Article

Steppenwolf

Published Online February 7, 2006

Last Edited December 15, 2013

Steppenwolf, Los Angeles-based blues-rock band (flourished 1967-72) which had its genesis in the Toronto quintet Sparrow (flourished 1964-67), which included German-born singer John Kay (né Joachim Krauledat), drummer Jerry Edmonton (aka Mars Bonfire) and organist Goldy McJohn.

Steppenwolf

Steppenwolf, Los Angeles-based blues-rock band (flourished 1967-72) which had its genesis in the Toronto quintet Sparrow (flourished 1964-67), which included German-born singer John Kay (né Joachim Krauledat), drummer Jerry Edmonton (aka Mars Bonfire) and organist Goldy McJohn. Featured in the counterculture film classic Easy Rider, the Bonfire-penned "Born to be Wild" became a million seller in 1968 and is widely regarded as an early prototype for heavy metal rock. Subsequent top-40 U.S. hits in the next 2 years included "Magic Carpet Ride," "Rock Me," "Monster" and "Hey Lawdy Mama." Kay's attempts to revive Steppenwolf after 1972 had mixed success, though the group remained a popular live attraction through the mid-1990s. Kay was inducted into the Canadian Music Hall of Fame in 1996.