Steve Winwood - Still In The Game

Steve Winwood got his musical start at the tender age of 14 when he joined the Spencer Davis Group, though he would go on to even greater fame in Traffic and Blind Faith.  However, by the mid-1970s his career was on the wane.  In fact, when his first solo album performed poorly in 1977, he apparently considered leaving the music business altogether.

This all changed with the success of his second solo LP, 1980's Arc of a Diver.  The synthesizer-driven pop album sounded fresh and original, and would go on to become a huge hit, reaching #3 on the charts.

Winwood tried to capitalize on this success, releasing Talking Back to the Night in 1982.  This album sounded a bit like a reprise of Arc of a Diver, and did not do as well  (though "Valerie" became a top 10 hit when it was re-released in 1987).  Interestingly, Winwood may have realized that the formula wasn't working, and soon shifted into more soul-influenced pop.  The result was even greater success by the end of the 1980s.

While the LP was not a big hit, we've always been partial to "Still in the Game," a synth pop gem that picked up a bit of airplay on MTV back in the day.  The song became the highest charting single off Talking Back to the Night, but only reached #47 on the charts, while the video was only aired for a short while.

Although Winwood has slowed down in recent years, he remains active in the industry as of this writing, both as a solo artist and in occasional projects with other classic rock stars.

Cool trivia fact:  The woman in the video is Nicole Winwood, who sang backup on "Still in the Game" and was Steve Winwood's wife from 1978 - 1986.  Sadly, she passed away in 2005.