As soon as you hear the iconic, electric chords, you know what song it is. Maybe you first heard it in the film Easy Rider, or maybe on a road trip years ago, but there is no mistaking Steppenwolf’s “Born to be Wild.”
The song has come to epitomize an outlook or lifestyle, explained Glen Bui, who played guitar with Steppenwolf in the late 1970s and early 1980s. He currently plays with Revisit the Legend of Steppenwolf, which makes a stop at Rancho Nipomo BBQ for a concert on Aug. 20 as part of the Born to be Wild Tour.
That one song has kept Steppenwolf embedded in the cultural psyche, he said, and is known by generations.
“The song ‘Born to be Wild,’ it’s iconic, so it will stay in time even if the Earth disappears,” Bui said. “And everyone else knows ‘Magic Carpet Ride,’ but it’s really ‘Born to be Wild’ that everyone relates to.”
Revisit the Legend of Steppenwolf is led by original Steppenwolf member Goldy McJohn, who was the organist and keyboard player for the band. There is no Steppenwolf anymore. The original members all went their separate ways, Bui explained, but McJohn wanted to keep the music going.
The tour features a full band performing Steppenwolf’s popular songs, along with many other iconic hits of the late 1960s. Part of the original Steppenwolf’s allure, Bui said, was the sound McJohn was able to create on the organ.
“Goldy really pioneered the whole sound of the organ in rock ’n’ roll,” Bui said. “If you look back, he was doing it in ’67. When ‘Born to be Wild’ came out it had that Hammond B3 sound, and everybody was going, ‘What the hell is that?’
“After that everybody started using it,” he continued. “He clearly is one of the pioneers of that sound, kind of a legend when it comes to that.”
Rancho Nipomo BBQ is one of the more intimate venues on the tour, explained Bui. The group is used to playing arenas and large concert rooms, like Las Vegas casinos, he said.
Performing in smaller clubs and venues like Rancho Nipomo allows the band to connect more intimately with the audience, Bui explained, which is what the group is all about.
“We’re not a bunch of stuck up rock stars who think they’re better than everyone else,” he said. “We don’t have attitudes, I think that’s why people like us, and we become a part of the audience and the audience becomes a part of the show.”
The current lineup of the band features McJohn on the keyboard up front, with Bui on guitar. The rest of the band includes Bosco singing vocals, Mike Setzer on bass, and guest drummer Lee Wilson. Wilson also plays with Redbone and players from War, Bui said.
Bui also said he hopes locals who enjoy the iconic Steppenwolf sound will get their motors running, head out on the highway, and catch the Revisit the Legend of Steppenwolf concert.
“We’re just trying to keep the music alive and keep the fans happy,” he said. “We’re having a great time out there.”
Arts Editor Joe Payne is true nature’s child, ready to explode into space. Contact him at jpayne@santamariasun.com.
This article appears in Aug 18-25, 2016.
