The Definitive 1000 Songs Of All Time 1955 to 2005: Number 458

Number 458

Steve Miller Band

"Jet Airliner"

(1977)

Genre:Rock

Another lost legendary artist that Rolling Stone magazine managed to forget about. They seem to have done that quite a lot in their "Greatest 500 Songs of All Time" list. I will pre-empt right now that two Steve Miller songs made the "Definitive 1000", so that will either leave "Abracadabra" "Fly Like An Eagle" or "The Joker". Time will be the judge of that decision. By the by, i have purchased a vid camera which now gives me the capacity to make, if not the least, interesting videos, especially for songs that have no video's or are thoroughly banned by such artists as Prince, Wacko Jacko or Metallica and other "fun sucking" artists. Actually in a way its a bit of a warning, you might see too many music vids of my dog "Oscar" [fox terrier, which really should be fox terrorist] humping his teddy bears back to front. Oscar has issues, which some of you might get to see & i don't know if thats a good thing or not ~ crowbarred

Yes, i was this young

It is here, on this 1977 blockbuster, that Steve Miller shored up his "Space Cowboy" moniker and cosmic persona: from the winged horse on the album cover to a judicious smattering of synthesizers in the music, Book of Dreams bridged the gap between blues-rock and the indulgences of prog rock. Things do go awry when Renaissance Faire whimsy takes over clunkers like "Wish Upon a Star" and "Babes in the Wood," but luckily the balance of the record offers a satisfying blend of meaty blues and country riffs and tasteful atmospherics. The well-known suspects include "Swingtown," "Winter Time," and "Threshold," with relatively straightforward rock & boogie highlights coming by way of "True Fine Love," "Jet Airliner," and "Jungle Love." The non-hit cuts, "Sacrifice" and "My Own Space," do stand up to these FM favorites but fall short of making the album something the casual fan should consider with Miller's Greatest Hits 1974-1978 in hand (that collection includes seven tracks off of Book of Dreams, plus all the hits from The Joker and Fly Like an Eagle). Still, this is a highlight of the '70s classic rock era and one of Miller's finest releases. ~ [Stephen Cook, All Music Guide]

A different perspective [maybe]

Book of Dreams in 1977. This pair of albums represented the peak of Miller's commercial career, both reaching the top echelons of the album charts and spawning a lengthy series of hit singles, including "Fly Like An Eagle", "Rock'n Me", "Take the Money and Run", "Jet Airliner" and "Jungle Love". While some critics were disappointed at Miller for abandoning his more ambitious approach and socially-aware lyrics for softer rock and derivative blues tunes,fans gravitated towards the catchy, melodic songs in great numbers, and the Steve Miller Band co-headlined a major stadium tour with The Eagles in 1977 (with opening act Pablo Cruise). Pena wrote and recorded the song in 1973 for his New Train album; however, due to conflicts between Pena and his label, New Train sat unreleased until 2000. Miller, having heard a bootleg recording of the album, decided to record "Jet Airliner" for his band's Book of Dreams album in 1977. It was concurrently released as a single, and reached #8 on the Billboard chart. One line was censored for another recording. Instead of "Don't want to get caught up in any of that funky shit goin' down.", it was changed to "funky kicks". ~ [Source:Wikipedia]

For The Eagles see Number 509

For Prince see Number 812 [with no sound, as he requested]

For Michael Jackson see Number 621 & #580

For Metallica see Number 484

What does Rolling Toned think of Steve Miller?

There are so many nice things you could say about the new Steve Miller album. You could say, for instance, that it sounds great turned way up loud, with its full-tilt rhythms propelling you into some kind of bright crystal space. You could talk about how open the sound is, how porous and rich, and how sunny and downright friendly Miller's voice sounds. You could rap endlessly about the skillful use of modern recording technique to achieve exciting textural effects. But the important thing to say, and it ought to be done straightaway, is how dazzlingly appropriate this music would be if it were coupled with some videotape of West Coast hang gliders and used for a Pepsi commercial.

Book of Dreams 1977

This is logical. Fly like an Eagle and Book of Dreams are essentially twin albums, mostly recorded during the three-year period that followed The Joker. Fly like an Eagle is maybe a little stronger—several of the songs on Book of Dreams were written by current or former Steve Miller Band members—but even that is debatable. There's the same steady self-assurance here, the same easy confidence that made Fly like an Eagle so easy to enjoy. Miller obviously knows exactly what he's doing. Every production decision—as usual, he's produced himself—was made to maximize the dramatic impact of the deep, easy roll that powers most of these songs. The producer's touch is light and sure; it brightens the sound and stretches its spatial dimensions. Miller's voice, open and adolescent as ever, comes through fresh and bouncy. All this gives songs like "Swingtown" and "True Fine Love" and "Jet Airliner" the kind of simple-minded but irresistible appeal that's so essential to Miller's style. ~ [Source Rolling Stone - Frank Stone 1977]

Rolling Stone magazine deemed their '458th Song of all Time' was "Soul Man" by Sam & Dave. Sam & Dave has not appeared in The Definitive 1000.

Other songs with reference to Steve Miller Band #632, #832, #963

Rolling Stone Top 500 Songs ranked this song at Number (Who?) and the Album ranked at (I think we like an album, whoever he is)

This song has a Definitive 1000 rating of 76.8 out of 108