About Steve Miller Band
The Steve Miller Band is an American rock band formed in 1966 in San Francisco, California. The band is led by Steve Miller on guitar and lead vocals. The group had a string of mid- to late-1970s hit singles that are staples of classic rock, as well as several earlier psychedelic rock albums. Miller left his first band to move to San Francisco and form the Steve Miller Blues Band. Shortly after Harvey Kornspan negotiated the band's contract with Capitol Records in 1967, the band shortened its name to the Steve Miller Band. In February 1968, the band recorded its debut album, Children of the Future. It went on to produce the albums Sailor, Brave New World, Your Saving Grace, Number 5, The Joker, Fly Like an Eagle, Book of Dreams, among others. The band's Greatest Hits 1974–78, released in 1978, sold over 13 million copies. In 2016, Steve Miller was inducted as a solo artist in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.
In 1965, after moving to Chicago to play the blues, Steve Miller and keyboardist Barry Goldberg founded the Goldberg-Miller Blues Band along with bassist Roy Ruby, rhythm guitarist Craymore Stevens, and drummer Maurice McKinley. The band contracted to Epic Records and recorded a single, "The Mother Song", which they performed on Hullabaloo, before Miller left the group and moved to San Francisco.
Miller then formed The Steve Miller Blues Band. Harvey Kornspan, managing partner, wrote and negotiated the band's contract with Capitol/EMI Records then-president Alan Livingston in 1967. Shortly after, the band's name was shortened to The Steve Miller Band at the recommendation of George Martin in order to broaden its appeal. The band, consisting of Miller, guitarist James Cooke, bassist Lonnie Turner, drummer Tim Davis and Jim Peterman on Hammond B3 organ, backed Chuck Berry at a gig at the Fillmore Auditorium that was released as the live album, Live at Fillmore Auditorium. Guitarist Boz Scaggs joined the band soon after and the group performed at the Magic Mountain Festival and the following week at the Monterey Pop Festival .
In March 1968, while in England, the band recorded their debut album, Children of the Future, at Olympic studios with Glyn Johns as engineer/producer. The album did not score among the Top 100 album chart. The visit itself got off to a poor start also as the group and their entourage were arrested for 'importing drugs and possession of a dangerous firearm'. Kornspan's wife had called Johns asking if he would appear as a character witness in the magistrate's court the day after the arrest and, hopefully, stand bail for them. Johns agreed and the group was released on condition that Johns would 'stand surety for their good behavior' for the rest of their time in England. Both accusations were dropped. The 'dangerous firearm' turned out to be a non-working flare gun that was being used as a wall decoration in the house where the group was staying. The 'imported drugs' happened to be some hash that was buried in the middle of a large fruitcake that had been sent to the group by a stateside friend, unbeknownst to anyone in the group.
The second album Sailor appeared in October 1968 and climbed the Billboard chart to No. 24. Successes included the single "Living in the USA". Brave New World featured the songs "Space Cowboy" and "My Dark Hour". Paul McCartney, credited as "Paul Ramon", played drums, bass and sang backing vocals on "My Dark Hour". This was followed by Your Saving Grace and Number 5 . In 1971, Miller broke his neck in a car accident. Capitol Records released the album Rock Love, featuring unreleased live performances and studio material. This is one of two Steve Miller Band albums not to be reissued on CD until 2022, the other being Recall the Beginning...A Journey from Eden. In 1972, the double album compilation Anthology was released, containing 16 songs from five of the band's first seven albums.
The style and personnel of the band changed radically with The Joker , concentrating on straightforward rock and leaving the psychedelic blues side of the band behind. The title track, "The Joker", became a No. 1 single and was certified platinum, reaching over one million sales. It was awarded a gold disc by the RIAA on January 11, 1974.
Three years later, the band returned with the album Fly Like an Eagle, which charted at No. 3. Three singles were released from the album: "Take the Money and Run" , "Fly Like an Eagle" and their second No. 1 success, "Rock'n Me". Miller credits the guitar introduction to "Rock'n Me" as a tribute to the Free song, "All Right Now".
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