billy remains the king of tribute cds,as far as i know.i would hate for him to remembered from t
his.vlcsnap-2013-07-18-22h48m21s105.jpg
billy remains the king of tribute cds,as far as i know.i would hate for him to remembered from t
his.vlcsnap-2013-07-18-22h48m21s105.jpg
I actually really love the SM song "Serenade", which doesn't appear to be on this tribute. That song has always appealed to me. I'm not much of a fan otherwise, and I agree that some of his lyrics are pretty poor, for what that's worth. (Rhyming "Texas" with "Facts is"?!) - as for "Abracadabra", I recall it was covered in the 90s(?) by Sugar Ray.
Say what you will about Billy, he sure knows how to assemble a cast of players!
Interviewer of reprobate ne'er-do-well musicians of the long-haired rock n' roll persuasion at: www.velvetthunder.co.uk and former scribe at Classic Rock Society. Only vaguely aware of anything other than music.
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Abacadabra was clearly Steve's band on the decline. Fly Like An Eagle was the peak for me. Everyone has dogs in their catalog - ever heard Invisible Touch?
What can this strange device be? When I touch it, it brings forth a sound (2112)
Interviewer of reprobate ne'er-do-well musicians of the long-haired rock n' roll persuasion at: www.velvetthunder.co.uk and former scribe at Classic Rock Society. Only vaguely aware of anything other than music.
*** Join me in the Garden of Delights for 3 hours of tune-spinning... every Saturday at 5pm EST on Deep Nuggets radio! www.deepnuggets.com ***
This is your opinion, Scott. Living In The USA, Space Cowboy, The Joker, Fly Like An Eagle, Take The Money And Run, Jet Airliner, Swingtown, and Abracadabra all get much airplay today. This DJ that I listen to that plays some underground stuff even slips in I Want To Make The World Turn Around, as that's the only song featuring Kenny G that I'll listen to. Has anyone that's bashing Mr. Miller actually listened to any of his albums? Something like Fly Like An Eagle is well put together. I used to write off the SMB as pop fluff, but buying the 30th anniversary of Fly Like An Eagle did change my mind. High-quality stuff. Hell, Nektar covered the Fly Like An Eagle title track.
Reading Miles Davis' autobiography, he mentioned that he used to be placed by concert promoters on the bill with rock acts after he went electric. He did several concerts with Steve Miller. Miles said that Steve Miller was one of the worse musicians that he ever knew (paraphrasing here as he used much more coarse language). Before you crucify me, that was Miles opinion not mine. I'm pretty indifferent to Steve Miller.
Miles Davis said a lot of stupid shit. He was no sage. Certainly not one to admire for his wisdom. He played a real good horn. That was about it.
I understand. I was in the same boat, until I saw a making of Fly Like An Eagle doc on VH1. Around the same time, I also saw some concert footage of Steve jamming with Joe Satriani. I blame the radio for making people sick of Steve Miller. Btw, he does a great version of Sam Cooke's You Send Me on Fly Like An Eagle.
I saw Steve Miller in '78 and he couldn't even play his own guitar lick on Jet Airliner right. I mean, not even close. So yeah, as musician he does seem to sort of suck. But he's written catchy tunes and he has a definite singing style that works so I don't think it matters. That's why he hires a good band.
It could be he ate 4 sheets of blotter acid or something. But then, here he is years later still not playing it right...
Here's the right way, in case Steve ever wants to watch it...
Again, at the end of the day I think Steve is fine at what he does, and as good as he needs to be. No one is asking him to play like Van Halen...
I've seen Steve Miller on several occasions and never once did he disappoint. His ability exceeds most. He plays his ass off and he never phones it in. It's one thing if you don't like his stuff or even if you're just tired of hearing it, but as a musician and a songwriter, he's far ahead of the pack.
No, I'm not. It's an easy lick. It's the signature of the song. It's the only thing that's remotely interesting about that song (not one of Steve's best, imo). I can play it and I barely play guitar. Read the thread, I'm sticking up for Steve. Good songwriter (well, here and there), great band, great records, good singer, all that. I just think he's a shitty guitar player.
Last edited by trurl; 07-24-2013 at 11:49 PM.
Coming from a Brit i'm surprised there's so little love for Steve Miller from Stateside posters. I'm only familiar with the hits but I do enjoy them!
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