Steppenwolf

This tag is associated with 2 posts

Interview: Don McLean

By ⋅ August 4, 2019 ⋅ Post a comment


Don McLean’s epic song “American Pie” laments “the day the music died” – the 1959 plane crash which killed Buddy Holly, Ritchie Valens, and The Big Bopper – and also tells a beautifully cryptic story about the subsequent evolution of rock ‘n’ roll and society. An enduring classic, it spent four weeks at Number One in 1972, and in 2017 was selected for preservation in the National Recording Registry by the Library of Congress.

But McLean wasn’t a one-hit wonder. The American Pie album also included the hit song “Vincent”, a meditation on Vincent van Gogh and his masterpiece painting “Starry Night”. Other notable Don McLean songs include “Dreidel”, “Wonderful Baby”, “Since I Don’t Have You”, “Castles in the Air”, and a hit cover of Roy Orbison’s “Crying”. His most recent album was last year’s Botanical Gardens.

This interview was for a preview article for noozhawk.com for the 8/16/19 Don McLean concert at the Libbey Bowl in Ojai, California. It was done by phone on 7/10/19. (Publicity photo)

Interview: John Kay

By ⋅ January 24, 2015 ⋅ Post a comment

JK

For over four decades, one of the best ways to “get your motor running” when you’re “looking for adventure” is to crank up “Born to Be Wild” on the stereo, the timeless first hit single from the band Steppenwolf. The voice that calls you to action in that song is that of singer John Kay. Steppenwolf went on to have other hits in the late ’60’s and early ’70’s, including “Magic Carpet Ride” and “Rock Me”, and their music has been used in seemingly countless movies and TV shows starting with Easy Rider, which featured “Born to Be Wild” and “The Pusher”. The band broke up in 1972, but has been active off and on since then in various incarnations.

In addition to musical pursuits, Kay and his wife Jutta devote much of their energy these days to the Maue Kay Foundation, which works to protect wildlife, the environment, and human rights.

This interview is for John Kay’s concert on 1/30/15 at SOhO in Santa Barbara; also performing is The Dirty Knobs, a band which features Tom Petty’s longtime guitarist Mike Campbell. (An earlier interview with Mike Campbell is here.) It was done by phone on 1/15/15. (Jutta Maue-Kay photo)

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