John Kay (musician)
| John Kay | |
|---|---|
Kay performing at Lillehammer Rock Weekend, in Lillehammer, Oppland, Norway, 26 May 2007
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| Background information | |
| Birth name | Joachim Fritz Krauledat |
| Born |
12 April 1944 Tilsit, East Prussia, Germany |
| Origin | Waterloo, Ontario, Canada |
| Genres | Rock, hard rock,psychedelic rock, heavy metal, blues, folk |
| Occupation(s) | Musician, songwriter, producer |
| Instruments | Vocals, guitar, harmonica |
| Years active | 1964–present |
| Labels | Dunhill, Mums, Epic, MCA, Mercury, Attic, Qwil, I.R.S., K-tel, Winter Harvest, CMC International, Cannonball, Rainman |
| Associated acts | The Sparrows, Steppenwolf, The John Kay Band, |
| Website | www |
| Notable instruments | |
| Rickenbacker 381 | |
John Kay (born Joachim Fritz Krauledat, 12 April 1944, Tilsit, East Prussia, Germany, now Sovetsk, Kaliningrad Oblast, Russia) is a German-Canadian rock singer, songwriter, and guitarist known as the frontman of Steppenwolf.
In the Evacuation of East Prussia in early 1945, in harsh winter conditions, his mother first had to flee with the baby boy from the advancing Soviet troops. In 1948, the two also fled from Arnstadt in the East German Soviet occupation zone to resettle in Hanover, West Germany (as recounted in his song "Renegade" on the album Steppenwolf 7). Living in the British occupation zone, the young Joachim, who suffered from eye problems, listened to music broadcast by the British Forces Broadcasting Service, before his family moved to Canada in 1958.
Kay joined a blues rock and folk music group known as The Sparrows in 1965, which had moderate success in Canada before moving to California in the USA, 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".
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