MICHELE NORRIS, host:
It's a saxophone solo you'd recognize anywhere.
(Soundbite of song, "Baker Street")
NORRIS: But you might not remember the name of the man who sang that familiar '70s ballad.
MELISSA BLOCK, host:
Scottish musician Gerry Rafferty died today at the age of 63. "Baker Street" was one of Rafferty's greatest hits.
NORRIS: It was released in 1978 on his solo album "City to City" and reached number two on the U.S. charts.
(Soundbite of song, "Baker Street")
Mr. GERRY RAFFERTY (Musician): (Singing) Well, another crazy day. You'll drink the night away and forget about everything.
BLOCK: Rafferty's lyrics were often painfully honest. In its obituary today, the Guardian wrote that Rafferty's mother dragged young Gerry round the streets on Saturday nights so that they would not be at home when his father came back drunk. And Rafferty had his own struggles with alcohol.
NORRIS: But just as honestly as Rafferty wrote about hard living, he sang about hard loving, as in this song, "Right Down the Line."
(Soundbite of song, "Right Down the Line")
Mr. RAFFERTY: (Singing) You know I need your love. You got that hold over me. As long as I got your love, you know that I'll never leave. When I wanted you to share my life, I had no doubt in my mind. And it's been you, woman, right down the line.
BLOCK: And if those two songs don't stir up old memories for you, this one just might do it.
(Soundbite of song, "Stuck in the Middle With You")
Mr. RAFFERTY: (Singing) Well, I don't know why I came here tonight. I got a feeling that something ain't right.
BLOCK: That's Rafferty's 1972 hit with his band Stealers Wheel, "Stuck in the Middle With You." Twenty years later, Quentin Tarantino used the track in his film "Reservoir Dogs."
(Soundbite of song, "Stuck in the Middle With You")
Mr. RAFFERTY: (Singing) Clowns to the left of me, jokers to the right, here I am stuck in the middle with you. Yes, I'm stuck in the middle with you.
NORRIS: Singer-songwriter Gerry Rafferty. He died today. He was 63 years old.
(Soundbite of song, "Stuck in the Middle With You")
Mr. RAFFERTY: (Singing) It's so hard to keep this smile from my face. Losing control, yeah, I'm all over the place. Clowns to the left of me, jokers to the right, here I am, stuck in the middle with you.