Steppenwolf +4 [Cardboard Sleeve (mini LP)] [SHM-CD] [Limited Release]

this is the amazing debut album from Steppenwolf from 1968 (45 years ago already) this album though at times underrated changed rock n roll a lot at this time, this was pre black Sabbath, led zeppelin and deep purple and of coarse Steppenwolf where not from the uk, this is a very heavy record for its time and it in a small way gave birth to the term heavy metal with there major hit born to be wild, to this day this is regarded as one of the best rock albums ever made, I think its fair to say black Sabbath created the metal sound but its also all over this record, Steppenwolf where not for wimps in the 60s and candy pop rockers that is why many bikers at the time took to this record and of coarse a number of the songs here ended up in the classic easy rider film, the guitar work is very heavy and raw and the organ and moletron ease in just perfectly for that killer 60s sound that was so awesome at this time, I love the pusher as well as all the other songs on here, also the remastering is awesome and it sounds great, also the replica of the sleeve and the bonus japan sleeve make this all that much more better for a collecter like me, wow when this record came out this country sure was a much different place then it sadley is today, not to sound sexist but I felt at this time Steppenwolf where a real guys band and they did nothing to try and look pretty or impress the outgoing merseybeat scene and sound, this was the kind of band that belonged on tour with the stones or blue cheer between 1969 through 1973 I would say, real in your face hard rock n roll and no silly mamby pamby mickey mouse stuff here THIS WAS LOUD LOUD ROCK N ROLL SOME 45 YEARS BACK and still sounds amazing to this day, I have been waiting years for japan to do these in papersleeve format, if you buy this IT MUST BE PLAYED LOUD AS HELL,

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.