Chinle Miller

Your Saving Grace is a much more earthy collection of tunes when compared to the band's previous three long-players. While there are distinct psychedelic remnants of the Boz Scaggs (guitar/vocals) and Jim Peterman (keyboards) era, the addition of keyboardists Ben Sidran and Nicky Hopkins - which began on the Steve Miller Band's previous effort, Brave New World - adds a jazzier facet to this second incarnation of the group. Harking back to the band's blues roots, Your Saving Grace includes a couple of distinct blues originals - such as the up-tempo and gospel-doused "Don't Let Nobody Turn You Around" and a somewhat uninspired arrangement of "Motherless Children," which sounds more synchronous with the Sailor or Brave New World albums…

Bingo! is the Steve Miller Band's first studio record in 17 years. Thematically, it's a look back at the the electric blues and R&B that influenced him as a young man. Issued on his own Space Cowboy imprint, is also the final recorded appearance of blues harmonica great Norton Buffalo who passed away in 2009. Blues classics by B.B. King, Lowell Fulsom, Otis Rush, Howlin' Wolf, Earl King, Jimmy Reed, and Jessie Hill are here, along with three selections by contemporary bluesman Jimmie Vaughan. What all of these tracks all have in common is Miller's signature approach: he is a stellar guitarist who has no need to show off, a tight arranger, and an intuitive modern producer (with help from Andy Johns).These 14 tunes (all under four minutes) actually extend the electric blues tradition…

Let Your Hair Down is a follow-up to Steve Miller's Bingo! from 2010, and the tracks for this new release were recorded at the same sessions at George Lucas' Skywalker Ranch studio with Andy Johns engineering and co-producing, and like Bingo!, Let Your Hair Down finds Miller re-exploring his Chicago blues roots. Miller and his band have always included a few old blues numbers in their concerts, so these are road-tested gems that are obviously close to Miller's heart and soul, and they include the last recordings of Miller's longtime collaborator (and harmonica whiz) Norton Buffalo, who died of lung cancer in 2009 shortly after these sessions. Miller has always had the ability to adapt blues forms into his pop work, but this outing, like Bingo!, is a full-fledged blues record…

Two years in the making, Conspiracy Theories is undoubtedly guitarist Phil Miller's most ambitious record to date. After establishing himself as a member of such legendary Canterbury groups as Hatfield and the North, National Health, Matching Mole, and Delivery, Miller has devoted the majority of his energy over the past quarter-century to his more overtly jazz-centric In Cahoots group.Featuring seven new and characteristically dynamic compositions from Miller (and one each from Baker and Lemer), his writing has never been more complex yet approachable, and the indefinable British nature of his writing - dating back to Matching Mole - remains a defining quality. While fans of the Canterbury scene will undoubtedly rejoice, the disc's finely-honed compositions, fine arrangements and compelling solos make it equally deserving of attention from the broader jazz-listening public.

The Steve Miller Band is an American rock band formed in 1966 in San Francisco, California. The band is managed by Steve Miller on guitar and lead vocals, and is best known today for a string of (mainly) mid-1970s hit singles that are staples of classic rock radio, as well as several earlier acid rock albums. Steve 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 landmark contract with Capitol Records in 1967, the band shortened its name to 'Steve Miller Band'. In February 1968, the band recorded its debut album Children of the Future. They went on to produce albums Sailor, Brave New World, Your Saving Grace, Number 5, Rock Love and more. The Steve Miller Band’s Greatest Hits 1974-1978, released in 1978, sold over 13 million copies. They continued to produce more albums and in 2014, Steve Miller Band is touring with the rock band Journey.

A rare joy to find such class in such an accessible format. Although one or two tracks struggle a little with the Spanish guitar as lead in a major orchestral work, the purity of his playing, combined with the superb production and choice of material make this an exceptional work.