Walter Egan is an American rock musician, best known for his 1978 gold status hit single “Magnet and Steel” from his second album release, Not Shy, produced by Lindsey Buckingham and Richard Dashut. The song reached #8 on the Billboard Hot 100 and #18 on the Easy Listening chart. Overseas, it peaked at #32 on the Australian Singles Chart, Kent Music Report.
Egan was born in New York in 1948. In 1970, as a sculpture major, he earned a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree at Georgetown University in Washington, D.C. as one of Georgetown’s first art majors. Egan started his career in the arts, concentrating on printmaking and painting, and the music business. As early as 1969, Egan was playing guitar and composing songs. While an undergraduate, he was a lead guitarist and backup vocalist for the college-formed group “Sageworth and Drums”, also known as Sageworth. The group evolved from a group of Georgetown University undergraduate students playing weekend mixers and parties to a tight, professional headlining act with a reputation as one of the best and most original bands in the greater Washington, D.C. area. Other members included: Peter Barry Chowka, lead vocal and guitar; John Zambetti, guitar and backing vocals; Tom Guidera, bass and backing vocals; and Matthew Sheppard, drums.
In late 1971, Sageworth relocated to Boston and spent the next two years performing around the Northeast before finally breaking up, at which point Walter moved to Los Angeles and began his career as a solo artist.
In 1977, Lindsey Buckingham of Fleetwood Mac co-produced Walter Egan’s first album, Fundamental Roll, with Stevie Nicks, also of Fleetwood Mac. The hit song, “Magnet and Steel”, inspired by Nicks, was featured in the 1997 film Boogie Nights, the 1998 film Overnight Delivery, and the 1999 film Deuce Bigalow: Male Gigolo. Egan also wrote “Hearts on Fire”, which was covered by Gram Parsons on his album Grievous Angel, and “Hot Summer Nights”, which was the first hit for the band Night, which included such session musicians as Nicky Hopkins and Robbie McIntosh. Egan scored minor hits with his own version of “Hot Summer Nights”, as well as “Only the Lucky” and “Fool Moon Fire”.
Egan later toured as a member of a latter-day version of Spirit. Egan is listed as co-writer on the Eminem hit “We Made You”. The song’s producer, Dr. Dre, believed he was inspired by the bass line from (and used samples of) Egan’s “Hot Summer Nights”.
In 2011, while residing near Nashville, Tennessee in Franklin, he produced a new album entitled Raw Elegant that was released on Spectra Records.
Egan currently resides in Franklin, Tennessee. His album Raw Elegant was released on Spectra Records in 2011. One notable show was in Hollywood, Florida, in August 2009. Egan headlined the 13th annual “Gram Parsons Guitar Pull and Tribute Festival” in Waycross, Georgia, on September 16–18, 2010.
Selected Discography
Hifi
Polydor Records 1979
Not Shy
Columbia Records 1978
Fundamental Roll
Columbia Records 1977