Continuing my look at the albums of 1976…
If you buy into the theory that three great songs make a great album, Steve Miller Band’s Fly Like an Eagle certainly fits the bill.
Best known for its trio of hits — ‘Fly Like an Eagle,’ ‘Take the Money and Run,’ and ‘Rock’n Me’ — Miller’s ninth album was his first to go multi-Platinum, following up on the breakout success of The Joker a few years earlier. It remains his most popular release.
Steve Miller is yet another 2016 Rock & Roll Hal of Fame inductee who waited more than two decades for the privilege. First eligible in 1994, Miller made it into the Hall in one try once nominated. Though he performed with The Steve Miller Band for the duration of his career, he was inducted as a solo artist.
Miller raised hell in the press room after his induction ceremony, calling out the Rock Hall for its pettiness and lack of respect for artists. He said the Hall offered him two tickets to the ceremony, for him and his wife, and charged $10,000 for any additional seats (including for bandmates performing with him on the show).
20 Best Songs of the 80s – #7
Today’s SOTD is different from just about all the rest in that the band performing it was not enjoying success for the first time but capping off a career that had already reached impressive heights. The Steve Miller Band went on to record many more albums, but ‘Abracadabra’ was their last single to chart. Prior to this 1982 release, however, the band had quite a few hits, including ‘The Joker,’ ‘Rock’n Me’ and ‘Fly Like an Eagle.’
But I didn’t know any of that in 1982. I lumped The Steve Miller Band in with all the other one-hit wonders that put music out around that time. Or at least that’s how I remember it… I don’t know if my 10-year-old mind really thought in terms of one-hit wonders.
Meet Me In Montauk 