A generally under-appreciated album in the Steely Dan oeuvre (except by myself and Joe S. Harrington?). By this time, Steely Dan was Walker Becker, Donald Fagen, and whatever session musicians they wanted. At that time, those musicians were (among others) Michael Omartian, Michael McDonald, Larry Carlton, and members of what would become Toto: David Paich and 21-year-old drummer, Jeff Pocaro. Going to session musicians was a stroke of genius (don't like this guy's guitar solo? hire someone else for this one) and allowed them the flexibility to produce this collection of perfectionist jazzy pop songs. It was a formula they would later perfect on 1977's Aja. The playing is impeccable and the melodies and hooks are strong. I can't understand the lyrics, but I doubt the band can, either. To add to the confusion, Fagen & Becker added equally cryptic liner notes to this 1999 remastered version. All that was missing from this album was a big hit song - Black Friday peaked at #37; that's as close to a hit as this album had.
Press of the time:
- Billboard: "an album here that will not disappoint any of their fans"
- CashBox: "Wow! Steely Dan is back with more of that down-home rock sound that really explodes"
- High Fidelity: "as good as pop playing can get"
- Rolling Stone: "exemplarily well-crafted and uncommonly intelligent schlock"
- Stereo Review: "I am disappointed in this album"
- Robert Christgau: A-
Peak on the US Billboard Top 200 chart: #13
Peak on CashBox album chart: #15
Tracks: 3 of the 10 tracks here are included in A Decade of Steely Dan. Of the tracks not included in that compilation, I like Rose Darling, Doctor Wu, Everyone's Gone To The Movies, Your Gold Teeth II, and Any World (That I'm Welcome To) which makes an appearance in episode 8 of the web series, Yacht Rock.
Personal Memory Associated with this CD: Terribly frustrated after a bad day of being micromanaged at work, I sought solace in a local entertainment store, where I went crazy buying CDs from the "$4.99 and under" bin. I probably bought 8-10 discs that day; this was one of them. The music definitely made me feel better. Preach it, Brother Schroeder:
Previously revisited for the blog:
Everything Must Go (2003)
Two Against Nature (2000)
Alive In America (1995)
A Decade of Steely Dan (1985)
Aja (1977)
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