After learning guitar at the age of 12, Scaggs met Steve Miller at St. Mark's School of Texas in Dallas. In 1959, he became the vocalist for Miller's band The Marksmen. The pair later attended the University of Wisconsin together, playing in blues bands like The Ardells and The Fabulous Knight Trains. Leaving school, Scaggs briefly left Texas to join the burgeoning rhythm and blues scene in London. After singing in bands such as The Wigs and Mother Earth, he recorded his first solo album Boz in 1965, which was not a commercial success. He traveled to Sweden as a solo performer and did a brief stint with the band The Other Side with fellow American Jack Downing and Brit Mac MacLeod.
Returning to the US, Scaggs promptly headed for the booming psychedelic music center of San Francisco in 1967. Linking up with Steve Miller again, he appeared on the Steve Miller Band's first two albums Children of the Future and Sailor, which won over critical reviews. After being spotted by Rolling Stone publisher Jann Wenner, Scaggs secured a solo contract with Atlantic Records in 1968. Despite good reviews, his first Atlantic album was met with lukewarm sales, as were followup albums on Columbia Records. In 1976, he linked up with session musicians who would later form Toto and recorded his smash album Silk Degrees. The album reached number 2 on the US charts and number 1 in a number of countries across the world, spawning three hit singles: "Lowdown", "Lido Shuffle", and "What Can I Say", as well as the MOR standard "We're All Alone", later a hit for Rita Coolidge. A sellout world tour followed, but his follow-up album, the 1977 Down Two Then Left, lacked the cohesion of Silk Degrees.
Scaggs' 1980 album Middle Man would spawn two top 20 hits, "Breakdown Dead Ahead" and "Jojo," and Scaggs would enjoy two more hits over 1980 and 1981 ("Look What You've Done to Me" from the Urban Cowboy soundtrack, and "Miss Sun" from a greatest hits set).
Scaggs continued to record and tour sporadically throughout the 1980s and 1990s, although he semi-retired from the music business and turned owner of the San Francisco nightclub Slim's. His lengthy hiatus from the music industry slowed his chart career down dramatically.
Scaggs recorded Other Roads in 1988, took another hiatus, and then came back in 1994 with Some Change. In the late 190s he released Come On Home, an album of blues, and My Time, an anthology. He garnered good reviews with Dig, although the CD, which was released on September 11, 2001, was lost in the post-911 melée. In May, 2003, Scaggs released But Beautiful, a collection of jazz standards that debuted at number 1 on the jazz charts.
In 2013 he released the album Memphis
Vanishing Point
Boz Scaggs Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
A last chance oasis on the plains
The sky was threatening as he came up to me
Said could you help me beat the rain
Where does it take you this road you travel
He smiled the same place as yourself
To that point out there where all roads vanish
Play it straight and play it true my brother
'Cause you're miles from anywhere
As it happens in the world of shadows
Time and distance vanish there
I was just another deadbeat loser there the last time
I couldn't even read the signs
But I've got this feeling and there's magic in the cards now
I'm going back to take what's mine
Play it straight and play it true my brother
'Cause you're miles from anywhere
As it happens in the world of shadows
Time and distance vanish there
What damned illusion in that neon lightning
A run of luck is in the air
Shining brighter than any flush of diamonds
A magic carpet of despair
Play it straight and play it true my brother
'Cause you're miles from anywhere
As it happens in the world of shadows
Time and distance vanish there
Play it straight and play it true my brother
'Cause you're miles from anywhere
As it happens in the world of shadows
Time and distance vanish there
In Boz Scaggs's song Vanishing Point, the singer meets a stranger at "the edge of nowhere," a desolate oasis in the middle of the plains. As the sky threatens to pour rain, the stranger approaches and asks for help. When the singer asks where the stranger is headed on this road he's traveling, the stranger responds with a cryptic answer: "to that point out there where all roads vanish. Going to Vegas, man, where else?" The stranger warns the singer to "play it straight and play it true" because they are "miles from anywhere." The stranger then speaks of the "world of shadows" in which "time and distance vanish."
The singer is then transported to a time in the past when he was a "deadbeat loser" but now has a feeling that there is "magic in the cards," and he is going to "take what's mine." The singer then repeats that they are "miles from anywhere" and in the "world of shadows," where "time and distance vanish." The song ends with the singer talking about the "neon lightning" and "magic carpet of despair" in Las Vegas and the warning to "play it straight and play it true."
Line by Line Meaning
I met him first out at the edge of nowhere
The singer encountered a person in a remote location.
A last chance oasis on the plains
The place they met was the only hope for refuge in the area.
The sky was threatening as he came up to me
The weather was ominous when the person approached the singer.
Said could you help me beat the rain
The person asked the artist for assistance to avoid getting wet in the downpour.
Where does it take you this road you travel
The person asked the artist about their destination on their journey.
He smiled the same place as yourself
The person replied by saying they were both headed to the same point.
To that point out there where all roads vanish
They were going to a place where all paths disappear into nothingness.
Going to Vegas man where else
Their shared destination was the city of Las Vegas.
Play it straight and play it true my brother
The artist advises the person to be honest and trustworthy.
'Cause you're miles from anywhere
The remoteness of the location made it important to act with integrity.
As it happens in the world of shadows
In the darkness and isolation of the area, strange things can occur.
Time and distance vanish there
The vast emptiness can make it seem like there is no time or physical space.
I was just another deadbeat loser there the last time
The singer had been in that location before and felt like a failure.
I couldn't even read the signs
The singer didn't understand the signals around them.
But I've got this feeling and there's magic in the cards now
The singer has newfound confidence and believes they will be successful through gambling.
I'm going back to take what's mine
The artist wants to return to the same place and win at gambling to reclaim what they feel is owed to them.
What damned illusion in that neon lightning
The artist questions the validity of the flashy city lights.
A run of luck is in the air
The singer feels that fortune is on their side.
Shining brighter than any flush of diamonds
The singer believes their luck is worth more than any valuable jewel.
A magic carpet of despair
Despite their positive outlook, the artist realizes that there is a potential for failure.
Lyrics © OBO APRA/AMCOS
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
Matthew Johnson
Boz is the only artist that I know that could sing the Denny’s menu and make it sound soulful, he has been, and always will be, my favorite artist. Thank you Boz.
Denise Deblois
Just swaying to this great piece of music, cannot agree enough with everyone! This is by far far one of his best pieces, just demonstrates his awesome talents! Musicien formidable!!!
Jon Schmidt
Love this piece. I've been listening to Boz since I was a teenager in the 70's. Brings me back to his soulfulness while transforming to an entirely new space.
Gary McGhee
I've been listening to him since 1977 when I was 17. Class is permanent, and this is pure class.
Peter Eyles
Awesome Boz!!!🎤🎸👋♥️♥️♥️♥️🇦🇺🇺🇸
Angela fisher
This is one of Boz's best albums. I wonder if he was nominated for a Grammy for "Dig "? Still one of my favorite albums to listen to.
vitoman50
Always love Boz Scaggs but this song knocks it out of the park for me. One of the best voices I've ever heard.
Peter Eyles
vitoman50 A big Amen 🙏 to that Boz is absolutely amazing!🎸🎤👋♥️♥️♥️🇦🇺🇺🇸
Kai
No problem, dude. :)
Blake Grantham
I saw another video that someone made. I thought they did a lousy job. I like mine much better. Thanks for the compliment.