Steppenwolf The Second: Steppenwolf: Amazon.ca: Music

1. Faster Than The Speed Of Life

2. Tighten Up Your Wig

3. None Of Your Doing

4. Spiritual Fantasy

5. Don't Step On The Grass, Sam

6. 28

7. Magic Carpet Ride

8. Disappointment Number (Unknown)

9. Lost And Found By Trial And Error

10. Hodge, Podge, Strained Through A Leslie

11. Resurrection

12. Reflections

Product Description

Amazon.ca

Following their very successful debut, Steppenwolf produced The Second, an album arguably as good as its predecessor and containing the psychedelic smash "Magic Carpet Ride," a career-defining hit in the vein of "Born to Be Wild." Thaat the blues are Steppenwolf's backbone can be heard in raunchy raves like "Tighten Up Your Wig" and "Don't Step On the Grass, Sam," the ideological successor to Steppenwolf's caustic "The Ostrich." The Second also features quiet pop ballads like "None of Your Doing" and "Spiritual Fantasy." Perhaps what most distinguishes the disc is the Pink Floyd-meets-Muddy Waters five-song psychedelic blues medley closing things out. Starting with "Disappointment Number (Unknown)," it chronicles the disintegration of a relationship, eventually breaking into a groovy Hammond organ jam before seguing into the brief lament of "Reflections." It's a fitting end to an album that arrived amid high expectations and delivered. --Adem Tepedelen

Tag this product

(What's this?)

Think of a tag as a keyword or label you consider is strongly related to this product.
Tags will help all customers organize and find favorite items.

Customer Reviews

8 Reviews

5 star:		(6)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

Average Customer Review

4.8 out of 5 stars (8 customer reviews)

Share your thoughts with other customers:

Create your own review

Most helpful customer reviews

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars One Of The Great Rock Albums To Come Out Of The Sixties!, Mar 5 2004

By

Barron Laycock "Labradorman" (Temple, New Hampshire United States) - See all my reviews
(TOP 1000 REVIEWER) (REAL NAME)

This review is from: Steppenwolf The Second (Audio CD)

This second outing for one of the Sixties most original and raucously independent group (of all those emerging in the tumult and upheaval of the times); Steppenwolf stood alone, showing their unique flair for defining and extending what was the beginning of heavy metal rock, all accomplished with their iconoclastic, staccato style. There never indeed was another band like Steppenwolf; so original and unique were both their songs and their instrumental accompaniments, not to mention John Kay's unusual vocal style, as well. All in all, a most creative and original force in the late sixties rock music scene.

Here they show why they became so famous so fast, with a song cycle disguised as several separate songs. Starting with "Faster Than The Speed Of Life" and continuing with "(You'd Better) Tighten Up Your Wig", they show the blend of self-deprecating humor and social commentary crystallized like so much methadrine in their songs, trudging on through excellent songs like "None Of Your Doing" and a flight of fantasy in "Spiritual Fantasy", ending the cycle with a wonderfully raucous "Don't Step On The Grass, Sam", a wry and satirical look at the silly and incompetent police efforts to stop widespread casual pot use.

The second cycle begins with a tender albeit humorous look at what it really means to approach age thirty in a subculture that distrusts anyone over that age. Followed by their monster hit, "Magic Carpet Ride", and a nice amalgam of several stories with a story with four interrelated melodies from Disappointment Number (Unknown all the way through the resurrection and reflection at the end of the album. This is a terrific album, and one any real rock fan would want to have in his or her anthology of rock's best. Enjoy!

Help other customers find the most helpful reviews

Was this review helpful to you? Yes No

Report abuse

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful

4.0 out of 5 stars underrated, May 13 2003

By

Andrew C. Alter (Germantown, NY United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Steppenwolf The Second (Audio CD)

I'm glad to see that people are still listening to and enjoying this album. Now sadly stereotyped as a biker band by the endless recycling of "Born to be Wild", Steppenwolf was really a sixties pop-rock outfit of the first order, every bit as delightful as Love, Buffalo Springfield, the Airplane and other California-based bands who are now lionized.

This album displays a mastery of tuneful songcraft. "28" is a forgotten gem that treads the fine line between bubblegum and garage. "None of your Doing" playfully echoes "In Another Land" off the Stones' Satanic Majesty's. "Magic Carpet Ride" never grows old, even after thousands of listenings. And the song suite on the second side (showing my age here) remains highly listenable and compares favorably with other side-length experiments of the time, like "Reflection" from Love's Da Capo album.

Steppenwolf is long overdue for the reissue/remaster treatment, perhaps pairing this one with "At your Birtday Party". No other sixties band has declined in reputation so undeservedly.

Help other customers find the most helpful reviews

Was this review helpful to you? Yes No

Report abuse

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful

4.0 out of 5 stars Consistently Entertaining, Feb 7 2002

By

Hans Pfaall (Connecticut, USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Steppenwolf The Second (Audio CD)

Steppenwolf the Second may be Steppenwolf's best overall album. It entirely features original material, without any ineffective tracks. This album is known for the excellent but overplayed Magic Carpet Ride, yet there were plenty of other highlights. The opening track rocks hard, and could have been another biker anthem along the lines of Born to Be Wild. There were plenty of other highlights including the rocking Don't Step On the Grass Sam, creative ballad Spiritual Fantasy, and well structured pop songs such as None of Your Doing and 28. 28 may have been partially hindered by Edmonton's sub-par vocals, but the song itself was a quality composition in lyrics, melody, and chord selection. A successful lengthy blues suite dominated the majority of the second side, before segueing into the hangover like final track, Reflections. This album is uniformly strong, and recommended for those who buy albums, rather than best-of compilations.

Help other customers find the most helpful reviews

Was this review helpful to you? Yes No

Report abuse

Share your thoughts with other customers: Create your own review

› See all 8 customer reviews on Amazon.ca

Want to see more reviews on this item?

› Go to Amazon.com to see all 21 reviews 4.6 out of 5 stars

Most recent customer reviews

5.0 out of 5 stars Just what an album should be
This is a cool album. I have the original vinyl, (worn so thin that it's almost see-thru in places), and the CD. Read more

Published on Aug 28 2001 by Geoff Cox

5.0 out of 5 stars Steppenwolf Hits It Twice In a Row
For their second album, Steppenwolf improved their formula and took it to another level. While "Magic Carpet Ride" is the song that, according to some 'made the album', tracks... Read more

Published on May 3 2001 by AudioObscurica