"Born to Be Wild" | ||||
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Single by Steppenwolf | ||||
from the album Steppenwolf | ||||
B-side | "Everybody's Next One" | |||
Released | May 9, 1968 | |||
Genre | ||||
Length |
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Label | ||||
Songwriter(s) | Mars Bonfire | |||
Producer(s) | Gabriel Mekler | |||
Steppenwolf singles chronology | ||||
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Official audio | ||||
"Born To Be Wild" on YouTube |
"Born to Be Wild" is a song written by Mars Bonfire and first performed by the band Steppenwolf. Although the lyrics do not specifically mention motorcycles, the song is often invoked in both popular and counter culture to denote a biker appearance or attitude since being featured in the 1969 film Easy Rider . Sometimes, "Born to Be Wild" is described as the first heavy metal song, and the second-verse lyric "heavy metal thunder" marks the first use of this term in rock music (although not as a description of a musical style but rather a motorcycle). [5] [6]
Mars Bonfire wrote "Born to Be Wild" as a ballad. [7] Bonfire was previously a member of the Sparrows, the predecessor band to Steppenwolf, and his brother was Steppenwolf's drummer. Although he initially offered the song to other bands — The Human Expression, for one [8] — "Born to Be Wild" was first recorded by Steppenwolf in a sped-up and rearranged version that AllMusic's Hal Horowitz described as "a roaring anthem of turbo-charged riff rock" and "a timeless radio classic as well as a slice of '60s revolt that at once defines Steppenwolf's sound and provided them with their shot at AM immortality". [7]
"Born to Be Wild" was Steppenwolf's third single off their self-titled debut album and became their signature song, reaching No. 2 on the Billboard Hot 100 singles charts. It was kept from the No. 1 spot by "People Got to Be Free" by the Rascals. [9] In 2004, Rolling Stone magazine placed "Born to Be Wild" at No. 129 on the 500 Greatest Songs of All Time list. [10] Also in 2004, it finished at No. 29 on AFI's 100 Years...100 Songs survey of top tunes in American cinema. In 2009, it was named the 53rd best hard rock song of all time by VH1 (It ranked 40th in the 100 Greatest Songs of Rock and Roll by VH1 nine years earlier.). [11] In 2018, the song was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in a new category for singles. [12]
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Chart (1968) | Position |
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Canada (RPM Top Singles) [26] | 14 |
US Billboard Hot 100 [27] | 31 |
Chart (1990) | Position |
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Netherlands (Dutch Top 40) [28] | 47 |
Netherlands (Single Top 100) [29] | 57 |
Region | Certification | Certified units/sales |
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Denmark (IFPI Danmark) [30] | Gold | 45,000‡ |
Italy (FIMI) [31] | Gold | 25,000‡ |
Spain (PROMUSICAE) [32] | Platinum | 60,000‡ |
United Kingdom (BPI) [33] | Gold | 400,000‡ |
United States (RIAA) [34] | Gold | 1,000,000^ |
^ Shipments figures based on certification alone. |
"Born to Be Wild" | ||||
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Single by Kim Wilde | ||||
B-side | "All About Me" | |||
Released | 2002 | |||
Length | 3:23 (Radio Mix) | |||
Label | Edel | |||
Songwriter(s) | Mars Bonfire | |||
Producer(s) | Ricki Wilde | |||
Kim Wilde singles chronology | ||||
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Music video | ||||
"Born to Be Wild" on YouTube |
In 1985, the song was covered by Australian band Rose Tattoo. Their version peaked at No. 25 in Australia. [35] In 2002, it was covered by Kim Wilde and released as a non-album single. Her cover reached No. 84 in Germany [36] and No. 71 in Switzerland. [37] Belgian singer Tanja Dexters also covered the song in 2002. Her version peaked at No. 21 in Belgium. [38]
Other artists that covered this song include Hinder, [39] Etta James, [40] Link Wray, [40] Slade, [41] The Cult, [42] INXS, [40] Ozzy Osbourne with Miss Piggy, [43] Bruce Springsteen, [40] Slayer, [44] Blue Öyster Cult, [40] Status Quo, [40] Fanfare Ciocărlia, [45] Krokus, [46] Wilson Pickett, [40] and La Renga. [47]
Chart (1985) | Peak position |
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Australia (Kent Music Report) [35] | 25 |
Chart (2002) | Peak position |
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Germany (Official German Charts) [36] | 84 |
Switzerland (Schweizer Hitparade) [37] | 71 |
Chart (2002) | Peak position |
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Belgium (Ultratop 50 Flanders) [38] | 21 |
Steppenwolf was a Canadian-American rock band that was prominent from 1968 to 1972. The group was formed in late 1967 in Los Angeles by lead singer John Kay, keyboardist Goldy McJohn and drummer Jerry Edmonton, all formerly of the Canadian band the Sparrows. Guitarist Michael Monarch and bass guitarist Rushton Moreve were recruited via notices placed in Los Angeles-area record and musical instrument stores.
"Come On Eileen" is a song by the English group Dexys Midnight Runners, released in the United Kingdom in June 1982 as a single from their second studio album Too-Rye-Ay. It reached number one in the United States and was their second number one hit in the UK, following 1980's "Geno". The song was produced by Clive Langer and Alan Winstanley and was initially claimed to be written by Kevin Rowland, Jim Paterson and Billy Adams, although Rowland later stated that the essence of the tune should be attributed to Kevin Archer.
"Funkytown" is a song by American disco-funk group Lipps Inc., written and produced by Steven Greenberg and released by Casablanca Records in March 1980 as the second single from the group's 1979 debut studio album Mouth to Mouth.
"99 Luftballons" is a song by the West German band Nena from their 1983 self-titled album. An English-language version titled "99 Red Balloons", with lyrics by Kevin McAlea, was also released by Nena on the album 99 Luftballons in 1984 after widespread success of the original in Europe and Japan. The English version is not a direct translation of the German original and contains lyrics with a somewhat different meaning. In the US, the English-language version did not chart, while the German-language recording became Nena's only US hit.
"Puttin' On the Ritz" is a song written by Irving Berlin. He wrote it in May 1927 and first published it on December 2, 1929. It was registered as an unpublished song on August 24, 1927 and again on July 27, 1928. It was introduced by Harry Richman and chorus in the musical film Puttin' On the Ritz (1930). According to The Complete Lyrics of Irving Berlin, this was the first song in film to be sung by an interracial ensemble. The title derives from the slang expression "to put on the Ritz", meaning to dress very fashionably. This expression was inspired by the opulent Ritz Hotel in London.
"Magic Carpet Ride" is a rock song written by John Kay and Rushton Moreve from the Canadian-American hard rock band Steppenwolf. The song was initially released in 1968 on the album The Second. It was the lead single from that album, peaking at number three in the US, and staying in the charts for 16 weeks, longer than any other Steppenwolf song.
"Paradise City" is a song by the American rock band Guns N' Roses, featured on their debut album, Appetite for Destruction (1987). Released as a single in January 1989, it is the only song on the album to feature a synthesizer. The song peaked at number five on the Billboard Hot 100—becoming the band's third single to reach the Top 10—and number six on the UK Singles Chart. It also topped the Irish Singles Chart, their first of three singles to do so.
"Wicked Game" is a song by American rock musician Chris Isaak, released from his third album, Heart Shaped World (1989). Released as a single in July 1989, it became a sleeper hit after being featured in the 1990 David Lynch film Wild at Heart, starring Nicolas Cage and Laura Dern. Lee Chesnut, an Atlanta radio station music director who loved David Lynch films, began playing the song, and it quickly became an American top-10 hit in March 1991, reaching number six on the Billboard Hot 100. Internationally, the single became a number-one hit in Belgium and reached the top 10 in several other nations.
"Rock Me Amadeus" is a song recorded by Austrian musician Falco, for his third studio album, Falco 3 (1985). The single was made available for physical sale in 1985 in German-speaking Europe, through A&M. "Rock Me Amadeus" was written by Falco along with Dutch music producers Bolland & Bolland. To date, the single is the only German language song to peak at number one of the Billboard Hot 100, which it did on 29 March 1986.
"Every Rose Has Its Thorn" is a power ballad by American glam metal band Poison. It was released in October 1988 as the third single from Poison's second album Open Up and Say... Ahh!. The band's signature song, it is also their only number-one hit in the US, reaching #1 on the Billboard Hot 100 on December 24, 1988, for three weeks. It also charted at number 11 on the Mainstream Rock chart. It was a number 13 hit in the UK. "Every Rose Has Its Thorn" was named number 34 on VH1's "100 Greatest Songs of the 80s", number 100 on their "100 Greatest Love Songs" and number seven on MTV and VH1 "Top 25 Power Ballads". Billboard ranked the song number five on their list of "The 10 Best Poison Songs".
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Steppenwolf's 'Born To Be Wild', a gritty, hard-rock song that quickly became an anthem for defiant individualism.
The brilliant soundtrack, including the Byrds' 'Wasn't Born to Follow', Steppenwolf's proto-metal 'Born to be Wild', and Jimi Hendrix's 'If Six Was Nine', helped to set the film in a kind of outlaw-rock'n'roll context.