Published on Mar 17, 1997
It would be too easy for me to review any of Steve Miller’s
popular works. I could write for hours about how
The Joker is one of the best rock albums ever made (and I
could argue for weeks with you on just what “the pompatus of love”
means). I could relive the days of my youth and listen to
Fly LIke An Eaghe or
Book Of Dreams, and sing “Jet Airliner” until my wife
threatened me with divorce.
It would also be a cop-out for me to review these – Miller has
been in the industry for almost 30 years, and there are many of his
albums that have been ignored in favor of the radio-friendly pablum
(pablum which I love). So, we head real deep into the Pierce
Memorial Archives (watch that first step, President Clinton) and go
to his 1968 debut release,
Children Of The Future.
On this album, Miller and his band are torn between two worlds –
one of peaceful psychedelia, where everything lives in spaced-out
harmony. The other is the rough, pissed-off world of blues. Had he
tried to interweave these two worlds in the songs on this album, we
would have a complete mess on our hands. Instead, Miller nicely
separates the two halves onto each side of the vinyl slab.
The psychedelic first side is easily the hardest to get through,
despite it being relatively short – two of the five cuts clock in
at less than one minute. But all the songs interweave into a long
jam session which, at times, is a bit painful to listen to. The
title track holds the most promise, while the last song on the
side, “The Beauty Of Time Is That It’s Snowing,” has a hint of the
guitar work that is to come. The rest of the side, however, is best
left to the ages.
Had
Children Of The Future been all psychedelic, the story would
end here. Ah, but Miller begins to delve into their blues roots on
the first cut on side two. “Baby’s Callin’ Me Home,” one of two Boz
Scaggs-penned tracks,begins a trio of songs that puts life back
into this album – all three, like the first side, flow together – a
practice I’ve never been completely fond of, but it does work on
this trio.
Probably the most powerful cut on this one is a lumbering
version of “Key To The Highway.” Miller’s take on this Big Bill
Broonzy number is either remorseful or filled with doom, I haven’t
figured it out yet. But whatever the case, it is one of the most
powerful versions I have ever heard, and should not be missed.
If you’re looking for “The Joker,” “Take The Money And Run” or
hit-based songs, you will probably be disappointed at first by
Children Of The Future. But put aside the biases (and take
the psychedelics with a grain of salt), and you’ll find that this
album, while a tad dated, is worth a listen or two.