Steppenwolf - 8x Japanese SHM-CD. 1968-1971 (2013)

Cardboard sleeve (mini LP) reissue from Steppenwolf features the high-fidelity SHM-CD format (compatible with standard CD players) and the latest remastering. The cardboard sleeve faithfully replicates the US LP artwork, including its aluminium foil surface. Also comes with bonus sleeve that reproduces the design of Japan Limited Edition LP. Part of a 8-album Steppenwolf mini LP SHM-CD reissue series featuring albums "Steppenwolf," "The Second," "At Your Birthday Party," "Early Steppenwolf," "Monster," "Live Steppenwolf," "Steppenwolf 7," and "For Ladies Only." Becomes cardboard sleeve reissue for the first time.

Steppenwolf entered the studio for their recording debut with a lot of confidence – based on a heavy rehearsal schedule before they ever got signed – and it shows on this album, a surprisingly strong debut album from a tight hard rock outfit who was obviously searching for a hook to hang their sound on. The playing is about as loud and powerful as anything being put out by a major record label in 1968, though John Kay's songwriting needed some development before their in-house repertory would catch up with their sound and musicianship. On this album, the best material came from outside the ranks of the active bandmembers: "Born to Be Wild" by ex-member Mars Bonfire, which became not only a chart-topping high-energy anthem for the counterculture (a status solidified by its use in Dennis Hopper's movie Easy Rider the following year), but coined the phrase heavy metal, thus giving a genre-specific name to the brand of music that the band played (and which was already manifesting itself in the work of bands like Vanilla Fudge and the just-emerging Led Zeppelin); the Don Covay soul cover "Sookie, Sookie," which, as a single by the new group, actually got played on some soul stations until they found out that Steppenwolf was white; two superb homages to Chess Records, in the guise of "Berry Rides Again," written (though "adapted" might be a better word) by Kay based on the work of Chuck Berry, and the Willie Dixon cover "Hoochie Coochie Man"; and Hoyt Axton's "The Pusher," an anti-drug song turned into a pounding six-minute tour de force by the band. The rest, apart from the surprisingly lyrical rock ballad "A Girl I Knew," is by-the-numbers hard rock that lacked much except a framework for their playing; only "The Ostrich" ever comes fully to life among the other originals, but the songs would catch up with the musicianship the next time out.

~ allmusic.com

Musicians:

John Kay : Guitars, Harmonica, Lead vocals.
Rushton Moreve : Bass guitar, Backing vocals.
Michael Monarch : Guitars, Backing vocals.
Goldy McJohn : Organ, Piano, Electric piano.
Jerry Edmonton : Drums, Percussion, Backing vocals.

Track List:

01. Sookie Sookie [3:15]
02. Everybody's Next One [2:58]
03. Berry Rides Again [2:49]
04. Hootchie Cootchie Man [5:12]
05. Born To Be Wild [3:30]
06. Your Wall's Too High [5:46]
07. Desperation [5:45]
08. The Pusher [5:49]
09. A Girl I Knew [2:39]
10. Take What You Need [3:28]
11. The Ostrich [5:47]
12. Sookie Sookie (Mono Single Version) (Bonus Track) [3:14]
13. Take What You Need (Mono Single Version) (Bonus Track) [3:34]
14. Born To Be Wild (Mono Single Version) (Bonus Track) [3:07]
15. Everybody's Next One (Mono Single Version) (Bonus Track) [2:53]

The group's second album was virtually a re-creation of its predecessor, only slightly more sophisticated in its range of songs and the manner of playing them, and the in-house writing had improved, though the latter also became highly derivative. Steppenwolf the Second embraces everything from hard rock to psychedelia to blues, and the band is in excellent form, playing very hard and edgy, except on the deliberately lyrical, reflective "Spiritual Fantasy," a rare acoustic number for the group. Much more to the point of the group was the single "Magic Carpet Ride," the ultimate psychedelic pop dance number of the decade, and the marijuana anthem "Don't Step on the Grass, Sam," the pounding "28," and the album-opener "Faster Than the Speed of Life." Side two of the original LP was a great achievement in its own right, opening with "Magic Carpet Ride," which leads into a nonstop extended array of hard-rocking numbers, mostly in a blues idiom: "Disappointment Number (Unknown)," "Lost and Found by Trial and Error," "Hodge Podge, Strained Through a Leslie," and "Resurrection." The playing was as good as the first album, and though there's nothing quite comparable to "Born to Be Wild" here in terms of cultural impact, the level of the surrounding numbers is higher.

~ allmusic.com

Musicians:

John Kay : Lead vocals, Guitar, Harmonica
Michael Monarch : Lead guitar
Goldy McJohn : Organ, piano
Rushton Moreve : Bass guitar
Jerry Edmonton : Drums, Vocals

Track List:

01. Fast Than The Speed Of Life [3:13]
02. Tighten Up Your Wig [3:05]
03. None Of Your Doing [2:50]
04. Spiritual Fantasy [3:40]
05. Don't Step On The Grass, Sam [5:40]
06. 28 [3:11]
07. Magic Carpet Ride [4:26]
08. Disappointment Number [4:53]
09. Lost And Found By Trial And Error [2:08]
10. Hodge, Podge, Strained Through A Leslie [2:49]
11. Ressurrection [2:54]
12. Reflections [0:47]
13. Magic Carpet Ride (Mono Single Version) (Bonus Track) [2:54]

Rocking out a little more, Steppenwolf hit gold again with this release. The hit, "Rock Me" sat well alongside such other hits as "Jupiter Child" and "Don't Cry." Even so, it has a rather unsettling feel to it. It was almost as if all their success was beginning to turn sour. Okay, but a bit flawed.

~ allmusic.com

Musicians:

John Kay : Lead Vocals, Guitar, Harmonica
Michael Monarch : Lead Guitar
Goldy McJohn : Organ, Piano
Nick St. Nicholas : Bass
Jerry Edmonton : Drums, Vocals

Track List:

01. Don't Cry [3:11]
02. Chicken Wolf [2:59]
03. Lovely Meter [3:11]
04. Round And Down [3:20]
05. It's Never Too Late [4:07]
06. Sleeping Dreaming [1:09]
07. Jupiter Child [3:28]
08. She'll Be Better [5:32]
09. Cat Killer [1:37]
10. Rock Me [3:45]
11. God Fearing Man [3:57]
12. Mango Juice [3:00]
13. Happy Birthday [2:21]
14. Rock Me (Mono Single Version) (Bonus Track) [3:42]
15. Jupiter Child (Mono Single Version) (Bonus Track) [3:15]
16. It's Never Too Late (Mono Single Version) (Bonus Track) [3:10]
17. Happy Birthday (Mono Single Version) (Bonus Track) [2:24]

Early live recordings made when the band was still called "Sparrow," working more out of a blues-band mold.

~ allmusic.com

Musicians:

John Kay : Guitar, Vocals
Mars Bonfire : Guitar
Nick St. Nicholas : Bass guitar
Jerry Edmonton : Drums
Goldie McJohn : Keyboards, Organ

Track List:

01. Power Play [2:56]
02. Howlin' For My Baby [4:53]
03. Goin' Upstairs [7:17]
04. Corina, Corina [3:57]
05. Tighten Up Your Wig [3:18]
06. The Pusher [21:39]

The group's most political album, tackling then-current issues such as the Vietnam War, draft resisters, and the decay of justice in America. These were (and are) important topics, but these lumbering hard rock tunes were not an effective means to address them, politically or musically. It's hard to make agitprop and pop mix, but even judged simply within the context of Steppenwolf's records, it lacks memorable compositions, the unexceptional tunes burdened by lyrics that are too heavy-handed.

~ allmusic.com

Musicians:

John Kay : Lead Vocals, Guitar, Harmonica
Michael Monarch : Lead Guitar
Goldy McJohn : Organ, Piano
Nick St. Nicholas : Bass
Jerry Edmonton : Drums, Vocals

Track List:

01. Monster/Suicide/America [9:15]
02. Draft Resister [3:22]
03. Power Play [5:28]
04. Move Over [2:53]
05. Fag [3:13]
06. What Would You Do (If I Did That To You) [3:23]
07. From Here To There Eventually [5:34]
08. Move Over (Mono Version) (Bonus Track) [2:59]
09. Power Play (Mono Version) (Bonus Track) [4:51]
10. America (Mono Version) (Bonus Track) [3:56]

Supposedly recorded live at various concerts in 1970, this double LP (single CD) was actually a studio-created "live" album, with overdubbed crowd noise on top of what are some surprisingly lean and effective live-in-the-studio performances. It isn't half-bad musically, roughly on a par with Happening Live by the Outsiders (another fake live release) for musical value, and it is one of the choicer pop-culture documents of its era, featuring such topical songs as "Don't Step on the Grass, Sam" (which opens with an offhanded spoken critique of Operation Intercept, the crackdown on marijuana smuggling instituted by the Nixon administration) and "Draft Resister," and longtime parts of their repertory such as "Tighten up Your Wig," "Corina, Corina," "Power Play," and "The Pusher." The obligatory hits, "Magic Carpet Ride" and "Born to Be Wild," are also present, and it is fun listening, featuring essentially the same lineup that recorded the Monster album that preceded it. The guitars of John Kay and Larry Byrom interweave beautifully, and there isn't much excess, even allowing for the presence of a ten-minute version of "Monster." And assuming that the repertory is appealing, listeners should love the longer versions of most of the songs present here, whether they were really live or not.

~ allmusic.com

Musicians:

Larry Byrom : Guitar
Jerry Edmonton : Drums
John Kay : Vocals, Guitar
Goldy McJohn : Keyboards
Nick St. Nicholas : Bass guitar

Track List:

01. Sookie Sookie [3:10]
02. Don't Step On The Grass, Sam [6:07]
03. Tighten Up Your Wig [4:15]
04. Monster [9:55]
05. Draft Resister [3:47]
06. Power Play [5:43]
07. Corina, Corina [3:48]
08. Twisted [5:02]
09. From Here To There Eventually [6:52]
10. Hey Lawdy Mama [2:59]
11. Magic Carpet Ride [4:15]
12. The Pusher [5:59]
13. Born To Be Wild [5:46]
14. Hey Lawdy Mama (Mono Single Version) (Bonus Track) [3:20]
15. Twisted (Mono Single Version) (Bonus Track) [3:45]

Steppenwolf only recorded seven discs for Dunhill Records in the short span between 1968 and 1971, six of them studio albums, and one allegedly "live" – though there was early Sparrow material recorded in May of 1967 not released by the label until 1972. Throw in a greatest-hits package along with Columbia's reissue of yet more Sparrow recordings, and how they came up with Steppenwolf 7 for the title of this, their fifth studio recording for Dunhill, is a question for hardcore fans of the band to debate (don't even bring the movie soundtracks into this equation). Richard Podolor has taken the production reins from Gabriel Mekler, as he did with Three Dog Night, but where the producer was able to take Hoyt Axton's "Joy to the World" to number one in a notable six weeks in 1971 with the vocal trio and labelmates of this group, the author of "The Pusher," Axton, is represented here by his "Snowblind Friend," a topic not likely to get Steppenwolf chart action. And that's the dilemma with Steppenwolf 7. This is a very worthwhile Steppenwolf recording, chock-full of their trademark sound, but nothing that was going to penetrate the Top 40. John Kay and guitarist Larry Byron (listed on the song credits as Larry Byrom and on the live album as Byron – take your pick, he's a notable session player) co-write five of these nine tunes, "Ball Crusher" being what you expect, as is "Fat Jack," Byrom's only co-write here with new bassist George Biondo (and perhaps one of them on the vocals, as it certainly isn't John Kay). A nice, thick Goldy McJohn keyboard and solid beat still don't give this tune enough of an identity to be considered hit material. Kay and Byrom do a better job of heading in that direction with their "Foggy Mental Breakdown" and "Hippo Stomp," while Byrom's instrumental, "Earschplittenloudenboomer," had the attitude to be the next "Born to Be Wild," just not enough of the magic – not explosive enough and no sneering Kay vocal to bring it home. What is happening here is that John Kay is heading in the direction of his 1972 solo disc, Forgotten Songs & Unsung Heroes, especially on the cover of Roth's "Forty Days and Forty Nights" and the country-ish "Snowblind Friend," which is the other side of Hoyt Axton's "The Pusher," the effect of cocaine on the victim/user. Kay and Byrom come back with more driving rock in "Who Needs Ya?," played well and listenable, but just missing the edge that gave "Rock Me" and "Magic Carpet Ride" their specialness. The blueish images of the bandmembers in a desolate area with two skulls above them on the album cover make an interesting statement. Steppenwolf 7 is an intriguing collection of album tracks showing the two sides of John Kay – the hard rock singer and the artist setting his sights on interpreting other musical styles. It came at a moment when the band needed to redefine itself on the AM band, but opted instead to just put out a decent product and take few risks.

~ allmusic.com

Musicians:

George Biondo : Bass, Vocals (Background)
Larry Byrom : Guitar, Vocals (Background)
Goldy McJohn : Keyboards
John Kay : Guitar, Vocals, Guitar (Electric), Harmonica
Jerry Edmonton : Drums

Track List:

01. Ball Crusher [4:53]
02. Forty Days And Forty Nights [3:04]
03. Fat Jack [4:52]
04. Renegade [6:08]
05. Foggy Mental Breakdown [3:54]
06. Snow Blind Friend [3:55]
07. Who Needs Ya [3:00]
08. Earschplittenloudenboomer [5:01]
09. Hippo Stomp [5:46]
10. Screaming Night Hog (Bonus Track) [3:18]
11. Snow Blind Friend (Mono Single Version) (Bonus Track) [3:20]
12. Hippo Stomp (Mono Single Version) (Bonus Track) [3:23]

The title track of For Ladies Only is a classic slice of Steppenwolf's brand of hard rock: gritty chord guitar from Blues Image refugee Kent Henry (Steppenwolf went through as many or more guitarist changes as the Guess Who), elegant piano from Goldy McJohn, even jazz flavors on a nine-minute-plus track as blatantly sexist as the album gatefold. The graphic photo of a huge penis car alongside the Hollywood walk of fame tucked inside the cardboard is completely juvenile, while the back of the LP features the boys all reading books, from The Sensuous Woman to Snow White & the Seven Dwarves – interesting imagery that doesn't complement the music as much as the artists might have thought it did at the time. The Jerry Edmonton/Goldy McJohn composition "I'm Asking" has a heavy "Jumpin' Jack Flash" riff that's all sludged out and a weak non-John Kay vocal – like, why bother? Kay's snarling voice was as much a part of the sound as the heavy keys, and without it the otherwise fine performance and production are just totally eradicated; it's a song that would've worked better as an instrumental. Ditto for Jerry Edmonton's "Jaded Strumpet," which is also in desperate need of Kay's authoritative tone, which is refreshingly surreal on the singer's co-write with George Biondo that is "Sparkle Eyes."

In retrospect, For Ladies Only remains a neat artifact of a band who might've been called on to create too much too soon. Three Mars Bonfire compositions brighten up the proceedings, including "Tenderness" and the excellent "Ride With Me," perhaps the most memorable tune of the ten, all culled from that ever-flowing fountain that was Mars Bonfire's Faster Than the Speed of Life LP. Interesting that on the vinyl four songs grace side one, while side two has six titles, from two to four and a half minutes in length. The songwriting is shared pretty equally, the bandmembers co-writing in different combinations. Bonfire's brother, Jerry Edmonton; singer John Kay; and keyboardist Goldy McJohn all write or contribute to three titles each with two for the newer members, bassist George Biondo and guitarist Kent Henry.

A very democratic brew, which is interesting but for the most part doesn't have the punch of the title track or the nugget from the Mars Bonfire solo disc, "Ride With Me." The original Sparrow guitarist's presence casts a good shadow and remains as essential to this crew as the lead singer and keyboard player. Why they didn't keep Bonfire on from day one of their journey is the mystery. This 1971 Dunhill release produced by Richard Podolor for Steppenwolf Productions, Inc. makes that point loud and clear, though the Kent Henry/Goldy McJohn instrumental "Black Pit" does tend to sound like Blues Image-meets-Steppenwolf, and proves the point made earlier. If John Kay wasn't in the mood to sing, the material works better with no voice at all. His absence from three of the ten tracks is perhaps an indication that he had his sights set on a solo career. Kent Henry and George Biondo moved on with the singer for his 1972 outing Forgotten Songs & Unsung Heroes.

~ allmusic.com

Musicians:

John Kay : Vocals, guitar
Kent Henry : Lead guitar
George Biondo : Vocals, Bass guitar
Goldy McJohn : Keyboards
Jerry Edmonton : Drums

Track List:

01. For Ladies Only [9:16]
02. I'm Asking [4:27]
03. Shackles And Chains [5:00]
04. Tendermess [4:55]
05. The Night Time's For You [2:58]
06. Jaded Strumpet [4:43]
07. Sparkle Eyes [4:32]
08. Black Pit [3:49]
09. Ride With Me [3:25]
10. In Hopes Of A Garden [2:14]
11. For Madmen Only (Bonus Track) [8:50]
12. For Ladies Only (Single Version) (Bonus Track) [3:31]