"Born to Be Wild" is a song written by
Mars Bonfire
Dennis Edmonton (born Dennis Eugene McCrohan; 21 April 1943), also known by the stage name Mars Bonfire, is a Canadian rock musician and songwriter, best known for writing the hit song "Born to Be Wild" for Steppenwolf.
Career
Born Dennis Eu ...
and first performed by the band
Steppenwolf. The song is often invoked in both
popular
Popularity or social status is the quality of being well liked, admired or well known to a particular group.
Popular may also refer to:
In sociology
* Popular culture
* Popular fiction
* Popular music
* Popular science
* Populace, the total ...
and
counter culture to denote a
biker
Biker or bikie may refer to:
* A cyclist, a bicycle rider or participant in cycling sports
* A motorcyclist, any motorcycle rider or passenger, or participant in motorcycle sports
** A motorcycle club member, defined more narrowly than all motor ...
appearance or attitude. It is most notably featured in the 1969 film ''
Easy Rider
''Easy Rider'' is a 1969 American independent drug culture road drama film written by Peter Fonda, Dennis Hopper, and Terry Southern, produced by Fonda, and directed by Hopper. Fonda and Hopper play two bikers who travel through the American So ...
''. It is sometimes 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).
Composition
"Born to Be Wild" was written by Mars Bonfire as a ballad.
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 — "Born to Be Wild" was first recorded by Steppenwolf in a sped-up and rearranged version that
AllMusic
AllMusic (previously known as All Music Guide and AMG) is an American online database, online music database. It catalogs more than three million album entries and 30 million tracks, as well as information on Musical artist, musicians and Music ...
'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".
Release and reception
"Born to Be Wild" was the band's third single off their 1968 debut album ''
Steppenwolf'' and became their most successful single, reaching No.2 on the
''Billboard'' Hot100 singles charts. It was kept from the No.1 spot by "
People Got to Be Free" by
the Rascals. In 2004, ''
Rolling Stone
''Rolling Stone'' is an American monthly magazine that focuses on music, politics, and popular culture. It was founded in San Francisco, California, in 1967 by Jann Wenner, and the music critic Ralph J. Gleason. It was first known for its ...
'' magazine placed "Born to Be Wild" at No.129 on the
500 Greatest Songs of All Time list. 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.). In 2018, the song was inducted into the
Rock and Roll Hall of Fame
The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame (RRHOF), sometimes simply referred to as the Rock Hall, is a museum and hall of fame located in downtown Cleveland, Ohio, United States, on the shore of Lake Erie. The museum documents the history of rock music and ...
in a new category for singles.
Charts
Weekly charts
Year-end charts
Certifications
Cover versions
In 1985, the song was covered by Australian band
Rose Tattoo
Rose Tattoo are an Australian rock and roll band, now led by Angry Anderson, which formed in Sydney in 1976. Their sound is hard rock mixed with blues rock influences, with songs including "Bad Boy for Love", "Rock 'n' Roll Outlaw", "Nice Bo ...
. Their version peaked at No. 25 in Australia.
In 2002, it was covered by
Kim Wilde
Kim Wilde (born Kim Smith, 18 November 1960) is an English pop singer, DJ and television presenter. She first saw success in 1981 with her debut single " Kids in America", which peaked at No. 2 in the UK. In 1983, she received the Brit Awar ...
and released as a non-album single. Her cover reached No. 84 in Germany
and No. 71 in Switzerland.
Tanja Dexters also covered the song in 2002. Her version peaked at No. 21 in Belgium.
Other artists that covered this song include
Hinder
Hinder is an American rock band from Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, formed in 2001 by lead singer Austin John Winkler, guitarist Joe "Blower" Garvey, and drummer Cody Hanson with bassist Mike Roden and guitarist Mark King joining in 2003, solidify ...
,
Etta James
Jamesetta Hawkins (January 25, 1938 – January 20, 2012), known professionally as Etta James, was an American singer who performed in various genres, including gospel, blues, jazz, R&B, rock and roll, and soul. Starting her career in 1954, sh ...
,
Link Wray
Fred Lincoln "Link" Wray Jr. (May 2, 1929 – November 5, 2005) was an American guitarist, songwriter, and vocalist who became popular in the late 1950s.
''Rolling Stone'' placed Wray at No. 45 of the 100 greatest guitarists of all time. In 2013 ...
,
Slade
Slade are an English rock band formed in Wolverhampton in 1966. They rose to prominence during the glam rock era in the early 1970s, achieving 17 consecutive top 20 hits and six number ones on the UK Singles Chart. The ''British Hit Singles ...
,
The Cult
The Cult are an English rock band formed in 1983 in Bradford, West Yorkshire. Before settling on their current name in January 1984, the band performed under the name Death Cult, which was an evolution of the name of lead singer Ian Astbury' ...
,
INXS
INXS (a phonetic play on "in excess") were an Australian rock band, formed as The Farriss Brothers in 1977 in Sydney, New South Wales. The band's founding members were bassist Garry Gary Beers, main composer and keyboardist Andrew Farriss ...
,
Ozzy Osbourne
John Michael "Ozzy" Osbourne (born 3 December 1948) is an English singer, songwriter, and television personality. He rose to prominence during the 1970s as the lead vocalist of the heavy metal band Black Sabbath, during which period he adop ...
with
Miss Piggy
Miss Piggy is one of the Muppet characters known for her breakout role in Jim Henson's ''The Muppet Show''. Since her debut in 1976, Miss Piggy has been notable for her temperamental diva superstar personality, tendency to use French phrases i ...
,
Bruce Springsteen
Bruce Frederick Joseph Springsteen (born September 23, 1949) is an American singer and songwriter. He has released 21 studio albums, most of which feature his backing band, the E Street Band. Originally from the Jersey Shore, he is an originato ...
,
Slayer
Slayer was an American thrash metal band from Huntington Park, California. The band was formed in 1981 by guitarists Kerry King and Jeff Hanneman, drummer Dave Lombardo and bassist/vocalist Tom Araya. Slayer's fast and aggressive musical styl ...
,
Blue Öyster Cult
Blue Öyster Cult ( ; sometimes abbreviated BÖC or BOC) is an American rock band formed on Long Island in Stony Brook, New York, in 1967, and best known for the singles "(Don't Fear) The Reaper", "Burnin' for You", and "Godzilla". The band h ...
,
Status Quo
is a Latin phrase meaning the existing state of affairs, particularly with regard to social, political, religious or military issues. In the sociological sense, the ''status quo'' refers to the current state of social structure and/or values. ...
,
Fanfare Ciocărlia
Fanfare Ciocărlia is a twelve-piece Romani Balkan brass band from the northeastern Romanian village of Zece Prăjini. They are known for their fast, high-energy music with complex rhythms and high-speed staccato clarinet, saxophone, and tru ...
,
,
Wilson Pickett
Wilson Pickett (March 18, 1941 – January 19, 2006) was an American singer and songwriter.
A major figure in the development of soul music, Pickett recorded over 50 songs which made the US R&B charts, many of which crossed over to the ''Bil ...
,
La Renga
La Renga is a hard rock Argentine band, formed in 1988.
They had moderate success with the albums '' A Dónde Me Lleva La Vida'' and '' Bailando en una pata'', between 1993 and 1995, but it was the release of Despedazado por Mil Partes, in 1996 ...
, and
Jess Greenberg.
Charts
Rose Tattoo version
Kim Wilde version
Tanja Dexters version
See also
*
List of number-one singles of 1968 (Canada)
References
{{authority control
1968 songs
1968 singles
1985 singles
2002 singles
Bruce Springsteen songs
Dunhill Records singles
Edel AG singles
Epic Records singles
Grammy Hall of Fame Award recipients
Hinder songs
Kim Wilde songs
Ozzy Osbourne songs
RCA Records singles
RPM Top Singles number-one singles
Slade songs
Steppenwolf (band) songs
Wilson Pickett songs