Latest / Booked On Rock with Eric Senich / Boz Scaggs: Exploring His Musical Journey [Episode 268]

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Boz Scaggs: Exploring His Musical Journey [Episode 268] · Booked On Rock with Eric Senich

• 0:00
  Speaker 1: On this episode of Booke Don Rock, a look at
• 0:02
  Speaker 1: the legendary career of Bozsgaggs, his rise to fame, the
• 0:05
  Speaker 1: stories behind the hits Low Down and Lido Shuffle, his
• 0:09
  Speaker 1: friendship and working relationship with Steve Miller, why he stepped
• 0:12
  Speaker 1: away from music in the eighties, his return, and more
• 0:16
  Speaker 1: coming up next.
• 0:17
  Speaker 2: We're totally bumming rock and roll. I think I'll leave you.
• 0:22
  Speaker 2: You're reading Little Hands says it's time to rock and roll, Rock,
• 0:25
  Speaker 2: roll out.
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  Speaker 1: I totally booked. Welcome back to Booked on Rock and
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  Speaker 1: Eric Senich. Jude Warren is the author of the first
• 0:37
  Speaker 1: ever book on Boz Skaggs. It's titled Low Down The
• 0:39
  Speaker 1: Music of Boz Skaggs. Jude, welcome to the podcast.
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  Speaker 2: Thanks for having me on. It's good to be here.
• 0:44
  Speaker 1: Everybody knows about that album Silk Degrees from nineteen seventy six,
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  Speaker 1: but that was his seventh studio album, which is amazing
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  Speaker 1: to think about. So there was a long career there
• 0:54
  Speaker 1: leading up to that album. You write quote, it was
• 0:56
  Speaker 1: through Degrees, through layers and steps that Boz became the
• 1:00
  Speaker 1: musician and performer on Silk Degrees before he recognizably became
• 1:04
  Speaker 1: a hit maker, his roots line the Blues. Some fascinating
• 1:09
  Speaker 1: stuff in this book, talk about where he grew up
• 1:12
  Speaker 1: and the music that influenced him.
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  Speaker 2: He was very influenced by a lot of the old
• 1:17
  Speaker 2: blues stuff, the classic American blues material growing up in
• 1:21
  Speaker 2: Texas and Oklahoma. He really heard different sounds in those
• 1:26
  Speaker 2: genres on the radio of growing up, and I feel
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  Speaker 2: it really influenced what he wanted to sound like himself
• 1:32
  Speaker 2: as a musician and what he liked to cover. And
• 1:35
  Speaker 2: as you'll read in the book, and if you study
• 1:38
  Speaker 2: his career as a whole, he has done a lot
• 1:40
  Speaker 2: of blues covers and I'd like to arken it back
• 1:43
  Speaker 2: to those first early influences that he had that he
• 1:46
  Speaker 2: always kind of gravitated toward that sound and legacy, and
• 1:50
  Speaker 2: even in the last albums he made in the last
• 1:52
  Speaker 2: few years, the Blues Trilogy also kind of pays homage
• 1:55
  Speaker 2: to that sound too.
• 1:56
  Speaker 1: His real name is William Royce Skagg's the nickname Boz
• 2:00
  Speaker 1: that came when he was at a friends party.
• 2:02
  Speaker 2: Yeah, it's an interesting story just about this was around
• 2:07
  Speaker 2: the Steve Miller time, I believe, in the Saint Mark's
• 2:09
  Speaker 2: school years, and it was kind of like a random association.
• 2:13
  Speaker 2: This also somewhat random student gave to him as kind
• 2:17
  Speaker 2: of a joke. As we know, Boz, the name Buzz
• 2:20
  Speaker 2: doesn't really sound like anything related to his real name,
• 2:22
  Speaker 2: William Royce Skaggs. It was kind of a random thing
• 2:24
  Speaker 2: that stuck though, I think with his school mates and
• 2:28
  Speaker 2: his friends and stuff, and he kept it. But I
• 2:31
  Speaker 2: think later on, as I mentioned in the book, he
• 2:33
  Speaker 2: reflects on whether, you know, if he got to if
• 2:36
  Speaker 2: he was going to consciously choose this other name a
• 2:38
  Speaker 2: stage name, he might not have chosen Bauz, But that's
• 2:42
  Speaker 2: how it landed. But I think it has a ring
• 2:44
  Speaker 2: to it.
• 2:44
  Speaker 1: You know, I love it. I love it. You mentioned
• 2:47
  Speaker 1: Saint Mark's School that's in Texas, right, yes, yeah, Now
• 2:51
  Speaker 1: that is a private prep school. That's the same place
• 2:54
  Speaker 1: he met Steve Miller and Boz was about twelve, Steve
• 2:59
  Speaker 1: about thirteen, and right that this meeting would have a
• 3:01
  Speaker 1: profound impact on Boz's musical careers. Talk about that relationship
• 3:05
  Speaker 1: and the impact that Steve Miller had, Well, I.
• 3:08
  Speaker 2: Think they recognized each other as somewhat kindred spirits, and
• 3:12
  Speaker 2: in terms of they were both interested in that original
• 3:15
  Speaker 2: American blues sound and a lot of that Texas guitar
• 3:18
  Speaker 2: Texas blues guitar that Steve Miller is so famous for today,
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  Speaker 2: or that how he started out anyway, So I feel
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  Speaker 2: like they really related on that level, and I think
• 3:28
  Speaker 2: they stood out within the school setting just as these
• 3:32
  Speaker 2: two unique people who were into the same kind of thing,
• 3:34
  Speaker 2: which a lot of musical partnership seemed to start out
• 3:36
  Speaker 2: that same way. But I find it so interesting that
• 3:38
  Speaker 2: they both got so successful and well known, and of
• 3:42
  Speaker 2: course Boz was in the Steve Miller band when he
• 3:45
  Speaker 2: was starting out on those first two studio albums. Really
• 3:48
  Speaker 2: that they did, so it was a partnership or friendship
• 3:51
  Speaker 2: that was faded over several years and projects to not
• 3:55
  Speaker 2: just the school school time friendship.
• 3:57
  Speaker 1: I would say the most recognizable song when Bos was
• 4:00
  Speaker 1: there would have been Living in the USA. Oh yeah,
• 4:02
  Speaker 1: Oz on that one. Yeah he's on.
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  Speaker 2: That so yeah.
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  Speaker 1: So he was in a few bands with Steve in
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  Speaker 1: the early sixties.
• 4:09
  Speaker 2: Yes, the lineup says with all these early stories of
• 4:11
  Speaker 2: early inter nations of bands and stuff kind of switch around,
• 4:14
  Speaker 2: and especially when all of the players were in school,
• 4:16
  Speaker 2: like summer summer would sometimes elicit a different lineup of players,
• 4:20
  Speaker 2: but in general for a while. Yes, they were in
• 4:22
  Speaker 2: the Ardell's I think was one of them. Ben Seedrawn too,
• 4:26
  Speaker 2: who we know, was in there as well. So it's
• 4:28
  Speaker 2: an interesting origin story that way.
• 4:30
  Speaker 1: And then things get really interesting. He leaves school in
• 4:33
  Speaker 1: nineteen sixty three, travels throughout Europe and he's basically he's
• 4:37
  Speaker 1: a street busker. He left the Army reserves too, right,
• 4:40
  Speaker 1: and then he lived in London. This story behind his
• 4:42
  Speaker 1: first album in nineteen sixty five is fascinating. He's in
• 4:46
  Speaker 1: Sweden and he's just offering to help his friend in
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  Speaker 1: a band just cover a song, a coaster song, and
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  Speaker 1: then the next thing you know, he's being offered an
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  Speaker 1: opportunity to record a solo album. Is that? Do I
• 4:58
  Speaker 1: have the story right?
• 4:59
  Speaker 2: Yeah? More exactly. And it kind of just happened that way.
• 5:02
  Speaker 2: It seemed very natural as I understood it, and he
• 5:06
  Speaker 2: ended up Baz ended up with this really nice debut
• 5:09
  Speaker 2: solo album, although because it kind of went out of
• 5:12
  Speaker 2: print after that, many people consider like his first studio album,
• 5:17
  Speaker 2: the one in sixty nine I believe that he made
• 5:18
  Speaker 2: with Jan Winner in the US. Later on with Duyne
• 5:21
  Speaker 2: Ollman on it, But this was really his first recording
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  Speaker 2: experience as a solo person, and it's all covers pretty
• 5:27
  Speaker 2: much in some early Bub Dylan covers, but you can
• 5:31
  Speaker 2: hear as a listener, I think him establishing his own
• 5:34
  Speaker 2: sound for himself, and it does sound more like early
• 5:37
  Speaker 2: blues work and folk singing rather than, for example, like
• 5:40
  Speaker 2: the seventies Suldiary. Sound is very different if you compare
• 5:43
  Speaker 2: the two, but I think you can hear him kind
• 5:45
  Speaker 2: of urging himself forward to establish himself as this artist.
• 5:48
  Speaker 2: And he does have a lot of charm and clear
• 5:51
  Speaker 2: musical talent from the get go, obviously with his vocals
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  Speaker 2: and guitar playing. But it was very kind of magical
• 5:57
  Speaker 2: the way that that happened.
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  Speaker 1: Great vocals, great voice that he has had from the beginning.
• 6:02
  Speaker 1: You mentioned the Dylan cover Girl from the North Country
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  Speaker 1: he covers, which I think he does an excellent job
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  Speaker 1: covering it. He said it was difficult for him to cover.
• 6:10
  Speaker 1: What do you think he meant by that and what
• 6:12
  Speaker 1: do you think of his version of the song?
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  Speaker 2: I love it as well, I think with any artist
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  Speaker 2: covering Bob Dylan, who has such a distinct sound, especially
• 6:21
  Speaker 2: vocally and of course it was his own song, Dylan's
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  Speaker 2: own song, So there's such a clear musical stamp on
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  Speaker 2: that sound and listener's ears for me anyway, And so
• 6:32
  Speaker 2: for an artist like Boss or anyone to take that
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  Speaker 2: on the choices like do you cover it trying to
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  Speaker 2: sound more like Dylan or you do your total own thing.
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  Speaker 2: But I think Bos puts his own thing in there,
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  Speaker 2: his own sound and interpretation of the meaning behind the
• 6:46
  Speaker 2: song and stuff. So I really like it just for
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  Speaker 2: its difference as well from the original.
• 6:51
  Speaker 1: The good news is that album is available now. I
• 6:53
  Speaker 1: put together the playlist for this episode of Bob Skag's Playlist,
• 6:57
  Speaker 1: and that album is available so people can listen to
• 7:01
  Speaker 1: it the Dylan covers on there. And then he joined
• 7:04
  Speaker 1: the Steve Miller band in nineteen sixty seven, and you
• 7:06
  Speaker 1: write that the two would co prove guitar brothers at
• 7:09
  Speaker 1: times and sync at times at odds with one another.
• 7:12
  Speaker 1: He recorded two albums with Steve Miller, Children of the
• 7:15
  Speaker 1: Future and Sailor, both released in nineteen sixty eight, but
• 7:18
  Speaker 1: there were problems that surfaced soon after he joined, and
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  Speaker 1: at one point Boss and Steve would overplay their guitars
• 7:24
  Speaker 1: on stage. On purpose, what was causing the tension between them.
• 7:28
  Speaker 2: Part of what I loved about this book experience is
• 7:30
  Speaker 2: getting to speak to a few different people who worked
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  Speaker 2: with Boss at different eras of his career. So I
• 7:34
  Speaker 2: did get to speak to Jim Peterman, who was an
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  Speaker 2: original member of that lineup of the Steve Miller Band,
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  Speaker 2: who was there, you know, and Boss and Steve were
• 7:41
  Speaker 2: working together, and he gave me a good sense of
• 7:43
  Speaker 2: how it was to be part of the band at
• 7:45
  Speaker 2: that time. And just from different articles and interviews I read,
• 7:50
  Speaker 2: I think there were two Step and Boss very strong
• 7:53
  Speaker 2: personalities and clear talents and clear musical opinions on what
• 7:57
  Speaker 2: they wanted to do and play and stuff, and I
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  Speaker 2: think they just eventually got on each other's nerves. But
• 8:03
  Speaker 2: I also, I mean, I empathize, slash sympathize whatever with
• 8:07
  Speaker 2: the with Steve Miller to just I'm such a Steve
• 8:10
  Speaker 2: Miller fan, Steve Miller band fan, And if you think
• 8:12
  Speaker 2: about like the later records that were in a few years,
• 8:15
  Speaker 2: like Fly Like an Eagle, just the original sound of
• 8:18
  Speaker 2: that that he was going for. And he's such a
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  Speaker 2: strong musical talent, and of course you know there's egos
• 8:26
  Speaker 2: at play, but knowing how talented of a guitarist he
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  Speaker 2: was and stuff, I understand how he had this you know,
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  Speaker 2: dominant energy as I see it within the band, and
• 8:34
  Speaker 2: it's his you know, his names on the band. It's
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  Speaker 2: the Steve Miller Blues Band and then the Steve Miller Band,
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  Speaker 2: and Boss has an equal, you know, unique individual musical
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  Speaker 2: viewpoint that he wanted to articulate. And I think they
• 8:45
  Speaker 2: were both such solo artists. Ultimately, I know Steve Miller
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  Speaker 2: Steve Miller Band, but you know, they have clear musical characters.
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  Speaker 2: So I'm not surprised that Boz didn't stick around too
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  Speaker 2: long within the Steve Miller band, just considering his own
• 8:56
  Speaker 2: musical ambitions that he had just.
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  Speaker 1: A matter of time. But what's cool is at least
• 9:00
  Speaker 1: from what I've seen, And actually there was a recent
• 9:04
  Speaker 1: interview Boz did with Dan Rather. Did you see that
• 9:08
  Speaker 1: I did. He's had nothing but good things to say
• 9:10
  Speaker 1: about Steve Miller and how important he was, So it
• 9:13
  Speaker 1: didn't it wasn't like one of those falling outs where
• 9:15
  Speaker 1: over the years there's this bitter war of words. It's
• 9:18
  Speaker 1: just it seems like they're cool now, They're I don't
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  Speaker 1: know if.
• 9:21
  Speaker 2: So, Yeah, yeah, some just they have a fond memory
• 9:24
  Speaker 2: of getting together and collaborating in those early years and
• 9:28
  Speaker 2: being friends, really true friends.
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  Speaker 1: Boz went solo recorded five albums between nineteen sixty nine
• 9:33
  Speaker 1: and nineteen seventy four before hitting his commercial peak with
• 9:36
  Speaker 1: nineteen seventy six Silk Degrees. He recorded the self titled
• 9:40
  Speaker 1: album from sixty nine with a young Dwayne Almond, which
• 9:44
  Speaker 1: is really interesting and as a huge Almond Brothers fan,
• 9:47
  Speaker 1: I love listening to that. He contributed the guitar work there.
• 9:50
  Speaker 1: Recorded at Muscle Sholz Studio. Two albums in seventy one,
• 9:53
  Speaker 1: Moments and then bos Gags and Band. Nineteen seventy two,
• 9:56
  Speaker 1: he released My Time. Two years later he released Slow Dan.
• 10:00
  Speaker 1: You go into detail each of these albums in the book,
• 10:03
  Speaker 1: but if you can give a brief overview of what
• 10:04
  Speaker 1: we're hearing from Boz over this period, he starts to explore,
• 10:07
  Speaker 1: like beyond his blues roots.
• 10:09
  Speaker 2: Yes, it's interesting to consider that arc there's a strong
• 10:13
  Speaker 2: blues presence in the first American solo album Anyway with
• 10:16
  Speaker 2: Dwayne Allman. The Boss Gags records recorded at Muscle shows
• 10:19
  Speaker 2: with John Winner producing and working on that with him
• 10:21
  Speaker 2: and really pushing and celebrating Boz from an early point.
• 10:25
  Speaker 2: So there is that blue sound on that record, and
• 10:27
  Speaker 2: then he kind of goes through working getting used to
• 10:30
  Speaker 2: working with the band on the Boss Gags and Band record,
• 10:33
  Speaker 2: and that has a lot of horn elements to on
• 10:35
  Speaker 2: certain songs. So you do hear a lot of him
• 10:37
  Speaker 2: like experimenting with different sound potentials and they're all great
• 10:41
  Speaker 2: in my opinion, just showcasing his amazing voice, which sounds
• 10:44
  Speaker 2: good in anything, of course, and The Moment's album is
• 10:46
  Speaker 2: a favorite of mine because I think there's a lot
• 10:48
  Speaker 2: of poetry on there, a lot of musical subtlety. There
• 10:51
  Speaker 2: were reviewers at the time, and I believe I mentioned
• 10:54
  Speaker 2: this in the book too, about comparing it to some
• 10:56
  Speaker 2: of Van Morrison's work of the early seventies. Also there's
• 10:59
  Speaker 2: this complex to the sound and the song interpretations and
• 11:03
  Speaker 2: mostly love songs, romantic songs, which I think are great.
• 11:07
  Speaker 2: And then he does progress forward the next several years
• 11:10
  Speaker 2: through to Slow Dancer, which I love. I think it's
• 11:12
  Speaker 2: a great record, and that album you really hear more
• 11:15
  Speaker 2: of what became like the Silk Degrees sound, where he
• 11:18
  Speaker 2: has this very strong forefront energy as this front man,
• 11:22
  Speaker 2: even though you know he's a solo artist. He is
• 11:24
  Speaker 2: the front man, but you just sense this stronger grasp
• 11:28
  Speaker 2: of his own musicality, I think, and just being this
• 11:32
  Speaker 2: solo artist. And it does get more into the working
• 11:34
  Speaker 2: with Johnny Bristol, who is a motown producer. I believe
• 11:37
  Speaker 2: more had worked with those in that area. There's a
• 11:40
  Speaker 2: soul sound that comes into it at that point. The
• 11:42
  Speaker 2: Slow Dancer record. I think I mentioned it in the book,
• 11:45
  Speaker 2: but I remember reading about how Boz working with Johnny Bristol,
• 11:49
  Speaker 2: he learned more of how to be this kind of strong,
• 11:52
  Speaker 2: kind of edgier front man, you know, taking control of
• 11:55
  Speaker 2: the song of the woman quote unquote that the singer
• 11:58
  Speaker 2: is addressing narrative way in the song. You know, that's
• 12:01
  Speaker 2: kind of machiesemow that comes into it, which I think
• 12:03
  Speaker 2: serves him very well given his of course underneath at
• 12:07
  Speaker 2: this very strong relation to women. I think in his songs,
• 12:10
  Speaker 2: you know, this kind of romantic appeal that I get.
• 12:13
  Speaker 2: The combination of those elements is nice. And then of course,
• 12:16
  Speaker 2: as you were leading to, it gets us into the
• 12:18
  Speaker 2: Silk Degrees era. His biggest success, Loo Rock podcasts.
• 12:23
  Speaker 1: We'll be back after this.
• 12:24
  Speaker 2: We'll be back with the Magic Tones for the Armada
• 12:26
  Speaker 2: Rooms to our disco swing party after this short break.
• 12:29
  Speaker 2: Till then, don't you go change in.
• 12:33
  Speaker 1: Jud Warren is the author of Lowdown The Music of
• 12:35
  Speaker 1: Boz Scaggs. What I love about this is true artist.
• 12:39
  Speaker 1: On the Dan Rather interview, He's just like, it's just
• 12:41
  Speaker 1: another album for me. I wasn't looking to make hit singles,
• 12:45
  Speaker 1: but these are huge hit singles the top forty It's over,
• 12:49
  Speaker 1: the number three, low Down, number eleven, Lidos Shuffle, and
• 12:52
  Speaker 1: also a number forty two single. What can I say?
• 12:55
  Speaker 1: All four of those songs Boz co wrote with a
• 12:58
  Speaker 1: guy by the name of David Page, a future total fame.
• 13:01
  Speaker 1: How did those two meet?
• 13:03
  Speaker 2: I love that story to how he met and started
• 13:06
  Speaker 2: working with David Page. That was through Jeff Bercaro, who was,
• 13:09
  Speaker 2: as we know, this amazing rock drummer on so many
• 13:12
  Speaker 2: famous recordings and the main drummer of Toto of course,
• 13:15
  Speaker 2: and he was best friends with David Page, and they
• 13:17
  Speaker 2: were behind the scenes thinking about creating their own band,
• 13:19
  Speaker 2: but were both studio players at the time, and he
• 13:22
  Speaker 2: kind of connected Baz and David and I think, and
• 13:26
  Speaker 2: I expressed this in the book, that some of Boz's
• 13:28
  Speaker 2: greatest work is sometimes working with another collaborator, with someone
• 13:32
  Speaker 2: who we can write with and bounce ideas off of.
• 13:34
  Speaker 2: And you can definitely see that on the Silk Degrees record.
• 13:37
  Speaker 2: David Page with this young up and coming composer at
• 13:40
  Speaker 2: the time, too very young, and he had all these
• 13:42
  Speaker 2: music ideas, and Boz had this clearly established musical persona too,
• 13:47
  Speaker 2: and musical ideas of his own, of course, and the
• 13:49
  Speaker 2: collaboration really became fruitful, as we know, and the timing
• 13:53
  Speaker 2: was perfect. I think that there was this kind of
• 13:55
  Speaker 2: disco slash dance music sound to a lot of the
• 13:58
  Speaker 2: songs and the timing mid seventies, that that was perfect.
• 14:02
  Speaker 2: Saturday Night Fever You're you know it rang true, I think.
• 14:05
  Speaker 1: And David said Toto was in the works already at
• 14:08
  Speaker 1: this time. He was putting that band together at the.
• 14:12
  Speaker 2: Yes that was coming together all you know. Steve Lucather
• 14:14
  Speaker 2: and Steve Riccaro Jeffcaro's brother, and David Hungates were these
• 14:18
  Speaker 2: really successful studio players and they had gravitated toward one
• 14:21
  Speaker 2: another on recordings and then just being friends of their
• 14:25
  Speaker 2: own two through through high school some of them. So
• 14:27
  Speaker 2: that was that was on the way to becoming what
• 14:29
  Speaker 2: it was. And of course, as we as you can
• 14:32
  Speaker 2: read in the book, all of the almost all the
• 14:34
  Speaker 2: Toto players worked with Buzz at some point, whether in
• 14:36
  Speaker 2: the studio or touring, And.
• 14:38
  Speaker 1: The biggest hit on the album was one Columbia didn't
• 14:40
  Speaker 1: even think would make a good single, but it was
• 14:43
  Speaker 1: a DJ in Cleveland that helped convince Colombia to release
• 14:46
  Speaker 1: this I'm referring to lowdown right, that's the one. David
• 14:50
  Speaker 1: Page talks about the making of Lido Shuffle and how
• 14:54
  Speaker 1: it was inspired by a Paul McCartney song.
• 14:57
  Speaker 2: Yes, that was the Venus and Mars album, I believe
• 15:00
  Speaker 2: and Magneto Titanium Man. I think I remembering correctly, but
• 15:05
  Speaker 2: yes he was. There were always kind of influenced a lot,
• 15:07
  Speaker 2: like all great artists by the Beatles and the Wings
• 15:10
  Speaker 2: era at that time, to the music that Paul and
• 15:12
  Speaker 2: the band was putting out. I think had a bit
• 15:14
  Speaker 2: of that dance sound in there anywhere or starting to
• 15:17
  Speaker 2: come out more so, Yes, he did connect it to that.
• 15:21
  Speaker 1: It's just a fictional dance that he just made up.
• 15:24
  Speaker 1: The name leto Shuffle.
• 15:26
  Speaker 2: Yeah, I think it works well, you know. And while
• 15:29
  Speaker 2: the lyrics are great, and from what I understand, bas
• 15:32
  Speaker 2: is such a great lyricist just with the kind of
• 15:35
  Speaker 2: the street lingo narratively he's able to inject into songs
• 15:38
  Speaker 2: and then the romantic knowledge that comes in there too.
• 15:41
  Speaker 2: But I think it's the beat and the sound and
• 15:43
  Speaker 2: the drum, the drum beat of that song for me
• 15:45
  Speaker 2: that really it has has that hook.
• 15:47
  Speaker 1: You know. It's just amazing those two songs, Lido Shuffle
• 15:50
  Speaker 1: and Lowdown to this day, they're timeless songs and they're
• 15:54
  Speaker 1: going to be played for the rest of time. You
• 15:56
  Speaker 1: can listen, you can hear them on the radio and
• 15:59
  Speaker 1: I maybe commercials or movies whatever, but it's it's always
• 16:03
  Speaker 1: out there, and as soon as you hear the first
• 16:05
  Speaker 1: three to five seconds, everybody recognizes it. They may not
• 16:08
  Speaker 1: know it's him, they may not know the name of
• 16:10
  Speaker 1: the song or whatever, but it's just instantly recognizable, and
• 16:13
  Speaker 1: that says a lot about his ability to write a
• 16:16
  Speaker 1: great song.
• 16:17
  Speaker 2: I think so too. It has that timeless quality and
• 16:20
  Speaker 2: there's some modernity in there too that the rancher at
• 16:23
  Speaker 2: the time, and I think that same essence still like
• 16:25
  Speaker 2: you're saying, holds up today. It has a new fresh
• 16:28
  Speaker 2: sound whenever I hear anything.
• 16:31
  Speaker 1: The last track on Soak de greases We're All Alone.
• 16:34
  Speaker 1: Not a hit for Boz, but it was for Frankie
• 16:36
  Speaker 1: Valley in nineteen seventy six and the next year for
• 16:38
  Speaker 1: Rita Coolidge on Boz's version, we have this beautiful orchestra.
• 16:44
  Speaker 1: This is thanks to David Page's very famous and talented father,
• 16:48
  Speaker 1: Marty Page. David talks about his dad's contributions in the book.
• 16:52
  Speaker 1: He had a great story about the string and horn
• 16:54
  Speaker 1: arrangements in Lowdown. This is about him taking an eraser
• 16:58
  Speaker 1: to David's original compositions.
• 17:01
  Speaker 2: Yes, I'm fascinated by that idea in general and music.
• 17:04
  Speaker 2: I think David Page was this young, excited, talented composer
• 17:09
  Speaker 2: who felt he could do anything, and he could. But
• 17:11
  Speaker 2: perhaps with some of the orchestrations running out, the different
• 17:14
  Speaker 2: layouts of different instruments parts on that track could have
• 17:16
  Speaker 2: gotten a bit exuberant, and I think it would have
• 17:19
  Speaker 2: sounded beautiful anyway. But his dad, Marty, being more experienced
• 17:22
  Speaker 2: and having more of a perhaps at that time, you know,
• 17:25
  Speaker 2: subtle or tuned in ear David describes it in the
• 17:28
  Speaker 2: book as taking an eraser and getting rid of a
• 17:30
  Speaker 2: lot of these unnecessary notes. And I think in that simplicity,
• 17:34
  Speaker 2: or in that sleekness, that the elegance comes out of
• 17:37
  Speaker 2: that as a listener, and I think that's such a
• 17:40
  Speaker 2: trademark element of the Silk Degrees album, that elegance. It's
• 17:43
  Speaker 2: there on the cover. It just there's this sleek, high
• 17:47
  Speaker 2: life kind of feeling that I get, and I think
• 17:49
  Speaker 2: a lot of listeners get. That's very appealing. It's like
• 17:51
  Speaker 2: watching a really beautiful romantic film or something. But yes,
• 17:54
  Speaker 2: Marty Page was so interesting. He has such a legacy,
• 17:57
  Speaker 2: working with I believe on The Campbell Show and working.
• 18:00
  Speaker 1: With everybody and everyone, I think Sinatra. I was looking
• 18:05
  Speaker 1: at his I believe his bio. What's really cool with Toto?
• 18:09
  Speaker 1: You have the current singer of Toto is John Williamson
• 18:13
  Speaker 1: and John Williams of Star Wars Jaws composed, you know,
• 18:17
  Speaker 1: and then you have David Page and his dad. Not
• 18:20
  Speaker 1: too shabby. Yeah, I mean there's some serious musical talent there.
• 18:23
  Speaker 1: But yeah, David, he welcomed his dad's contributions. I mean,
• 18:26
  Speaker 1: he was just going to listen to whatever he said
• 18:28
  Speaker 1: and just soak it all up.
• 18:29
  Speaker 2: Yes. I think a lot of the Toto members had
• 18:32
  Speaker 2: that experience, as you're saying, with their parents, and even
• 18:35
  Speaker 2: the Jeff and Steve's father, Joe Briccaro, was this known
• 18:38
  Speaker 2: studio drummer, and they were good about, you know, going
• 18:41
  Speaker 2: to him for advice and guidance and stuff.
• 18:43
  Speaker 1: And I didn't know that. Okay, there's a third yeah.
• 18:47
  Speaker 2: Yeah, the child to parent, not rebelling necessarily, but working
• 18:51
  Speaker 2: together well on the same kind of musical mission. I guess.
• 18:54
  Speaker 1: Yeah. Yeah. So Bas says he could have repeated the
• 18:56
  Speaker 1: formula of silk Degrees, but he did not want to
• 18:59
  Speaker 1: do that. Again, he's just true artist. How does he
• 19:02
  Speaker 1: respond to the success of Silk Degrees and where does
• 19:05
  Speaker 1: he decide to go sonically on nineteen seventy seven's down
• 19:08
  Speaker 1: to Then Left?
• 19:10
  Speaker 2: Well, Down to Then Left is actually my favorite Bos record.
• 19:13
  Speaker 2: As much as I love Self Degrees, there's something about
• 19:16
  Speaker 2: down to Them Left that has the sound that they
• 19:18
  Speaker 2: were able Bos and his collaborators were able to reach
• 19:21
  Speaker 2: on silf degrees that modern mid seventies dance kind of sound.
• 19:25
  Speaker 2: But he takes it a bit further on Down to
• 19:27
  Speaker 2: the Left, I think, and there is a bit of
• 19:29
  Speaker 2: a even more slackness, if that's possible, to that record.
• 19:33
  Speaker 2: So I have such a fondness for that record. But yes,
• 19:35
  Speaker 2: I don't believe. I mean, he didn't want to repeat
• 19:37
  Speaker 2: the exact same formula. He chose not to work with
• 19:39
  Speaker 2: David Page again for that record, but he did work
• 19:42
  Speaker 2: with some of the same studio players and Steve Luca
• 19:46
  Speaker 2: Thur I believe a clue is on that album, and
• 19:49
  Speaker 2: that was one of Steve's breakout so Low's that got
• 19:51
  Speaker 2: him a lot of notoriety or attention in the studios
• 19:54
  Speaker 2: seen at the time, and it's one of my favorite
• 19:56
  Speaker 2: guitar solos of all time. I just think it's perfect.
• 19:58
  Speaker 2: So it's exciting for that as well.
• 20:00
  Speaker 1: But I love that album Breakdown Dead Ahead, I love Yes.
• 20:04
  Speaker 2: Yeah, that's on Middleman, I think, Which.
• 20:07
  Speaker 1: Is that on Middleman? Okay, that's on nineteen eighties Middleman. Yeah.
• 20:10
  Speaker 2: And I consider those albums like a trilogy kind of
• 20:12
  Speaker 2: if they sound. There's a similar sound to them all
• 20:16
  Speaker 2: and a lot of the same players are on all
• 20:17
  Speaker 2: the records, and I just I love them.
• 20:19
  Speaker 1: Yeah, Breakdown Dead Ahead and Jojo those are the two
• 20:21
  Speaker 1: singles off of Middleman nineteen eighty. What happens after now
• 20:25
  Speaker 1: is again another interesting part of Baza's story. He intended
• 20:29
  Speaker 1: to follow up nineteen eighties Middleman with another album fairly soon,
• 20:34
  Speaker 1: take a short break, but that short break turns into
• 20:37
  Speaker 1: an eight year break. What led to his extended hiatus.
• 20:41
  Speaker 2: I think, like you're alluding to, you know, he didn't
• 20:43
  Speaker 2: intend for it to be several years. He didn't need
• 20:46
  Speaker 2: a break at the time. He kind of likens it
• 20:48
  Speaker 2: to a fast moving train, just being on this success
• 20:52
  Speaker 2: machine and all of the other elements of life that
• 20:55
  Speaker 2: are keeping it afloat, you know, the record company and
• 20:57
  Speaker 2: then keeping a tour going, and just this kind of
• 21:00
  Speaker 2: energy behind it, well meaning I believe, and the fans
• 21:02
  Speaker 2: wanted it and stuff, but it can it can wear
• 21:05
  Speaker 2: an artist out. So at an interesting point, Bozz chose
• 21:08
  Speaker 2: to take a break. I think from what I learned
• 21:10
  Speaker 2: writing this and just listening doing deep listens to all
• 21:13
  Speaker 2: of his albums and studying his persona a bit from
• 21:15
  Speaker 2: my angle, he seems like such an authentic person and
• 21:19
  Speaker 2: artist to me, that following his own impetus and trajectory,
• 21:22
  Speaker 2: and it was very successful and good at staying true
• 21:24
  Speaker 2: to himself. And there are many artists who understandably get
• 21:28
  Speaker 2: caught up in that starmaking machine, you know, and it's appealing,
• 21:30
  Speaker 2: of course, and the success is already there. But Boss
• 21:33
  Speaker 2: has this kind of to my known self, be true element,
• 21:35
  Speaker 2: and I think he felt at the time like he
• 21:37
  Speaker 2: just needed to tune into himself, as we're saying.
• 21:39
  Speaker 1: But then he came back. Was Other Roads was nineteen
• 21:43
  Speaker 1: eighty eight, Yes, okay, Columbia was worried that too much
• 21:47
  Speaker 1: time had passed.
• 21:48
  Speaker 2: Yeah, I think, And you know, if you look at
• 21:50
  Speaker 2: the years in music at that time, from eighty to
• 21:52
  Speaker 2: eighty eight, a lot had happened. Drum machines had taken
• 21:55
  Speaker 2: over even more, and I think that in TV, right, yeah,
• 22:00
  Speaker 2: big change of course. And then if you look at
• 22:02
  Speaker 2: like the early nineties that came after, and that kind
• 22:04
  Speaker 2: of grunge sound that was building up, and then the
• 22:06
  Speaker 2: MTV specials that were coming out, the unplugged sound, which
• 22:10
  Speaker 2: I like to that's it later of course, but yes,
• 22:12
  Speaker 2: music was really changing and Boss had to kind of
• 22:15
  Speaker 2: deal with that and cope with that and not just
• 22:18
  Speaker 2: receiving this big A plus es go ahead from the
• 22:20
  Speaker 2: record company at first, you know, having to kind of
• 22:22
  Speaker 2: compromise more than he had in the past when he
• 22:25
  Speaker 2: had more cloud, you know, just commercially speaking, that the
• 22:28
  Speaker 2: early eighties, but.
• 22:29
  Speaker 1: He did prove he could still create some hits or
• 22:32
  Speaker 1: at least one lead single Heart of Mine was that
• 22:35
  Speaker 1: four had a beautiful song I Love Yeah. Then he
• 22:38
  Speaker 1: followed with ninety four, Some Change nineteen ninety six, Fade
• 22:42
  Speaker 1: into Light nineteen ninety seven, Come On Home, very active
• 22:46
  Speaker 1: into the two thousands, oh ones, dig oh three's but Beautiful,
• 22:50
  Speaker 1: oh Wait, Speak Low, And in twenty ten he was
• 22:52
  Speaker 1: part of a supergroup which I want to ask you about,
• 22:54
  Speaker 1: what was the Dukes of September.
• 22:56
  Speaker 2: That was such a That's one of my favorite parts
• 22:58
  Speaker 2: of Boss's Store, just because I'm a Steely Dan as well.
• 23:00
  Speaker 2: So that was when he worked more intensely with Donald Fagan,
• 23:04
  Speaker 2: the lead singer of Steely Dan, and Michael McDonald of
• 23:08
  Speaker 2: the Doobie Brothers partially. So that was a successful supergroup,
• 23:13
  Speaker 2: as you say, And it started out with working with
• 23:15
  Speaker 2: I believe it was Donald Fagan's wife would put together
• 23:18
  Speaker 2: these musical sets in New York and have different artists
• 23:21
  Speaker 2: kind of come in and contribute and then it turned
• 23:23
  Speaker 2: into bigger shows, and then they released a live album
• 23:28
  Speaker 2: and then eventually went on tour a bit later. I
• 23:30
  Speaker 2: guess that was twenty tens, in the two thousands.
• 23:32
  Speaker 1: There are clips on YouTube.
• 23:34
  Speaker 2: Yeah, it's and there's a concert film also, that's right.
• 23:36
  Speaker 2: And then the set list on that is that is great.
• 23:39
  Speaker 2: They each you know, McDonald's, Skaggs and Fagan all performed
• 23:42
  Speaker 2: their own hits and then some covers that they all like.
• 23:45
  Speaker 2: But this there's a seamless quality to the sound I
• 23:48
  Speaker 2: think in that the concert film I'm thinking of anyway,
• 23:51
  Speaker 2: so I think it was well well matched.
• 23:53
  Speaker 1: Would have been cool. Of a studio album, Yesterial, that
• 23:58
  Speaker 1: would have oh yeah, that would have been great. Twenty
• 24:00
  Speaker 1: eighteen's Out of the Blues. You say that that's the
• 24:03
  Speaker 1: most bluesy in his blues trilogy of albums, which began
• 24:07
  Speaker 1: with twenty thirteen's Memphis, followed by twenty fifteen's A Fool
• 24:10
  Speaker 1: to Care. And as you say, he's had more than
• 24:14
  Speaker 1: his share of the blues, but he's resilient and his
• 24:17
  Speaker 1: deep allegiance to music and creating it enabled him to
• 24:20
  Speaker 1: keep going forward. He's now eighty years old, but he's
• 24:23
  Speaker 1: still going. In fact, I think I looked on his website.
• 24:26
  Speaker 1: He's got some show's books, I believe, so he's still Yeah,
• 24:30
  Speaker 1: he's still going, and I'm seeing that there's a North
• 24:33
  Speaker 1: American tour coming in the fall of twenty twenty five.
• 24:37
  Speaker 1: Do you see Boz giving his fans another album in
• 24:39
  Speaker 1: the near future? What do you think? What do you
• 24:41
  Speaker 1: hope for from him?
• 24:43
  Speaker 2: I hope so. I mean, it's hard to say you
• 24:45
  Speaker 2: know ahead of time, but I think if alone, due
• 24:48
  Speaker 2: to the success of that recent trilogy, the Blues Covers albums,
• 24:52
  Speaker 2: it just really showcases Sky's musicality, especially the last one.
• 24:57
  Speaker 2: I think the cover of Neil Young's on the Beach
• 24:59
  Speaker 2: is on that one, and that's just such a beautiful
• 25:02
  Speaker 2: version of that song, and it showcases Scog's talent as
• 25:05
  Speaker 2: a vocal interpreter. That was also showcased well, I thought
• 25:09
  Speaker 2: on the he did two standards covers albums that you
• 25:12
  Speaker 2: just mentioned a bit earlier in the two thousands, but
• 25:15
  Speaker 2: that also showcases just his ability to access different musical
• 25:19
  Speaker 2: genres and his sensitivity to other people's material as well
• 25:23
  Speaker 2: as his own. So I'm hoping there's more.
• 25:25
  Speaker 1: Seems to be in a good place. It seems as if,
• 25:28
  Speaker 1: ever since he came back in the late eighties, he's
• 25:30
  Speaker 1: just doing what he enjoys, being an artist. Doesn't have
• 25:33
  Speaker 1: to worry about all that pop star fame and all
• 25:36
  Speaker 1: that stuff. I don't think he ever wanted it low down.
• 25:39
  Speaker 1: The Music of bot Skags is out April eighth. You
• 25:42
  Speaker 1: can find out where books are sold. Where can people
• 25:44
  Speaker 1: find you online? Dude?
• 25:45
  Speaker 2: I have my website which is my name www dot
• 25:49
  Speaker 2: Gwarren dot com, and you can purchase the book at
• 25:52
  Speaker 2: any bookstore, Amazon dotcom, Barnes and Noble, and the publisher
• 25:55
  Speaker 2: Chicago Review Press. Their website also keeps it together.
• 25:59
  Speaker 1: Jude Warren so much.
• 26:00
  Speaker 2: Thank you so much for having me. It's great.
• 26:11
  Speaker 1: That's it.
• 26:12
  Speaker 2: It's in the books.