Walter Egan -

Walter Egan (born July 12, 1948) is an American guitarist, vocalist, songwriter, and visual artist from Queens, New York, who released the 1977–80 Columbia albums Fundamental Roll, Not Shy, Hi-Fi, and The Last Stroll, followed by the 1983 Backstreet release Wild Exhibitions. He reached the Billboard Top 10 with “Magnet and Steel” and wrote “Hearts on Fire,” recorded by Gram Parsons and Emmylou Harris.

Background

Walter Lindsay Egan was born July 12, 1948, in Queens, New York City. Egan received his first guitar for his fifteenth birthday and taught himself chords from a Kingston Trio songbook. At Loyola High School in Manhattan, classmate John Zambetti encouraged Egan to buy an electric guitar and join his new group.

The Malibooz

The Malibooz formed in early 1964 as an instrumental surf group with Egan and Zambetti on guitars. Egan soon added vocals and originals as the group expanded its repertoire to British beat material. The band recorded an early demo at a New York radio station and presented the tape to record companies including Philles Records. Egan and Zambetti assumed the singing roles following feedback from Philles executive Danny Davis. In 1965, they demoed Zambetti’s “Goin’ to Malibu” and Egan’s “That’s a Lie,” then appeared at the New York World’s Fair through concerts at the New York State Pavilion and a color television broadcast from the RCA Pavilion.

Egan entered Georgetown University in Washington, D.C., in fall 1966 and majored in sculpture. He also pressed campus station WGTB to expand rock programming and continued playing with Zambetti and fellow Malibooz drummer Tom Scarp. Near the close of his freshman year, the group adopted the name Sageworth and added lead singer Annie McLoone. Sageworth rehearsed in a boiler room at the New South residence hall and developed a regular circuit around Georgetown clubs.

Sageworth

Sageworth became a frequent attraction at the alcohol-free club Emergency and also played the Silver Dollar and Apple Pie. The group opened Washington-area shows for the Grateful Dead and Jefferson Airplane, with additional support dates for Poco and the Allman Brothers Band. Egan graduated from Georgetown with a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree in 1970 and remained with Sageworth as guitarist and principal songwriter.

Egan and the group lived at 1608 Wisconsin Avenue in a communal residence known as Sageworth House. Linda Ronstadt encountered Sageworth while visiting Washington for a Cellar Door engagement and introduced the musicians to members of her touring party, including Glenn Frey and Don Henley.

In Washington, Egan met Emmylou Harris and ex-Byrd Gram Parsons, who rehearsed together in the kitchen at Sageworth House. In 1973, Egan and bassist Tom Guidera co-wrote “Hearts on Fire,” which Parsons recorded with Harris for his second solo album Grievous Angel, released posthumously in 1974 on Reprise. By then, Sageworth dissolved amid failed label negotiations and internal divisions.

Egan moved to Southern California in April 1974 and stayed with tour manager Chris Darrow in Claremont. Darrow soon took Egan on a month-long British tour with Man, where Egan met United Artists A&R executive Andrew Lauder. Back in California, Egan joined Ghost Writers, an anonymous group of songwriting demo-makers.

Los Angeles

David Lindley contacted Egan in January 1975 with an invitation to rehearse for Jackson Browne and the Late for the Sky touring band. Egan spent roughly three months in rehearsals, then left the project when Browne shifted his proposed role toward acoustic guitar and harmony singing. A&M Records next placed Egan in a songwriter project built around Jules Shear and funded several months of rehearsals, but the label canceled the project. Shear surfaced soon after in Funky Kings.

In February 1976, Egan regrouped with his Claremont associates and played a Troubadour audition night. His set drew competing offers from UA and Columbia. Engineer Duane Scott, who worked on Egan demos at Sound City, proposed Lindsey Buckingham and Stevie Nicks as producers. Egan met Buckingham and Nicks through a Fleetwood Mac concert in Santa Barbara, and their involvement secured a multi-album Columbia contract.

Fundamental Roll

Walter Egan released his debut album, Fundamental Roll, in 1977 on Columbia.

Fundamental Roll contains ten Egan compositions and “Surfin’ & Drivin’,” co-written with Malibooz partner John Zambetti. The studio core adds Rank Strangers bassist John Selk, Kim Carnes keyboardist Bill Cuomo, and drummers John Ware (ex-WCPAEB) and Dennis Mansfield. Buckingham adds dual guitar and harmonies across the set; Stevie Nicks sings backup on six tracks. Additional guests include guitarist Gary Rowles and singers Dean Torrence and Zambetti.

“Only the Lucky” glides through smooth, wistful lead phrases. “Won’t You Say You Will” swells beneath prominent backing parts. “When I Get My Wheels” charges through hard-edged lead phrases. “Tunnel O’ Love” breaks toward a raw backing cry at close.

A1. “Only the Lucky” (3:00)
A2. “Won’t You Say You Will” (4:09)
A3. “Waitin’” (3:43)
A4. “Feel So Good” (4:30)
A5. “Yes I Guess I Am” (4:12)

B1. “When I Get My Wheels” (3:06)
B2. “Where’s the Party” (3:07)
B3. “She’s So Tough” (3:28)
B4. “Tunnel O’ Love” (3:51)
B5. “I’d Rather Have Fun” (3:39)
B6. “Surfin’ & Drivin’” (3:17)

Sessions spanned June through November 1976 at Sound City in Van Nuys, where Egan co-produced Fundamental Roll with engineer Duane Scott and Fleetwood Mac members Lindsey Buckingham and Stevie Nicks. Scott engineered the Egan demos that prompted the Buckingham–Nicks recommendation, with Tori Swenson as assistant engineer. His adjacent credits included Electric Light Orchestra (A New World Record).

Fundamental Roll appeared in a sleeve art-directed and designed by Ria Lewerke, with photography by Moshe Brakha and assistant photographer James Goble. Brakha based the cheerleader concept on a recent Rolling Stone “High School USA” photo essay and a Beverly Hills High School cheerleader shoot. Lewerke held concurrent art-direction credits on Gene Harris (Tone Tantrum), Noel Pointer (Phantazia), and Electric Light Orchestra (Out of the Blue), followed by Bob Weir (Heaven Help the Fool).

Columbia lifted “Only the Lucky” as an April 1977 single (b/w “I’d Rather Have Fun”), which reached No. 82 on the Billboard Hot 100. “When I Get My Wheels” followed later that year (b/w “Waitin’”).

Not Shy

Walter Egan released his second album, Not Shy, in May 1978 on Columbia.

Not Shy includes “Magnet and Steel” and “Hot Summer Nights” among ten originals. He welcomes guitarist Tom Moncrieff, Polar Bears keyboardist Stephen Hague, and drummer Michael Huey, who join returning bassist Selk, while Buckingham and Nicks resume their guest roles. Mick Fleetwood drums on “Star in the Dust” and “Make It Alone.” McLoone, Torrence, and Zambetti add selected vocals.

“Magnet and Steel” sways on a 6/8 stroll beat as group backing lines answer Egan’s crooned lead. “Star in the Dust” breaks into a bright late outro with Mick Fleetwood added near finish. “Just the Wanting” lingers over a slow, dreamlike guitar figure. “Hot Summer Nights” swells from a spare three-chord riff into ghostly backing oohs and a broad closing rise.

A1. “Sweet South Breeze” (2:52)
A2. “Magnet and Steel” (3:25)
A3. “Finally Find a Girlfriend” (3:16)
A4. “The Blonde in the Blue T-Bird” (3:26)
A5. “Star in the Dust” (4:54)

B1. “I Wannit” (3:07)
B2. “Make It Alone” (3:01)
B3. “Unloved” (3:43)
B4. “Just the Wanting” (3:23)
B5. “Hot Summer Nights” (4:14)

Sessions occurred in August 1977 at Sound City and resumed in October at The Village Recorder in Los Angeles, where Egan co-produced Not Shy with Lindsey Buckingham, who co-engineered with Richard Dashut, a recent soundman for Fleetwood Mac (Rumours) and their earlier singer Bob Welch (French Kiss).

Not Shy appeared in a Kittyhawk Graphics sleeve with original art direction and design by Dean Torrence and photography by Dana Abrams. Torrence followed recent cover work on the Beach Boys (The Beach Boys Love You) and Dennis Wilson (Pacific Ocean Blue) with the 1978 Steve Martin package A Wild and Crazy Guy.

Columbia issued “Magnet and Steel” in March 1978 (b/w “Tunnel O’ Love”), which reached No. 8 on the Billboard Hot 100 and No. 18 on the Easy Listening chart. The video finds Egan and the band on a dark sound-stage in post-hippie West Coast attire and cuts mid-way to a 1950s sock-hop dream sequence.

“Hot Summer Nights” followed in October (b/w “She’s So Tough”) and peaked at No. 55 on the Hot 100. In 1979, “Unloved” reappeared as a single (b/w “Make It Alone”).

Not Shy reached No. 44 on the Billboard 200 chart. “Hot Summer Nights” inspired a 1979 cover by Night, an LA-based AOR band with Earth Band singer Chris Thompson and co-vocalist Stevie Lange, then-wife of Robert Mutt Lange.

Hi-Fi

Walter Egan released his third album, Hi-Fi, in 1979 on Columbia.

Hi-Fi places the Professional Band at the core of twelve songs. Returning Selk, Moncrieff, and Huey work with keyboardist Skip Edwards and singer Annie McLoone, who appears across eight tracks. Edwards takes an additional vocal role on “Hi Fi Love,” while Lindsey Buckingham appears on “Like You Do.” Earl Shackelford takes the corresponding guest spot on “You’re the One.”

“Man B. Goode” chimes through jangling guitar figures with a tougher band edge. “Hurt Again” zips through terse phrases and quick sectional turns. “Drive Away” races through compact phrases and short transitions. “Like You Do” pivots around prominent keyboards into a sharp turn inside chorus.

A1. “I Can’t Wait” (3:12)
A2. “That’s That” (2:39)
A3. “Little Miss, It’s You” (2:37)
A4. “Man B. Goode” (3:21)
A5. “I Do” (2:22)
A6. “Hi Fi Love” (3:38)

B1. “Hurt Again” (3:08)
B2. “Drive Away” (1:50)
B3. “Love at Last” (3:48)
B4. “Like You Do” (2:33)
B5. “You’re the One” (3:07)
B6. “Bad News T.F.” (3:03)

Sessions spanned November 15, 1978, through March 31, 1979, at 2282 El Contento Drive in Hollywood, where the house setup used a 16-track Stevens recorder. Egan produced Hi-Fi with guitarist Tom Moncrieff as co-producer and engineer; Matthew J. Sheppard assisted at El Contento, while Rick Hart and Ed Schaff served as second engineers for the April mix at Producer’s Workshop.

Hi-Fi features art direction and design by Kosh around a front-cover photograph by Bill Paustenbach, with Aaron Rapoport supplying liner and poster photography. Kosh worked concurrently on 1978/79 packages for Aerosmith (Live! Bootleg, Night in the Ruts), J.J. Cale (5), and Eagles (The Long Run).

Columbia issued “You’re the One” in 1979 (b/w “Like You Do”). “That’s That” followed later that year (b/w “Hi Fi Love”).

Bear Tracks later paired Hi-Fi and The Last Stroll on a 22-track compact disc with a twelve-page booklet.

The Last Stroll

Walter Egan released his fourth album, The Last Stroll, in June 1980 on Columbia.

The Last Stroll contains ten songs. From the earlier studio pool, Egan welcomes back Selk, Moncrieff, Edwards, Huey, and McLoone. Additional guests include guitarists Deke Leonard and Lindsey Buckingham and drummer Lee Kix.

“Bad Attitude” grinds through steely guitar riffs against a rawer band backing. “Fall for You” drives through hard-edged riffing in a rougher ensemble setting. “Chaminade” jolts through an edgy sequence into a warped whammy-bar ending. “Motel Broken Hearts” slows around an expressive solo and measured lead phrases. “Waitin’ for the Rain” swells with prominent backing parts around a contoured lead.

A1. “Baby Let’s Run Away” (2:46)
A2. “Y Me? (The Last Stroll)” (3:01)
A3. “Tuesday Weld” (4:02)
A4. “Bad Attitude” (3:43)
A5. “Fall for You” (3:48)

B1. “First Date, Last Date” (3:46)
B2. “Heart” (3:00)
B3. “Chaminade” (2:28)
B4. “Motel Broken Hearts” (3:58)
B5. “Waitin’ for the Rain” (4:03)

Sessions spanned February 1 through March 17, 1980, at Sound City, where Egan co-produced The Last Stroll with former Sparks guitarist Earle Mankey, who co-engineered the album with Tori Swenson after recent production work on the Pop (Go!), 20/20 (20/20), and the Dickies (Incredible Shrinking Dickies), plus engineering on the Beach Boys (Love You, M.I.U. Album).

The Last Stroll places a Norman Seeff cover photograph under art direction by John Van Hamersveld; Georgina Garvin and Joan McGowan supplied additional sleeve photography. Van Hamersveld designed concurrent 1979/80 covers for Blondie (Eat to the Beat, Autoamerican), John Hiatt (Slug Line, Two Bit Monsters), the Fabulous Thunderbirds (Girls Go Wild), and T-Bone Burnett (Truth Decay). Seeff supplied contemporary album photography for Fleetwood Mac (Tusk), Van Morrison (Into the Music), and Van Halen (Women and Children First).

Columbia issued “Baby Let’s Runaway” in 1980 (b/w the non-album “Johnny Z (Is a Real Cool Guy)”). Edge Records paired “Baby Let’s Run Away” with “First Date, Last Date” for an April 1981 British single.

In a small-feature interview with Rolling Stone reporter James Henke, Egan states “Chuck Willis was king of the stroll in the Fifties. I’m campaigning to be king of the stroll in 1980.” (Rolling Stone issue No. 320. June 26, 1980.)

Between solo albums, Egan and Zambetti resurrected the Malibooz name for an album, Malibooz Rule!, released in 1981 on Rhino Records. The album contains thirteen surf-rock tracks performed with Buckingham, McLoone, and assorted LA associates, including Wendy Waldman.

Wild Exhibitions

Walter Egan released his fifth album, Wild Exhibitions, on February 8, 1983, through Backstreet Records.

Wild Exhibitions contains eleven songs, with Earl Shackelford composition “Girl Next Door” as the sole outside title. From the earlier studio pool, Egan welcomes back Selk, Moncrieff, Edwards, Huey, and McLoone. Buckingham and David Lindley appear alongside pianist Nicky Hopkins and drummer Michael Reed. Christine McVie joins the backing singers.

“Star of My Heart” skips through a fast stroll beat with Lindsey Buckingham in backing support. “Animal Lover” gallops through a hypnotic pattern with sharp lead bursts and experimental turns. “Such a Shame” lingers through tender phrases with Christine McVie prominent in backing support.

A1. “Fool Moon Fire” (3:35)
A2. “Maybe Maybe” (3:19)
A3. “Animal Lover” (3:19)
A4. “Such a Shame” (3:19)
A5. “Star of My Heart” (3:56)

B1. “Like No Other One” (3:03)
B2. “Too Much Love” (2:06)
B3. “I’ll Be There” (3:10)
B4. “Tammy Ann” (2:51)
B5. “Girl Next Door” (2:44)
B6. “Stay All Night” (3:44)

Recordings for Wild Exhibitions took place in 1982 at Sound City, where Egan reunited with Fundamental Roll producer-engineer Duane Scott. Scott co-produced and engineered the album; the mix moved to Rumbo Recorders in Woodland Hills with Hill Brin Swimmer as assistant, followed by Stephen Marcussen mastering at Precision Lacquer in Hollywood.

Wild Exhibitions features design by Jeffery Fey and Tommy Steele with photography by returning Fundamental Roll photographer Moshe Brakha. Egan supplied the inner-sleeve drawings, with Tammy Ann Holmes and Jennifer Holmes as models. Fey also designed contemporary packages for 20/20 (Sex Trap) and Johnny Rivers (Not a Through Street).

Backstreet lifted “Fool Moon Fire” as a 1983 single (b/w “Tammy Ann”), which reached No. 46 on the Billboard Hot 100. “Star of My Heart” followed later that year (b/w the non-album “Joyce”).

Renaissance issued Wild Exhibitions as a 2009 compact-disc reissue.

Later Activity

In 1985, Egancompleted a sixth solo album, which went unreleased until 2000 when the contents appeared as The Lost Album on Renaissance Records. In the meantime, Egan curtailed solo activity until his 1999 disc Walternative. Eight discs followed through the 2023 release Pluck!. Egan also provided woodcuts for the packaging of the 1992 Buckingham album Out of the Cradle.

Edsel scheduled the first four Columbia albums for an August 28, 2026, four-CD set titled The Album Collection 1977–1980, packaged with a twelve-page illustrated book.

Discography: