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

I realized that part of what's so great about Steely Dan lyrics is that I can live a wild lifestyle vicariously through them AND feel deeply melancholy about it.

I left my copy of Gaucho at home :(

I know by Gaucho they were sick of doing their thing, but it's kind of amazing that they kept *their thing* up as long as they did - I mean I think it would be a huge energy drain to put so much musical effort into making such sophisticated cynical jokes.

hehe, I'm trying to get my non-music fan mate into this band. he generally likes slightly naff jazz-funk so i thought i'd play him some. "You thought I'd like THIS?" he asked when I played him it. By the time we'd got to Deacon Blues though I think he'd converted slightly.

Play him the title track of Aja. Steve Gadd-driven prog epic will convert anyone.

Shuffling the first seven albums now, starting with "Aja." The drumming at the end is indeed fucking mind-roasting.

that's actually the only track I can't get into on aja! 'deacon blues' is epic.

It's funny that I like Gaucho because Hiram Bullock used to be my go-to-reference for making fun of wanky, smoothed-out guitar playing.

Okay, so I've decided that The Royal Scam is the Dan's masterpiece. However, as a Portlander, I get sad whenever I heard Don mispronounce the word "Oregon" in "Don't Take Me Alive."

For the record - Oh-ree-gun... NOT Or-uh-gone

Seriously? I live on the east coast so I'm sure you know better than me, but I've always usually heard it as Or-uh-gone (sometimes with the emphasis on OR) and can't remember ever hearing it as Oh-ree-gun.

but yeah, Royal Scam is awesome.

"Don't Take Me Alive" is the one SD song I can't stands.

Can't agree there, after relistening to it on Tuesday night. It's hard to quibble with a record that's got "Kid Charlemagne," "Don't Take Me Alive," and "Haitian Divorce," but the rest either sticks to their tried-and-true or is the closest to a "jam" record they ever made. Some people like that, of course.

(xpost)

Here in New Jersey it's pronounced "Or-gen." And Royal Scam rules...the only tracks I don't like are "The Fez" and "The Caves Of Altamira."

Xpost to Alex,

Probably the number one thing that Oregonians bitch about (besides Californians moving here) is people saying GONE instead of GUN at the end of "Oregon." In fact, when doing impressions of East Coasters, we'll often empasize the GONE. There's even a popular bumper sticker round these parts that just says "ORYGUN" on it. It's weird, whenever "Oregon" is mentioned in the media, be it in movies or Steely Dan albums, it's incorrectly pronounced. Please spread the word back over there my friend! Glad you like Royal Scam.

There was some ILM thread that posited a theory about Royal Scam being popular among jam band types but I never totally understood it. Don't really know what's wrong with Steely Dan's "tried-and-true" either, I just love the title track and "Sign In Stranger" and a bunch of other songs.

(xpost, ok I understand "gun" vs. "gone," but is the middle syllable really more of a EE/Y sound that an "uh" or schwa or even soft "i" sound?)

I always thought Countown to Ecstasy was their "jam" record.

"Jam" in this context means "lots of instruments playing together on a non-existent song."

I remember reading that remark about Phish love for TRS, Alex. On the Gaucho thread?

I'm def. not a jam band type - I just really, really love the songwriting and the arrangements (esp. Haitian Divorce) on Royal Scam, not sure why. I would think that Coundown would be more popular amongst jammy people.

RE: the middle syllable of "Oregon," it's definitely not as important as getting the last one right, but I suppose it's closest to a schwa or an "uh" - I suppose I've been tricked by that bumper sticker I referred to.

Sparkle Motion OTM.

I think the only time I've ever heard east coasters consistently say Oregon with the correct "gun" pronunciation is when talking about the computer game Oregon Trail. maybe because people are affecting some vague old-timey wild west accent.

Maybe we still kinda have that old-timey accent going on out here, but I haven't really noticed. Oregon Trail ruled, especially as a kid in Oregon!

My First OTM! On this thread no less!
Though in the context outlined by Alfred, I get it--that's "The Fez" through and through.

I just dig songs about condoms, I suppose.

Although, "Fez" would seem to appeal more to disco fans than jam fans.

Dammit, I'm never going to get this straight!

Though in the context outlined by Alfred, I get it--that's "The Fez" through and through

that's the song I had in mind! "The Royal Scam," despite numerous attempts, fails to catch me at any level either.

"The Fez" rules. The first time I heard, it made me laugh.

When I was a kid, I consistently said "OR-a-GON." Now I think I usually say "OR-a-gun," although I've been known to slip. Weirdly, one of the times I revert is when I say "Oregon Trail," maybe because I pronounced it that way in elementary school.

If we stick together, we can change the world...

I'm with jaymc -- I say "Oregon Trail" with a much more pronounced "-GONE"

I'm from Ballmer, can I just pronounce it "Organ"?

I used to love Royal Scam back when I had it, but the only songs that stuck in my mind in the 10 years between selling that and buying Showbiz Kids were the ones that made it to the collection.

I'm a Katy Lied kinda fella myself. Fuck the bad production. I love all those stupid songs.

Never, ever understood the hate for RS. It's up there with all the rest of them. It is a guitar player's record, but Steely Dan is a guitar player's band.

i just love royal scam. how people rate that below katy lied boggles my mind.

ILM has inspired me to listen to a ton of Steely Dan lately. I have been a fan since I was in high school, but I've only ever owned of few of their albums and their greatest hits.

Even though "Babylon Sisters" and "Hey Nineteen" are two of my favorites, I never listened to the rest of Gaucho until this past week. Damn, I was missing out!

I've been listening to "Glamour Profession" and "Gaucho" non-stop the last few days. What great songs! "Glamour Profession" manages to be a super sleek disco tune, yet it has one of the craziest chord progressions I've heard. And "Gaucho" is just plain beautiful. This is quickly becoming my favorite of their albums.

They manage to make insanely complex music sound so laid back, almost easy. I've been working for years trying to nail the drumbeat to "Babylon Sisters". Somehow it is both very busy and very mellow and relaxed. I can play all the right beats, but being relaxed enough to make it groove is impossible!

I've decided in the last few days that I prefer their period from Royal Scam to Gaucho over their earlier albums.

I would think that Coundown would be more popular amongst jammy people.

I could see this. I was just listening to "My Old School", and I noticed they do give the guitarist lots of space for soloing and his solos sound more spontaneous, willful, and showy - kind of what I would expect from a jam band, I guess. Royal Scam seems a bit more concise and composed - with carefully-timed windows set aside here and there for tasteful and well-thought-out solos. I love them both, of course.

I've been listening to "Glamour Profession" and "Gaucho" non-stop the last few days. What great songs! "Glamour Profession" manages to be a super sleek disco tune, yet it has one of the craziest chord progressions I've heard.

Yeah, and the lyrics are hilarious too - I get that song stuck in my head all the time now.

the last half of 'aja' is a sex scene. an imagined sex scene, maybe. it gets more ridiculous and more tender as it goes on though. the drumming's like the drive home with window rolled down and cigarette in hand.

one thing i don't like about aja (the album i guess) is the sax solos. they sound so bad to these ears, and i've tried.

such a song + lyrics band i think.

I always hear the sax solos as a joke, but I think that's in my head and not in the sax

Has anyone ever used the Gadd groove from the very end of Aja as a break?

it doesnt really loop. its possible but would sound too busy or slopp n shit.

i just love royal scam. how people rate that below katy lied boggles my mind.

I'm kind of unsure of this myself, despite my stated choice. Some random impressions:

There's a certain low-down, ratty eclecticism to Katy Lied (beyond what characteristics the substandard production gives it). While the songs on Royal Scam aren't much longer, the lyrical content is more focused and some of these songs become epic, drama-packed mini-movies*. Now, on their own, following the protagonist of Kid Charlemagne, Don't Take Me Alive, or Haitian Divorce is awesome, but altogether maybe it's a little much for me.

The lyrics on Katy Lied are on the whole more disjointed and impressionist. They're character sketches. They convey a mood. Some tell stories, but about just a moment or two. They leave me asking questions as a listener, filling in the blanks. They feel more personal to me.

This is based only on my recollections of TRS; I haven't had a copy for over ten years but I know the hits. I definitely don't have any problems with the music and would love to get my hands on it again.

*"and we dolly back / and we fade to black..." - Fucking brilliant. One of my favorite Steely Dan lines : )

yeah that thing just takes off. so good with the spacey synths

xpost

I think this:

"I crawl like a viper down these suburban streets/make love to these women, languid and bittersweet"

is one of my favorite couplets in any song.