Steve Miller

Born in Milwaukee, educated in Madison and famous the world over, Steve Miller nonetheless seems an unlikely candidate to headline the Marcus Amphitheater. After all, his last single to top the charts (“Abracadabra”) came more than a quarter-century ago, and he hasn’t released a studio album since 1993’s Wide River. Yet here he is, age 64 and celebrating 40 years in rock with a headlining show at the city’s biggest stage tonight at 7:30 p.m. with opener Joe Cocker. Miller says that in addition to the classic cuts everyone expects to hear, fans also should anticipate a handful of acoustic songs and blues standards this time out. After all, Miller’s next studio album is expected to be a traditional blues recording.