Steely Dan's Countdown to Ecstasy poll

pearl of the quarter = caledonia mission by the band

otm.

I really don't get the complaints about the phrase "lost wages" being repetitive, in the absence of complaints about "voulez voulez voulez vous," which is the single most annoying thing in the entire SD repertoire.

That phrase is just repeated at the end of a verse, that is afterwards going straight into a contrasting chorus. "Show Biz Kids" has no chorus at all, no development, no climax. It is actually an example of what has been wrong with a lot of R&B, funk and hip-hop (and contemporary "classical" music for that matter) in that it has no development and is way too repetitive, cyclic and monotone.

Dude no-one cares about yr stupid opinions! It'd be kinda ok if you were 15 or less, but I don't think you are. SHUT UP.

Those who are 15 or less (or sadly 25 or less) are the ones who like that kind of cyclic shit. Well, not that Steely Dan track (they've never heard of it), but a lot of other cyclic crap.

I saw Steely Dan on Saturday at the Beacon Theatre - they did a somewhat reconfigured "Show Biz Kids" - the rhythm was subtly different anyway - that was great. Sadly, they didn't play anything else from Countdown - they stuck mostly to stuff from Royal Scam on.

Some of the gr8est guitar playing in the whole Steely Dan catalogue is on this LP. But I guess you can say that about every one of their records. "My Old School" for me.

Duh... "My Old School." It's only one of THE greatest songs of all time.

Everything. Unless you like a repetitive song with "Las Vegas" being repeated all over again all the time. Probably the worst Steely Dan song ever.

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You know they don't give a fuck about anybody else.

Automatic thread bump. This poll's results are now in.

Surprised at the love for "King of the World".

it's a shame singles always trump almost everything else in the SD polls, great singles band but the results end up kinda boring as a result.

That might change with the Gaucho poll.

POLL EXCITEMENT!!!!!

which were the singles on Gaucho?

"Time Out of Mind" and "Hey Nineteen." I mean, I expect the latter to get love, but a couple of others might nip at its heels.

Yeah I guess "Babylon Sisters" will win that one

all the talk about razor boy here and only 4 votes?!

"Hey Nineteen" is one of the only four SD songs that I ever actually heard as singles per se, as in AM radio; and appropriately enough, those four represent their highest-charting hits. So deliberately voting for "the single" is kinda academic.

there were still rock songs on AM radio in 1980?

I used to listen to Top 40 on AM radio even up to '85 or so.

I think "Razor Boy" deserved to place much much higher

what did alex in nyc vote for?

Killing Joke's cover of "Razor Boy" didn't make the cut.

Let's hear it for Show Biz Kids! Whoo-hoo! [Dodging rotten tomatoes]

there were still rock songs on AM radio in 1980?

-- Alfred, Lord Sotosyn

In Northern Ontario there were! But "Hey Nineteen" barely qualifies as rock, to my ears.

Just sayin'

california tumbles into the sea

But "Hey Nineteen" barely qualifies as rock, to my ears

soft-rock disco

awwww i suppose the voulez voulez bits of Pearl of the Quarter are annoying...

Maybe super furry animals can do a song using the "and if you hear from my Louise.." bit coz it rules.

my baby's a peaaaaaaaaarl of the kwar-ter

Even Cathy Berberian knows
there's one
roulade
she can't
siiiinnggg

After closing time
at the Guernsey Fair
I detect the El Supremo
from the room at the top of the stairs

Lonnie swept the playroom
And he swallowed up all he found
It was forty-eight hours til
Lonnie came around

Lyrics-wise, it's gotta be Countdown to Ecstasy and Gaucho neck and neck. These songs just keep on givin'.

jesus christ, what a killer run from track 3 right through to the close.

I just had this conversation with a friend of a friend in a pub:

Him - "Do you like Steely Dan?"

Me - "Er, I guess. I don't really think about them very often"

Him - "Oh my god. I think about them all the time"

this record has the power to carry me willingly or unwillingly to a small room where I lived for three years long ago mainly listening to music on a tape deck and recording music on the same deck

tobacco they grow in Peking

in the year of the locust you'll see
a sad thing

Although perfectly good, I think this is my least favorite Dan record. None of the tracks on it would rank in my favorites.

If I stay inside
I might live 'til Saturday

Impression I got from reviews of the reissues in 98/99 was that this was THE SD album (or on par with Aja at least)

imo it is, it kinda has everything and is situated early enough in their career to still have some residual can't buy a thrill flavor

Its a great intro album to a major act...especially as all 7 original albums are of almost equal stature imo

I quite like Steely Dan but I never listen to them. I've been listening to this album recently though. "The Boston Rag" wins this hands down.

Show Biz Kids making movies of themselves

woke up this morning with "Pearl of the Quarter" stuck in my head, it deserved much more love in this poll

It really is a great track. This was the first album I bought from them that wasn't a compilation, and it was obvious right away that they weren't just a singles band. A great album top to bottom.

Surprised at the love for "King of the World".

― o. nate, Tuesday, June 24, 2008 11:53 AM (thirteen years ago) bookmarkflaglink

I'm surprised by this post! "King of the World" is probably my favorite song of all time. I guess post-apocalyptic desert jazz-pop w/synths isn't everyone's jam, but to my ears they really pulled it off.

Also as a kid I used to think Fagen was singing "any man laughed on the Rio Grande" in the chorus. Sometimes I still choose to hear it that way lol

Yeah, that's a great track too - the best album closer they ever recorded.