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It was this day in 1974 when a storm of another kind hit us. The Steve Miller Band’s classic cut “The Joker” topped the billboard charts. Thirty-seven years later, the song is still a staple of Miller’s live shows.

Early live shows of Miller show his chops on slide guitar even better than albums can. But you know how cool the whistling noises he makes with the slide still are.

One of the first times “The Joker” was ever played live was on “The Midnight Special” in 1972. Watch a young Steve & band jam out:

And the song would eventually hit #1 exactly 37 years ago today. The song is probably still #1 in most Steve Miller fans’ hearts.

This rendition of “The Joker” live on “Jools Holland” shows that they’ve still got it. Even the wolf-whistling!

The song also reached #1 in the UK in 1990 when it was re-released as a single and was the first of three #1 hits for the Steve Miller Band.

It’s since engraved itself permanently into each Steve Miller fan’s (and most classic rock fan’s) memory. And if you somehow don’t know this song, listen to it now. And again. And again.

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