It doesn’t take a genius to figure out that Texas is a hotbed of great music. Yes, Nashville, L.A. and New York are considered the hubs of the music industry. Still Texas has given us some of history’s greatest guitarists.
Names like Leadbelly, Billy Gibbons, Stevie Ray Vaughn, Johnny Winter and of course my favorite Darrell “Dimebag” Abbott come to mind when referencing Texas guitar players. Still there is one Texas guitarist that has produced more hits and has had more longevity than all of them, Steve Miller.
I recently had the honor of catching The Steve Miller band at the MGM Grand Theater at Foxwoods. If you have a chance to catch a show in this venue don’t pass on the opportunity.
The MGM Grand Theater has stadium seating and great sight lines from all seats. The venue also have a full bar menu allow you to order beyond the typical beer and wine choices. If you are lucky enough to find yourself in the Orchestra seats you also have waitresses shuttling cocktails back and forth from the bar.
I settled into my seat with my Guinness waiting for the opening band only to see The Steve Miller Band taking the stage. That is when it dawned on me this tunesmith has penned enough top ten hits to entertain us for hours.
The set list included expected hits Rock N’ Me, Swingtown, Jungle Love and Take the Money and Run among others. The surprises were a tribute to Bo Diddly and a nod to Jimmy Vaughn. Another twist was two versions of The Joker one acoustic and one electric.
What wasn’t surprising was Steve’s heartfelt tribute to his recently fallen godfather Les Paul. Les Paul was the man who was the first to put a guitar in a 5 year old Steve Miller’s hands.
Other highlights of the show were an extended vamp on classic Fly Like an Eagle and two tunes from the band’s first studio album in 20 years. Just as I was thinking maybe the band had run out of top ten hits they buttoned up the show with Jet Airliner.
I give both the show and the venue my highest recommendations. If you have the chance to see The Steve Miller Band on tour this fall or to catch a show at MGM Grand Theater at Foxwoods don’t pass on either opportunity.
