorted electric guitars. Hard rock began in the mid-1960s with the garage, psychedelic and blues rock movements. Some of the earliest hard ...
band formed in 1969,
and currently comprising Jimmy Kunes as lead singer, guitarist
Paul Warren, drummer
Carmine Appice
Carmine Appice ( , born December 15, 1946) is an American rock drummer. He is best known for his associations with Vanilla Fudge; Cactus; the power trio Beck, Bogert & Appice; Rod Stewart; King Kobra; and Blue Murder. He is also Vinny Appice's ...
, bassist Jimmy Caputo and Randy Pratt on harmonica.
History
Original line-up (1969–1972)
Cactus was initially conceived in late 1969 by former
Vanilla Fudge
Vanilla Fudge is an American rock band known predominantly for their slow extended heavy rock arrangements of contemporary hit songs, such as their hit cover of The Supremes' "You Keep Me Hangin' On".
The band's original line–up—vocalist a ...
members bassist Tim Bogert and drummer Carmine Appice,
after plans to team up with guitarist
Jeff Beck
Geoffrey Arnold Beck (born 24 June 1944) is an English rock guitarist. He rose to prominence with the Yardbirds and after fronted the Jeff Beck Group and Beck, Bogert & Appice. In 1975, he switched to a mainly instrumental style, with a focus ...
were canceled when Beck had an automobile accident and was out of the music scene for over a year.
In early 1970, Bogert and Appice brought in blues guitarist
Jim McCarty
James Stanley McCarty (born 25 July 1943) is an English musician, best known as the drummer for the Yardbirds and Renaissance. Following Chris Dreja's departure from the Yardbirds in 2013, McCarty became the only member of the band to featur ...
from
Mitch Ryder
Mitch Ryder (born William Sherille Levise, Jr.; February 26, 1945) is an American musician who has recorded more than 25 albums over more than four decades.
Career
Ryder formed his first band, Tempest, when he was at Warren High School, and th ...
's
Detroit Wheels
The Detroit Wheels were an American football team, a charter member of the defunct World Football League.
Founding
Soon after Gary Davidson announced the WFL's formation in October 1973, he was approached by a man named Bud Hucul about putting ...
and The
Buddy Miles Express, and singer
Rusty Day
Russell Edward "Rusty Day" Davidson (December 29, 1945 – June 3, 1982) was a lead vocalist, best known for his work with Cactus (American band), Cactus, the Amboy Dukes, and Steve Gaines.
Career with the Amboy Dukes
Day joined the Amboy Dukes ...
(born Russell Edward Davidson) from
The Amboy Dukes
The Amboy Dukes were an American rock band formed in 1964 in Chicago, Illinois, and later based in Detroit, Michigan. They are best known for their only hit single, " Journey to the Center of the Mind". The band's name comes from the title of ...
.
This line-up released three albums on
Atco Records
ATCO Records is an American record label founded in 1955. It is owned by Warner Music Group and operates as an imprint of Atlantic Records. After several decades of dormancy and infrequent activity under alternating Warner Music labels, the comp ...
, ''
Cactus
A cactus (, or less commonly, cactus) is a member of the plant family Cactaceae, a family comprising about 127 genera with some 1750 known species of the order Caryophyllales. The word ''cactus'' derives, through Latin, from the Ancient Greek ...
'' (1970), ''
One Way... or Another'' (1971), and ''
Restrictions'' (1971), before intraband troubles led to McCarty quitting at the end of 1971.
Day was fired from the group shortly afterwards.
The fourth and last original Cactus album, ''
'Ot 'n' Sweaty'' (1972), featured original rhythm section Bogert and Appice joined by Werner Fritzschings on guitar, Duane Hitchings on keyboards and Peter French (ex-
Leaf Hound
Leaf Hound is an English hard rock band formed in 1969. The band is often cited as pioneers of heavy metal, hard rock, psychedelic rock and stoner rock. The release of their 1971 debut album '' Growers of Mushrooms'' is said to be a mixtu ...
and
Atomic Rooster) on vocals. Shortly before the final breakup, Guitarist Ricky Ramirez replaced Fritzschings.
After 1972 break-up
Beck, Bogert & Appice
After Cactus's dissolution in 1972, Bogert and Appice finally joined with Jeff Beck to form
Beck, Bogert & Appice
Beck, Bogert & Appice was a rock supergroup and power trio formed by English guitarist Jeff Beck, evolving from the Jeff Beck Group. It included bassist Tim Bogert and drummer Carmine Appice, Americans who had played together in Vanilla Fudge a ...
.
After one studio album, the self-titled ''
Beck, Bogert & Appice
Beck, Bogert & Appice was a rock supergroup and power trio formed by English guitarist Jeff Beck, evolving from the Jeff Beck Group. It included bassist Tim Bogert and drummer Carmine Appice, Americans who had played together in Vanilla Fudge a ...
'' (1973) and one live album, ''
Beck, Bogert & Appice Live (in Japan)'' (1973, released only in Japan), the band dissolved. Their second album remains unreleased to this day, along with recordings of the band's last concert at the
Rainbow Theatre
The Rainbow Theatre, originally known as the Finsbury Park Astoria, is a Grade II*-listed building in Finsbury Park, London. The theatre was built in 1930 as a cinema. It later became a music venue. Today, the building is used by the Universa ...
in London on January 26, 1974.
The Band Detroit
Having made a name for himself in Detroit's rock scene as a force to be reckoned with, Rusty Day worked to restore one of Detroit's most legendary bands,
the Band Detroit, to the national stage. The Band Detroit was formed as an offshoot of
the Detroit Wheels
The Detroit Wheels were an American rock band, formed in Detroit in 1964. They served as Mitch Ryder's backup band from 1964 to 1967.
The band had a number of top twenty hits in the mid-1960s before lead singer Ryder was enticed away by Bob C ...
by members
Steve Gaines, Ted "T-Mel" Smith, Nathaniel Peterson, Terry Emery, Bill Hodgeson, and others. The band's initial flame burned out quickly due to many different issues going on at once. A recording exists of Rusty Day, Steve Gaines, and the rest of the band performing in 1973 called ''The Band Detroit - The Driftwood Tapes''.
The New Cactus Band
The New Cactus Band, formed by Duane Hitchings, released one album, ''Son of Cactus'' (1973), which featured none of the original Cactus members.
Mike Pinera
Mike Pinera (born September 29, 1948) is an American guitarist, singer, songwriter and producer who started professionally in the late 1960s with the group Blues Image, which had a number 4 hit in 1970 with their song " Ride Captain Ride". After t ...
, formerly of
Blues Image and
Iron Butterfly
Iron Butterfly is an American rock band formed in San Diego, California, in 1966. They are best known for the 1968 hit "In-A-Gadda-Da-Vida", providing a dramatic sound that led the way towards the development of hard rock and heavy metal music. ...
, came in on guitar, along with
Roland Robinson on bass and Jerry Norris on drums.
The band then toured live in the Midwest and on the East Coast in mid 1973 with
Captain Beyond drummer
Bobby Caldwell
Robert Hunter Caldwell (born August 15, 1951) is an American singer, songwriter and musician. He released several albums spanning R&B, soul, jazz and adult contemporary. He is known for his soulful and versatile vocals. Caldwell released the ...
and former
Gregg Allman
Gregory LeNoir Allman (December 8, 1947 – May 27, 2017) was an American musician, singer and songwriter. He was known for performing in the Allman Brothers Band. Allman grew up with an interest in rhythm and blues music, and the Allman Br ...
bass player
Charlie Souza
Charlie Souza is a bass player, vocalist, musician, writer and producer. He is best known for playing bass in Mudcrutch. He is married to Barbara Benischek Souza.
Career
Souza toured with The New Rascals, featuring Rock and Roll Hall of Fame ...
. The New Cactus Band soon disbanded.
Their sole album peaked at No. 183 on the Billboard Top 200 Albums chart.
In 1976, Rusty Day formed another version of Cactus in
Longwood, Florida
Longwood is a city in Seminole County, Florida, United States. The population was 15,087 at the 2020 census. It is part of the Orlando–Kissimmee–Sanford, Florida Metropolitan Statistical Area.
Geography
Longwood is located at .
According t ...
, where he had relocated. This version of Cactus featured Steve "Kahoutek" Dansby on guitar, John "Soybean Slim" Sauter (who later played on
Ted Nugent
Theodore Anthony Nugent (; born December 13, 1948) is an American rock musician and activist. He initially gained fame as the lead guitarist and occasional lead vocalist of The Amboy Dukes, a band formed in 1963 that played psychedelic rock an ...
's ''
Weekend Warriors'') on bass guitar and Gary "Madman" Moffatt (who currently plays for
.38 Special
The .38 Special, also commonly known as .38 S&W Special (not to be confused with .38 S&W), .38 Smith & Wesson Special, .38 Spl, .38 Spc, (pronounced "thirty-eight special"), or 9x29mmR is a rimmed, centerfire cartridge designed by Smith & ...
) on drums. This was the longest lasting 1970s line-up of the band, which ended around 1979. Although this lineup was rumored to have recorded some demos and possibly attempted to record an album, no studio recordings of Rusty Day's Cactus lineup from Florida have ever surfaced. A few live recordings, however, have circulated online.
On June 3, 1982, Rusty Day was murdered at his own house in Longwood, Florida. He and his son were shot to death by one or more unknown drug dealers. The case has never been solved and remains open.
Since 2006 re-forming
Cactus re-emerged in June 2006, in New York City: a radio broadcast on The Radiochick Show and their first show since 1972 at B.B. King's Blues Club in Times Square on June 3. This show was a warm up for the gig which sparked the reunion, an appearance at the Sweden Rock Festival in
Norje
Norje is a locality situated in Sölvesborg Municipality, Blekinge County, Sweden
Sweden, formally the Kingdom of Sweden,The United Nations Group of Experts on Geographical Names states that the country's formal name is the Kingdom of Sw ...
,
Sweden
Sweden, formally the Kingdom of Sweden,The United Nations Group of Experts on Geographical Names states that the country's formal name is the Kingdom of SwedenUNGEGN World Geographical Names, Sweden./ref> is a Nordic country located on ...
on June 9. The 2006 version of Cactus saw original members Appice, Bogert and McCarty reunited and joined by former
Savoy Brown
Savoy Brown (originally Savoy Brown Blues Band) were an English blues rock band formed in Battersea, south west London, in 1965. Part of the late 1960s blues rock movement, Savoy Brown primarily achieved success in the United States, where they ...
frontman Jimmy Kunes on vocals.
Randy Pratt joined the band in New York and Sweden on harmonica. The group also released a new album, ''
Cactus V'' (2006).
In 2008, McCarty left the band and was once again replaced by Werner Fritzchings. Elliot Dean Rubinson replaced Tim Bogert, who retired from touring due to health issues.
In 2011, McCarty returned to the band with
Pete Bremy
Pete Bremy (born October 15, 1952) is an American rock bass player. He is best known for his associations with Vanilla Fudge and Cactus.
Biography
Originally from Paterson, Bremy is a lifelong resident of New Jersey. He started singing at a v ...
taking over on bass. Bremy also took over for Bogert in
Vanilla Fudge
Vanilla Fudge is an American rock band known predominantly for their slow extended heavy rock arrangements of contemporary hit songs, such as their hit cover of The Supremes' "You Keep Me Hangin' On".
The band's original line–up—vocalist a ...
and is the only non-original member who has played for both bands. The 2012 line-up was Jim McCarty, Carmine Appice, Jimmy Kunes, Pete Bremy and Randy Pratt.
In early 2016, Carmine Appice announced on his Twitter and Facebook pages that Cactus was coming out with a new album at the end of May that year, "Black Dawn". In early June, Jim McCarty was interviewed on a podcast show, and he said that due to some complications, the release date of ''Black Dawn'' had been held up and that it would definitely be out by September (which it was), when the band would be touring for the album, the first show of which would be called the Cactus CD Release Party. McCarty also revealed that the album contained eight brand new songs as well as two never before heard songs by the original band that had recently been unearthed by Carmine Appice.
In 2017, Jimmy Caputo was announced as the band's new bassist and
Paul Warren (formerly with
Rare Earth,
Richard Marx
Richard Noel Marx (born September 16, 1963) is an American adult contemporary music, adult contemporary and pop rock singer-songwriter. He has sold over 30 million albums worldwide.
Marx's Richard Marx (album), self-titled debut album went tri ...
and
Rod Stewart
Sir Roderick David Stewart (born 10 January 1945) is a British rock and pop singer and songwriter. Born and raised in London, he is of Scottish and English ancestry. With his distinctive raspy singing voice, Stewart is among the best-selling ...
) was brought in on guitar, after Jim McCarty was forced to step away from touring due to health issues.
On January 13, 2021, Tim Bogert died at the age of 76, after a long battle with cancer.
Band members
Discography
Studio albums
Live albums
* ''Tokyo Nights'' (2014)
DVD
* ''TKO Tokyo: Live in Japan'' (2014)
Compilation albums
Singles
None of the above listed singles charted in Billboard.
References
Bibliography
* ''The New Musical Express Book of Rock'', 1975, Star Books,
External links
*
*
Rock N Roll Universe Interview
{{DEFAULTSORT:Cactus
American hard rock musical groups
Musical groups established in 1970
Musical groups disestablished in 1972
Musical groups reestablished in 2006
Heavy metal supergroups
Atco Records artists
American blues rock musical groups