If you like: Led Zeppelin, Jefferson Starship, Boston, The Guess Who, or Bachman-Turner Overdrive, Sailor is an album to know.
About: Steve Miller was a mainstay of the San Francisco music scene that upended American culture in the late ‘60s. With albums like Children of the Future, Sailor and Brave New World, he perfected a psychedelic blues sound that drew on the deepest sources of American roots music and simultaneously articulated a compelling vision of what music could be in the years to come. In the ‘70s, he crafted a brand of pure pop that was polished, exciting and irresistible and dominated radio in a way that few artists have ever have. Hit followed hit: “Take The Money and Run,” “Rock’n Me,” “Fly Like an Eagle,” “Jet Airliner” among them. Those songs are instantly recognizable when they come on the radio. Their hooks the definition of indelible. Running through this catalog is a combination of virtuosity and song craft. His parents were jazz aficionados–not to mention close friends of Les Paul and Mary Ford–so, as a budding guitarist, Miller absorbed valuable lessons from that musical tradition. When the family moved to Texas, Miller deepened his education in the blues, then moving to Chicago, where he played with Muddy Waters, Howlin’ Wolf, Buddy Guy and Paul Butterfield. Miller has now immersed himself in the blues once again. And, whether he was riding the top of the charts or exploring the blue highways of American music, he is performing with conviction and precision, passion and eloquence, making records that are at once immediately accessible and able to stand the test of time.*^{via Steve Miller Band}
Why it’s worth your time: It’s almost difficult to believe that the brilliance of Sailor predates just about every iconic album found at the crossroads of psychedelia, blues, prog and hard rock (most notably Zeppelin’s Led Zeppelin)–but then again, it’s not difficult at all. It seems Steve Miller Band has simply always had a second sense–and a keen one at that–to lay down the blueprints for the sounds of the future. In fact, if you played the gutsy and iconic opener “Song For Our Ancestors” to someone who had never listened to Steve Miller Band but had a sound knowledge of rock music, you can bet they would classify it as a prog rock piece originating in ‘72 or ‘73 (the likes of Pink Floyd’s 23-minute-long mammoth, “Echoes”). Perhaps for this reason alone, it’s an album to become familiar with–but that would discount its groundbreaking genius. This is the type of album you have to experience–transcendentally–while laying out on the floor, eyes closed because plainly listening doesn’t cut it. 
A favorite track: Living In The USA