John Kay (musician)

Rock musician (born 1944)

Not to be confused with John K (musician).

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John Kay

Kay performing at Lillehammer Rock Weekend in Norway, 2007

Background information
Birth name| Joachim Fritz Krauledat
Born|  (1944-04-12) 12 April 1944 (age 79)
Tilsit, East Prussia, Germany
Origin| Waterloo, Ontario, Canada
Genres|

* Rock
* psychedelia
* blues
* folk

Occupation(s)|

* Singer
* musician
* songwriter

Instrument(s)|

* Vocals
* guitar
* harmonica

Years active| 1964–present
Member of| The John Kay Band
Formerly of|

* The Sparrows
* Steppenwolf

Website| steppenwolf.com

Musical artist

John Kay (born Joachim Fritz Krauledat, 12 April 1944) is a German-born Canadian rock singer, songwriter and guitarist known as the frontman of Steppenwolf.[1]

## Early life[edit]

Kay was born on 12 April 1944[2] in Tilsit, East Prussia, Germany (now Sovetsk, Kaliningrad Oblast, Russia).[3] His father Fritz, born 1913 in Absteinen near Pogegen in the Memelland (today Opstainys in Pagėgiai Municipality, Lithuania),[4] was killed a month before Kay was born.[5]

In early 1945, Kay's mother fled with him from the advancing Soviet troops during the evacuation of East Prussia in harsh winter conditions. Their train got stuck near Arnstadt, which was first occupied by the Americans, but then became part of the East German Soviet occupation zone. In 1949, they crossed the already-fortified border to resettle in Hanover, West Germany (as recounted in his song "Renegade" on the album Steppenwolf 7). Now living in the British occupation zone, the young Joachim, who had eye problems and could not speak or understand English, was first inspired by and learned about rock 'n' roll music while listening to Little Richard on U.S. Armed Forces radio.[6] When his family moved to Toronto in 1958, teachers had a hard time pronouncing his birth name, so he was called John K instead. Five years later, they moved to Buffalo, New York.

## Career[edit]

Kay in a performance in South Carolina, United States, on 1 January 1971

In 1965, invited by fellow German-born bass player Nick St. Nicholas (born Klaus Kassbaum), Kay joined a blues rock and folk music group known as The Sparrows, which had moderate success in Canada before moving to California, augmenting its line-up, and changing its name to Steppenwolf in 1967. With music that pioneered hard rock and heavy metal, Kay's Steppenwolf had international success with songs such as "Born to Be Wild", "Magic Carpet Ride", "Monster", "The Pusher", and "Rock Me".

Kay recorded both as a solo artist and with Steppenwolf during the late 1970s, and wrapped up Steppenwolf's 50th year of touring with what was to be a final gig in October 2018. Kay and Steppenwolf appeared on 24 July 2010 at the three-day HullabaLOU music festival in Louisville, Kentucky.[7]

## Awards and recognition[edit]

Kay's star on Canada's Walk of Fame

In 2004, although he never became a Canadian citizen,[3] Kay was inducted into Canada's Walk of Fame in recognition of the beginning of his musical career in Toronto. Kay was present at the induction ceremony in Toronto and reiterated his strong affection for Canada.[8] He was also nominated as part of Steppenwolf for induction into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2016 for the induction year 2017.[9] In 2018, Steppenwolf's "Born to Be Wild" was one of the first five record singles to be inducted into The Rock n Roll Hall of Fame.[10]

## Personal life[edit]

Kay is married to Jutta Maue, whom he met in 1965 in Canada while she was working in a coffeehouse where Kay's band, The Sparrows, were playing. They have one daughter, Shawn. The couple founded the Maue-Kay Foundation, which supports human rights and the protection of wildlife and the environment.[11]

In 2016, Kay credited his relationship with Jutta as part of the inspiration for Steppenwolf's "Magic Carpet Ride".[12]

As of 2005, Kay has residences in West Vancouver, British Columbia, and Nashville, Tennessee.[13]

## Discography[edit]

Main article: Steppenwolf discography

### Steppenwolf[edit]

Year  | Album  | Chart positions

|
|

CAN | US
1968  | Steppenwolf | 1  | 6
1968  | The Second | 2  | 3
1969  | At Your Birthday Party | 12  | 7
1969  | Monster | 11  | 17
1970  | Steppenwolf 7 | 14  | 19
1971  | For Ladies Only | —  | 54
1974  | Slow Flux | —  | 47
1975  | Hour of the Wolf | —  | 155
1976  | Skullduggery | —  | —
1980  | Live In London (John Kay and Steppenwolf album) | —  | —
1982  | Wolftracks (John Kay and Steppenwolf album) | —  | —
1984  | Paradox (John Kay and Steppenwolf album) | —  | —
1987  | Rock & Roll Rebels (John Kay and Steppenwolf album) | —  | 171
1990  | Rise & Shine (John Kay and Steppenwolf album) | —  | —
1996  | Feed the Fire (John Kay and Steppenwolf album) | —  | —
2004  | Live in Louisville (John Kay and Steppenwolf album) | —  | —

### Solo[edit]

Year  | Album  | Chart positions

|
|

CAN | AUS[14] | US
1972  | Forgotten Songs and Unsung Heroes | 50  | 48  | 113
1973  | My Sportin' Life | —  | —  | 200
1978  | All in Good Time | —  | —  | —
1987  | Lone Steppenwolf (compilation)  | —  | —  | —
1997  | The Lost Heritage Tapes | —  | —  | —
2001  | Heretics and Privateers | —  | —  | —

### Solo singles[edit]

Year  | Single  | Chart positions  | Album

|
|
|

CAN | CAN AC | CAN Country | US
1972  | "I'm Movin' On"  | 45  | —  | —  | 52  | Forgotten Songs and Unsung Heroes
1973  | "Moonshine (Friend of Mine)"  | 26  | 19  | 44  | 105  | My Sportin' Life
"Easy Evil"  | 82  | —  | —  | 102

## References[edit]

1. ^ Prato, Greg. "Biography: John Kay". Allmusic. Retrieved 9 June 2010.
2. ^ Greg Prato. "John Kay | Biography & History". AllMusic. Retrieved 8 March 2016.
3. ^ a b Edwardson, Ryan. Canuck Rock: A History of Canadian Popular Music, University of Toronto Press, 2009. pg. 268
4. ^ "Detailansicht". Volksbund.de. Retrieved 12 January 2020.
5. ^ "Empowerment of Music: guest John Kay of Steppenwolf". YouTube. Archived from the original on 21 December 2021. Retrieved 12 January 2020.
6. ^ "Exclusive Interview: John Kay of Steppenwolf Returns to Protect Wildlife and Human Rights". Classicrockhereandnow.com. Retrieved 7 June 2021.
7. ^ "HullabaLOU Line-up". Churchill Downs Entertainment Group. Archived from the original on 1 January 2011. Retrieved 6 June 2010.
8. ^ "John Kay". Canada's Walk of Fame. Archived from the original on 14 October 2007. Retrieved 3 November 2010.
9. ^ "Steppenwolf Frontman John Kay on Rock Hall of Fame Nomination: 'It's a Surprise'". Billboard.com. Retrieved 12 January 2020.
10. ^ "Rock and Roll Hall of Fame Inducts Songs for the First Time, Including 'Born to Be Wild' & 'Louie Louie'". Billboard.com. Retrieved 7 June 2021.
11. ^ * Kay, John and Jutta Maue. "John Kay & Jutta Maue-Kay Bios". Mauekay.org. Retrieved 25 December 2016.
12. ^ Myers, Marc (12 July 2016). "The Story Behind Steppenwolf's 'Magic Carpet Ride'". Wall Street Journal. Retrieved 13 October 2020.
13. ^ Ghianni, Tim (20 March 2005). "Life's been a wild ride". The Tennessean. Retrieved 23 October 2022 - via steppenwolf.com.`{{cite web}}`: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
14. ^ Kent, David (1993). Australian Chart Book 1970–1992 (illustrated ed.). St Ives, N.S.W.: Australian Chart Book. p. 164\. ISBN 0-646-11917-6.

## External links[edit]

* Music portal
* Canada portal

Wikimedia Commons has media related to John Kay.

* Steppenwolf's official website
* Kay's Biography
* John Kay & Company – The Lost Heritage Tapes (CD 1997; recorded 1976, but previously unreleased)
* (in German) Matthias Greffrath, ZEITmagazin LEBEN, Nr. 8, 14 February 2008 (report from a childhood friend)
* John Kay Interview at NAMM Oral History Collection (2016)
* John Kay at IMDb
* John Kay discography at Discogs
* John Kay discography at Discogs as Joachim Krauledat

* v
* t
* e

Steppenwolf

* John Kay
* Michael Wilk
* Gary Link
* Ron Hurst
* Danny Johnson

* Jerry Edmonton
* Goldy McJohn
* Michael Monarch
* Rushton Moreve
* Nick St. Nicholas
* Larry Byrom
* George Biondo
* Kent Henry
* Bobby Cochran
* Andy Chapin
* Wayne Cook
* Michael Palmer
* Steve Palmer
* Danny Ironstone
* Kurtis Teel
* Chad Peery
* Brett Tuggle
* Welton Gite
* Rocket Ritchotte
* Les Dudek
* Steve Fister

Studio albums|

* Steppenwolf
* The Second
* At Your Birthday Party
* Monster
* Steppenwolf 7
* For Ladies Only
* Slow Flux
* Hour of the Wolf
* Skullduggery
* Wolftracks
* Paradox
* Rock & Roll Rebels
* Rise & Shine

Live albums|

* Early Steppenwolf
* Steppenwolf Live
* Live at 25
* Live in Louisville

Compilations|

* Gold: Their Great Hits
* 16 Greatest Hits
* The ABC Collection
* Born to Be Wild – A Retrospective
* The Millennium Collection
* The Collection

Singles|

* "Born to Be Wild"
* "Magic Carpet Ride"
* "The Pusher"
* "Rock Me"
* "Ride with Me"

Related articles|

* Discography
* Members
* Gabriel Mekler
* Mars Bonfire

* v
* t
* e

John Kay

* John Kay
* Kent Henry
* George Biondo
* Hugh O'Sullivan
* Penti Glan

Former members|

* Danny Kortchmar
* Lee Sklar
* Mike Utley
* Russ Kunkel
* Jack Ryland
* Bob Wray
* Clayton Ivey
* Roger Clark
* Danny Johnson
* Guy DeVito
* Michael Wilk
* Ron Hurst

Studio albums|

* Forgotten Songs and Unsung Heroes
* My Sportin' Life
* The Lost Heritage Tapes
* Heretics and Privateers

Compilations|

* Lone Steppenwolf
* Born to Be Wild - A Retrospective

DVDs|

* John Kay & Friends

Related|

* The Sparrows
* Steppenwolf

* v
* t
* e

Canadian Music Hall of Fame

1978-1990|

* Guy Lombardo (1978)
* Oscar Peterson (1978)
* Hank Snow (1979)
* Paul Anka (1980)
* Joni Mitchell (1981)
* Neil Young (1982)
* Glenn Gould (1983)
* The Crew-Cuts (1984)
* The Diamonds (1984)
* The Four Lads (1984)
* Wilf Carter (1985)
* Gordon Lightfoot (1986)
* The Guess Who (1987)
* No inductee (1988)
* The Band (1989)
* Maureen Forrester (1990)

1990-2000|

* Leonard Cohen (1991)
* Ian & Sylvia (1992)
* Anne Murray (1993)
* Rush (1994)
* Buffy Sainte-Marie (1995)
* David Clayton-Thomas (1996)
* Denny Doherty (1996)
* John Kay (1996)
* Domenic Troiano (1996)
* Zal Yanovsky (1996)
* Gil Evans (1997)
* Lenny Breau (1997)
* Maynard Ferguson (1997)
* Moe Koffman (1997)
* Rob McConnell (1997)
* David Foster (1998)
* Luc Plamondon (1999)
* Bruce Fairbairn (2000)

2001-2010|

* Bruce Cockburn (2001)
* Daniel Lanois (2002)
* Tom Cochrane (2003)
* Bob Ezrin (2004)
* The Tragically Hip (2005)
* Bryan Adams (2006)
* Bob Rock (2007)
* Triumph (2008)
* Loverboy (2009)
* April Wine (2010)

2011-2020|

* Shania Twain (2011)
* Blue Rodeo (2012)
* k.d. lang (2013)
* Bachman–Turner Overdrive (2014)
* Alanis Morissette (2015)
* Burton Cummings (2016)
* Sarah McLachlan (2017)
* Barenaked Ladies (2018)
* Steven Page (2018)
* Corey Hart (2019)
* Andy Kim (2019)
* Bobby Curtola (2019)
* Chilliwack (2019)
* Cowboy Junkies (2019)
* No inductee (2020)

2021-2030|

* Jann Arden (2021)
* Deborah Cox (2022)
* Nickelback (2023)
* Terri Clark (2023)
* Trooper (2023)
* Oliver Jones (2023)
* Diane Dufresne (2023)

Authority control

International|

* FAST
* ISNI
* VIAF

National|

* Spain
* France
* BnF data
* Germany
* Finland
* United States

Artists|

* MusicBrainz

Other|

* IdRef

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