"Sue me if I play too long..."
Steely Dan is an American pop band who developed refined and highly-original compositions blending elements of rock, funk, blues, jazz, and R-n-B, among other influences. Executed to perfection by founders Donald Fagen and Walter Becker -along with the finest studio musicians on the planet- there simply never was a band like Steely Dan before, and it's unlikely there ever will be, not like this...
The music that they brought was complex and well orchestrated, with most songs displaying a significant jazz influence. Fagan's unique voice backed by sweet harmonies and irresistible musical hooks made the sound beautiful and timeless, and the cerebral and ironic lyrics were hip, sarcastic, and witty- touching on topics such as international crime, affairs, personal demons, regrets, society, and lost love.
Initially -pre Steely Dan- the two played in a handful of bands together, including Bad Rock Group, featuring comedic actor Chevy Chase on drums (!). They also performed under pseudonyms in Jay and the Americans' backing band, but a real break came when Babara Streisand chose to record the Fagan/Becker-penned "I Mean to Shine" in 1971.
Interestingly, Donald Fagan initially lacked confidence in his voice and suffered from substantial stage-fright... it took some effort to convince him that he could -and should- sing lead later in the newly-formed Steely Dan.
In contrast to hippy icon Janis Joplin falling-down drunk at Woodstock, Fagan and Becker are known for near-obsessive perfectionism in the recording studio, very difficult to work with... they really took their business and art seriously.
The Dan toured for a couple years in the early 1970s, but by 1975 had gone studio-only. After seven albums the pair disbanded in 1981, leaving the music world for a decade. But in the early 90s, the group (surprisingly) resumed playing live concerts: since, they've released two albums of new material, the first of which earned a Grammy Award for Album of the Year. As it stands, Steely Dan has now sold more than 30 million albums worldwide.
And in my humble opinion, the songs below are nothing short of musical masterpieces- but not unusual for Steely Dan, pretty much the only kind of stuff they ever did, including Fagan's solo album The Nightfly.
Yeah, in case you can't tell: I absolutely adore this band, always have: can't imagine ever getting sick of listening to such greatness... what a class act.
14 comments:
Reeling in the years...These guys had some great music RR!
THE BEST, my friend- the list goes on and on
I grew up in the 70s and 80s, and Steely Dan is STILL very good, especially compared to more current stuff with screaming and/or AutoTune replacing actual ability.
It's odd, there's got to be real talent like this out there somewhere, but somehow the record industry isn't interested in those it can't control or plug into a lame formula
Great write-up on Steely Dan. Steely Dan is utterly unlike anything else in the music world.
At one time, in high school, I was a fry cook at a chicken restaurant in a small East Texas town. I remember one evening, the manager gave me some money and had me drive the 70-mile round trip to a Best store in Humble, TX to pick up some Steely Dan albums for him--on the clock. :)
Yep, Joe... they're THAT good lol
Good one RR. They were that good.
Sweet pick, RR! SD have such a cool and unique sound.
They are very relaxing, and also know how to rock out.
Well put, m'dear- COOL, that's them
And they're still touring, Matt... PA this summer, actually! I'm not usually much on way past their prime shows, but these guys seemed to have it 8 yrs ago in these clips posted above
One of my all time favorite bands. Great pick James. Man. Now I've got to go buy an album or two...
"The girls don't seem to care what's on as long as they play til dawn...Nothing but blues and Elvis and somebody else's favorite song..." ;-)
You got it, girl~ to me, the poetry is mindblowing
RR: I just figured it out, too....SD may well have been predicting--perhaps---our current economic mess, all those years ago..."One more expensive kiss-off / Who do you think I am?" Good work, friend.
Thx Anon
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