William Royce “Boz” Scaggs (born June 8, 1944) is an Americansinger, songwriter and guitarist. He gained fame in the 1960s as a guitarist and sometime lead singer with the Steve Miller Band, and in the 1970s with several solo Top 20hit singles in the United States, including the well-known hits “Lowdown” and “Lido Shuffle” from the critically acclaimed album Silk Degrees, which peaked at #2 on the Billboard Hot 100. Scaggs continues to write, record music and tour.
When I first received this Nobel Prize for Literature, I got to wondering exactly how my songs related to literature. I wanted to reflect on it and see where the connection was. I’m going to try to articulate that to you. And most likely it will go in a roundabout way, but I hope what I say will be worthwhile and purposeful.
He finally delivered a 4000-word long lecture and the Nobel Prize for Literature (and the prize money) is officially his.
Man thinks ’cause he rules the earth he can do with it as he please
And if things don’t change soon, he will
Oh, man has invented his doom
First step was touching the moon
Now, there’s a woman on my block
She just sit there as the night grows still
She say who gonna take away his license to kill?
Sportpaleis Ahoy Rotterdam, The Netherlands 6 June 1984
People who are sad – sometimes they wear a frown
And people who are kings – sometimes they wear a crown
But all the people who don’t fit
Get the only fun they get
From people puttin’ people down
People puttin’ people down
Original song by John Prine:
Bob Dylan has covered this song twice… The other time was @ Palace Theatre, Sao Paolo, Brazil – 17 August 1991.
–
People without love – sometimes build a fence around
The garden up above – that makes the whole world go ’round
But all the people who don’t fit
Get the only fun they get
From people puttin’ people down
People puttin’ people down
