The Steve Miller Band “Children of the Future� (1968)<i> Capitol</i>

Although Steve Miller came out of the late ‘60s San Francisco music scene, his bold debut album was a far cry from the often primitive efforts of most of his Bay Area kinsmen. “Children of the Future� is an opulently layered sonic adventure boasting stellar musicianship, finely crafted compositions and (for its day) state-of-the-art production.

Side one is a psychedelic suite of multitracked vocal harmony, swelling organ beds and meditative sound effects--a cohesive journey of head music that shames the concurrent needlings of Big Brother and the Holding Company and Country Joe and the Fish.

Side two is a blues-steeped collection of classic, effectively updated covers (“Fanny Mae,� “Key to the Highway�) and intriguing originals, two of which were written by Miller’s then-bandmate Boz Scaggs. “Baby’s Calling Me Home� should have been a breakout single, but “Children� sold poorly, failing to gain the band much-deserved attention.

Miller was known to talk down and even laugh at his early work as he basked in the glow of his many successful-but-formulaic hits of the ‘70s. But truth be told, he rarely ever again approached the thoughtful, pioneering music he made at the beginning of his career.