Steve Miller was born in Milwaukee, Wisconsin on October 5, 1943. His mother was an
accomplished singer, and his father, Dr. George "Sonny" Miller, was a physician by profession and an amateur
recording engineer in his spare time. Many members of Steve's family were musicians, and he received his first
guitar at age 4. Steve put it to good use performing songs for his family and playmates.
Les Paul, the inventor of the electric guitar and multi-track recording, and his wife, Mary Ford, were regular
visitors at the Miller house. In fact, Steve's father was best man at their wedding. Les and Mary taught Steve his
first chords when he was five years old. Steve still uses some of the techniques they taught him at that time.
The Miller family moved to Dallas, Texas in 1950. Steve's dad continued recording various styles of music.
Great musicians of the time continued to appear at the Miller house, including legendary blues man T-Bone
Walker.
The Marksmen, Steve's first band, was formed when he was only 12 years old. This rock and roll band had a
solid booking the entire semester playing mostly for fraternities. Steve taught his older brother to play bass so
he wouldn't have to rely on his mother for transportation.
The Marksmen continued to play for 5 more years. In high school, Steve asked his friend,"Boz" Scaggs, to
perform vocals with the band. The greatest moment for them was when they backed blues hero, Jimmy Reed, at
a local night club. However, at age 16 Steve left for college, which forced the band to break up. Steve attended
the University of Wisconsin at Madison and formed a new band called The Ardells. Steve taught Boz Scaggs
some chords, and he joined The Ardells the next year.
Steve continued working with The Ardells through the school year and staying in Madison during the summers to
perform with a group called The Knightranes. The next year, Ben Sidran was added on keyboards for The
Ardells.
Steve spent a semester at the University of Denmark during his senior year. He returned to the U.S. and spent
the summer enjoying the Chicago blues scene, including working with a young musician named Paul Butterfield.
Lacking 6 hours for a degree in literature, Steve decided to move to Chicago to play the blues. Steve was soon
on stage with the likes of Muddy Waters, Howlin' Wolf, and Buddy Guy, who all encouraged him to continue
playing.
Miller met Barry Goldberg and with bassist Roy Ruby and drummer Maurice McKinley formed
TheGoldberg-Miller Blues Band, playing Chicago clubs. The band was signed to Epic records during a
convention in town. The recordings from this group are few and include a single called The Mother Song;
however, there is one track on the box set performed by this band. They also appeared on Hullabaloo with the
Four Tops and the Supremes.They took on a running gig at a club in Manhattan, only to return to a dead
Chicago blues scene.
Disheartened, Steve went back to Texas in hopes of taking some music courses at the University ofTexas at
Austin. He was not admitted to music school, so he bought a used Volkswagen Microbus and headed to San
Francisco. Upon arrival, he spent his last $5 to see the Paul Butterfield Blues Band and Jefferson Airplane at
the Fillmore Auditorium. He jammed with Butterfield and announced his intention to stay in San Francisco.
Steve contacted Tim Davis, whom he knew from another band in Madison. Steve invited Davis and guitarist
James "Curley" Cooke to come experiencethe San Francisco music scene. Adding Lonnie Turner on bass, the
Steve Miller Blues Band was born. Miller was broke, sometimes sleeping in his van.The band landed a gig at
the Avalon Ballroom, allowing Steve the money for an apartment.
The band debuted at the Avalon in January 1967, andt hey were an immediate success. They became a
headliner at the Ballroom, playing at least once amonth. They played the Fillmore in April, and they were booked
for the Monterey Pop Festival in June.The week after Monterey, the Miller Blues Band backed Chuck Berry at
the Fillmore Auditorium. This performance was recorded for an album (This is the only Miller Blues Band
performance currently available on CD).
After Monterey, the band signed with Capitol Records. Steve demanded the most lucrative contract in music
history, setting a new standard for future artists. Steve contacted old friend Boz Scaggs and invited him to join.
Jim Peterman replaced "Curley" Cooke, and "Blues" was dropped from the band's name. The Steve Miller
Band flew to England to record their first album with Glyn Johns as engineer. Children of the Future was
released in May 1968 and was a staple of progressive FM stations throughout the country. Many would agree
that this is one of the greatest debut albums ever.
The band did not see their first top 40 album until Sailor, released in October of the same year. This album
featured Miller's first hit, "Living in the U.S.A." and also introduced us to the "Gangster ofLove."
Peterman, tired of life on the road, and Scaggs, interested in pursuing his own career, left the group. Ben
Sidran, who had worked with Steve in The Ardells, was invited to join. Brave New World was released June
1969. Johns and Miller mastered the album in England at which time Steve was allowed to sit in on a Beatles
recording session. Miller and Paul McCartney recorded "My Dark Hour" with Paul appearing under the alias
Paul Ramon. This song features Steve on lead and rhythm guitar, andMcCartney on drums and bass. This top
40 album also introduced us to the "Space Cowboy."
Your Saving Grace, released in November 1969, also made it in the top 40. This album, as well as the previous
one, included some session work by keyboardist Nicky Hopkins whose talent is displayed marvelously on the
track "Baby's House".
Miller was increasingly recording with others outside of the band, and tensions were high among many of the
members. The next album marked the loss of Lonnie Turner, replaced by Bobby Winkleman. Ben Sidran also
left to pursue his own career. Steve took what tapes that had been recorded to Nashville, where in between
dates on the road with the likes of Jimi Hendrix and the Grateful Dead, he completed the album with harmonica
player Charlie McCoy, fiddler Buddy Spicher, guitarist Wayne Moss and drummer Tim Davis. Number 5,
released July 1970, was the greatest success to date.
The touring schedule was hectic, there was bickering between band members, and Capitol was constantly
demanding new albums. Tim Davis and Bobby Winkleman both left the group, replaced by Jack King on drums
and Ross Valory on bass. Rock Love was released September 1971.
The next album, Recall the Beginning...A Journey From Eden , featured session work by a variety of people.
Released in March 1972, this album deserves a second look with great tracks like "Nothing Lasts," "Journey
From Eden," and "Love's Riddle." Steve also introduced us to Maurice and the pompitous of love on "Enter
Maurice." Neither this album nor Rock Love have ever been released on CD. Miller broke his neck in a car
wreck in 1972 while on his way to the airport for a European tour. Steve went home to his parents in Dallas for
eight months to nurse himself back to health. This was an important turning point in his career, and a time at
which he did some deep reflection.
He returned to California, and with Gerald Johnson on bass, Dicky Thompson on keyboards, and Jack Kingon
drums, emerged from the studio after 19 days with a brand new sound. The Joker was released October 1973,
and was the first album Steve had produced himself. He finally had a number 1 song. Touring increased with
opening acts such as Boz Scaggs and James Cotton.
Between touring, managing his career, writing songs, and recording 8 albums in 65 months, Steve was
exhausted. He decided to take some time off, and spent the next year and a half writing and recording the bulk
of his next two albums. Fly Like an Eagle was released May 1976, featuring Lonnie Turner on bass and Gary
Mallaber on drums. One year and one day Book of Dreams was released later with the addition of Byron Allred
on keyboards and session work by Greg Douglass, David Denny, and Norton Buffalo. The two albums
contained a string of multiple hit songs. The band was now playing arenas rather than theaters. Both albums
were certified quadruple platinum. Lonnie Turner was replaced by Gerald Johnson, and the band released
Circle of Love in 1981.
With the addition of Kenny Lee Lewis on rhythm guitar, Steve reached platinum status once again with the
release of Abracadabra in June 1982. Alive album and video were released the following year. Italian X Rays,
the band's first digital recording, was released November 1984,
Steve released Living in the 20th Century in 1986. This album yielded the hit "I Want toMake the World Turn
Around" featuring a Kenny G sax solo. However, the best part of this album was side 2. Drawing from his Texas
roots, Steve performed great renditions of blues standards by Jimmy Reed, WillieDixon and others. These
songs were released on the video Blues in the 20th Century.
Steve returned to his roots, in 1988 with the release of Born 2B Blue , with a completely newband. This album
received much acclaim from music critics including Leonard Feather of the L.A.Times. This album earned
respect and it displays the versatility of Steve Miller.
In 1988, Les Paul invited Steve to appear on a Cinemax special with other great guitarists, including B.B. King,
David Gilmour, and Eddie VanHalen. This was the first live performance by Steve Miller since 1983 (This is
available on video under the title Les Paul and Friends: He Changed the Music ). After the show, he attended a
Pink Floyd concert at the request of Gilmour. Steve decided it was time to hit the road again.
Steve began touring again in 1988, not having done so since the Abracadabra tours in 1982 and1983. Since
then, his summer tours have consistently been a big attraction and a top grosser, growing in size every year.
June 1993 marked the release of his most recent album, Wide River. Added to Ben Sidran and his band were
Ben's son, Leo, session guitarist David Denny, and the unbelievable harmonica player, Norton Buffalo. This
album features a simila rock/pop/blues mix as exemplified in much of Steve's earlier work. In 1994, The Box Set
was released with several previously unreleased tracks and one new song. Steve currently resides with his wife
in Seattle.
Continuing to sell over a million albums per year,and performing at sold out concerts throughout the U.S., The
Steve Miller Band has sold 2.5 million concert tickets in the last 8 years.
-Joel Selvin
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