Boz Scaggs is best known for his solo work where he produced multiple hits including “Lowdown,” “Jojo” and “Lido Shuffle.” However, there is much more to the man that is considered one of the pioneers of the smooth pop sound of the 70’s and 80’s.
Boz Scaggs went to St. Mark’s School and at an early age met up with Steve Miller. Scaggs became lead singer of their band The Marksmen.
In the late 60’s Scaggs would reunite with his old friend Steve Miller and become part of the original Steve Miller Band playing on his first two albums – Children of the Future and Sailor. Scaggs played guitar, sang backing vocals and even contributed lead vocals to two songs on both albums.
He released his debut album – Boz – in the 1965. The album was recorded in Sweden and only released in Europe.
His first US album – Boz Scaggs – was released in 1969. The album was recorded at Muscle Shoals Sound Studio and included members of the Muscle Shoals Rhythm Section (Eddie Hinton and Jimmy Johnson – guitar; David Hood – bass; Roger Hawkins – drums and Barry Beckett – keyboards) as well as Duane Allman on four tracks.
From 1971 – 1974, Scaggs would release four more albums with little commercial success and only one album cracking the Top 100 Billboard Album charts – 1974’s Slow Dancer.
Scaggs would finally hit paydirt with 1976’s Silk Degrees – which would become one of the best-selling albums of the 1970’s with more than 5 million sold in the US alone. The album featured his first major hit “Lowdown” – which peaked at #3 on the US Billboard Hot 100.
In addition to his solo work, Scaggs was part of The New York Rock and Soul Revue with Michael McDonald, Phoebe Snow and Donald Fagen in the late 80’s. In 2010, he joined Fagen and McDonald for a series of gigs under the name The Dukes of September.
