![]() ![]() It was the hit that broke the Steve Miller Band, setting the stage for the successful singles that followed: "Take The Money And Run" (#11), "Rock'n Me" (#1), "Fly Like An Eagle" (#2), and "Jet Airliner" (#8). Today, "The Joker" is among the most popular classic rock staples. Which leaves "pompatus" - is that just a made-up word, or what? Basically, yes - although it too was lifted from a song by another artist. In fact, he ended up getting sued over them. The names Miller lists are references that faithful fans of the Steve Miller Band would get, and the lines that sound like they were pinched from somewhere else were indeed pinched from somewhere else. Perhaps the mystery makes it a better song - from "American Pie" to "You're So Vain," we as listeners enjoy trying to tease out the meaning of lyrics we know by heart. From its first lines, Steve Miller's 1974 #1 hit "The Joker" is a jumble of enigmatic lyrics: Are we supposed to call him the Space Cowboy, Gangster Of Love, or Maurice? And what's the meaning of "pompatus?" And then there's that bridge, where he seems to break into lyrics from an entirely different tune, with the bit about peaches and "Lovey Dovey" - what's up with that?
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