The album's embrace was designed past times fine art manager Gary Burden. The master copy LP was a gatefold amongst a punched-out forepart cover; the punchout revealed a photograph of the band which comprised the inner sleeve's recto. This photograph of the band was shot past times Henry Diltz, as well as it shows the band sitting inward the remnants of amplifiers as well as equipment inward a charred menage which had belonged to Canned Heat. (A 1969 burn ripped through Canned Heat's menage as well as rehearsal studio on Lookout Mountain Ave inward Laurel Canyon, Los Angeles, California.) Original atomic number 82 guitarist Michael Monarch did non demo upwardly for the photograph shoot. Steppenwolf producer Gabriel Mekler bore a physical resemblance to Monarch, as well as it was decided that Mekler would receive got Monarch's house inward the photo. Mekler was able to enshroud himself all the to a greater extent than inward the photograph past times sporting a distich of sunglasses. Initially, non likewise many noticed. Monarch was soundless inward the band, however. (A dispelled myth is that Monarch was no longer inward the band at the fourth dimension of the photograph shoot; he was inward the band until the latter utilisation of 1969, as well as the album came out inward early on 1969.) The LP was reissued on CD past times MCA inward belatedly 1980's. MCA decided to non utilisation the photograph for their CD re-issue as well as opted exclusively for the master copy unfinished nation of war mouse painting, originally intended every bit the LP's cover. The resulting CD artwork indeed looks bare every bit a result. The surrounding black-and-white image of the LP's gate-fold sleeve was made past times importing images of cartoon mouse heads onto the bodies of soldiers inside an image of a the U.S. Civil War trenched battlefield. The black-and-white percentage of the album fine art was a collage made past times Rick Griffin, who was supposed to pigment a terminal version of what became the album art, but Dunhill Records declined to pay for the ikon as well as and thus used Griffin's black-and-white prototype.
The recording sessions for "At Your Birthday Party" started to demo the habiliment as well as tear of the route on all of us. In addition, but about band members for the get-go time, tried their manus at songwriting as well as I had run out of tunes to contribute. This album nevertheless includes but about of my favorite Steppenwolf tracks such every bit "Happy Birthday", "Jupiter's Child" as well as "Rock Me". Nick St. Nicholas (who had replaced our master copy bassist Rushton Moreve) had an thought for a vocal titled "It's Never Too Late", which triggered me to function out the residuum of the song. That i is an all fourth dimension favorite of mine. Gabriel Mekler (our Producer) had his hands amount trying to live on fair to all band members as well as remain neutral to allow us to function out the difficulties on our own. The fact that the vocal "Rock Me" (which had been written for the soundtrack of the displace pic "Candy") had already been a striking unmarried earlier it was included inward the "Birthday album" may receive got reduced the affect of the album because the initial sales of the LP were non what nosotros had hoped for, although over the years, it became quite pop amongst many of our fans.
With 2 come about 10 albums as well as 2 come about 3 singles inward America inward 1968, Los Angeles rockers Steppenwolf gave themselves but about deed to follow. But inward the early on months of the next year, they were at it again. On vii March 1969, they released their 3rd LP, At Your Birthday Party, as well as would shortly meet it residing inward the come about ten, along amongst its flagship unmarried ‘Rock Me.’
The novel album, to a greater extent than rock-leaning than the band’s previous work, was the get-go to characteristic Nick St. Nicholas on bass, replacing Rushton Moreve. The arrival of St. Nicholas divided sentiment amidst Steppenwolf diehards, but the novel band fellow member had co-writes on 2 tracks, including a solo credit for ‘Sleeping Dreaming,’ fifty-fifty if that was picayune to a greater extent than than a minute-long jam. Frontman John Kay wrote ‘Rock Me,’ which had the farther make goodness of a placement inward the 1968 characteristic cinema Candy, a menses slice of permissiveness featuring Marlon Brando, Richard Burton as well as fifty-fifty Ringo Starr.
Steppenwolf Rock Me Single Sleeve spider web optimised 350The unmarried made its Hot 100 debut the calendar week earlier the album release, as well as although it exclusively managed a ten-week nautical chart stay, compared to xiii for ‘Born To Be Wild’ as well as sixteen for ‘Magic Carpet Ride,’ it nevertheless reached No. 10. It was a similar even for At Your Birthday Party, which cruel curt of the aureate certification already achieved past times Steppenwolf as well as The Second, but soundless spent 29 weeks on the Billboard album chart.
Track listing:
01 Don't Cry 3:04
02 Chicken Wolf 2:51
03 Lovely Meter 3:12
04 Round And Down 3:15
05 It's Never Too Late 4:05
06 Sleeping Dreaming 1:11
07 Jupiter Child 3:24
08 She'll Be Better 5:15
09 Cat Killer 1:30
10 Rock Me 3:39
eleven God Fearing Man 3:50
12 Mango Juice 3:14
xiii Happy Birthday 1:20
Personnel:
John Kay – atomic number 82 vocals, beat guitar, harmonica
Michael Monarch – atomic number 82 guitar
Goldy McJohn – organ, piano
Nick St. Nicholas – bass
Jerry Edmonton – drums, backing vocals
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