Search - Steve Miller Band :: Bingo!

But Why is it Called Bingo?

barbre | Troy, IL USA | 06/21/2010

(4 out of 5 stars)

"There are some of us who remember that Steve Miller was and is a blues guitarist. For us, this album is a great addition to the discography of SMB. I was especially taken by the Jimmy Reed songs and the overall sound of the album. My main disappointment was "Over Yonders Wall", which isn't as good as Butterfield's version and isn't sung by Steve Miller.



If you are expecting a pop rock album, you will be disappointed. This is Steve Miller at his roots, I only wish there were more songs included."

60% Steve Miller Band, 40% Something Else, but Very Cool...

Bill Anthony | North Texas United States | 06/30/2010

(4 out of 5 stars)

"This is a blues cover album, and a fine and fun recording. Steve's 1986 album "Living In The 20th Century" was a blues cover half-album (on side 2 only - mostly Jimmy Reed tunes), and then he did the brilliant "Born 2 B Blue" in 1988, which was mostly pop standards, R&B, and jazz. If you're a Jimmie Vaughan fan, you'll notice right away, as Steve covers 3 of JLV's tunes among the older classics.



This new album is a long-overdue all-blues-and-R&B effort, but be aware that a large portion of the album has lead vocals by Sonny Charles, and if you heard those tunes on the radio, you wouldn't have a clue that it was the Steve Miller Band. Steve's entire career has been made by hits and album cuts with his trademark vocals, including most of the early classics such as Living In The USA, Going To Mexico, Space Cowboy, My Dark Hour, Quicksilver Girl, and The Joker. And everything he's recorded from 1976 onward has had his vocals, so when you buy a Steve Miller Band album, that's what you expect to hear.



Of the 10 tracks on the regular edition of the album, 3 feature another singer, and 2 more are split between Steve and another singer.



Of the 4 bonus tracks on the special edition, 3 feature another singer!

So if you're going for the Special Edition, you'll get 1 additional track that sounds like a Steve Miller tune.

(Of 14 tracks you get 6 that feature all vocals by Steve Miller, and 2 on which he sings portions)



That's my complaint, but this is still an enjoyable romp of an album, and I recommend it to all Steve Miller fans.

Yes, Steve is a guitar player, and on some of his very early work he had other band members sing, but that was the exception, and not what his longtime fans expect to hear on record or in concert. If Steve wants to back-up Sonny Charles, that's fine, but don't call them Steve Miller songs. This definitely should have been credited to "The Steve Miller Band featuring Sonny Charles".

"