Check your privilege Steve Miller, nobody ever put a gun to your head

In 1967, a then-unknown group called the Steve Miller Blues Band signed a deal with Capitol Records. It was a colossal deal, one later described as “way ahead of its time in terms of artist rights and remuneration”.

Actually, here’s how it was described by the band in 2003: “In exchange for a five-album commitment, they would receive an unprecedented advance of $50,000 from the label while retaining complete ownership of publishing and artistic control.”

A lot changes in 50 years. Last week, Miller turned up slap-bang in the middle of the news agenda. In all honesty, many people probably went “who?” when his name started to appear in the headlines and wondered if he had died. It’s a while since Miller has bothered anyone beyond his dedicated fanbase.

Miller was in the news because he was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall Of Fame, but it was his decision to have a pop at various people after he left the stage with his new gong in hand which really got him noticed.

If you’re a fan of rants and raves, Miller was hugely entertaining. He took aim at the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, slammed the lack of female artists on the institution’s roll of honour and threw some shade at The Black Keys, who introduced him on the night.

He reserved the most bitter vitriol for the music industry, a sector full of “jackasses and jerks and fucking gangsters and crooks”, which is not really going to come as news to anyone.

He said that he had spotted “the guy from my record company” in the front row and “wanted to pull him by his necktie and kick him in the nuts”.

The reason for this? “He’s made a billion dollars off my work over the last 50 years and the motherfucker just came over and introduced himself tonight. That cheery little thing.”

There is a first time for everything and this, as far as I can tell, is the first time I’ve used the expression “check your privilege” in this space. As Miller ranted and raved about the record industry, he served to remind you that here was someone who actually benefited quite handsomely from that same industry.

In the years before Miller was releasing hit albums such as The Joker, Fly Like An Eagle and Abracadabra, that record industry he now has a problem with was there to help him develop by providing cash and guidance. Sure, they obtained rights from him in return for the cash, but that's how capitalism work.

Miller could have said no to the contracts with the labels who’ve made “a billion dollars” off his work, but he didn’t. Instead, he signed on the dotted line and took the cheques.

No doubt, he took independent legal advice and counsel before he signed the contracts. If he’s claiming that someone stuck a gun to his head and made him do it, we’re suddenly interested. But if he signed the papers of his volition as an adult, well, that’s just tough.

When artists moan and complain about their lot, they tend to get attention. But we never stop and consider that they’re actually giving out about about something they did of their own free will. Remember that the history of popular music is full of stories of artists getting ripped off by managers and labels, so you can’t say that people haven’t been warned about what’s ahead.

In the case of Miller, you have to wonder if the shouting and roaring really has more to do with seeking attention. On that score, he definitely succeeded.