Steve Miller (born 5 October 1943) is a blues and rock and roll guitarist and performer. He was born in Milwaukee, Wisconsin but attended high school in Dallas. While at St. Mark's School of Texas, he formed his first band, The Marksmen. Miller taught one of his classmates, Royce Boz Scaggs, a few guitar chords so that he could join the band; Scaggs became better known by his nickname, Boz. Miller attended the University of Wisconsin-Madison during the 1960s, where he formed The Ardells. Scaggs joined the Ardells the next year. Ben Sidran was added to the Ardells as a keyboardist the following year.
In 1968, Miller formed the Steve Miller Band, with Scaggs handling vocals, and released an album, Children of the Future, the first in a series of discs rooted solidly in the psychedelic blues style that dominated the San Francisco music scene at the time. Scaggs would leave the band after a couple of albums with vocal chores taken over by drummer Tim Davis; Miller himself would begin singing occasional lead on 1969's Brave New World. These albums performed respectably on the album charts but failed to yield a hit.
In the 1970's the band had some hits that became classics over the years - Jet Airliner, with some evocative lyrics that brought home the loss of life on the road; and The Joker which includes the famous line about the "pompatus of love", which is of course nonsense, but that didn't stop a lot of stoned folks from spending years talking amongst themselves.
Steve Miller's father was a wealthy doctor in Dallas, and friends with famous guitarist and guitar designer Les Paul. Les Paul gave Miller his first guitar lessons.
Longtime member Norton Buffalo (harmonica player) died from lung cancer on October 30, 2009.
John King (drummer during "The Joker" era) died after a short bout of kidney cancer on October 26, 2010.
Band-member James Cooke died from cancer on 16 May 2011.
Enter Maurice
Steve Miller Band Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Ooh, ah
Ooh, ah
Ooh, ah
Enter Maurice
My dearest darling, come closer to Maurice so I can whisper
Sweet words of epismetology in your ear and speak to you of
Long, for you to leave me at this time darling, must surely
Be wrong. So come back and reconsider one more thing. Maurice
Is the only one to make your little heart sing.
Ooh mama ooh, ooh mama ooh
How can you do the things that you do?
Ooh mama ooh, ooh mama ooh
I'm gonna buy you some brand new shoes
I'm gonna buy you some brand new shoes
Enter Maurice
I don't know why you won't make no more apple pie. Since you've
Been gone it's been starvation mama, ever since I lost my
Probation. Don't you remember the time that you ended up in
Jail? That's right darling, it was Maurice who went your bail.
Now, there's just one more thing that I want to say before you turn
And walk away.
Bom Bom Bom Bom do wah da di dit
Bom Bom Bom Bom do wah da di dit
Bom Bom Bom Bom do wah da di dit...
Darling please, don't walk out that door, you must reconsider
Darling, you've done it so many times before. It's not too late,
It's never too late, precious one, for Maurice to love you.
Just remember sweetheart, I bought myself a gun and I will be
The only one.
The Steve Miller Band's song Enter Maurice is a whimsical and somewhat enigmatic piece that incorporates a number of strange and obscure ideas and themes. The song is essentially a plea to a woman named Mama who is considering leaving the singer. He addresses her in the first half of the song and implores her to reconsider her decision to leave him, promising her that he can provide her with a lifetime of happiness and love. He talks about the "pompitous of love," a term that has no real definition and seems to be something that he made up. The second half of the song has a more ominous tone and serves as a warning to Mama not to leave. The singer tells her that he has bought a gun and will be the only one, implying that he is willing to use violence to keep her from leaving.
The song is a classic example of Steve Miller's unique brand of storytelling and his ability to create memorable and distinct characters within his songs. The character of Maurice is never fully fleshed out, and it's unclear if he is a real person or just a figment of the singer's imagination. The use of the nonsensical phrase "pompitous of love" adds to the overall sense of surrealism and creates an almost dreamy atmosphere. The second half of the song serves as a stark contrast to the first half, with the singer's voice becoming more urgent and desperate as he pleads with Mama not to leave. Ultimately, the meaning and intention of the song remain somewhat opaque, leaving room for interpretation and speculation.
Line by Line Meaning
Enter Maurice
Begin thinking about Maurice, the subject of this song
My dearest darling, come closer to Maurice so I can whisper
Come closer to Maurice so I can tell you sweet words about the study of insects and speak to you about the mystery of love.
Sweet words of epismetology in your ear and speak to you of
I will say lovely things about the study of insects and talk about
The pompitous of love. Even though our road is rough and
Though our journey together has been difficult, leaving me now would be a mistake. So, please come back and think it over. Maurice is the only one who can make your heart sing.
Long, for you to leave me at this time darling, must surely
Our relationship was never easy, but if you go now, it can't be right. Please, think it over.
Be wrong. So come back and reconsider one more thing. Maurice
Don't be so hasty to leave - think about Maurice, who is the only one who can truly love you.
Is the only one to make your little heart sing.
Maurice is the only one who can truly bring joy into your life.
I'm gonna buy you some brand new shoes
I'll buy you some fresh footwear
Enter Maurice
Think about Maurice again
I don't know why you won't make no more apple pie. Since you've
I don't know why you stopped making pie. Since you've been gone, I've been hungry, and since I lost my release from jail.
Been gone it's been starvation mama, ever since I lost my
I've been starving since you left and lost my parole.
Probation. Don't you remember the time that you ended up in
Remember when you were in prison?
Jail? That's right darling, it was Maurice who went your bail.
It was Maurice who bailed you out.
Now, there's just one more thing that I want to say before you turn
Before you leave, there's one last thing I have to say.
And walk away.
Before you leave.
Darling please, don't walk out that door, you must reconsider
Please rethink your decision and stay.
Darling, you've done it so many times before. It's not too late,
You've left before, but it's not too late.
It's never too late, precious one, for Maurice to love you.
It's never too late for Maurice to love you, my dear.
Just remember sweetheart, I bought myself a gun and I will be
I want you to remember that I bought myself a gun.
The only one.
And I'll be the only one to have it.
Lyrics © BMG Rights Management
Written by: STEVE MILLER
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind