John Raymond Goadsby (May 2, 1945 – August 1, 2017), known as Goldy McJohn, was a

Canadian Canadians (french: Canadiens) are people identified with the country of Canada. This connection may be residential, legal, historical or cultural. For most Canadians, many (or all) of these connections exist and are collectively the source of ...

keyboard player A keyboardist or keyboard player is a musician who plays keyboard instruments. Until the early 1960s musicians who played keyboards were generally classified as either pianists or organists. Since the mid-1960s, a plethora of new musical ins ...

best known as the original keyboardist for rock group Steppenwolf. Originally a classically trained pianist, he was a pioneer in the early use of the

electronic organ An electric organ, also known as electronic organ, is an electronic keyboard instrument which was derived from the harmonium, pipe organ and theatre organ. Originally designed to imitate their sound, or orchestral sounds, it has since developed ...

(

Hammond B3 Hammond may refer to: People * Hammond Innes (1913–1998), English novelist * Hammond (surname) * Justice Hammond (disambiguation) Places Antarctica * Hammond Glacier, Antarctica Australia *Hammond, South Australia, a small settlement in Sou ...

) in heavy metal.

Career

McJohn was born John Raymond Goadsby to middle class parents in Toronto, Ontario. They enrolled him in piano lessons at a young age which eventually enabled him to become a pioneer in the use of the electronic organ in rock and roll. "I was up at 4 a.m. daily to practice from the age of seven until…I got stupid. ... I was classically trained. I played on a Lowrey". In 1964, McJohn played with local band Little John & The Friars before moving on later that year to become a member of the Mynah Birds, which also included

Rick James James Ambrose Johnson Jr. (February 1, 1948 – August 6, 2004), better known by his stage name Rick James, was an American singer-songwriter, musician and record producer. Born and raised in Buffalo, New York, James began his musical career in ...

Bruce Palmer Bruce Palmer (September 9, 1946 – October 1, 2004) was a Canadian musician best known as the bassist in the seminal Canadian-American folk rock band Buffalo Springfield, who were inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1997. Early y ...

and (after McJohn left)

Neil Young Neil Percival Young (born November 12, 1945) is a Canadian-American singer and songwriter. After embarking on a music career in Winnipeg in the 1960s, Young moved to Los Angeles, joining Buffalo Springfield with Stephen Stills, Richie Fu ...

. In March 1965, he briefly joined The Diplomats before joining The Sparrows in September of that year. John Kay asked him if he could be known as "Goldy" while riding the bus to Willowdale. Goldy felt "Goldy Goadsby" would not be right, so in honor of his mother, Dorothy (née) McIntyre, Goldy added the "Mc" to his legal first name, creating his stage name. The band (with various changes) went on to become Steppenwolf and McJohn remained with the group from 1967 to early 1975, when he was fired by Kay. During Steppenwolf's hiatus in the early 1970s, McJohn and Steppenwolf drummer Jerry Edmonton formed Manbeast with Rod Prince and Roy Cox of

Bubble Puppy Bubble Puppy is an American psychedelic rock band originally active from 1967 to 1972. They are best remembered for their Top 20 hit, "Hot Smoke & Sasafrass". History Origins Bubble Puppy was formed in 1966 in San Antonio, Texas, by Rod Prince ...

, during which time the band penned at least one song that would appear on Steppenwolf's 1974 release, '' Slow Flux'', McJohn's last with the band. McJohn helped reform Steppenwolf in 1977 with

Nick St. Nicholas Nick St. Nicholas (born Klaus Karl Kassbaum on September 28, 1943) is a German bandleader, bass guitarist, singer and songwriter; best known for his partnership in Steppenwolf. Early life He was born in Plön, Schleswig-Holstein, Germany ...

and

Kent Henry Kent Henry Plischke (April 5, 1948 – March 18, 2009), known as Kent Henry, was an American guitarist and songwriter best known for his contributions to Steppenwolf and Blues Image.UncreditedKent Henry: Guitarist with Steppenwolf and Blues Image ...

and played in several incarnations of the band. He also played with Steve Marriott in a reconstituted version of

Humble Pie Humble Pie are an English rock band formed by guitarist and singer Steve Marriott in Moreton, Essex, in 1969. They are known as one of the first supergroups of the late 1960s and found success in the early 1970s with songs such as " Black C ...

. McJohn lived in

Burien, Washington Burien ( ) is a suburban city in King County, Washington, United States, located south of Seattle on Puget Sound. As of the 2020 census, Burien's population was 52,066, which is a 56.3% increase since incorporation in 1993. An annexation in 2010 ...

, with his wife Sonja. His solo releases included ''New Visions'', ''Fugue in D'', ''Goldy McJohn & Friendz'', ''

Rat City White Center is a census-designated place (CDP) in King County, Washington, United States. It lies between West Seattle and Burien. The population was 16,631 at the 2020 census. White Center is sometimes referred to by the nickname "Rat City ...

in Blue'', ''Set the World on Fire'' and ''Osmosis''. Beginning in 2008, he performed with a national band under the name Gm and Friendz and with ''The Born To Be Wild Tour''.

Death

McJohn died of a sudden heart attack on August 1, 2017 at his home in

. He was 72 years old.

References

External links

* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:McJohn, Goldy 1945 births 2017 deaths Musicians from Toronto Canadian rock keyboardists Canadian organists Male organists Steppenwolf (band) members People from Burien, Washington Deaths in Tennessee