Steely Dan: "Steely Dan's name has been popping up as a hip musical crush. Remember, this glossy bop-pop was the indifferent aristocracy to punk rock's stone-throwing in the late 70's. People fought

my Spanish Harlem Mona Lisa

Just tried on The Royal Scam: most of it doesn't grab me right away like most of Katy Lied, but the title track does; ditto "Kid Charlemagne," "The Fez," "Green Earrings"--especially that last, with its jumping rhythm and the stir of sounds, even that flying insect synth from "East St. Louis Toodle-oo" comes in on the fade--but some other tracks start great, then get too settled-in, about half-way through: something about the tempo. Also the music winks at us sometimes, "don't take the narrator too seriously." Which works on the traffic islands of "Haitian Divorce," but I prefer total loon commitment of "Green Earrings" etc., not that the music ever gets as out there as the guys in the lyrics are (doing their damndest to get, in some cases: hey they gotta be them).

smooth jazz is alive and well on the pop charts

or seventh chords are at least. close enough.

George Benson was one of the most blatant touchstones of the Daft Punk disc, so ...

(GB being a great example of a dude with chops so sick he basically burned through trad jazz, fusion and all sorts of stuff as a relative kid and probably had nowhere else to go but smooth.)

the last thing I want to hear between floors is death metal

you lost me here man

Don't want to hear death metal while I'm in an elevator, just something nice and vague and reassuring. Re never hearing any kind of music in elevators any more, of course the term, like the Steely Dan music I'm complaining about, is from the 70s/early 80s, or that's its "prime." Anyway, glad this thread got me to check out Katy Lied and The Royal Scam/

Royal Scam = best Dan.

Only one I don't love is Pretzel Logic, because after the 'hits,' it contains the most filler of any SD album imo

^ otm re: pretzel logic

it's funny though, as with every 70s SD album except for Can't Buy A Thrill, there's people who'll say "that's the best one." For me the songwriting on Pretzel Logic isn't at the same level as Katy Lied or most of Royal Scam but the groove gets pretty great, it's easy to underrate Rikki but it's an amazing tune

There's not a single duffer in any of their 70s albums, imho.

I'm just now getting into Everything Must Go. And that's all she wrote. Where do you go after absorbing their entire catalogue? The solo albums? Weather Report? BS&T? Chicago?

Fagen's "Nightfly."

Latest Fagen is great too

Cant buy a thrill is the best one fyi. Its the one i listen to the most anyway.

Cant buy a thrill is the best one fyi. Its the one i listen to the most anyway.

Most people here prefer the last 3 records to the 1st 4 records, right? I think I slightly prefer the 1st four--CBAT just kills...

yeah i prefer the 1st four records too

I've been finding putting Citizen Dan on shuffle (Spotify) has been getting me interested in songs that previously didn't really do it for me.

The Nightfly is essential if you dig the 7 Dan albums form the classic era. ESSENTIAL!!

Yes, Nightfly should be looped into the Magnificent Seven. Kamakiriad is always a disappointment to me.

except "On the Dunes"

both of becker's solo albums are great but they kinda diverge from the dan sound

how's his voice, ok?

okay! better on the second than the first

i'll stan for katy lied... i don't know if it's there "best," but it seems the most lyrical (and catchy) to me, so it's my favorite.

dr. wu is probably my favorite steely dan tune

"everyone's gone to the movies" is the darkest track by a LONGSHOT, too

*their

can't buy a thrill and pretzel logic are both so obviously littered with filler to me. it's not the dan i love.

like i do not need to hear "barrytown" ever again or "change of the guard" or the pointless "e st louis uptown toodloo" cover

you don't need to hear "barrytown" again?

"barrytown" is awesome

yeah the "Barrytown" bridge is a top 10 Dan moment for me, good grief

The filler tracks on Pretzel Logic for me are East St Louis, With a Gun and Monkey in Your Soul but none of them are terrible or anything. The first four tracks are so classic though.

When it comes to that initial run of albums I can't pick between eras, my top 3 would be Countdown>Aja>Gaucho and then the other four are more or less equal, I love the whole lot.

gaucho is suuuuch a good album to get a venereal disease to

i'd imagine)

i wish they'd done more songs like "pearl of the quarter." that one's so pretty.

^^^
this is secretly the best steely dan song

let's all speculate about how the dan might have fared had they decided to keep the band together past "countdown"

Favourite is a toss-up btw Pretzel and Gaucho (even though the latter is probably their best) - Scam is the only one I could do without.

let's all speculate about how the dan might have fared had they decided to keep the band together past "countdown"

― sheesh, Monday, February 23, 2015 2:53 PM (2 days ago) Bookmark Flag Post Permalink

I never stop repping for this amazing show, this band was sick (love Michael McDonald taking the verses on Show Biz Kids, especially and "This All Too Mobile Home" at the end)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2iX46wmKMJk

I've got to be in a particular mood for the last 3 - the first 4 I can kind of put on any time and enjoy. they're all awesome obviously, with The Royal Scam being the weakest imo

multiple xps: I don't care what anyone says, "pearl of the quarter" is NOT secretly the best SD

& I say that as a "pearl" apologist

that's cuz "Glamour Profession" is the secret best SD song.

otm

I've got to be in a particular mood for the last 3 - the first 4 I can kind of put on any time and enjoy.

Literally the exact opposite of how I feel. Gaucho all day long.

^^^ truth.

That's the time it seems to take to get through it, you got that right.

For more than 25 years Gaucho was treated like a leper, so I ignored it and concentrated on every album through Aja. Listening to it was a revelation; for a while in the early 2000s I felt like I was keeping this secret from the rest of the world -- a cult album by a multiplatinum band. Beacuse it and TRS still get played the least on rock radio, Gaucho sounds fresh.

Yeah I never thought of 'Glamour Profession' as a favourite until recently but it'd be in my SD top 5 now, no problem. Their best set of lyrics. (xposts)

Yeah I never thought of 'Glamour Profession' as a favourite until recently but it'd be in my SD top 5 now, no problem. Their best set of lyrics. (xposts)

― Gavin, Leeds, Wednesday, February 25, 2015 1:23 PM (36 minutes ago) Bookmark Flag Post Permalink

OTM, glamour profession is their best song