Music |
Boz Scaggs
By
Published: Jun 13, 2023
Category:
Rock
It’s been called “one of the best albums never heard outside San Francisco.”
I’d bet my hands that the only readers who know about this CD are 1) senior citizens who were fanatic rock fans in the ‘60s or 2) fans of the singer’s later CDs who have been directed to it or 3) acolytes of Duane Allman.
Don’t feel bad if you’re not in one of those cults. Consider it, if you will, as a “cult classic.” And read on…
The Boz Scaggs story in a paragraph: At a private school in Dallas, 12-year-old William Royce Scaggs met 12-year-old Steve Miller. They both played guitar, both loved the blues. A band followed, then college, travel, solo efforts. They hooked up again in San Francisco for the first incarnation of the Steve Miller Band.
Steve Miller? Him you know. He was the “Gangster of Love.” He recorded “Fly Like An Eagle,” “Rock’n Me,” “Take the Money and Run,” “Jet Airliner” and “The Joker.” But before he had hit after hit, he was a pure San Franciscan, playing psychedelic rock. With a difference from many others: the Steve Miller Band played in tune.
Boz Scaggs played with Miller for his first two, beautiful-then, beautiful-now albums. Then he headed off on his own. “Boz Scaggs” was his first solo CD. It’s like nothing else he recorded, and if you know his hits — “What Can I Say,” “Lido Shuffle;” “It’s Over” and “Lowdown” –- please imagine they were made by a different, smoother, pop singer. [To buy the CD of “Silk Degrees,” which has all those hits, click here. For the MP3 download, click here.]
But if you’re the curious sort or have an appreciation for the rare, it’s “Boz Scaggs” you want. The record was co-produced by Jann Wenner, founder of Rolling Stone magazine. Scaggs was backed by the Muscle Shoals Rhythm Section, the legendary all-white group that supported Aretha Franklin and Wilson Pickett along with such palefaces as the Rolling Stones and Elton John. And on one 12-minute song, the guitarist is Duane Allman. [To buy the CD of “Boz Scaggs” from Amazon, is to pay a $20 delivery fee. You want the MP3 download.]
Ever bought a CD for one song? Do it again. The song here is “Somebody Loan Me a Dime,” and it is pure sadness. A mournful organ. A piano run. Funeral drums. And then Boz, on his knees: “Somebody loan me a dime/ I need to call my old time used to be…. Somebody loan me a dime/ You know I need a helpin’ hand.” At 4:28 comes a scream. It’s Duane Allman’s guitar. He returns at 7:45 for a solo. It lasts more than four minutes. Along the way, the piano joins him, the organ swirls, horns play tight little flares and the drummer kicks harder — the band struts in a thrilling mix of Southern blues and rock and roll. Listen here.
Nothing compares to that. But the rest of the CD is challenging and original. It’s blues and country and even a big of old-time yodeling. I can understand why poor sales were not the only reason Scaggs reinvented himself as a pop crooner — with this CD, he nailed every genre he cared about. Listen here. And here. And here. And here.
BONUS VIDEO
Steve Miller started out before rock videos. “Dear Mary” is from his second album, and it’s unlike anything you think of when you conjure San Francisco.
