The brainchild of John Kay, Steppenwolf were a heavy, bluesy act that will live on eternally in the annals of music for being the band behind "Born to be Wild." Founder Kay is credited for the invention of the term "heavy metal" thanks to that song's lyric about "heavy metal thunder." If that weren't enough prestige, Kay may have been the first rock star to wear his sunglasses at night (predating Corey Hart by some twenty years). Taking their name from the Herman Hesse story of the conflict between mind and body, Steppenwolf had a short-lived energetic career that merited two bona fide hits (the other being "Magic Carpet Ride") before lapsing into lightweight politics and partial-lineup "reunion" shows.
