Steve Miller has been called a classic rock hero, rock’s “grumpy old man,” the creator of “timeless rock hits” and more. His outspoken ways have earned fans and foes, but one thing we know for sure: This iconic singer, songwriter and guitarist keeps on rockin’ at age 81, playing songs that achieved monster success in the 1970s and ‘80s.

Miller currently has 10 tour dates scheduled for 2025 with the Steve Miller Band, including a show on Oct. 1 at the Mercedes-Benz Amphitheater, 2710 Jack Warner Parkway in Tuscaloosa. Robert Randolph & the Family Band will open the 7 p.m. concert.

Tickets go on sale Friday, April 11, at 10 a.m. CT, via Ticketmaster, after a round of pre-sales. Prices haven’t been announced, but fans can use the password JOKER for access to a venue pre-sale that runs on Thursday, April 10, from 10 a.m. CT to midnight. Other pre-sales will be active on Thursday, as well.

Miller, from Wisconsin, founded the Steve Miller Band in the 1960s and earned widespread fame for albums such as “The Joker,” “Fly Like an Eagle,” “Book of Dreams” and “Abracadabra.” He was a dominant force on FM radio in the 1970s, with singles such as “Take the Money and Run,” “The Joker,” “Fly Like an Eagle,” “Jet Airliner,” “Rock’n Me,” “Swingtown,” “Abracadabra” and “Jungle Love.”

Fans can expect to hear Miller’s greatest hits at the concert in Tuscaloosa, along with signature songs such as “Dance, Dance, Dance,” “Swingtown” and “True Fine Love.”

In a 2024 interview with Guitar Player, Miller said he still gets a thrill from performing his vintage tunes, adding that he works hard to make sure audiences get a satisfying experience.

“It takes me three hours to get ready to do a performance,” Miller told Guitar Player. “I do 30 minutes of vocalese while on a treadmill, walking four miles an hour at four degrees. It’s vocalese for Broadway performers, designed for people who are dancing and singing together. Then I take these little weights and get good and loose. Then I sit and play my guitar for 45 minutes to make all the fingers work — scales, songs, lead, chords, country licks … all of it.

“Then the band comes in and we do 30 minutes of group vocalese. I do all this because, when I open my mouth, I want any song to sound as good as you’ve ever heard it. I want it to be great — and it is. I love it. I’m so happy to be doing what I’m doing. I love playing and I love the challenge of keeping it very good.”

In 2023, Miller celebrated the 50th anniversary of “The Joker” with “J50: The Evolution of the Joker,” a double-album package that includes commentary from the star, previously unreleased demos, live performances, studio outtakes and more.

This year, he released a new version of his 1976 rock anthem “Fly Like an Eagle” with help from artists from around the globe, filming a video in conjunction with the Playing for Change Foundation. The nonprofit organization aims to use “music and culture to bring communities together and help solve the world’s greatest challenges.”

Watch the Playing for Change video below.

“So much is at stake for humanity in today’s world, it is difficult to create a message that is positive and inspirational,” Miller said in a statement posted on his website. “To help unify the world through the power of music is my greatest dream. Thanks to Ivan Neville, Franklin Vanderbilt, Quiana Lynell and all these accomplished artists from five different countries who joined the entire team of Playing For Change to do just that.”

Miller isn’t above raising a ruckus to express his views. He ripped into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame during his induction in 2016, for example, grousing during his speech and telling reporters “the whole process is unpleasant” and it “needs to be changed from the top to the bottom.”

“The whole experience should be completely redesigned and become much more artist-friendly,” Miller told Rolling Stone. “Starting from who you can invite, what you can do, how long you can play, what you can say. The whole thing is sort of an amateur production and doing this is harder than doing a 20-city tour.”

Miller called for more transparency in the Rock Hall selection process and more diversity in the artists chosen for inclusion. He also blasted the recording industry as a “private boys’ club” that takes advantage of artists and manipulates them.

“I came out here for my fans,” Miller said. “I came out for the people who take it seriously.”

Miller later told Billboard that he didn’t regret his remarks about the Rock Hall, adding that he’d received plenty of support from fellow artists, friends and peers. “I spoke the truth as I experienced it, and as I have experienced it over the years,” Miller said.

Longtime fans have stuck with Miller, as well, listening to his music and attending his shows. Some even regard his Rock Hall rant as a badge of honor. He continues to perform as a headliner and tours with classic rockers such as Def Leppard and Journey.

Miller has a history of performances in Alabama, playing at venues such as Birmingham’s former City Stages festival, Oak Mountain Amphitheatre in Pelham, BayFest in Mobile and the Orion Amphitheater in Huntsville. Miller also has performed at the amphitheater in Tuscaloosa, on a 2015 bill with 38 Special.

“Miller’s voice sounded as crisp, clean and laid back as ever, with his guitar-playing just as on point,” AL.com’s Ben Flanagan said in his review.

READ: Steve Miller Band, 38 Special cap off busy week at Tuscaloosa Amphitheater