Boz Scaggs facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Boz Scaggs
Scaggs in 2015
Background information
Birth name	William Royce Scaggs
Born	(1944-06-08) June 8, 1944 (age 81) Canton, Ohio, U.S.
Origin	Plano, Texas, U.S.
Genres	Blues jazz R&B soft rock
Occupation(s)	Singer songwriter guitarist
Instruments	Guitar vocals
Years active	1963–present
Labels	Concord Columbia Atlantic Virgin 429 Records
Associated acts	Steve Miller Band, Toto

William Royce "Boz" Scaggs (born June 8, 1944) is an American singer, songwriter, and guitarist. He played with his friend Steve Miller in bands like the Ardells in the early 1960s. He was also a member of the Steve Miller Band from 1967 to 1968.

Boz Scaggs started his solo music career in 1969. He became very famous with his 1976 album, Silk Degrees. This album reached number 2 on the Billboard music chart. It also had popular songs like "Lido Shuffle" and "Lowdown". He later released two more successful albums, Down Two Then Left and Middle Man. These albums included hit songs such as "Breakdown Dead Ahead" and "Jojo".

After taking a break in the 1980s, Boz Scaggs returned to music in 1988. He released new albums and went on tour. He also opened a music club in San Francisco called Slim's, which was popular for many years. Boz Scaggs has continued to make music and perform throughout the 1990s, 2000s, and 2010s. His most recent album, Out of the Blues, came out in 2018.

Boz Scaggs also played a role in helping the band Toto get started. For his Silk Degrees album, he chose talented musicians like David Paich, David Hungate, and Jeff Porcaro. These musicians were already friends and had played together before. Touring with Scaggs helped them decide to form their own band. Their record label, Columbia Records, was so impressed that they offered the new group a contract without even an audition! David Paich said that Toto might not have formed so quickly without Silk Degrees. Boz Scaggs and the members of Toto have remained friends and worked together on other projects over the years.

Early Life and Education

Boz Scaggs was born in Canton, Ohio. He was the oldest child of Royce and Helen Scaggs. His father was a traveling salesman who flew in the Army Air Corps during World War II. His family moved to McAlester, Oklahoma, and then to Plano, Texas. Plano was a small farm town north of Dallas at that time.

Boz Scaggs started learning music at age 9, playing the cello. He received a scholarship to attend a private school in Dallas, St. Mark's School of Texas. There, he met Steve Miller. Steve Miller helped him learn to play the guitar when he was 12 years old. A classmate gave him the nickname "Boz," which stuck.

Music Career

Starting Out in Music

In 1959, Boz Scaggs became the singer for Steve Miller's band, the Marksmen. After finishing school in 1962, both Scaggs and Miller went to the University of Wisconsin–Madison. They played in blues bands together, such as the Ardells.

Scaggs left college in 1963 to focus on his music career. He formed a new band called the Wigs. In 1965, the band moved to London, England, hoping to find success in the growing R&B music scene. However, the group broke up after only a few months. Scaggs then traveled around Europe, earning money by playing music on the streets. He ended up in Stockholm, Sweden, where he recorded his first solo album, Boz, in 1965. This album did not sell well.

Joining the Steve Miller Band and Solo Success

Boz Scaggs returned to the U.S. in 1967 and moved to San Francisco. Steve Miller invited him to join his band, the Steve Miller Band. Scaggs played on their first two albums, Children of the Future and Sailor, both released in 1968. He later left the band because he and Miller had different musical ideas.

In 1968, Scaggs signed a solo record deal with Atlantic Records. He released his second album, Boz Scaggs, in 1969. This album was produced by Jann Wenner, who helped start Rolling Stone magazine. It also featured famous musicians like Duane Allman. Even though it received good reviews, the album did not sell very well at first.

Scaggs then signed with Columbia Records. He released albums like Moments (1971) and My Time (1972). These albums sold modestly. For his 1974 album, Slow Dancer, Columbia Records brought in Johnny Bristol, a producer known for his work with Motown. This album helped set the stage for his next big success.

The Hit Years: 1976–1981

In 1976, Boz Scaggs recorded Silk Degrees. He used talented studio musicians who later formed the band Toto. The album was a huge hit, reaching number 2 on the U.S. Billboard 200 chart. It was also nominated for a Grammy Award for Album of the Year.

Silk Degrees produced four hit songs: "It's Over," "Lowdown," "What Can I Say," and "Lido Shuffle." The song "We're All Alone" also became very popular when Rita Coolidge recorded her version. "Lowdown" sold over a million copies in the U.S. and won a Grammy Award for Best R&B Song. The actor John Travolta even danced to "Lowdown" while preparing for the movie Saturday Night Fever.

After the success of Silk Degrees, Boz Scaggs went on a sold-out world tour. During a concert in New York City in 1977, the power went out due to a city-wide blackout. Scaggs told the audience to keep their tickets, and he performed a makeup concert a few days later.

His next album, Down Two Then Left (1977), did not sell as well as Silk Degrees. However, his 1980 album, Middle Man, had two top 20 hits: "Breakdown Dead Ahead" and "Jojo". Scaggs also had two more top 20 hits in 1980–81: "Look What You've Done to Me" from the Urban Cowboy movie soundtrack, and "Miss Sun" from a greatest hits album.

Later Career and Recent Activities

Scaggs in concert in 2006

Boz Scaggs took a long break from recording music after 1981. He felt that making music had become too much like a "career" and he needed time away. He tried to make a new album in 1983, but it didn't feel right. By 1985, he decided he needed to release new music again.

His next album, Other Roads, came out in 1988. The song "Heart of Mine" from this album was his last top-40 hit. Also in 1988, he opened a music club in San Francisco called Slim's. He owned the club until it closed in 2020.

In 1992, Scaggs performed at a special concert to honor Jeff Porcaro, a member of the band Toto who had passed away. Many other famous musicians, like George Harrison, also performed at this tribute.

Scaggs continued to release albums, including Some Change (1994) and Come On Home (1997), which featured rhythm and blues music. He also released a collection of his best songs called My Time: A Boz Scaggs Anthology.

After another break, his album Dig was released on September 11, 2001. In 2003, he released But Beautiful, an album of jazz standards, which quickly became number one on the jazz chart. He also released a live CD and DVD in 2004.

In 2010, he joined Donald Fagen and Michael McDonald for a concert series called the Dukes of September Rhythm Revue. His album Memphis was released in 2013, followed by A Fool to Care in 2015. Both albums were very popular on the blues charts. In 2018, he released Out of the Blues, which also reached number 1 on the Billboard Top Blues Albums chart.

In February 2024, Boz Scaggs toured Japan for the first time since the COVID-19 pandemic. During his Tokyo show, he announced that he would donate the guitars he used on the tour to a charity auction. This was to help with recovery efforts after the 2024 Noto earthquake in Japan.

Personal Life

Boz Scaggs married his first wife, Donna Carmella Storniola, in 1973. They had two sons, Austin and Oscar. Austin is now a music journalist. Sadly, Oscar passed away on December 31, 1998.

In 1992, Scaggs married Dominique Gioia. In 1996, they moved to Napa Valley, California, and started a vineyard. They grew grapes and made their first wine in 2000. Their vineyard was certified organic in 2006. In 2016, Scaggs sold his vineyard.

In 2017, their house burned down during the Northern California wildfires. Boz and Dominique were on tour at the time. They lost their home, vineyard, cars, and many personal items, including decades worth of his song lyrics.

Awards and Nominations

In 2019, Boz Scaggs received the Texas Medal of Arts.

Discography

With the Steve Miller Band

Solo Albums

• The 1969 self-titled Atlantic album did not chart when it was first released. It reached No. 171 when it was reissued in 1974.
• Rolling Stone magazine ranked this album at number 496 on its list of the 500 Greatest Albums of All Time.

Compilation Albums

Singles

See also

In Spanish: Boz Scaggs para niños

• Notable alumni of St. Mark's School of Texas
• List of celebrities who own wineries and vineyards