Miller Madlein

Steve Miller has dug deep into his archives and found an unreleased, full-length concert recording, Steve Miller Band Live! Breaking Ground: August 3, 1977. The album captures Miller’s legendary 1977 lineup at the beginning of the band’s turn from playing ballrooms and theatres to arenas and football stadiums. Recorded at the Capital Centre in Landover, MD on multi-track tape and newly mixed and mastered by Miller and his veteran audio engineer Kent Hertz.

The two discs of Steve Miller Band: On Tour 1973-1976 feature two Steve Miller Band concerts recorded in 1973 and 1976, respectively, by (and for eventual broadcast on) the infamous King Biscuit Flower Hour. The soundboard recordings are pristine, with each bandmember occupying an equal part of the spectrum. The 1973 incarnation, captured at Shady Grove in Washington, D.C., still holds some connection to the earlier, more blues-based years of the band. As such, the disc contains a good deal of blues-rock jamming, much of which is admirably tight, though it falls prey to some of the era's excesses. Also contained is an early version of "Fly Like an Eagle," which Miller road-tested in several versions before setting it to wax. Following extensive touring around that period, Miller took an extended hiatus from the road, during which time he recorded both Fly Like an Eagle and Book of Dreams, what would prove to be his two most successful albums. Following the recording of those albums, Miller took to the road again, with a new band featuring Gary Mallaber, Lonnie Turner, Norton Buffalo, David Denny, and Byron Allred. The music is different, too. The blues influence is still there, but the band is sleeker and more modern.

This overview of soulful Scottish singer/songwriter Frankie Miller features his three big hits "Darlin'," "Be Good to Yourself," and "Caledonia," as well as key album cuts like "Highlife/Brickyard Blues" and "I Can't Change It." Miller never found the same amount of success overseas as he did in his native U.K., but his raspy brand of Rod Stewart, Tom Waits and Bob Seger-infused pub rock, blue-eyed soul, and R&B earned him a loyal following that will covet this fine collection of impassioned '70s goodness.