Customer Reviews

Seven

5 star:		(21)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

...in a mish-mash of super hits. Today, years after the magic, all you hear is "I wanna hear Born To Be Wild!" Or "What about Magic Carpet Ride?". Bikers. Dope. Those are the twin images conjured up when the name Steppenwolf is mentioned, and it ignores the fact that this is a rock-solid blues band that outdid Hendrix and matched the Doors in terms of pointed social comment. Like this album, with the tongue-in-cheek pseudo-misogyny of "Ball Crusher", the funkiest blue-eyed soul number since the Beatles' "Come Together". The Rolling Stones-like "Forty Days And Forty Nights"--straight out of Muddy Waters. The cautionary "Snow Blind Friend", about how to deal with a junkie too close to you to ignore. The rare Steppenwolf instrumental with the goofy cartoon-German title "Earschplittenloudenboomer". They don't do instrumentals that often, and it must be because they insist on doing only good ones. And the autobiographical "Renegade", which is sort of a prequel to "Monster". Imagine growing up behind the Iron Curtain the way leader John Kay did, escaping to the Free World barely with your life (one of Kay's friends got shot down by the border guards), and discovering that there's so much noise from extremism of both stripes here in the "Promised Land" that you can hardly hear yourself think. The sad irony is that a quarter of a century after that song was written, it's even worse than it was then. This album is the best illustration that John Kay has every bit of the iconoclasm of Jim Morrison without any of the meanness. Maybe that's why he's still alive today--still doin' his thing.

This is one of the greatest rock records ever recorded. Nothing sounds dated on it -- no gimmickry to tie it to the past. Just clean blues rock with John Kay and Co.'s amazing vision. Where did they get this stuff?? I would be hard pressed to pick favorites, but Renegade and Hippo Stomp are definitely right up there. Buy this record.

This was the first album I ever owned, when I got it in 1972. It has been my favorite ever since. After wearing out the album and a subsequent cassette, I am sure glad to get it on CD. John Kay and Goldie McJohn are at their best in Ballcrusher. Foggy Mental Breakdown, Hippo Stomp, Earsplittenloudenboomer, several others not available on the "Greatest Hits" albums, along with the classic Snow Blind Friend make this a MUST HAVE for the classic Steppenwolf fan. END

Forget the hits, forget the biker image, forget everything you think you know about this band. If you don't have this album, you are missing one of THE classic albums of the early 70's. Along with the perfection of their previous "Monster" album, 7 showed everyone just what a great band Steppenwolf were. I'm talking the concept of a BAND, not John Kay and whoever. The magic captured here is only possible because it features the perfect, strongest and probably best Steppenwolf line-up. From start to finish, this album is wall to wall attitude and conviction. They perform every song like their lives depended on it. I'm a little biased, since I've owned this on album, 8-track, cassette and CD. Graced by one of my favorite album covers of all time, the entire package spins an aura of darkness that has stood the test of time. It captures that moment in time when it was apparent that the dreams and hopes of the 60's had been shattered by the shadows of war and an increasingly turbulent America.

a great combination of rock classic and blues, this steppenwolf album is 1 of their best if not the best. great Riffs and Hits form Snowblind Friend to the title trac earshplittenloudenboumer..
a must have for any collection

OK, I might be biased on this one. I've been a huge Steppenwolf fan since their earliest days in L.A. I love this CD. I think the best songs on it are Foggy Mental Breakdown and Ball Crusher, but all of them are worth a listen or two.

This album (CD) had a more bluesy sound to it than some of there others, but still the same straight-ahead rock 'n' roll!!! Steppenwolf has been one of my all-time favorite bands that made great music and this CD is no exception. Excellent music from an excellent band.

A bluesier harder hitting jamming Steppenwolf.
Rocking songs, the great rocker Who Needs Ya and the hippie anthem ballad Snowblind Friend with Art work reproduced and good sound marks this as a great Steppenwolf release.
It is also available as a twofer with At Your Birthday Party(wonderful cd) from BGO who puts out quality releases.

Returning from the politics-dominated environment on their earlier albums Steppenwolf went to the studio to record "7", and underrated album that has it's merits. "40 Days.." is a great John Kay blues cover. "Fat Jack" is a George Biondo number, at times Biondo's voice hints at John Fogerty and Mick Jagger. This is one of the heavier tracks on the album. There are the songs that have been comped time and time again, but lesser known are tracks like "Hippo Stomp" and the jazzy instrumental "Earschplittenlouderboomer". Truly a case where a band is trying to cover a lot of territory in one record and does it successfully as well.

It's hard to find an album of any kind that is great from beginning to end and also stands the test of time. This is one of the few. The lyrics are phenomenal and powerful at times, not too mention highly amusing as well as unforgettable. This album has several different moods and delivers the goods track after track. Simply put, one of the greatest classic rock albums of all time. "Fat Jack where are you goin????". Hopefully to the record store or else, "Who needs you?".