subject: The Steve Miller Band Are Back! [print this page] It's been a while for the Steve Miller Band, but they came back in 2010 with the Bingo! Album, released in June. The first Steve Miller release in over fifteen years consisting of blues covers, it was recorded alongside an album of original material which is expected to be released in 2011. The album is dedicated to Norton Buffalo who played with the band but sadly died of lung cancer in 2009. The album was recorded in 2008 at George Lucas's Skywalker Studios, and is comprised of some of the great blues tracks from artists such as BB King, Jimmy Reed and Jimmie Vaughan.
Consisting of the departed Norton Buffalo, Steve Miller, Kenny Lee Lewis, Joseph Wooten, Gordy Knudston, Billy Peterson, Sonny Charles, Joe Satriani, Michael Carabello and Adrian Areas, the band was formed in 1967 in San Francisco, and has been through a number of line-up changes in that time, all the while retaining the integral Steve Miller on lead guitar and vocals.
They were first signed to Capitol Records in 1967, and released a string of LPs, but produced their most successful hit in 1973 with 'Joker'. The song showcased a new style for the band which was more poppy, moving away from the traditional guitar-based blues music which they had cut their teeth on. 'Fly Like An Eagle' was the title of their 1976 LP which included 'Joker' alongside other hits like 'Rock 'N' Me' and 'Take The Money and Run'.
The band continued making relevant pop music right into the eighties, with the Abracadabra album featuring the popular hit of the same name. 'Bingo!' sees the band return to their blues routes, with highlights including their dazzling covers of Jimmy Reed's 'You Got Me Dizzy', B B King's 'Rock Me Baby' and Jesse Hill's 'Ooh Poo Pah Doo'.
The B B King cover features a guitar showdown between Steve Miller and Joe Satriani. They manage to combine some technical guitar wizardry with the retained gospel and soul credentials of the original. The Steve Miller band enliven these blues greats and instil a new pop sensibility which gave them a string of big hits in the 20th century.
The full tracklist includes 'Who's Been Talkin?' by Chester Burnett, 'Dopn't Cha Know' by Jimmie Vaughan, 'Rock Me Baby' by B B King, 'Tramp' by Lowell Fulson and Jimmy McCracklin, 'Sweet Soul Vibe' by Nile Rodgers and Jimmie Vaughan, 'Come On' by Earl King, 'All Your Love' by Otis Rush and 'You Got Me Dizzy' by Jimmy Reed.
