Miller was born to Dr. George "Sonny" Miller, a pathologist, jazz enthusiast, hat salesman and amateur recording engineer, and Bertha, a jazz-influenced singer. While in Milwaukee, his first guitar chords were taught to him when he was five years old by his godfather Les Paul, pioneer of the electric guitar and multitrack recording. Les Paul and his wife Mary Ford were regular visitors at the Miller house and Dr. Miller was best man at their wedding. Les Paul encouraged young Miller to use his prodigious talents, and much of Miller's success has been attributed to Paul's tutelage. Miller still uses some of the techniques taught to him at that time.

"Abracadabra" is a well-recognized song recorded by the Steve Miller Band.
Released as the main single from Abracadabra in June 1982, it became a number-one hit on the United States Billboard Hot 100 chart, and also hit number two on the UK charts. It followed Survivor's "Eye of the Tiger" (from Rocky III) on the Hot 100, and preceded Chicago's "Hard to Say I'm Sorry". After Chicago's ballad ended its two-week stay at number one, "Abracadabra" re-assumed the top spot on the U.S. charts for an additional week on September 25. John Cougar's "Jack and Diane" dislodged the Steve Miller Band's final number-one hit from the top on October 2.
This song holds the record for the biggest drop out of the Top 10/Top 40 on the Hot 100. In the fall of 1982, as the song was moving down the chart, "Abracadabra" fell 38 spots from #10 to #48 in one week.