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.
Goodbye Love
Steve Miller Band Lyrics
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You took me by surprise but now I see
You know this heartache-night is killing me
(Baby bye-bye)
Forget the past, honey
Better try someone new (Baby don't cry)
There's nothing left here
You know this heartache-night
Will soon be through
Goodbye love
Goodbye love
Goodbye love
What's done is done, darling
This much is true
It's all over now
Don't be blue
You know this heartache-night
Will soon be through
Goodbye love
Goodbye love
Goodbye love
Baby bye-bye
Goodbye love
Baby bye-bye
Goodbye love
Baby bye-bye
Goodbye love
Goodbye love
Goodbye love
In "Goodbye Love" by Steve Miller Band, the singer reflects on a past relationship and acknowledges that it is not how love is supposed to be. The singer realizes that the heartache and pain from the break-up is too much to bear and needs to move on. Though the person might have taken the singer by surprise initially, now they can see that the relationship isn't healthy. The singer urges the person to forget the past and find someone new. The chorus reiterates that it's over, and while it might be tough now, it will soon pass.
The lyrics evoke a sense of finality and acceptance, that the relationship is truly over. The repeated phrases "goodbye love" and "baby bye-bye" emphasize closure and moving on. The singer acknowledges that the situation is sad, but the only way is to keep moving forward towards a happier future. The simple melody and instrumentation add to the bittersweet feeling of the song, leaving the listener with a sense of hope for brighter days ahead.
Overall, "Goodbye Love" is an honest and relatable song about a difficult break-up. The lyrics reveal that it's okay to let go of something that's not working and to move on to better things. The song offers comfort to anyone who's experiencing heartache and shows that there's always light at the end of the tunnel.
Line by Line Meaning
It's not the way that love is meant to be
Love is meant to be beautiful and joyous, but in this situation, it's not. There are underlying issues coming to the surface.
You took me by surprise but now I see
You shocked me when you ended things, but now I understand the reasons behind it.
You know this heartache-night is killing me
The pain of this experience is emotionally draining and exhausting. It feels like it's lasting forever.
(Baby bye-bye) Forget the past, honey
It's time to let go of the memories of what we had and move on to something better. It's time to say goodbye.
Better try someone new (Baby don't cry)
It's better to find someone else to love and be loved by, rather than crying over what's been lost.
There's nothing left here, for me or for you
There's no reason to hold onto what's been lost. There's no love left for either of us here.
You know this heartache-night will soon be through
The pain and suffering that we're experiencing right now will come to an end eventually. It won't last forever.
Goodbye love
The love we once shared is now gone. It's time to move on from what we once had.
What's done is done, darling. This much is true
What happened between us is irreversible. It's time to accept what has been done and let it go.
It's all over now. Don't be blue
Our love is over, but there's no need to be sad or depressed. Life goes on, and new opportunities will arise.
Baby bye-bye
It's time to say goodbye and move forward with our separate lives.
Goodbye love
The love that we had is no longer there, and it's time to make peace with that fact and move on.
Lyrics © BMG Rights Management
Written by: GARY MALLABER, GREGORY A. DOUGLASS, LONNIE TURNER
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind