H. P. Lovecraft (band)

H. P. Lovecraft was an American psychedelic rock band named for horror writer Howard Phillips Lovecraft, formed in Chicago, Illinois, in 1967. The band's repertoire included two songs inspired by Lovecraft stories, "The White Ship" and "At the Mountains of Madness".
The band formed around George Edwards, a folk singer/songwriter, and Dave Michaels, a classically trained vocalist and keyboardist. They were joined by Tony Cavallari on lead guitar, Michael Tegza on drums, and Jerry McGeorge (later replaced by Jeffrey Boyan) on bass. 
Music promoter George Badonsky played a key role in putting the band together. Rock journalist Nick Warburton writes:A fervent reader of H.P. Lovecraft’s literary works, Badonsky had befriended another Lovecraft fan, local musician, music business attorney and producer, Bill Traut and together they had formed the production company, Dunwich (named after H.P. Lovecraft’s short story The Dunwich Horror)."The White Ship: The Psychedelic Journey of H. P. Lovecraft", by Nick Warburton.Edwards was one of Dunwich's acts, and the band grew out of Badonsky's attempts to promote Edwards' solo career. When Michaels was brought in to provide harmony for Edwards' cover of "Any Way That You Want Me" (a Chip Taylor song that was a recent hit for the Troggs), the single was released not under Edwards' name but as the first recording from H. P. Lovecraft.
Michaels later recalled the genesis of the name:I remember being with George Badonsky, Bill Traut and George Edwards in Badonsky’s apartment above the club Mother Blues. The record company had sent the producers a list of possible group names…We were all groaning at how none of the names fit us [and] then started talking about other things. The name of Badonsky’s dog (a Yorkshire terrier called Yuggoth) came up, along with the name H.P. Lovecraft. We all leaped at the idea of naming the group after the author. Who the first one was to suggest H.P. Lovecraft is anyone’s guess [but] all our minds clicked on it right away. The fact that it was unusual, catchy, and had the word ‘love’ in it, sealed our collective fate.Traut knew August Derleth, who was managing the Lovecraft estate, and secured his blessing for the use of the name.
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Category:Real World People