Steve Miller's 'The Joker' to get 50th anniversary box set in September

courtesy Big Hassle Media

Steve Miller is marking the 50th anniversary of his chart-topping, eighth studio album, The Joker, with a new box set titled J50: The Evolution of The Joker.

Curated by Miller himself, J50 chronologically places the original album tracks alongside 27 previously unreleased recordings from Miller’s personal archive – including songwriting tapes made by Miller on his TEAC 4-track in hotel rooms on the road and at live performances, plus studio outtakes and rehearsals – as well as six audio commentary tracks from Miller and exclusive liner notes from both Miller and journalist Anthony DeCurtis. 

J50: The Evolution of The Joker arrives via Universal on 2xCD, 3xLP + 7”, as well as digital download and all DSPs and streaming services on Friday, September 15. The vinyl version includes a reproduction of a vintage The Joker iron-on and a limited-edition lithograph. Pre-orders are available now. It contains “The Joker Suite,” an extended piece showcasing the musical path to the album’s 5x RIAA Platinum-certified (5 million sales in the US alone), worldwide #1 hit title track, “The Joker,” with the previously unreleased “Lidi” and “Travelin’,” available at all DSPs and streaming services.

LISTEN TO “THE JOKER SUITE”

WATCH THE J50 TRAILER

PRE-ORDER J50: THE EVOLUTION OF THE JOKER

The Joker was originally released worldwide in October 1973 and quickly became a hit in the United States crossing over from FM underground radio to the AM pop radio of the day. Shortly thereafter, the song went to number 1, first in the States and the rest of the world followed. 

Recoding initially commenced in July 1973 and the band hit Capitol Record’s Studio B in Los Angeles and quickly got to work, recording, mixing, and mastering the album in just 17 days with Miller producing.

“The most important rule that every kid out there who wants to make a record should remember is: When you go into the studio, be ready to do the whole performance the first time you do it, because that’s going to be the best time you do it,” Miller says. “The whole thing is to capture the first performance. That’s a lot of what The Joker’s about. It was all first takes, and first takes are always better than perfect takes.

“To make a hit record, I thought it was best to have five hooks,” he continues. “Not one, not two, not three, not four, but five, if you really wanted to deliver a hit. Like if you take ‘The Joker.’ ‘Some people call me the Space Cowboy.’ What the hell was that? Then it continues and it gets your attention again: the slide guitar, the chorus, the harmony, the wolf whistle. It all adds up. All of these things are just elements of writing. You learn those elements, and you’re always playing with them.”

Released as a single in October 1973, “The Joker” proved, in Miller’s words, “a real, no kidding, non-stop hit,” played on virtually every radio station around the world. “The Joker” rose to #1 on Billboard’s “Hot 100” while also reaching the top 20 in many countries around the world. In September 1990, more than a decade later, "The Joker" made history by returning to the US, UK, and European charts after being featured in a popular TV commercial for Levi’s – the longest-ever gap between transatlantic chart-toppers.

With its title track seemingly everywhere (as well as its indelible masked album cover by famed photographer Norman Seeff), The Joker album was quickly certified platinum by the RIAA – Miller’s first up to that time. 

Vinyl edition track list:

LP1 SIDE ONE
Steve Miller Commentary 1
Children of the Future (Live)
Brave New World (Live)
Dear Mary (Live)
Space Cowboy (Live)
Ginger Man (Live)
Nothing Lasts (Live)

LP1 SIDE TWO
Steve Miller Commentary 2
Sugar Babe (Early Version)
Sugar Babe (Live)
Sugar Babe (Album Version)
Mary Lou (Early Version)
Mary Lou (Album Version)

LP2 SIDE ONE
Steve Miller Commentary 3
Hat (Live – Pre Shu Ba Da Du Ma Ma Ma Ma)
Say Hey Ray (Pre Shu Ba Da Du Ma Ma Ma Ma)
White Elephant (Pre Shu Ba Da Du Ma Ma Ma Ma)
Shu Ba Da Du Ma Ma Ma Ma (Early Version)
Shu Ba Da Du Ma Ma Ma Ma (Album Version)

LP2 SIDE TWO
Steve Miller Commentary 4
Your Cash Ain’t Nothin’ But Trash (Early Version)
Your Cash Ain’t Nothin’ But Trash (Album Version)
Lidi (Twang Guitar)
Lidi (Studio)
Lidi/Travelin’ (Harmonics - Looking for a Chorus for The Joker)
Travelin’ (Looking for a Chorus for The Joker)
The Joker (Album Version)

LP3 SIDE ONE
Steve Miller Commentary 5
Lovin’ Cup (Live)
Lovin’ Cup (Album Version)
Come On In My Kitchen (Live)
Come On In My Kitchen (Album Version)
Evil (Studio Demo)
Evil (Album Version)

LP3 SIDE TWO
Steve Miller Commentary 6
Coupe De Ville (A Cappella)
Something to Believe In (Early Version)
Something to Believe In (Tough Crowd – Live)
Something to Believe In (Album Version)
I Don’t Mind (Hotel 4-Track)
I Don’t Mind (Studio)
Mama Church (A Cappella)

7” SIDE A
The Joker (Single Version)
Lidi/Travelin’ (Harmonics - Looking for a Chorus for The Joker)

7” SIDE B
I Don’t Mind (Studio)
Lidi (Studio)

Tour Dates:

AUGUST
3 – Waukegan, IL – The Genesee Theatre
5 – Lincoln, NE – Pinewood Bowl Amphitheater
8 – Shipshewana, IN – Michiana Event Center
9 – Youngstown, OH – Youngstown Foundation Amphitheater
11 – Jackson, MI – Jackson County Fair
12 – Clarkston, MI – Pine Knob Music Theatre

SEPTEMBER
9 – Nampa, ID – Ford Idaho Center Amphitheater
11 – Morrison, CO – Red Rocks Amphitheatre
12 – Salt Lake City, UT – Utah State Fair
15 – Woodinville, WA – Chateau Ste. Michelle
17 – Redding, CA – Redding Civic Auditorium Lawn
21 – Los Angeles, CA – YouTube Theater
22 – Berkeley, CA – Greek Theatre
23 – Lincoln, CA – Thunder Valley Casino Resort

DECEMBER
11 – Greenville, South Carolina – Peace Concert Hall
13 – Estero, FL – Hertz Arena
14 – Clearwater, FL – The Sound At Coachman Park
16 – St. Augustine, FL – St. Augustine Amphitheatre
17 – Atlanta, GA – Fox Theatre