Steppenwolf - s/t (1968) [Original USA Dedicated Mono]

 Steppenwolf - Steppenwolf (1968)

Original Dedicated MONO White-Label Promo
Dunhill / ABC Records D-50029
~ThePoodleBites rip in 96 kHz / 24 bit FLAC + hi-res artwork scans~

Because standard US mono copies of the Steppenwolf debut are all a simple stereo fold-down, the dedicated mono mix of the LP was totally unknown to exist until Bob Irwin uncovered a mono tape in the UK, which was reissued on Sundazed in 2019. Following this surprising discovery, it was suggested that the original UK mono release must contain this dedicated mix as well, which surprisingly turns out to be true. I say that it's surprising because there are several late-'60s albums that were only available in stereo stateside, so in foreign countries these albums were folded down to create mono variants (stereo took over a bit later internationally). But in the US, where mono stock copies of Steppenwolf existed and sold prolifically, they were all fold-downs. So why is it that a dedicated mix would be made for foreign markets, but not sold domestically? Certainly ABC/Dunhill realized that their biggest Steppenwolf market was in the US, not the UK?

When I argued this obvious fact on Steve Huffers' Manufactured Forums, I was dismissed as Monsieur Idiotic Poodle by some ignorant English wanker. But I wasn't dissuaded; and for good reason, as it turns out that I was onto something: that dedicated mix actually was released in the good ole USA -- so take that, ya tea-sippin' British plonker! Yes, this mix was apparently released on some (but not all) white-label promo copies, one of which I was quite lucky to score... and another of which I have never seen even offered.

Many thanks to C.F. the Record Phantom for his usual invaluable contributions!

My attempt at photographing the rather worn foil cover from this dedicated mono Steppenwolf LP 

It's really quite curious why this mix was so quickly deleted and replaced by a stereo fold. Perhaps this had something to do with the bump in popularity from Easy Rider, the soundtrack of which used a stereo vinyl rip; or maybe someone felt there was some issue with this mix which wasn't on the stereo version. Also possible is that original mono tapes or stampers had unexpectedly become lost or suffered damage, or became ignored just purely due to logistical issues between different pressing plants... who knows? It surely is a shame, though, that this mix was essentially unheard until over 50 years after its initial release; it's clearly better than the folded-down stereo mix. The hits "Born To Be Wild" and "The Pusher" arguably sound best here -- I like these album mono mixes even more than the mono single versions, which are yet another source of alternate mixes (confused yet?).

Reconstructed front cover scan with monaural & promo stickers

Original UK mono LP, front cover

Original US mono LP, front cover (later fold-down edition)

Back cover of the original US pressing

As I am the first person to discover this particular mono variant, I can report that this dedicated mono mix is now known to exist in at least three places: this original US mono promo, the Sundazed reissue, and the UK mono, in order of sound quality from best to worst. The Sundazed is pretty good, but you can hear severe phase cancellation issues on the inner-groove tracks, possibly from being played back with a stereo head and hastily collapsed to mono, or maybe from generational loss, or even tape damage -- not sure. What is certain is that this original US mono sounds killer from beginning to end, and most listeners will likely consider it an improvement on any other existing version of this album. This original US pressing has a treble roll-off around 16 kHz which is not found on the Sundazed, but even given this, it sounds more realistic to these ears, especially on "Your Wall's Too High" and "The Ostrich."

Promo photo from a teen music magazine.
Back row (L to R): Goldy McJohn, Jerry Edmonton.
Front row: John Kay, Michael Monarch, Rushton Moreve.

Musicians:
- John Kay: lead vocals, guitars, harmonica
- Michael Monarch: guitars, backing vocals
- Goldy McJohn: organ, piano, Wurlitzer electric piano
- Rushton Moreve: bass guitar, backing vocals
- Jerry Edmonton: drums, backing vocals, percussion

Track listing:
1) "Sookie Sookie" -- 3:15
2) "Everybody's Next One" -- 2:56
3) "Berry Rides Again" -- 2:50
4) "Hootchie Kootchie Man" -- 5:12
5) "Born To Be Wild" -- 3:29
6) "Your Wall's Too High" -- 5:45
7) "Desperation" -- 5:46
8) "The Pusher" -- 5:50
9) "A Girl I Knew" -- 2:40
10) "Take What You Need" -- 3:33
11) "The Ostrich" -- 5:46

Vinyl condition: VG (played phenomenally despite the visual
    downgrade, and cleaned up perfectly!)
Dynamic Range: DR 12

Eagles Auditorium, Seattle, WA — 26–28 July 1968
Offset litho poster (design by Chuck Trimble)

Community Concourse, San Diego, CA — 21 December 1968
Supported by local rock group The Brain Police

Equipment / Lineage:
– (brand new!) Audio-Technica VMN40ML stylus on AT150MLx dual moving-magnet cartridge
– Audio-Technica AT-LP1240-USB direct drive professional turntable (internal stock preamp/ADC removed)
– Pro-Ject Phono Box S2 Ultra preamp with dedicated Zero Zone linear power supply
– Focusrite Scarlett 6i6 MkII (96kHz / 24bit)
– Adobe Audition CC 2024 (recording)
– iZotope RX 11 audio editor (manual declicking, EQ subtraction, additional adjustments)
– Audacity 3.x.x (fades between tracks, split tracks)
– Foobar2000 v2.x.x (tagging, dynamic range analysis)

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MEGA: https://mega.nz/folder/snUzBBoL#CckBBllCBQ40HkMZfyOBFw

Here are a couple interesting articles from some period teen music magazines pertaining to the band. Since these were published a couple years after this debut LP was released, the band's lineup had changed; nonetheless, much of the content itself pertains to the material from, and creation of, this debut album.

Steppenwolf - Steppenwolf (1968) [2019 Sundazed Mono]

Steppenwolf - Steppenwolf  (1968)

2019 Sundazed LP 5558 Mono LP (Discogs)

Newly surfaced true dedicated mono mix!

~ThePoodleBites rip in 96kHz / 24bit FLAC + full high-res scans~

The origins of hard rock / heavy metal music, along with Black Sabbath and the Vanilla Fudge, is deeply linked to the legendary music of Steppenwolf. While probably best remembered today for their Easy Rider hits "Born To Be Wild" and "The Pusher," I'd argue the best moment on their debut is actually "The Ostrich," which boasts more poignant lyrics than most bands accomplish in their entire careers. Some tracks are perhaps disposable but the album is certainly more often great than mediocre. After being surprised with massive success the band would prolifically produce albums for ABC/Dunhill surmounting in what would many consider their best record, Steppenwolf 7, only 2 years later!

For this debut I've ripped 3 original US mono copies of this album (two of which were only mono on one side), and I can confirm with some certainty that these copies sound very much like a re-equalized stereo fold-down. However, this recent Sundazed release shows that the album was mixed in mono at some point in time, but whether or not it was released in 1968 remains definitively unproven. Whatever the history, this mix is 100% worth hearing. I've included a 44.1kHz / 16bit downsample of this one as it appears to have been cut from CD-quality source material.

Thanks to my buddy Aaron R. for making me aware of this reissue so that I

could purchase, rip, & share it for all!

I've found it impossible to scan the foil cover, so I've robbed this photograph from the Sundazed website.

For the record, Sundazed's engineer boldly makes some claims about this mix on their website, some of which are untrue, so be forewarned that there still are all the guitars in "The Ostrich" and you'll also find double-tracked vocals on your stereo mix of "A Girl I Knew." How a professional engineer in a high-end studio could make these blunders is beyond me... but there's one other mastering mistake here, and that's that it appears whoever transferred the tape did so with a stereo tape head and then folded to mono, not realizing that the channels were slightly out of phase when doing so, thus leading to some spectral cancellations in the high frequencies. Whooops! But, we're stuck with this as it's the only confirmed source for this mix, and damn does it still sound good. I'd venture as far as to say that "The Pusher" must be heard in mono to hear in its definitive form!

It's also worth mentioning that these mixes are quite different than the single versions, which have all been conveniently compiled in great sound quality on the Real Gone retrospective set. So, for some of these tracks, at least 3 period mixes are known to exist! Boy are we lucky... :)

Track Listing:

1. "Sookie Sookie" – 3:15
2. "Everybody's Next One" – 3:01
3. "Berry Rides Again" – 2:51
4. "Hootchie Kootchie Man" – 5:14
5. "Born To Be Wild" – 3:30
6. "Your Wall's Too High" – 5:47
7. "Desperation" – 5:47
8. "The Pusher" – 5:52
9. "A Girl I Knew" – 2:42
10. "Take What You Need" – 3:33
11. "The Ostrich" – 5:48

Vinyl Condition: Mint (brand new)

Dynamic Range: DR12

Lineage:

– Audio-Technica AT150MLx Dual Moving-Magnet Cartridge

– Audio-Technica AT-LP1240-USB Direct Drive Professional Turntable (internal stock preamp/ADC removed)

– TCC TC-754 RIAA Phono Preamp (new regulated power supply, added LM7812 regulator)

– Focusrite Scarlett 6i6 MkII (96kHz / 24bit)

– Adobe Audition CC 2019 (recording)

– iZotope RX 7 Audio Editor (manual declicking, EQ subtraction, additional adjustments)

– Audacity 2.3.0 (fades between tracks, split tracks)

– Foobar2000 v1.5.0 (tagging, dynamic range analysis)

MEGA: https://mega.nz/folder/kgoSHbwS#2Mc7iptCov6BnydZzrcpWg
Enjoy, and please leave comments below. Merry Christmas to all!