Customer Reviews

Hour of the Wolf

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Originally released in 1975, "Hour Of The Wolf", wasn't one of Steppenwolf's best selling albums. The reason being, it didn't feature a classic, signiture hit single, and the band's sound had changed from a gritty, hard-blues-rock to a more polished hard-pop-rock style. I'm not saying "Hour Of The Wolf", wasn't a good album, it has it's moments. Of the 8 songs featured on this release, there is only one clinker, "Annie, Annie Over", written by Alan O'Day who also wrote "Train Of Thought", that was featured on Steppenwolf's follow up album "Skullduggery". O'Day also wrote Helen Reddy's number 1 hit "Angie Baby', and scored a late 70's pop hit for himself, "Undercover Angel". While Alan O'Day is certainly a talented songwriter, musician, his style of writing just doesn't work for Steppenwolf. Now, let's look at the positive side of "Hour Of The Wolf". "Caroline (Are You Ready For The Outlaw World)", written by Mars Bonfire (who also wrote the Steppenwolf classic, "Born To Be Wild"), was released as a single but got no promotion whatsoever from the band's record label (Epic Records), and died a quick death. With no support for "Caroline...", (or the album) from Epic Records, "Hour Of The Wolf", lingered in Billboard's top 200. The one song that did get some airplay on the FM stations was "Mr. Penny Pincher", that remains to this day as a favorite by the hard core Wolf fans. Other highlights on this fine release include, "Hard Rock Road", "Just For Tonight", "Someone Told A Lie", and "Another's Lifetime". While it may not have sold a million copies, "Hour Of The Wolf", is a very good album that just didn't get the record company promotion it deserved.

"Hour Of The Wolf", is one of Steppenwolf's best albums ever and has since become a collector's item since it's now out of print. It rocks from start to finish with some blistering tunes, "Hard Rock Road", "Two For The Love Of One", and "Mr. Penny Pincher", just to name a few. There really isn't one bad song on the album. It is a bit different sounding than their earlier albums which had a bluesy sound. "Hour Of The Wolf", has more of a straight ahead rock sound which was the sound of the day when it was released in 1975. Joining original members John Kay, drummer Jerry Edmonton, and longtime bassist George Biondo on this fine release are new keyboardist Andy Chapin and guitarist Bobby Cochran, who had joined the band the previous year. Both had a lot to do with the band's fresh new sound. Bobby Cochran had proven himself to be an outstanding guitarist and songwriter on Steppenwolf's previous album "Slow Flux", and new keyboardist Andy Chapin was a much better keyboardist and over all musician than Goldy McJohn. Not enough credit has been given to Andy Chapin which is a shame because he played a major role in bringing that added punch, fresh new sound to the band. If one of the Steppenwolf greatest hits collections is the only cd you have by the band in your collection...do yourself a favor and check out "Hour Of The Wolf", you won't be sorry.

After a killer comeback with 'Slow Flux,' Steppenwolf shifted gears a bit with 'Hour of the Wolf.' John Kay has only one co-writing credit and seems content to interpret several other songwriter's material. The quality of the songs and performances are fine and I personally think nearly every song on here is good, a batting average comparable to that on 'Slow Flux,' which may have been the most consistent album Steppenwolf ever made. But musical tastes had changed and this is reflected in the album's poor sales and chart showing. If there were any justice in the world, the supremely catchy first single, "Caroline (Are You Ready for the Outlaw World)" would have at least been a Top 40 hit, but it failed to even chart. "Hard Rock Road" would have made a good second single; actually, there are several songs here you could say that about. 1974/1975 marked the death of sixties style rock, not just for Steppenwolf. Many other bands found their fortunes decline around this time as disco moved into the picture. Still, 'Hour of the Wolf' stands up to repeated listenings and is a 'must-have' in any Steppenwolf collection.

Being a long-time Steppenwolf fan and a musician myself, I purchased this album when it was first released in 1975 and also saw the band play this live on their promo tour for this release. The album delivers some great straight-up, hard-driving rock music and the band played a very tight, excellent live show. The combination of original members Kay and Edmonton, along with seasoned, long-time bassist George Biondo (and excellent bass player), coupled with Bobby Cochran who joined the band for the previous album "Slow Flux", all combined with newcomer and excellent keyboardist, Andy Chapin to turn in a stellar performance (this was, unfortunately, the only Steppenwolf album featuring Andy on keys). It's just too bad their record label didn't aggressively promote the album because there is some very strong material there. BTW, I was saddened to read on the Steppenwolf web site some years back that both Jerry Edmonton and Andy Chapin have both since died in accidents (different accidents). Andy died in the same plane crash as Rick Nelson and Jerry was killed a few years later in a car accident.

In the mid-70's there was a change in direction for Steppenwolf, the band had left in 1971 on a hard-rocking album, and came back in 1974 with pop influenced album. For the next album, "Hour of the Wolf" the band comes dangerously close to do disco sounding material. They went a step further and actually did with "Skullduggery". There's some good ole rock n' roll here and there on this album. One more Mars Bonfire composition. A completists/hardcore fans only album. Not for the new fans.

This CD is the second of the three albums Steppenwolf released orginally on the Epic/Mums labels in the mid-1970s. This album is signifigant in one respect because it is the first effort by the 'Wolf minus Goldy McJohn; organist since the Sparrow days.

I've been into Steppenwolf for many years. I own all the original vinyl from the first LP up to Rock & Roll Rebels. I've always felt this 1975 release was a little lackluster in the production department. It is also uneven and the end product sounds - on some tracks like a 1970s cliche .That being said, there are a couple of decent tracks on here; "Mr. Penny Pincher" and "Anothers lifetime" are both not bad. The John Kay/Bobby Cochran composition "Someone Told A Lie" is also fairly decent. The rest of the album is dim.

I'd recommend this release for die-hard fans of the 'Wolf only. Lackluster and dim, with only a few precious bright spots. I suggest you turn to the other 1970's albums "Skullduggery" and "Slow Flux." They capture mid 1970s Steppenwolf better.

This 1975 release saw the band at their lowest point since the beginning of their career. Gone was the great band from the Monster\Live days with the only remaining band members the drummer and the lead singer. When Larry Byrom left after the 7 album they lost a great writer\ guitarist and this is the first effort without origional keyboard player Goldy McJohn. They also miss Nick St. Nickolas even though George Biondo is a fair bassist. If you want to hear good Steppenwolf then buy 7, Monster, or maybe the Second. For hardcore fans only.