The bright lights from Ottawa Jazzfest’s Main Stage matched the sky’s lovely colour as the sun begun to set and cast a warm pink glow on the massive crowd that had gathered in Confederation Park. Bouts of cheering and applause began immediately at the very sight of Steve Miller as he and his band boarded the stage. The familiar whistle intro to “Jungle Love” (1977) kicked off the nostalgic journey into some of the most memorable and well-loved pieces of classic rock ever written.
Since the band’s formation nearly 50 years ago, the music of Steve Miller has been a main staple of our rock ‘n roll diet for most of our lives. His brand of infectious blues-based no-nonsense rock has always been flavoured with catchy rhythms, the unique warm tone of his voice, and a wealth of earworm guitar riffs that continue to garner him fans across the world.
The trip continued with “Take The Money And Run” (1976), which included some nice keyboard work by band member of 22 years, Joseph Wooten, and the crowd’s automatic participation during the song’s signature hand-clapping accents.
“Abracadabra” (1982) took us back to the dancing days of the 80’s with its distinctly pop flavour, then time warped us back to his earlier rocking days of “Space Cowboy” (1969). I loved the band’s great 3-part vocal harmonies and Miller’s impressive leadwork on the guitar. At 71 years of age, his vocal and guitar chops are still very much intact. The band paid tribute to their 1973 album, The Joker, by performing its first track, “Sugar Babe”, and the Santana-inspired, “Shu-Ba-Du-Ma-Ma-Ma-Ma”.
Steve Miller showed a more intimate side of himself when he was later left alone on stage to play some very unplugged segments of “Jet Airliner” (1977) and “Wild Mountain Honey” (1976). Stripped of their full instrumentation, the songs were exposed in their well-written glory. He shared with the audience his early love for Texas blues which influenced him as a young boy, and by the age of 12, he’d formed a band called the Marksmen. They managed to find regular paid weekend work, but had to be driven to and from the gigs by his mother.
“Yeah, we were wearing sunglasses and suits ’cause we thought it looked cool.” And with that, he took us back to a 1957 Johnny ’Guitar’ Watson tune called “Gangster Of Love”, rich with toe-tapping blues and cheeky lyrics.
The band reappeared for the country-infused, “Dance Dance Dance” (1976), followed by the seductive tones of “The Joker” (1973), which shifted the crowd’s dance moves from an energetic jig, down to a slow gyration.
Next, came the familiar electronically-generated psychedelic intro to one of my favourites, “Fly Like An Eagle” (1976), a song I’d always felt was clearly ahead of its time. Another great organ solo by Wooten as the song veered into an ambient, unscripted territory, which wound its way unexpectedly into several bars of Nat King Cole’s, “Nature Boy”…no doubt in tribute to his early childhood mentor, Les Paul.
More highlights included the exotic mode goodness and rich harmonies in “Serenade” (1976), and the heavy-rocking drone of “The Stake” (1977), complete with yet another admirable guitar solo by Miller. Rhythm guitarist, Jacob Petersen was in the pocket at all times with his great playing style and stage presence. Miller’s bassist of 33 years, Kenny Lee Lewis, also displayed natural showmanship on stage and held down some solid grooves, as did drummer of 27 years, Gordy Knudtson.
“Rock’n Me” (1976) finished off the show with its great rock ‘n roll energy, which invited the audience to some acapella call-and-answer on the chorus.
During the encore segment, “Swingtown” (1977) had everyone on their feet and chanting the song’s long sustaining intro. Miller then sank his teeth deep into his blues roots with the “T-bone Walker Shuffle”, in ode to the man Miller attributed as being “the blues-to-rock master…he was the guy who started it all.”
And all too soon, the night closed with another crowd-pleasing classic, “Jet Airliner” (1977), written in the days of the big Boeing 707. In the short hour and a half, Steve Miller took us through the journals of his musical past, in a timeless legacy of work that has inspired and played such a big part of our lives.
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