Fly Like an Eagle

The Steve Miller concert yesterday was excellent. We had a great dinner at Las Palapas before making the twenty-five mile drive to Selma, which is just outside of San Antonio.

We yapped, listened to music, and bitched about the traffic all the way to the amphitheater. I sipped whisky and enjoyed not having to drive.

We got to the amphitheater around 6:30. We bought a couple of $7 beers for me and The Warden; and a couple of sodas for the kids.

The crowd was slow arriving, but that’s understandable considering the first act, Jonny Lang, started early at 7:00pm. By the time Steve Miller started playing, the place was packed.
crowd pic above somewhere.

There was a wide array of people at the concert, from infants to the elderly: There were drunks, stoners, people dressed WAY too young for their age, hotties, studs, people dressed in business suits, and even a few deaf people complete with signers to recite song lyrics!

Jonny Lang was very good, although the sound could have been mixed better. The guitar volume was entirely too low, which is a shame because the kid is a kick-ass guitar player.

Steve Miller was awesome. He played a lot of bluesy stuff, which was fine by me and The Warden because it’s our favorite music. Jonny Lang even came out and joined him for a few songs, which was really cool. The harmonica player, Norton Buffalo, played very well; though they could have showcased him a tad bit more during the blues stuff. Oh, and Steve Miller’s second guitar player was fucking phenomenal – By far the best guitar player in the house.

As for Steve – He sounded great. He looked fantastic for being 63 years old. I hope I look that fuckin’ good when I’m 63. He played guitar well too (better than I remembered) and his voice sounded very nearly the same as it did thirty years ago. Thirty years ago? Did I just say that? Am I really that old? Fucking amazing how fast time goes by ain’t it? Anyway…I really enjoyed his guitar style and realized a new appreciation of his talent. It also helped that The Boy and I had just watched a biography on him on VH1 (I think) a couple of weeks ago. The guy really is a musical genius.

When he started playing his classics, my two brain cells took long trips back in time. The friends, the places we went, the illegal substances we ingested and smoked, high school, girlfriends, free love, and all sorts of other stuff. It was fun looking at the people our age and imagining what they were like back in the day. Where they Jocks? Freaks? Geeks? Shit kickers? Did they party as hard as we did? Do you think anyone did Nay? Y?

I know Steve Miller was huge in the 70s, but it really hit me how many big hits the guy had last night. It was one after another for over an hour I’d say.

The Fly Like an Eagle album in particular elicits a special memory for me. It was Christmas day in 1976. My sister grabbed her present to me from under the tree. An album. I unwrapped it slowly and saw the Fly Like an Eagle cover. Cool. Then I handed over my present to her. An album. When the wrapping paper was gone, another Fly Like an Eagle album was in the house! Funny stuff. I think I still have one of them.

Steve rocked for two and a half hours. It was well worth what we paid for the four tickets and the $90 for the three T-shirts (did I used to bitch about $10 shirts back in the day?).

After the concert ended, during our walk back to the car, The Girl said, “Dad. I think I think Jonny Lang is my new favorite band. Well, not as much as I like Fallout Boy, but I like him.” Phase One of Operation Expand The Girl’s Musical Horizons was a great success. And it was a fun night.

Here are a couple of pics and video clips I shot with The Boy’s digital camera. Not the best quality, but I wasn’t there to take pictures so piss off ;-)

Rare pic of Carlos & The Warden (buzzin')











THE GIRL
(The Boy would have no photos)


















JONNY LANG









STEVE MILLER BAND










STEVE MILLER ON JUMBO TV

STEVE MILLER JONNY LANG
(That's the Warden Screaming at the beginning)


SHORT STEVE MILLER RIFF

NORTON BUFFALO WAILIN' ON THE BLUES HARP
(The Warden hoopin' in approval)


JONNY FINISHING A SOLO