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General => General Music Discussion => Topic started by: KevShmev on October 10, 2011, 11:48:15 PM
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Who's a fan?
I remember my cousin getting me into the Aja record about 19 years ago; that was one helluva summer. I can still listen to that record from start to finish. They have bunches of other great songs as well, but Aja will always be the topper for me as far as Steely Dan is concerned.
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Whenever I listen to Steely Dan, I feel like I should be in a high class apartment sipping on quality scotch.
I love them. Own every album. Sometimes I'll just sing Pretzel Logic in the car for the hell of it. Off the top of my head, my current faves by them are Charlie Freak and King Of The World.
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The only song I know is "Do it again", because it was in one of the Guitar Hero-games.
Great song though!
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Dude, you should get Can't Buy A Thrill.
It's the album that has Do It Again on it, and mark my words; the whole thing is awesome, in the rich, sexy sort of way.
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I kind of like them but their music doesn't evoke any emotional reaction out of me at all. And I like Donald Fagen's solo record 'The Nightfly'. It's all harmonically intricate music played by VERY professional musicians. It's sterile to me, but likeable.
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I've heard some compilation album by them, and I dig a few songs. Dirty Work, Do It Again, Reelin' In The Years, Bodhisattva, Rikki Don't Lose That Number, Black Friday, Bad Sneakers, and a few others are some really cool tunes.
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I know a few of their hits and dig them. I saw them over the summer and because of a combination of shitty venue with shitty security, a shitty crowd, and a somewhat boring Steely Dan, the show was not the greatest.
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Every year I find myself getting into a different band that, I guess, qualifies as classic rock or whatnot. This year it was Steely Dan. Love the hell out of Can't Buy A Thrill and Aja, really, really great band. Fantastic lyrics in their songs, and I like how all their songs just fit together like precision engineering. Wonderful band.
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I'm a fan, but got into them way too late. I did get to see them about four years ago in Tampa, and it was a very good performance.
Also, lols at how they got their name.
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Excellent band. One of many bands I was introduced to through my parents at an early age. :tup
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Home At Last is one of my favorite songs ever.
Aja is kinda like SDOIT for me, half of the material is perfect and half is just good.
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Aja was one of my first albums, and I played the hell out of it. Side One more than Side Two probably, but Side Two is also great. Eventually I collected their entire catalogue. Everything is awesome. Walter Becker is a highly underrated guitarist. He has a great feel for "tasty licks" and even when he's shredding, he's not really shredding. You can hear the melody and musicality in what he's playing; he's just playing really, really fast.
I stepped onto the platform
The man gave me the news
He said "You must be joking, son.
Where did you get those shoes?"
I don't know why, but I've always loved that lyric. Cracked me up the first time I heard it on the radio. Most of their lyrics are very, very clever. Some are cruel and sarcastic, nearly all are observational, stuff you can relate to even if you have no direct experience.
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Yeah, great lyricists. Few people write with such wonderful wit. Always loved Kid Charlemagne. Great song. Tells a good story. Teaches a valuable lesson. Would have loved to have hung out with Bear Owsley.
Always enjoyed their music, but rarely listen to just one album. Normally I'll go through a phase where I'll listen to the entire catalog over a day or two (excellent road trip music). Therefore I really can't tell you one album from another (save for Aja). There are some songs that I don't like (Bodhisattva) and some that I think are patently exceptional (Don't Take Me Alive), and to the best of my knowledge, they're all evenly distributed.
Also really dig their approach to making music. Can't think of any other bands that made such liberal use of session musicians. Have ten guys play a solo and use the take you like best. Neat guys.
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Yeah, in a certain sense that weren't even really a band, just Becker and Fagen and a bunch of session guys filling things out. The cool thing is that, while their music is pretty much Rock, the session guys were usually Jazz players, which gave their albums that awesome laid-back feel.
I'm kinda the same way with their older stuff. I know what's on Aja, and then there's "everything else". But it's all good.
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(excellent road trip music).
Completely agree with this point (and most of your others, but this one in particular). There is such a "cool" aura that radiates from this band and the music they have produced. And they are a fantastic live act as well. They are simply amazing.
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My 7 month old daughter dances when I play Aja. :lol We thought she was just unstable standing the first time (she started pulling herself up recently), but then she started doing it again when I put the album on last night. Whenever we hit pause on Black Cow she just stopped and looked at us. :lol
Good daughter! I've got to keep her out of the c-pop my wife listens to.
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Black Cow has a strong backbeat and that funky Clav, definitely one of Steely Dan's more danceable tunes. I love it when kids first become "aware" of music and start moving to it. It's awesome!
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I bought Aja three months ago. Still haven't listened to it.
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My 7 month old daughter dances when I play Aja. :lol We thought she was just unstable standing the first time (she started pulling herself up recently), but then she started doing it again when I put the album on last night. Whenever we hit pause on Black Cow she just stopped and looked at us. :lol
Good daughter! I've got to keep her out of the c-pop my wife listens to.
That's awesome and too cute! :D
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I bought Aja three months ago. Still haven't listened to it.
Are you going through some kind of religious journey of self-denial? Aja is regarded as one of The Dan's best albums, and is the fave of many. You're missing out, and you don't even need to.
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That Steve Gadd drum break in the title song is worth the whole price of that album. It's that good.
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I bought Aja three months ago. Still haven't listened to it.
What are you waiting for, an engraved invitation? :P Aja's a bonafide classic!
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That Steve Gadd drum break in the title song is worth the whole price of that album. It's that good.
I had no idea who the drummer was, but I know exactly what part you are talking about. That is definitely most awesome.
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That Steve Gadd drum break in the title song is worth the whole price of that album. It's that good.
I had no idea who the drummer was, but I know exactly what part you are talking about. That is definitely most awesome.
I actually saw some drum video he made going over what he does as well as the making of Aja. Great stuff if you've never seen it.
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I had to learn "Gaslighting Abbie" for my uni course ( on guitar ).
It's quite a fun song with some bloody strange chords and that unison line is a bitch !
Also I had to make up a solo for the sax part. That took some doing as well !!
Not a bad song though.
Subject matter is a little odd though !
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Are you going through some kind of religious journey of self-denial? Aja is regarded as one of The Dan's best albums, and is the fave of many. You're missing out, and you don't even need to.
What are you waiting for, an engraved invitation? :P Aja's a bonafide classic!
:lol When I get albums, they go on a list (a queue, if you like). I only like to have about three to six new albums in rotation at any given time. It gives each a bit of time (say, a month) being the new albums in my collection so I can familiarise myself with them before I go on and listen to new fresh ones.
At the moment, Aja is in a company of around 40-50 albums. It has some tough competition to be the next I spin, but maybe I'll give it a mercy shunt based on this thread. :biggrin:
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Definitely in my top 3 bands/artists of all time and an enormous influence on my band No Island.
Saw them on the first show of this past summer tour, absolutely the most perfect, tightest show I've ever seen.
LOVE Steely Dan.
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I watched the VH1 Classic Albums "Aja" episode (on DVD) last night. Highly recommended. Rather than go through the album song by song and dissect each one, they spend most of the time just talking in general about how the album came about, how Steely Dan worked as a band and as a concept, including a lot of history. They do talk about specific things in specific songs, but overall the "Aja" album is almost just an excuse to talk to Becker and Fagen about stuff. That's not to say that you don't get a lot of info about the album; you do. But it's more than that. Usually they only do one Classic Album per band, so this was their chance to talk to Steely Dan about whatever, and they do.
By the way, it should go without saying that you should always watch Classic Albums on DVD, not recorded off of TV or whatever. The episodes themselves are an hour long. When they show them on TV, a good 1/3 of that is cut out to make room for commercials.
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I love how the bass player talked about turning his back in the guys so they couldn't see him slap and pop in the bass. The boys didn't like that. :lol
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Yeah, that was a riot. They knew what they wanted, he knew what would actually sound good, and he actually pulled one over on them. I'm guessing that that doesn't happen much to Becker and Fagen.
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Although Aja's the cat's meow, I've heard it so many times, I find myself listening to mostly the post-Aja albums these days.
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One thing I learned off all of those Steely Dan albums as a guitarist: phrasing. Before listening to this band, I didn't give a shit about making my solos "take a breath" so to speak. I was more into just coming up with long passages that go note after note. A song like Peg taught me that it's OK to break those lines up a bit and make them more appealing to the listener.
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Yeah, one thing the jazz guys are very good at is listening to each other, which means not playing all the time, which means thinking more about how to play something that fits the music better and not just amaze everyone with your blazing chops. There's a time to wail, sure, but I think most rock guys could benefit from taking a step back once in a while.
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One thing I learned off all of those Steely Dan albums as a guitarist: phrasing. Before listening to this band, I didn't give a shit about making my solos "take a breath" so to speak. I was more into just coming up with long passages that go note after note. A song like Peg taught me that it's OK to break those lines up a bit and make them more appealing to the listener.
This is such a lost art in most music nowadays.
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Really cool band that I've always enjoyed. Aja, Katy lied, Pretzel Logic and Can't Buy a Thrill are all excellent albums. Anyone here ever read the book they took their name from -William Burroughs' The Naked Lunch?
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So I've played Aja two or three times.
That shit is sleek. Kind of poppier than I was expecting, but that's not a bad thing.
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One thing I learned off all of those Steely Dan albums as a guitarist: phrasing. Before listening to this band, I didn't give a shit about making my solos "take a breath" so to speak. I was more into just coming up with long passages that go note after note. A song like Peg taught me that it's OK to break those lines up a bit and make them more appealing to the listener.
This is such a lost art in most music nowadays.
Definitely true. A melodic line needs to breathe, it should even be "singable". Solos should be what you hear inside your head coming out through your instrument - not rehearsed patterns.
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I love me some Steely Dan, although I haven't quite taken the time to get into a lot of their music.
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So I've played Aja two or three times.
That shit is sleek. Kind of poppier than I was expecting, but that's not a bad thing.
That's exactly what my daughter said!
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Fagen's Sunken Condos (2012) is excellent, not that anyone cares.
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Fagen is cool, but his solo stuff has never grabbed me. I guess he needs Becker's awesomeness to help make the songs into something.
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Could be a function of advancing time, with Fagen getting "too slick" post-Aja. That being said, I guess the ultimate test is whether you like Two Against Nature and Everything Must Go that much more than Nightfly and Kamakiriad since those are the two Dan albums that post-date the first two Fagen solo albums. I do concede Becker does add something, even if its only "10%" or so. However, Becker's solo albums are lame so don't want to exaggerate his influence too much.
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I do like Two Against Nature and Everything Must Go. To me, they sound like classic Steely Dan; the gap between them and the original run isn't obvious at all. Maybe a little, but not a lot, not like some bands which reform after 20 years or whatever.
Nope, Becker's solo albums don't thrill me, either. It takes the two of them to make it any good. Where do you get the figure "10%"? Even if Fagen does the writing and Becker mostly just shows up and plays guitar, the two of them have a chemistry together, and somehow that comes through in the final product.
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Just a made up percentage, probably unduly discounting the chemistry factor. I guess Fagen's solo albums are too loungy for some tastes; Becker perhaps reins in those impulses in Fagen for material going out under the Steely Dan name, plus he plays those cool fills. Cool that you like the latter day Dan; tired of some fans exaggerating the difference between them and the '70s' output.
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BUMP
I'm late to the party on these guys. I don't really understand how their hits came to be their hits. I fucking hate Reelin in the Years. I started changing my tune regarding them when I heard Show Biz Kids on the radio a while back, but I've really come around to them just this weekend as I spent most of it listening to them. An acquired taste for me, but well worth it.
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The first album was very different, in "attitude" more than sound I suppose, and "Reelin' in the Years" is of course from the first album. Maybe it's a product of its time, but I like it. Mostly for the lyrics, which I think are brilliant.
You've been telling me a genius since you were seventeen
In all the time I've known you, I still don't know what you mean
"Show Biz Kids" is awesome. First time I ever heard "don't give a fuck" on the radio. I don't think the censors even realized it was there.
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I don't like this band, but I like Reelin' in the Years. Man, my opinions are terrible.
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I don't like this band, but I like Reelin' in the Years. Man, my opinions are terrible.
Haha, that's why they're called opinions. I guess what we can take away from this is Reelin' in the Years is not a good way to judge whether or not you'll like Steely Dan :tup
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Reelin' in the Years doesn't really show what Steely Dan is IMO, but it's a great song to listen to.
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Yeah, those first couple of albums were all over the place, and in general kinda different from what Steely Dan would become later.
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Yeah, those first couple of albums were all over the place, and in general kinda different from what Steely Dan would become later.
I need to check all of it out, but I'm loving what I've heard from Countdown to Ecstasy, and My Old School is probably my favorite of theirs that gets regular rotation on classic rock stations.
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I love all of it. If you want to get into Steely Dan, I suggest starting from the beginning (Can't Buy a Thrill) because of the evolution of their sound. They did stabilize more or less by the third album.
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I'd like to dig out this topic, because I am a huge Steely Dan / Fagen fan.
What do you guys think about Fagens four solo albums?
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I love Fagen's voice. Besides all of Steely Dan, I used to have a copy of The Nightfly, but I have no idea where it is. It was awesome. I've heard some of Kamakiriad and liked that a lot, too. A friend from work had it I think.
I've never heard any from the later two. I'm not sure why.
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I saw them perform Aja in its entirety a couple of years ago. Phenomenal.
Also, for those who may not know Mayer Hawthorne, his track "Reach out Richard" is almost a Steely Dan tribute (very Peg-like)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ya19JQPN8ow
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Very cool tune, although it's almost a Peg ripoff ;) In fact I have NEVER found anything that sounds like Dan/Fagen and is not a ripoff of them. In my opinion, The Nightfly is a masterpiece, SO IS Morph The Cat! Those arrangements are just incredible. Kamakiriad ist a great album too, and I still have to get into Sunken Condos. Fagens music always takes a while for me.
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I love Fagen's voice. Besides all of Steely Dan, I used to have a copy of The Nightfly, but I have no idea where it is. It was awesome. I've heard some of Kamakiriad and liked that a lot, too. A friend from work had it I think.
I've never heard any from the later two. I'm not sure why.
Weird how memory works. I was re-reading the thread, and four years ago I said that I wasn't thrilled by Fagen's solo work. I remember it differently now. I still remember liking his voice, which was always the attraction for me, but since I haven't heard it in a while, I guess I recall it more favorably now than I did then, which is weird.
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How have I not posted in this thread :lol
Their sound is so tight knit. I love it. That late 70s light jazz-rock sound. So good. It was utilized by other artists but never to the success or tightness as Steely Dan.
Not familiar with Fagen's solo stuff so must check it out
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How have I not posted in this thread :lol
Their sound is so tight knit. I love it. That late 70s light jazz-rock sound. So good. It was utilized by other artists but never to the success or tightness as Steely Dan.
Not familiar with Fagen's solo stuff so must check it out
If you love the Dan, you should ;) The Nightfly starts where Gaucho left off. If I may say so, I find his solo stuff even a little more brilliant. It's also cool to really check out the lyrics of that album. They reflect the memories of Fagen himself in the late 50s.
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After finally listening to Aja some years ago and instantly liking it, I'm slowly (very slowly) going through their discography. So far I have (and know) Aja, Katy Lied and Pretzel Logic. I like all of them but I think Aja's my favorite. Definitely a great band. So cool and so laid back and yet still rocking somehow.
I also have The Nightfly by Fagen and really like that too.
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I was late coming around on Steely Dan. But they are exceptional.
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Giving this thread a bump... One album that I listen to quite a bit and haven't seen mentioned here is "The Royal Scam". I probably could put on any of their albums and enjoy them to great extent but given it's not been discussed much here (although this thread should be a bit longer I think given the quality of the band) I figure I'd bring up how much I enjoy it! :tup
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I had to learn Gaslighting Abbie on my degree. Interesting song with bizarre chord changes.
Apparently they were studio boffins though and hired several session musos to play on the songs and chopped up all their performances and picked the best bits from all the guys.
Like a hi hat from one guy - a snare from another guy etc... Nuts.
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Yes those guys are indeed nuts, but I think I have never heard anything so perfect! Although they found back their "band sound" on Everything Must Go, which is a very underrated album in my opinion.
Donald Fagen is one of the few musicians who became better and better for me from album to album. Aja and Gaucho topped every other album that came out before. The Nightfly is a masterpiece, so is Kamakiriad, but my favorite album by Donald AND Steely Dan would be Morph The Cat.
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Rikki Don't Lose That Number is one of the greatest songs ever recorded by any band ever.
In my opinion. :)
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Rikki Don't Lose That Number is one of the greatest songs ever recorded by any band ever.
In my opinion. :)
Seconded.
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I used to really dislike that song because I found it boring, and whenever it came on the local classic rock station, I would immediately change channels.
As I have gotten older and started performing music myself, I got into Steely Dan more, and now I see that song as being pretty cool.
Funny how perspectives change.
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I really like Steely Dan. However, I saw them last April in CT and was bored to death.
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I really like Steely Dan. However, I saw them last April in CT and was bored to death.
Damn I want to see them so badly but that's impossible for a German guy with.. you, stuff to do and not a lot money on my account.
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I can't imagine it would be very exciting going to see a band and they're all session guys who just stand there playing the music *exactly as it is on the CD".
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I can. Because I have tried that in the last 4 years of my studies and failed basically every time.
Besides - you say that in a DREAM THEATER forum? :D
Although you can't tell me that this live performance isn't simply mind blowing:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KlM92erAor4
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I can't imagine it would be very exciting going to see a band and they're all session guys who just stand there playing the music *exactly as it is on the CD".
Well, when I saw them, I was on a blanket on the lawn at an amphitheater, warm summer night, cold beer, a girl I met about an hour before sitting in my lap, letting Steely Dan wash over me... yeah, I made it work.
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I can't imagine it would be very exciting going to see a band and they're all session guys who just stand there playing the music *exactly as it is on the CD".
Well, when I saw them, I was on a blanket on the lawn at an amphitheater, warm summer night, cold beer, a girl I met about an hour before sitting in my lap, letting Steely Dan wash over me... yeah, I made it work.
Damn.
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Here's some very, VERY bad news. I am deeply saddened:
https://www.rollingstone.com/music/news/walter-becker-steely-dan-co-founder-dead-at-67-w500956
I can't believe this is true.
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saw him with the Dan a few years back perform the complete Aja. Great show.
rest in peace Walter Becker.
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Sad news indeed. Rest In Peace.
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Yeah, this bums me out big time too. Really underrated musical talent. He didn't have the "voice", but he brought a lot to the Dan party.
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I am currently going through the lyrics of and attempts to interpret Donald's Kamakiriad to write a review of the album (sadly, in German). I think its lyrics and themes are highly interesting and masterfully written, yet very hard to understand completely. Then again, Donald has said in interviews that he "trusts" listeners and fans to fill in details in the storyline so that everyone can interpret the story on their own.
Can the Dan-fans here please share their thoughts on Kamakiriad's themes with me? The more input, the more I can picture the whole story happen :)
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bump.
Steely Dan were on the Eagles tour, but have left due to Donald Fagen being hospitalized.
https://www.brooklynvegan.com/steely-dan-drop-off-eagles-tour-dates-due-to-illness-donald-fagen-reportedly-hospitalized/
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Bummer. Part of me wants to take issue with calling them Steely Dan when it's really just Donald Fagen and whoever, but obviously he's the voice and most people don't care. I care, because to me Walter Becker's guitar is also a big part of their sound, and Steely Dan was really just the two of them anyway. But whatever; calling it Steely Dan puts more butts in seats.
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I get it. I saw them during that residency tour thing where they played 5 nights in a city. Guess it was '09. I went to the Aja night and was blown away. Was something like 5th row with Donald right above me as his keyboards were right at the front of the stage. Still one of the best shows I have ever been to. For me, I want to see Walter and Donald on stage if I am seeing the Dan. It just feels off to me calling it Steely Dan.
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i hope donald is ok :(