Steve Miller Band is an American rock band formed in 1967-8 in San Franci… Read Full Bio ↴Steve Miller Band is an American rock band formed in 1967-8 in San Francisco, California, USA. The band features Steve Miller on guitar and lead vocals, and is known for a string of (mainly) mid-1970s hit singles that continue to be staples of the classic rock radio format.

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.

Snatch It Back And Hold It
Steve Miller Band Lyrics

Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴

Snatch it back and hold it
Baby, one more time
I ain't doin' too bad, baby
I got you on my mind
Hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey yeah
We're havin' a real good time

Somebody help me

Just can't help myself
Somebody's got to help me
I can't help myself
I'm not doin' too bad, baby
You know I ain't got no brand new bag

Snatch it back and you hold it
Snatch it back and hold it
Hey, hey, hey, hey, yeah
Snatch it back and hold it
I said hey, hey, hey, hey, hey yeah
Snatch it back and hold it

You doin' a swim the máshed potato
Jump back Jack, see you later, alligator
Doin' a jerk, you're doin' a twine
You're doin' a push with a funky, monkey turn
Hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, yeah
We're havin' a real good time

Now snatch it back and hold it
I wanna tell you where it's at
All the kids in the neighborhood
They're doin' a brand new dance
Snatch it back and hold it
I wanna show you where it's at

You doin' a swim the máshed potato
Jump back Jack, see you later, alligator
Doin' a jerk, you're doin' a twine
You're doin' a push with a funky, monkey turn
Hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, yeah
We're havin' a real good time

Snatch it back and you hold it
Snatch it back and hold it
Hey, hey, hey, hey yeah
Snatch it back and hold it
I said hey, hey, hey, hey, yeah
Snatch it back and hold it

I said one more time
Just one more time
Hey, hey, hey, hey, hey yeah
Baby, one more time
All the kids in the neighborhood
They know exactly where it's at

You doin' a swim the máshed potatoes
Jump back Jack, see you later alligator
Doin' a jerk, you're doin' a twine
You're doin' a push with a funky, monkey turn

Hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, yeah
We're havin' a real good time

Overall Meaning

The song "Snatch It Back and Hold It" by Steve Miller Band is a classic blues rock song. The song is about grasping onto something that is important to you and holding onto it tight. The lyrics are laid out like a dance instruction, with Miller calling out various dance moves, such as the mashed potato, the jerk, the twine, and the funky monkey turn. Miller also sings about a brand new dance that all the kids in the neighborhood are doing.

The chorus of the song emphasizes the importance of holding onto what you have, and not letting it slip away. The repeated refrain of "snatch it back and hold it" is a call to action, urging the listener to grab onto their life and hold onto it tight. The song is upbeat and catchy, with a driving rhythm and bluesy guitar riffs.

Overall, "Snatch It Back and Hold It" is a fun and energetic song about staying in control of your life and holding onto the things that are important to you.

Line by Line Meaning

Snatch it back and hold it
Take back whatever you need to and hold onto it tightly.

Baby, one more time
Just one more time, my love.

I ain't doin' too bad, baby
Things are going alright for me, babe.

I got you on my mind
You're always on my mind, my love.

Hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey yeah
Expressing joy and enthusiasm about what's happening.

We're havin' a real good time
We're having a great time together.

Somebody help me
I need someone's help to get myself under control.

Just can't help myself
I'm so drawn to you, my love, that I can't help myself.

I can't help myself
I have no control over my feelings for you.

You know I ain't got no brand new bag
I don't have anything new to offer you, my love. But what I have is all yours.

You doin' a swim the máshed potato
You're doing a popular dance move called the mash potato.