Bobby didn’t play on Steppenwolf’s original 1968 mould-breaking track Born To Be Wild but his distinct guitar work and vocals did grace 1991’s Born To Be Wild: A Retrospective and the band’s Slow Flux (‘74), Hour Of The Wolf (‘75), and Skullduggery (‘76) albums. On 1981’s Bobby & The Midnites and ‘84’s Where The Beat Meets The Street, he teamed up with The Grateful Dead’s guitarist Bob Weir.
In 1999, some killer guitaring of a more familiar vein is showcased on Memories Of Eddie Cochran by Alan Clark & The Kelly Four. The year before, Bobby famously hooked up with Eddie’s songwriting partner Jerry Capehart on the album Private Edition, where Bobby revisited – and put his own spin on – classics such as Milk Cow Blues, Somethin’ Else, and Twenty Flight Rock.Not forgetting some lesser known gems, plus memorable personal tributes. To honour the memory of lost loved ones, he wrote instrumental My Blues For Eddie and a second poignant composition, This Moment Without You, as a nod to his late daughter Breeannon Mikalia Cochran.
“I always played acoustic on sessions but not very often live,” says Bobby of the change of style that came around that time. “After Bree passed away, I found myself playing the acoustic guitar that she had not long bought. Playing it felt cathartic in processing the loss. Ironically, I also wrote a bunch of happy songs on the acoustic guitar. It really resonated how music helps us access our emotions. It’s a truly transformational thing.”