Jim Miller (musician)
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Jim Miller (born 1954) is a rock and roll guitarist, singer, teacher, recording artist and band leader in the “jam band” genre’. He has performed with Oroboros and his present group, JiMiller Band. He has also founded and organized several events, including co-founding the Rock & Reggae Festival and founding Lazy Daisy and DeadFall at Nelson Ledges State Park in central Ohio. He lives in Cleveland, Ohio.
Personal history
Miller was born July 2, 1954 at the historic St. Ann's Hospital in Cleveland, Ohio. He has a wife, Beth, a son named Michael who plays guitar in the JiMiller Band, and two stepchildren, Reid and Sarah Street.
Oroboros
Miller co-founded Oroboros in 1980 as a Grateful Dead tribute band, which soon generated original music in the jam band genre. It was named for the ouroboros, an ancient symbol for infinity, depicting a serpent or dragon eating its own tail. Among the bands they have opened for are Go Ahead (with members of the Grateful Dead and Santana), The Radiators, Black Uhuru, Santana and Rusted Root.[1] They co-founded the Rock & Reggae Festival in 1984 with First Light at Meadowoods Farm, originally as a benefit for the Cleveland Free Clinic.[2] They performed until 1998, produced five albums, and played a reunion concert in 2003.
Past members
- Jim Miller (guitar & vocals)
- Bill Cogan (guitar & vocals)
- Mary Beth Cooper (vocals, etc.)
- Gary Maxwell (bass)
- Rocky Miller (keyboards)
- Rob Luoma (drums).
- Dave Downing (bass)
- Don Safranek (percussion)
- Will Douglas (drums)
- Scott Swanson (bass)
- Mike Rotman (keyboard, guitar, percussion)
- Mike Verbick (guitar)
- Michael Bradley (keyboards, vocals)
Highlights
- 1984 - Co-Founded the Rock & Reggae Festival with the band First Light
- 1994 - HORDE Tour (Blossom Music Center)
- 1991 – opened for Phish at the Agora (Cleveland, Ohio)
- 1995, 1996 & 1997 (July) – Starwood Festival (Sherman, New York)
- 1996 - Southern Thailand Jazz Festival
- 1996 - Furthur Festival
- 2003 - Reunion [3]
Discography
- 1985 - Different Feeling
- 1988 - Psycha Deli: Live at the Euclid Tavern
- 1991 - First Circle
- 1993 - Serpent’s Dance
- 1996 - Shine
JiMiller Band
The JiMiller Band was founded in 1998 by Jim Miller, continuing to play the style of jam band music Miller played with Oroboros. They’ve performed since their founding, sharing the stage with such notable bands and artists as String Cheese Incident, Galactic, Bruce Hornsby, Little Feat, Rusted Root and the Rhythm Devils, and produced four CDs.
Current roster
- Jim Miller - Lead Vocals & Lead Guitar
- Mike Miller - Guitar
- Steve "Nev" Scheff - Keyboard & Vocals
- Brian "Bagel" Golenberg - Drums & Vocals
- Dave Blackerby – Bass
Past members
- Brett Miller (bass)
- Matt Harmon (guitar, dobro)
- Dan Carter (drums)
- Rick Davidson (guitar)
- Steve Zavesky (drums)
Highlights
- 2004 - 10,000 Lakes Festival
- 2005 & 2006 (summer) - opened for Little Feat at Cleveland's House of Blues
- 2007 (Memorial Day weekend) - opened for Rusted Root at Tower City Center Amphitheater (Cleveland)
- 2007 (New Year’s Eve) – opened for Rusted Root at The House of Blues (Cleveland)
- 2009–2011 – opened for the Early Bird Festival at Nelson Ledges
- 2010 (Labor Day) - opened for the Rhythm Devils with Mickey Hart and Bill Kreutzman from The Dead.
- 2012 - Starwood Festival at Wisteria Event Campground (Pomeroy, Ohio)
Discography
- 2000 - Rock and Roll Always Do
- 2001 - Crooked River Groove
- 2004 - Family Roots (Double Live CD)
- 2006 - In Trance It (Double CD: 1 Live, 1 Studio)
Original Songs
Sing It To Your Children - Link to Lyrics
- Sing It To Your Children - Oroboros - Different Feeling Released: 1985
- Sing It To Your Children - Oroboros - Serpent's Dance Released: 1993 (Euclid Tavern, Cleveland OH, 2/26/93)
North Coast Waters - Link to Lyrics
- North Coast Waters - Oroboros - Different Feeling Released: 1985
Agathodaimon - Link to Lyrics
- Agathodaimon - Oroboros - Different Feeling Released: 1985
- Agathodaimon - Oroboros - Serpent's Dance Released: 1993 (Shuba's, Chicago IL, 3/5/93)
Shake It To The Limit - Link to Lyrics
- Shake It To The Limit - Oroboros - Different Feeling Released: 1985
- Shake It To The Limit - Oroboros - Psycha Deli Released: 1988
Syzygy - Link to Lyrics
- Syzygy - Oroboros - Psycha Deli Released: 1988
Paradox - Link to Lyrics
- Paradox - Oroboros - Psycha Deli Released: 1988
Win or Lose - Link to Lyrics
- Win or Lose - Oroboros - Psycha Deli Released: 1988
Weather the Storm - Link to Lyrics
- Weather the Storm - Oroboros - Psycha Deli Released: 1988
Fog Over the Flats - Link to Lyrics
- Fog Over the Flats - Oroboros - Psycha Deli Released: 1988
Laughing at Harpo - Link to Lyrics
- Laughing at Harpo - Oroboros - Psycha Deli Released: 1988
Water Unto The Stone - Link to Lyrics
- Water Unto The Stone - Oroboros - First Circle Released: 1991
Whispers of Love - Link to Lyrics
- Whispers of Love - Oroboros - First Circle Released: 1991
Glad Messenger - Link to Lyrics
- Glad Messenger - Oroboros - First Circle Released: 1991
The Griffon Song - Link to Lyrics
- The Griffon Song - Oroboros - First Circle Released: 1991
King Kong II - Link to Lyrics
- King Kong II - Oroboros - First Circle Released: 1991
See You Smile - Link to Lyrics
- See You Smile - Oroboros - First Circle Released: 1991
Smell the Roses - Link to Lyrics
- Smell the Roses - Oroboros - Serpent's Dance Released: 1993 (Euclid Tavern, Cleveland OH, 2/26/93)
The River Runs - Link to Lyrics
- The River Runs - Oroboros - Serpent's Dance Released: 1993 (Shuba's, Chicago IL, 3/5/93)
Funk in A - Link to Lyrics
- Funk in A - Oroboros - Serpent's Dance Released: 1993 (Euclid Tavern, Cleveland OH, 4/9/93)
Siddhartha's Train - Link to Lyrics
- Siddhartha's Train - Oroboros - Serpent's Dance Released: 1993 (Euclid Tavern, Cleveland OH, 4/9/93)
The Friend Song - Link to Lyrics
- The Friend Song - Oroboros - Serpent's Dance Released: 1993 (Tulagi's, Boulder CO, 3/27/93)
Shakin' the Cage - Link to Lyrics
- Shakin' the Cage - Oroboros - Serpent's Dance Released: 1993 (Euclid Tavern, Cleveland OH, 4/9/93)
Calliope - Oroboros - Link to Lyrics
- Calliope - Oroboros - Shine Released: 1996
Do All You Can - Link to Lyrics
- Do All You Can - Oroboros - Shine Released: 1996
Leaving This Place Too Soon - Link to Lyrics
- Leaving This Place Too Soon - Oroboros - Shine Released: 1996
Far and Few - Link to Lyrics
- Far and Few - Oroboros - Shine Released: 1996
Big Black Snake Blues - Link to Lyrics
- Big Black Snake Blues - Oroboros - Shine Released: 1996
San Juan Man - Link to Lyrics
- San Juan Man - Oroboros - Shine Released: 1996
Cuyahoga Bayou - Link to Lyrics
- Cuyahoga Bayou - Oroboros - Shine Released: 1996
Won't Be Long - Link to Lyrics
- Won't Be Long - Oroboros - Shine Released: 1996
You Shine - Link to Lyrics
- You Shine - Oroboros - Shine Released: 1996
Notes
References
- Earlybird Gathering Simply Groovy by Malcolm X Abram, April 23, 2010, The 330 [3]
- Grateful Dead at the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame: Poet Mark Kuhar and Rocker Jim Miller Pay Homage by Michael Norman, March 22, 2012, The Plain Dealer [4]
- ‘In trance it,’ latest JiMiller Band CD, debuts in Lakewood by Charles Cassady in West Life News [5]
- Jam Bands: North America's Hottest Live Groups Plus How to Tape and Trade Their Shows by Dean Budnick - ECW Press, 1998 ISBN1550223534, 9781550223538
- Jammin' Again: The Midwest's First Jam Band Reunites at the Grog Shop by D.X. Ferris, October 6, 2004, The Cleveland Scene [6]
- JiMiller Band – Soundclick [7]
- JiMiller Band 'Grateful' to be Playing Outpost by Allan Lamb, Feb. 17th, 2005, KentWired [8]
- JiMiller Band's Final Live CD Recording at Park Street Tavern on April 28 by Margaret Marten - Short North Gazette, Mar/Apr 2012 Issue
- Oroboros - The Kipple Archives Volume No. 17, Issue No. 2, April 1990 [9]
- Rock ‘n Roll and the Cleveland Connection: Music of the Great Lakes by Deanna R. Adams - Kent State University Press, 2002 ISBN0873386914, 9780873386913
- Rockers Play Tribute to Grateful Dead by Kenny Miles, September 30, 2005, Grateful Dead News [10]
- A Slippery Band to Define by Neil Malhatra, February 6, 1998, UWO Gazette