Artist / Band

Mars Bonfire

Origin Oshawa, Ontario, 🇨🇦

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Biography

Mars Bonfire is a group, but originally the stage name of Canadian born rock artist Dennis Edmonton who in 1968 composed the classic rock hit "Born To Be Wild", as recorded by numerous acts, most famously his brother's band Steppenwolf, (whose version was featured in the 1969 film Easy Rider). Other Steppenwolf tracks credited to Bonfire include: "Ride with Me", "Tenderness", and "Faster Than The Speed Of Life". His Uni/MCA publishing demos were repackaged as a solo album in the late 60's after Steppenwolf's success and later re-released by Columbia. Bonfire also later worked with artists like Kim Fowley & the late Sky Saxon.

Dennis Edmonton (born Dennis Eugene McCrohan; 21 April 1943), also known by the stage name Mars Bonfire, is a Canadian rock musician and songwriter, best known for writing the hit song "Born to Be Wild" for Steppenwolf.

Born Dennis Eugene McCrohan, he and his brother Jerry changed their surnames to Edmonton in the early 1960's. The brothers were part of the band the Sparrows, which later evolved into Steppenwolf. Another member of the Sparrows was Bruce Palmer, who later became a member of Buffalo Springfield.

Bonfire embarked on a solo career, while his brother Jerry became the drummer for Steppenwolf. After leaving the band, he often collaborated with Kim Fowley, co-writing and recording on the recordings of Fowley and artists associated with Fowley.

On 22 June 2015, Bonfire was awarded the Cultural Impact Award by SOCAN at the 2015 SOCAN Awards in Toronto for the song "Born to be Wild".

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