Rock'n Me

"Rock'n Me"
The European release of "Rock'n Me" by Mercury Records.
Single by Steve Miller Band
from the album Fly Like an Eagle
B-side	"Shu Ba Da Du Ma Ma Ma Ma"
Released	1976
Format	7" 45 RPM
Recorded	1976 at CBS Studios in San Francisco, California[1]
Genre	Rock, pop rock, southern rock[2]
Length	3:05
Label	Capitol
Writer(s)	Steve Miller
Producer(s)	Steve Miller
Steve Miller Band singles chronology
"Take the Money and Run" (1976) "Rock'n Me" (1976) "Fly Like an Eagle" (1976)

"Rock'n Me" (also known as "Rock 'N Me") is a song by American rock group Steve Miller Band, written by the group's leader Steve Miller.^[2] The song was released as the second single from the group's ninth studio album Fly Like an Eagle in 1976; Miller also produced the song and album as well as performed on it.^[3] The North American release of the single was generally credited to Steve Miller as a person, while the European release was generally credited to the Steve Miller Band as a whole group.

The single achieved lasting commercial and critical success, with the publication Billboard labeling it "an immediate audience grabber".^[3] It became the band's second #1 hit on the Billboard Hot 100, where it stayed at the top for one week,^[4] and it also topped the RPM Top Singles chart in Canada.^[5] In later years, the song has been included in several compilation albums such as 1978's Greatest Hits 1974-78 and 1991's The Very Best of the Steve Miller Band.^[2]

Miller has acknowledged that elements of "Rock'n Me", particularly the intro, was a tip of the hat to British group Free's "All Right Now". He stated, "Yeah, it's a tack on the wall for Paul (Kossoff). I did one concert in the two years that I was off the road. I went to London and played with Pink Floyd... it was a big, huge outdoor show so we needed a big rock and roll number that was really going to excite everybody. I just put it together and didn't think much about it."^[3]

Composed for that kind of pop and rock festival atmosphere,^[3] the lyrics and vocals have been labeled as having an 'every man' quality to them.^[2] It is sung from the point of view of someone frequently traveling while keeping a positive, upbeat attitude. Locations mentioned in the song include the major cities of Phoenix, Arizona, Tacoma, Washington, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, Atlanta, Georgia, and Los Angeles, California.

The song is a playable track on the video game Rock Band 2, and featured in Grand Theft Auto V and Tap Tap Revenge 3 for iOS.

Personnel

• Steve Miller–guitar, lead vocals
• Lonnie Turner–bass
• Gary Mallaber–drums

Charts

Chart (1976)	Peak position
Canadian Top Singles[5]	1
Netherlands (Single Top 100)[6]	22
New Zealand (Recorded Music NZ)[7]	23
UK Singles (Official Charts Company)[8]	11
US Billboard Hot 100[4]	1

Chart (1977)	Peak position
Austria (Ö3 Austria Top 40)[9]	25
Germany (Official German Charts)[10]	44

References

1. Ashley Brown, ed. (1990). "Space Cowboy". The Marshall Cavendish Illustrated History of Popular Music. Vol. 11 (Reference ed.). Marshall Cavendish. p. 1227. ISBN 1-85435-026-9.
2. Denise Sullivan. "Rock 'N Me - Steve Miller,Steve Miller Band | Song Info". AllMusic. Retrieved 2016-10-11.
3. Bronson, Fred (2003). The Billboard Book of Number One Hits (5th ed.). Billboard Books. ISBN 9780823076772.
4. Whitburn, Joel (2010). The Billboard Book of Top 40 Hits (9th ed.). Billboard Books. p. 443. ISBN 9780823085545.
5. "Top Singles". RPM. Vol. 26 no. 7. November 13, 1976. p. 23. ISSN 0315-5994. Retrieved June 25, 2011.
6. "Dutchcharts.nl – Steve Miller Band – Rock'n Me" (in Dutch). Single Top 100.
7. "Charts.org.nz – Steve Miller Band – Rock'n Me". Top 40 Singles.
8. "Archive Chart: 1976-11-27" UK Singles Chart.
9. "Austriancharts.at – Steve Miller Band – Rock'n Me" (in German). Ö3 Austria Top 40.
10. "Musicline.de – Miller,Steve Band Single-Chartverfolgung" (in German). Media Control Charts. PhonoNet GmbH.