List of Steppenwolf members
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Steppenwolf was a Canadian-American hard rock band from Los Angeles, California. Formed in 1967, the group originally consisted of lead vocalist and rhythm guitarist John Kay, lead guitarist Michael Monarch, bassist Nick St. Nicholas, drummer Jerry Edmonton and keyboardist Goldy McJohn. The band's final lineup featured Kay, keyboardist Michael Wilk (since 1982, and bassist between 1984 and 2009), bassist Gary Link (from 1982 to 1984, and since 2009), drummer Ron Hurst (since 1984) and lead guitarist Danny Johnson (since 1996).
History
[edit]1967–1976
[edit]Steppenwolf evolved from the Sparrows in late 1967 and originally included John Kay, Michael Monarch, Rushton Moreve, Jerry Edmonton and Goldy McJohn.[1] After the release of two studio albums, Moreve was fired in early 1969 for failure to appear at several performances, with former Sparrows bassist Nick St. Nicholas taking his place.[2] Monarch left the group in August,[3] with Larry Byrom taking his place in time for the recording of Monster.[4] St. Nicholas ceased working with Steppenwolf in April 1970, and was formally excluded from the band the following year.[5] He was replaced by George Biondo.[6] Byrom was replaced by Kent Henry for the 1971 release For Ladies Only.[7] In February 1972, Steppenwolf disbanded; Kay, Henry and Biondo continued working together, while Edmonton and McJohn formed a group called Manbeast.[8]
In early 1974 Steppenwolf reformed, with guitarist Bobby Cochran joining returning members Kay, Biondo, Edmonton and McJohn.[9] Kay fired McJohn the following February,[10] with Andy Chapin taking his place.[11] The new keyboardist declined to tour with the group, however, and was replaced by Wayne Cook.[12] The band released three studio albums during its second tenure, before disbanding in late 1976.[2] Following the group's second breakup, former members St. Nicholas and McJohn formed a band dubbed "New Steppenwolf", it was licensed and legit until 1980 at which time the licensing agreement wasn't complied with prompting Kay and Edmonton (who owned the rights to use the name) to take legal action.[13]
1980–2018
[edit]Kay reformed the band as "John Kay and Steppenwolf" in January 1980,[14] rebuilding the group with brothers Michael (lead guitar) and Steve Palmer (drums), bassist Kurtis Teel and keyboardist Danny Ironstone (Teel and Ironstone were soon replaced by Chad Peery and Brett Tuggle, respectively).[15] Peery and Tuggle performed on the 1981 live album Live in London, but were replaced for the recording of the following year's studio return Wolftracks by Welton Gite and Michael Wilk, respectively.[16] Gary Link took over on bass for 1984's Paradox but had left alongside the Palmer brothers by the end of the year, with Rocket Ritchotte (lead guitar) and Ron Hurst (drums) joining shortly after, and keyboardist Michael Wilk took the bass.[14][17] The band released Rock & Roll Rebels in 1987, which was the group's first to feature the four-piece lineup.[16]
Ritchotte left Steppenwolf in 1989 to tour with the David Lee Roth Band,[18] returning the following year and remaining until late 1993.[17] During his time away from the band, he was replaced briefly by Les Dudek,[19] and later by Steve Fister.[20] Following his departure, Fister returned to Steppenwolf for another three-year run.[21] In 1996, Danny Johnson joined Steppenwolf in place of the departed Fister.[22] Bassist Gary Link rejoined the band in 2009.[23][24] In October 2018, at the end of the band's 50th anniversary tour, Kay announced that the group had officially retired.[25]
Members
[edit]| Image | Name | Years active | Instruments | Release contributions |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| John Kay |
|
|
all Steppenwolf releases | |
| Jerry Edmonton |
|
|
all Steppenwolf releases from Steppenwolf (1968) to Skullduggery (1976) | |
| Goldy McJohn |
|
|
all Steppenwolf releases from Steppenwolf (1968) to Slow Flux (1974) | |
| Michael Monarch | 1967–1969 |
|
| |
| Rushton Moreve |
|
|
| |
| Nick St. Nicholas | 1968–1970 |
|
| |
| Larry Byrom | 1969–1971 |
|
| |
| George Biondo |
|
|
| |
| Kent Henry | 1971–1972 (died 2009) | lead guitar | For Ladies Only (1971) | |
| Bobby Cochran | 1974–1976 |
|
| |
| Andy Chapin | 1975 (died 1985) | keyboards | Hour of the Wolf (1975) | |
| Wayne Cook | 1975–1976 | Skullduggery (1976) | ||
| Michael Palmer | 1980–1985 |
|
| |
| Steve Palmer |
| |||
| Danny Ironstone | 1980 |
|
none | |
| Kurtis Teel |
| |||
| Chad Peery | 1980–1981 | bass | Live in London (1981) | |
| Brett Tuggle | 1980–1982 (died 2022) |
|
| |
| Welton Gite | 1981–1982 | bass | Wolftracks (1982) | |
| Michael Wilk |
|
|
all Steppenwolf releases from Wolftracks (1982) onwards | |
| Gary Link |
|
|
Paradox (1984) | |
| Ron Hurst | 1984–2018 |
|
all Steppenwolf releases from Rock & Roll Rebels (1987) onwards | |
| Rocket Ritchotte |
|
|
| |
| Les Dudek | 1989 | none | ||
| Steve Fister |
|
lead guitar | ||
| Danny Johnson | 1996–2018 |
|
|
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Timeline
[edit]
Lineups
[edit]| Period | Members | Releases |
|---|---|---|
| Late 1967 – early 1969 |
|
|
| Early – August 1969 |
|
|
| September 1969 – April 1970 |
|
|
| May 1970 – early 1971 |
|
|
| Early 1971 – February 1972 |
|
|
| Band inactive February 1972 – early 1974 | ||
| Early 1974 – February 1975 |
|
|
| March – August 1975 |
|
|
| August 1975 – late 1976 |
|
|
| Band inactive late 1976 – early 1980 | ||
| Early 1980 |
|
none |
| 1980–1981 |
|
|
| 1981–1982 |
|
|
| 1982–1984 |
|
|
| 1985–1989 |
|
|
| 1989 |
|
none |
| 1989–1990 |
| |
| 1990–1993 |
|
|
| 1993–1996 |
|
none |
| 1996–2009 |
|
|
| 2009 – October 2018 |
|
none |
References
[edit]- ^ Tortorici, Frank (July 2, 1999). "Steppenwolf's Michael Monarch". MTV. Archived from the original on December 1, 2017. Retrieved November 23, 2017.
- ^ a b Sleazegrinder (August 30, 2017). "Born To Be Wild: The Steppenwolf Story". Classic Rock. TeamRock. Retrieved November 23, 2017.
- ^ "The Songer Not the Sing" (Scan). Cash Box. Vol. 31, no. 5. New York City, New York: Cash Box Publishing. August 30, 1969. p. 27. Retrieved November 23, 2017.
- ^ Lindblad, Peter (April 13, 2010). "Steppenwolf: Band on the run". Goldmine. F+W. Retrieved November 23, 2017.
- ^ "Nicholas Kassbaum, Aka Nick St. Nicholas, Plaintiff-appellant, v. Steppenwolf Productions, Inc.; Steppenwolf, Inc.; Joachim Fritz Kreudeldat, Aka John Kay, Defendants-appellees, 236 F.3d 487 (9th Cir. 2000)". Justia. September 11, 2000. Retrieved November 23, 2017.
- ^ "Golden Paws" (Scan). Cash Box. Vol. 31, no. 43. New York City, New York: Cash Box Publishing. May 30, 1970. p. 12. Retrieved November 23, 2017.
- ^ "Kent Henry: Guitarist with Steppenwolf and Blues Image". The Independent. March 30, 2009. Retrieved November 23, 2017.
- ^ "Steppenwolf Split Is Fact; Form Two Groups" (Scan). Billboard. Vol. 84, no. 9. New York City, New York: Billboard Publications. February 26, 1972. p. 15. Retrieved November 23, 2017.
- ^ Freedland, Nat (April 6, 1974). "Steppenwolf Is Reunited!" (Scan). Billboard. Vol. 86, no. 14. New York City, New York: Billboard Publications. p. 20. Retrieved November 23, 2017.
- ^ Wink, Roger (August 4, 2017). "R.I.P. Goldy McJohn of Steppenwolf 1945-2017". Noise11. Retrieved November 23, 2017.
- ^ "Steppenwolf Makes an Epic Move" (Scan). Cash Box. Vol. 37, no. 13. New York City, New York: Cash Box Publishing. August 16, 1975. p. 9. Retrieved November 23, 2017.
- ^ "Steppenwolf Biography". Rolling Stone. Retrieved November 23, 2017.
- ^ "Steppenwolf Files Lawsuit" (Scan). Billboard. Vol. 92, no. 27. New York City, New York: Billboard Publications. July 5, 1980. p. 12. Retrieved November 23, 2017.
- ^ a b "John Kay - Questions & Answers". Steppenwolf. Retrieved November 23, 2017.
- ^ Ghianni, Tim (March 20, 2005). "Interview: Life's Been a Wild Ride". Steppenwolf. Retrieved November 23, 2017.
- ^ a b "Steppenwolf Family Tree". Steppenwolf. Archived from the original on July 11, 2019. Retrieved November 23, 2017.
- ^ a b "Q&A w/ Guitarists: Rocket Ritchotte". Steppenwolf. Retrieved November 23, 2017.
- ^ "Rocket Ritchotte (Black Rose/Steppenwolf) 2005". Classic Rock Revival. April 30, 2011. Retrieved November 23, 2017.
- ^ "Reflections on the Macon Scene & More, An Interview with Les Dudek". The Allman Brothers Band. June 19, 2004. Retrieved November 23, 2017.
- ^ "Steppenwolf". The Electric Beard. Retrieved November 23, 2017.
- ^ "What's Going On In Bonita: Best Bets" (Scan). The News-Press. Fort Myers, Florida: Gannett Company. October 13, 1994. p. 49. Retrieved November 23, 2017.
- ^ "Steppenwolf to Celebrate Their 50th Anniversary This Saturday at Nashville's Ryman Auditorium". Vintage Vinyl News. July 31, 2017. Retrieved November 23, 2017.
- ^ "Interview with Gary Link". classicbands.com. Retrieved November 23, 2017.
- ^ "Alpha Wolf Archives - Dec 19, 2009". Steppenwolf. December 19, 2009. Retrieved November 23, 2017.
- ^ Kay, John (October 24, 2018). "It's been a hell of a ride". Steppenwolf. Archived from the original on 2020-08-14. Retrieved December 27, 2019.