''The Joker'' is the eighth

studio album An album is a collection of audio recordings issued on compact disc (CD), Phonograph record, vinyl, audio tape, or another medium such as Digital distribution#Music, digital distribution. Albums of recorded sound were developed in the early ...

Steve Miller Band The Steve Miller Band is an American rock music, rock band formed in 1966 in San Francisco, California. The band is led by Steve Miller (musician), Steve Miller on guitar and lead vocals. The group had a string of mid- to late-1970s hit singles t ...

. The album was recorded at

Capitol Studios Capitol Studios are recording studios located at the landmark Capitol Records Tower in Hollywood, California. The studios, which opened in 1956, were initially the primary recording studios for the American record label Capitol Records. While t ...

and released by

Capitol Records Capitol Records, LLC (known legally as Capitol Records, Inc. until 2007) is an American record label distributed by Universal Music Group through its Capitol Music Group imprint. It was founded as the first West Coast-based record label of note ...

in October 1973. The album marked a period of significant change for the group as the band abandoned their psychedelic-oriented music for a more melodic, smooth rock/blues sound. It was also their first solid commercial success due to the strong radio-play of the title track. The album reached No. 2 on the ''Billboard'' Top LPs & Tape chart and has been certified Platinum in the United States. It reached No. 1 on the ''Cash Box'' Albums Charts on January 8, 1974.

Reception

Stephen Thomas Erlewine of

AllMusic AllMusic (previously known as All Music Guide and AMG) is an American online music database. It catalogs more than three million album entries and 30 million tracks, as well as information on musicians and bands. Initiated in 1991, the databas ...

rated ''The Joker'' three out of five stars, calling it "all bright and fun, occasionally truly silly". He also stated that it "isn't mind-expanding", but concluded by saying that it "nevertheless maintains its good-time vibe so well that it's hard not to smile along...provided you're on the same wavelength as Miller, of course." ''

Record World ''Record World'' magazine was one of the three main music industry trade magazines in the United States, along with '' Billboard'' and '' Cashbox''. It was founded in 1946 under the name ''Music Vendor'', but in 1964 it was changed to ''Record Wo ...

'' said of the single "Your Cash Ain't Nothin' But Trash" "A dynamic rocker, it ain't nothin' but the best!"

Track listing

Personnel

* Steve Miller – guitar, vocals, harmonica * Gerald Johnson – bass guitar (all but 8), vocals * Dick Thompson –

organ Organ may refer to: Biology * Organ (biology), a part of an organism Musical instruments * Organ (music), a family of keyboard musical instruments characterized by sustained tone ** Electronic organ, an electronic keyboard instrument ** Hammond ...

clavinet The Clavinet is an electrically amplified clavichord invented by Ernst Zacharias and manufactured by the Hohner company of Trossingen, West Germany, from 1964 to 1982. The instrument produces sounds by a rubber pad striking a point on a tension ...

* John King – drums Additional personnel * Lonnie Turner – bass guitar (8) * "Sneaky" Pete Kleinow – pedal steel guitar (9) *

John Van Hamersveld John Van Hamersveld (born September 1, 1941, Baltimore, Maryland, United States) is an American graphic artist and illustrator who designed record jackets for pop and psychedelic bands from the 1960s onward. Among the 300 albums are the covers of ...

and

Norman Seeff Norman Seeff (born March 5, 1939, in Johannesburg, South Africa) is a photographer and filmmaker. Since moving to the United States in 1969, his work has been focused on the exploration of human creativity and the inner dynamics of the creative ...

– album cover design *

– photography

Charts

Certifications

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Joker, The 1973 albums Steve Miller Band albums Capitol Records albums Albums recorded at Capitol Studios