By Hannah Jane Farron
FROM WIKIPEDIA COMMONS
William Royce “Boz“ Scaggs (born June 8, 1944) is an American singer, songwriter, and guitarist. He was a bandmate of Steve Miller in the Ardells in the early 1960s and a member of the Steve Miller Band from 1967 to 1968.
Scaggs began his solo career in 1969, though he lacked a major hit until his 1976 album, Silk Degrees, peaked at number 2 on the Billboard 200 and produced the hit singles “Lido Shuffle” and “Lowdown“. Scaggs produced two more platinum-certified albums in Down Two Then Left and Middle Man, the latter of which produced the top-40 singles “Breakdown Dead Ahead” and “Jojo“.
After a hiatus for most of the 1980s, he returned to recording and touring in 1988, releasing Other Roads and later joining the New York Rock and Soul Revue. Scaggs opened the nightclub Slim’s, a popular music venue in San Francisco (it closed in 2020). He has continued to record and tour throughout the 1990s, 2000s and 2010s, with his most recent album being 2018’s Out of the Blues.
Scaggs is credited for helping the formation of Toto. For his 1976 album, Silk Degrees, he hand-picked musicians after taking suggestions from several people. These musicians were David Paich, David Hungate and Jeff Porcaro. The three were already friends and had frequently performed together on other albums, such as Steely Dan‘s Pretzel Logic. By going on tour with Scaggs, it solidified the prospect of starting a band. Columbia picked up on this talent by offering the new group a contract “without audition”. Steve Porcaro described this as “a record deal thrown in our laps”. Paich stated, “I’m not sure if Toto would have happened as soon, or quite the same way, without Silk Degrees”. Their friendship has continued throughout the decades, shown by the varying collaborations and concerts performed together. Paich teamed up once more for Scaggs’ 2001 album, Dig, contributing to 6 out of the 11 songs.
Scaggs was born in Canton, Ohio, the eldest child to Royce and Helen Scaggs. His father was a traveling salesman who had flown in the Army Air Corps during World War II. Their family moved to McAlester, Oklahoma, then to Plano, Texas (at that time a farm town), just north of Dallas. He learned his first instrument, the cello, at age 9. He received a scholarship to attend a private school in Dallas, St. Mark’s School of Texas.
At St. Mark’s, he met Steve Miller, who helped him to learn the guitar at age 12. A classmate wanted to give Scaggs a “weird” nickname. This started out as “Bosley”, then “Boswell” and “Bosworth”. The name was later shortened to Boz.
TODAY’S ALMANAC
Whitsunday, or Pentecost, is the seventh Sunday after Easter. For Christians, this commemorates the descent of the Holy Spirit in tongues of flame upon the apostles. Because the disciples were said to have begun baptizing thousands of people soon afterward, Whitsunday or Pentecost became the traditional time for baptisms. Whit, a corruption of white, refers to the white baptismal garments worn on this day. It is also a time of spring festivals throughout Europe, with echoes of pagan spring rites such as morris dancing and dressing a young boy in greenery (Jack-in-the-Green) and marching him through the village.
Question of the Day
Advice of the Day
Home Hint of the Day
Word of the Day
Puzzle of the Day
CELEBRITY BIRTHDAYS TODAY
Born
- Robert Schumann (composer) –
- Frank Lloyd Wright (architect) –
- Barbara Bush (U.S. First Lady) –
- Jerry Stiller (actor) –
- Joan Rivers (comedian) –
- Bruce McCandless II (astronaut) –
- Scott Adams (cartoonist, creator of Dilbert) –
- Julianna Margulies (actress) –
- David Sutcliffe (actor) –
Died
- Andrew Jackson (7th U.S. president) –
- Leroy “Satchel” Paige (baseball player) –
- Glenne Headly (actress) –
- Anthony Bourdain (chef, writer, and travel show host) –
HISTORICAL EVENTS ON THIS DATE IN HISTORY
Events
- An advertisement in a NYC newspaper by a Mr. Hull of 76 Chatham Street announced that he would start manufacturing ice cream on a commercial basis. It was the first known U.S. ad for commercial ice cream. –
- Ives McGaffey was granted a patent for the first U.S. hand-pumped vacuum cleaner –
- The bald eagle was placed under federal protection as an endangered species in the U.S. –
- Jennifer Reinke spelled “chihuahua” to win Scripps National Spelling Bee –
- James Earl Ray, alleged assassin of MLK, Jr., was arrested by Scotland Yard detectives at Heathrow Airport in London –
- The New York Yankees retired the No. 7 uniform of baseball player Mickey Mantle –
- U.S. release of movie Ghostbusters –
- For the first time in 121.5 years, the Sun was partially eclipsed by the planet Venus (Transit of Venus) –
Weather
- Tornado struck National Weather Service office in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma –
- Barneveld, Wisconsin, was devastated by a tornado –
- Louisiana was hit by eight tornadoes, including a strong one that caused major damage in Baton Rouge –
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