this guy amazes me. When your music education includes growing up around Les Paul and T-Bone Walker, and a college era that included playing with Muddy Waters and Howlin’ Wolf in Chicago in the 60’s…. that pretty much is a young guitar player’s ideal life.

The success for Steve didn’t come easy, despite all that. After all, he did play the blues almost exclusively for a while. It took him nearly 10 years to have a hit. His first was “the Joker” in 1973.

“Fly Like an Eagle” was released in 1976, and good luck getting away from this song on the radio then. It’s SUPERBLY funky. This song represents the ultimate “Hammond” school for organists everywhere.

Stylistically, this collection is all over the map. Funk, Pop, Blues, Country, Oldies… FLY is gumbo in musical form.

Rock’n Me, Wild Mountain Honey, Dance Dance Dance, Mercury Blues, Take the Money and Run, The Window… all radically different tunes. But all with the same sparse production (unlike the “kitchen sink” albums of the time), songs that could easily be done as a band, live. That old blues training worked out well, didn’t it Steve?

No one sounds like Steve… he has a very distinctive vocal recording technique and an instantly recognizable guitar sound. My suspicion is that Stevie Ray Vaughn knew Steve Miller’s recordings. I have no proof to back this up… just my ears.

Every song on this record is a joy, with one possible exception… his odd version of “You Send Me”. Not sure how that one made it on the record, but somebody thought it was a good idea.

I think that only the Boston record has received more spins in my car radio than FLY. Which should put this recording higher on the list, I guess.