Magic Carpet Ride (Steppenwolf song)


"Magic Carpet Ride" is a rock song written by John Kay and Rushton Moreve from the Canadian-American hard rock band Steppenwolf. The song was initially released in 1968 on the album The Second. It was the lead single from that album, peaking at number three in the US, and staying in the charts for 16 weeks, longer than any other Steppenwolf song.
The 45 rpm version is not only an edit of the album version but contains a different vocal take on the first verse.

Writing and recording

When preparing to record the band's second album, The Second, bassist Rushton Moreve came up with a "bouncy riff". Band member Jerry Edmonton's brother, Mars Bonfire, started playing guitar, and the band developed the riff. For the introduction, guitarist Michael Monarch created feedback which was spliced on to the beginning of the band's recording. John Kay had recently bought a new top-quality hi-fi system, and started writing lyrics "about how great our new stereo system sounded," adding imagery about making a wish. After completing the lyrics and recording the vocal track, Kay overdubbed a falsetto, and sound engineer Bill Cooper spliced an extra chorus at the end of the track.

Chart history

Weekly charts

Year-end charts

Cover versions