"Born to be Wild" (1968)- Mars Bonfire (Dennis Edmonton)- (83-85)

What did the used Falcon empower Bonfire to do?

Travel thru LA region enjoying the magnificent scenery

What did Mars Bonfire say about the scenery he encountered in LA region?

“The mountains, the ocean, the high desert—I’d never seen anything like it.”

The scenery in the LA region Bonfire drove around inspired a ______ riff for “Born to be Wild”

bluesy

The vistas inspired bonfire to __________ out a bluesy riff back in his _____________

plunk out; apartment

What chord pattern did Mars Bonfire come up with for “Born to be Wild” which would characterize most of the song?

A rousing three-chord pattern, Gb-Ab-Eb

What is the form of “Born to be Wild?”

Verse-chorus form

What modification did Bonfire make to the verse-chorus form in “Born to be Wild?”

Adding a pre-chorus

What modification was becoming popular in verse-chorus rock songs?

Adding a pre-chorus

What is the pre-chorus?

A transitional link between verses and choruses

What often changes in a pre-chorus?

The harmony

What occurs in the pre-chorus of “Born to be Wild?”

The harmony changes by introducing the three chord pattern in the pre chorus after having only the tonic chord in the verse.

How does Bonfire broaden the sense of time in “Born to be Wild” in the chorus?

Changing harmony less frequently than in the pre chorus

What frames “Born to be Wild?”

Passages featuring instruments alone

What occurs after the first chorus?

An instrumental interlude

What do popular musicians call a coda?

An outro

What is a rock fade?

A long diminuendo

What does Bonfire come up with the phrase “heavy metal” for?

To describe the dark, lightning-filled storm he encountered in the San Bernardino Mountains

What mountains was Mars bonfire near when he came up with the phrase “Heavy metal?”

San Bernardino Mountains

What does the heavy metal genre feature?

Heavily distorted guitars playing extended solos with a very strong pulse and high volume

Who is the lead singer for Steppenwolf?

John Kay

What does John Kay believe about the origins of Heavy Metal?

He believes heavy metal started with Led Zeppelin and beyond

What does John Kay think about whether “Born to be Wild”is the first heavy metal song?

He doesn't believe it is.

What genre does John Kay clalssify Steppenwolf as?

Hard rock, blues-based band

What is Barney Hoskyns career?

Musical critic

What does Barney Hoskyns believe about “Born to be Wild” and its relationship to heavy metal?

He calls it “proto-metal”

What does Clalssic Rock magazine write about “Born to be Wild” and its relations to heavy metal?

They write that “Born to be Wild” was the first song to use the term “heavy metal” in the lyrics and so “It’s probably the first real metal track”

When did Classic Rock magazine claim that “Born to be Wild” was probably the first heavy metal track?

2021

What magazine claimed in 2021 that “Born to be Wild”was the first heavy metal track?

Classic Rock magazine

“Born to be Wild” continues to stand as an anthem to what?

Rebellion, the ultimate biker song and an iconic rock original

Where doe the “Rim of the World Highway” run through?

San Bernardino Mountains

What is the form of “Born to be Wild?”

Intro-V1-PC-V2-PC-C-Interlude-V1-PC-C-Outro

How many times does the prechorus repeat in “Born to be Wild?”

3x

The prechorus comes before what in “Born to be Wild?”

Before Verse 2 and both choruses.

After every verse comes what in “Born to be Wild?”

Either a pre chorus or a chorus

When is the instrumental interlude in “Born to be Wild?”

After the first chorus and before the repetition of Verse1

How does “Born to be Wild” open?

A percussion pick-up in which an ostinato is played 4x

What happens in the first verse?

Eb harmony throughout with a strong backbeat with a call and response effect and melismas

What instruments create a call and response efffect in verse 1?

Voice and guitar/electric organ

What syllable has a melisma in verse 1?

“way”

What occurs in the pre-chorus of “Born to be Wild?”

The Gb-Ab-Eb chords repeat while the guitar plays a quiet counter-melody

Are all 3 pre-choruses the same?

The first two are identical and the third pre-chorus has a slight difference

What is different about the 3rd pre-chorus compared to the previous two?

It features an extra melisma on “embrace”

What word has a melisma in the first two pre-choruses?

“space”

Are all the verses musically similar in “Born to be Wild?”

Yes, the only difference is the lyrics between V1 and V2 and therefore the words that have melismas change.

What word has a melisma in Verse 2?

“Wind”

Are both choruses in “Born to be Wild”the same?

Yes

What occurs in the first half of the choruses of Born to be wild?

There are slower transitions between the Eb-Gb and Ab chords in the first half

What occurs in the second half off the choruses?

Alternates between Db and Eb chords in unison with the guitar

What words in the choruses of “Born to be Wild” have melismas?

“Child,” “Die,” “Wild”

Whatt occurs in the interlude of “Born to be Wild?”

Instrumental solos followed by a brief drum solo which perform a textless verse and chorus

What occurs in the outro of “Born to be Wild?”

Instrumental solos which perform a slow diminuendo (rock fade)