Published on Apr 19, 1999
Have you ever had the experience of going back to an album you
really liked when you were younger, only to discover that the
sounds you heard don’t match up to the childlike ideals you set
yourself up to hear?
Back when I was in high school in the late ’80s, I got into
Steppenwolf while I was in my metalhead stage. Having just gotten
my license, I knew a great record store in Skokie that carried
imports and was the be-all, end-all for finding the stuff that
Sound Warehouse didn’t (or wouldn’t) carry. (This particular store
is gone now; a bank stands in its place. My father never has gotten
over the fact that where the record store-now-bank stands once was
a place where he got the best, greasiest onion rings ever known to
man. But I digress.)
One such album that I found in one of my numerous searches was
Steppenwolf The Second, the heavy metal godfathers’ second
release of 1968. Best known for the single “Magic Carpet Ride,” it
was the obvious next step for me to pick up once I had digested
their self-titled release – you know, the one that Sound Warehouse
did carry.
Digging it out of the Pierce Memorial Archives over the weekend,
something struck me about this album – namely, it had not aged very
well. Sure, there were still some great performances on this album,
but the inevitable “sophomore slump” strikes again!
John Kay and crew, of course, had the inenviable task of living
up to the hype that “Born To Be Wild” had created. I mean, how do
you top a song that is quickly becoming an anthem for a new
generation of music listeners? The answer came in “Magic Carpet
Ride,” a song that mixed in psychedelia – and a pretty hefty dose,
at that – with the bombastic rock that had made Steppenwolf famous
that year. Thirty-one years later, it’s still a great track.
But where Kay and company stumble on their tragic flaw is in
their attempt to expand past the world of blooze-rock. Granted,
they had tackled some lighter material on
Steppenwolf on “Desperation” and “A Girl I Knew” – but at
least the material was strong enough to carry the theme. On this
album, Kay dips into the politically absurd with “Spiritual
Fantasy,” where Kay waxes poetic about ideals and the evils of the
political system while Eastern-influenced guitars pluck in the
background and a string chorus plays. Oh,
please.
Most of the second half of
Steppenwolf The Second becomes a mish-mash as songs
interweave themselves into an all-out mess. Tracks like “Hodge,
Podge, Strained Through A Leslie” and “Resurrection” are wastes of
time. However, the last two tracks (“28” and “None Of Your Doing”)
save some face.
It should be noted that a second vocalist takes on some of the
duties here, but the MCA reissue tape doesn’t have any liner notes,
and neither All-Music Guide or the official Steppenwolf page list
who this vocalist is. Their work can be heard on “28,” “Faster Than
The Speed Of Life,” and trading lead vocals with Kay on “Don’t Step
On The Grass, Sam”. Any enlightenment from the audience would be
appreciated – especially if John Kay himself happens to be
reading.
This all isn’t to say that
Steppenwolf The Second is a major washout. “Faster Than The
Speed Of Life,” a live version of “Tighten Up Your Wig” and the
pro-marajuana “Don’t Step On The Grass, Sam” all do shine on this
album. But it’s interesting to hear Kay take on some of the old
blues standards that have become more commonplace these days – I
even heard him take a verse of “The Sky Is Crying” on near the end
of the album, though the exact song slips my mind at the moment.
Quite frankly, had it not been for Stevie Ray Vaughan’s take on the
song, I probably would never have noticed Kay’s rendition.
Steppenwolf The Second is a relic of the psychedelic-heavy
metal-birth generation, and does have moments that shows this
band’s brilliance. However, in the end, it remains an album that is
“for the fans,” or for those who want to hear more than what
classic rock radio feeds us on a daily basis.