Hi, everyone. Welcome to this week’s edition of Music Monday.

(Image found online.  Original source unknown.)

Tomorrow is Veteran’s Day here in the U.S. We owe a debt of gratitude to the men & women who have served and to those currently in active duty. Each person who volunteers to defend our country does so by paying at minimum the price of personal sacrifice. But many struggle with trauma long after their active duty ends. That impacts their ability to work, to keep themselves sheltered and to seek the medical support they require.

There are many organizations that are doing what they can to offer assistance to our Veterans. If you are in a position to do so, you can help as well by making donations directly to local organizations in your community or to national ones like the Gary Sinise Foundation or the Veterans Administration.

To all our veterans, thank you for your service. Welcome home.

(Image found online.  Original source unknown.)

Fifty years ago in 1975 the band Stealers Wheel broke up after only three years together. At the core of the five man Scottish folk rock band were two former schoolmates – Joe Egan (October 18, 1946 – July 6, 2024) and Gerry Rafferty (April 16, 1947 – January 4, 2011). Both men were singers, songwriters and musicians.

Gerry Rafferty (L) and Joe Egan (R) of Stealers Wheel circa 1973. (Image found online.  Original source unknown.)

The group’s self-titled debut was released on A&M Records 53 years ago in November 1972. It was produced by the songwriting duo/production team of Jerry Leiber and Mike Stoller. One track became a Top Ten hit that peaked at #6 in the U.S. in 1973. But creative differences & the producers own business issues drove the band apart, so both Egan and Rafferty went on to pursue solo careers.

However, Stealers Wheel best known hit continues to endure. It was prominently featured in the 1992 Quentin Tarantino film, “Reservoir Dogs“. In 2016, a kick ass acoustic cover was released on social media by one of the coolest guys on the planet, Izzy Stradlin. As if his role as the original rhythm guitarist for Guns N’ Roses was not enough, his musical prowess and vocal ability shines in his version of this classic track.

The 1973 debut album by Stealers Wheel. (Image found online.  Original source unknown.)

Izzy Stradlin in a 2016 video. (Image found online.  Original source unknown.)

The biggest success for Rafferty came courtesy of his second solo record, City to City, released in January 1978. A month later, the second single was released and four months later, it had peaked at #2 on the Billboard Hot 100 Chart in June 1978. A great story told through an expressive vocal with a great sounding band helped the slow jazzy number gain momentum, but the soaring saxophone riff played in between the verses by British musician Raphael Ravenscroft put it over the top. That pushed the album to the #1 spot in the country for one week in July 1978. Another track, “Right Down The Line”, peaked at #12 three months later.

Rafferty released 10 solo albums in his lifetime. His 1992 record, On a Wing and a Prayer, features his former bandmate Egan on backing vocals for 8 of the 12 songs. He left the music business shortly after that and passed away in July 2024 at age 77 following a stroke. Rafferty died in 2011 at age 63 from liver failure. His daughter, Martha, released his posthumous album, Rest in Blue, in 2021 which consisted of the demos he was working on at the time of his death.

(Image found online.  Original source unknown.)

Jimi Hendrix: “The Star Spangled Banner” (Live at The Woodstock Music & Art Fair, August 18, 1969. Written by Francis Scott Key).

Stealers Wheel: “Stuck In The Middle With You” (1972, written by Joe Egan and Gerry Rafferty).

Gerry Rafferty: “Baker Street” (1978, written by Gerry Rafferty).

Izzy Stradlin: “Stuck In The Middle With You” (2016, written by Joe Egan and Gerry Rafferty).

Stay safe & well.