Steppenwolf (Steppenwolf album)

Steppenwolf is the debut album by Canadian-American rock band Steppenwolf, released in January 1968 on ABC Dunhill Records.

Steppenwolf
Studio album by
Steppenwolf
ReleasedJanuary 29, 1968 (1968-01-29)
RecordedFall 1967
Studio
  • American Recording Co. Studio
  • (Studio City, California, U.S.)
(The studio was first located in Hollywood, then Studio City, then Calabasas; it is now a home studio.)
Genre
Length46:10
LabelABC Dunhill
ProducerGabriel Mekler
Steppenwolf chronology
Steppenwolf
(1968)		 The Second
(1968)
Singles from Steppenwolf
  1. "A Girl I Knew"
    Released: October, 1967
  2. "Sookie Sookie"
    Released: February, 1968
  3. "Born to Be Wild"
    Released: May, 1968
Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic[1]
Rolling Stone(positive)[2]
Sputnikmusic[3]
The Daily VaultB+[4]

The album was a successful debut for the band, featuring the songs "Born to Be Wild", as well as "The Pusher", both of which were used in the 1969 film Easy Rider. "Berry Rides Again" is a tribute to guitarist Chuck Berry. The spelling of track #4 on the vinyl is "Hootchie Kootchie Man". The album credits say it was recorded at American Recording Company in Studio City, California; however, the actual name of the studio was American Recorders.

The background color of the original ABC LP cover was a silver "foil", in contrast to later (MCA Records) LP issues and the modern CD sleeve in which it is replaced by off white. It is the only album by the band to have been released in both stereo and mono configurations. Although the latter is simply a 'fold down' of the stereo mix, it is sought after as a collector's item.

Early editions of the "silver foil background" version credit "Mars Bondfire" with writing "Born to be Wild" on both the LP label and the back of the LP cover.

Following the success of "Born to Be Wild", later releases had a black box on the cover with the wording: "Including The Hit: Born to Be Wild". The earliest 1968 versions of the album did not have this.

Track listing
Side one
No.TitleWriter(s)Length
1."Sookie Sookie"Don Covay, Steve Cropper3:12
2."Everybody's Next One"John Kay, Gabriel Mekler2:53
3."Berry Rides Again"Kay2:45
4."Hootchie Kootchie Man"Willie Dixon5:07
5."Born to Be Wild"Mars Bonfire3:28
6."Your Wall's Too High"Kay5:40
Side two
No.TitleWriter(s)Length
7."Desperation"Kay5:45
8."The Pusher"Hoyt Axton5:43
9."A Girl I Knew"Kay, Morgan Cavett2:39
10."Take What You Need"Kay, Mekler3:28
11."The Ostrich"Kay5:43
Total length:46:10

Personnel

Steppenwolf

Technical

Charts

Album - Billboard (United States)

Year Chart Position
1968 Billboard 200 6[5]

Singles - Billboard (United States)

Year Single Chart Position
1968 "Born to Be Wild" Billboard Hot 100 2[6]

References
  1. Eder, Bruce. "Allmusic review". Allmusic.com. Retrieved 2012-09-13.
  2. "Steppenwolf: Steppenwolf : Music Reviews : Rolling Stone". 27 April 1968. Retrieved 13 September 2012.
  3. g, manos (April 2, 2014). "Review: CD Steppenwolf - Steppenwolf Album". Sputnikmusic. Retrieved 2014-04-07.
  4. Thelen, Christopher (2019). "The Daily Vault Music Reviews : Steppenwolf". dailyvault.com. Retrieved 5 February 2019.
  5. "Billboard 200 - Steppenwolf". Retrieved August 28, 2017.
  6. "Billboard Hot 100 - Steppenwolf". Retrieved August 28, 2017.


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