Steppenwolf ; Steppenwolf The Second (1968)

"Steppenwolf's first album is a surprisingly strong debut from a tight hard rock outfit. 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. On this album, the best material came from outside: "Born to Be Wild" by ex-member Mars Bonfire, which became not only a chart-topping high-energy anthem for the counterculture (solidified by its use in the movie "Easy Rider" in 1969), but coined the phrase heavy metal, thus giving a genre-specific name to the brand of music the band played. The second album was virtually a re-creation of its predecessor, only slightly more sophisticated in its range of songs and the manner of playing them, and the in-house writing had improved. It embraces everything from hard rock to psychedelia to blues, and the band is in excellent form, playing very hard and edgy, except on the lyrical, reflective "Spiritual Fantasy," a rare acoustic number for the group." (Bruce Eder, Allmusic)

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