So we've done Whitney and The Eagles... Steely Dan?

[Bad azz tone]

I have names for your STEELY DAN cover/tribute band, Pretzel Logic,Deacon Blues,Kid Charlemagne,Peg,Big Black Cow,A19,Bad Sneakers,The Traveling Minstrel Show,The El Supremo,Up On The Hill,Angular Banjo. Any more? I leave the floor open!

 

[twelvetrombones]

Battle Apple?

 

[Rev J]

I love Steely Dan. I was going to post Paul Rudd and Seth Rogans discussion of Steely Dan from "Knocked Up" but I already got a warning for the "Big Lebowski" clip I posted in the Eagles thread.

C/S,
Rev J

 

[GregC]

I go through periods where I like them, but the slickness leaves me cold after a while and I have to take a long break. There's no ddenying the craftsmanship and the long list of great musicians they hired (they made good use of the deep pockets record companies had in those days). It was a lot of fun seeing Bernard Purdie run through Kid Charlemagne with Vulfpeck last year, though.

 

[Bad azz tone]

Ah,Mr.Purdie and the Purdie Shuffle. The man is one of the best pocket drummers around.As a bass player, I would love to find a drummer with his type of groove to work with. SMOOOOTH!!!!!

 

[Deleted member 165050]

I have names for your STEELY DAN cover/tribute band, Pretzel Logic,Deacon Blues,Kid Charlemagne,Peg,Big Black Cow,A19,Bad Sneakers,The Traveling Minstrel Show,The El Supremo,Up On The Hill,Angular Banjo. Any more? I leave the floor open!

I was briefly in one called Peg back in the early 80s! Isn't there quite a successful original act called Deacon Blues?

 

[Bad azz tone]

Not positive, but it seems I remember hearing that as well. You know,after posting those band names, I wondered why I never thought to look at their songs for band names when trying to come up with one. I sat there going over songs by them and found lots of great names.

 

[Pbassmanca]

One of the very few cover/tribute bands in which I would love to play.

Agreed! I would really love to play in a Steely Tribute band. The band I play in now covers "Josie", which is great but it only leaves me wanting more. A couple years ago I went through a phase where I cycled through listening to "Katy Lied", "Gaucho", "Aja", and "Royal Scam" over and over at work, ( I work solo in construction most of the time ). I just could not get enough of listening to those albums, and what an education it is and a pleasure listening to Chuck Rainey, and Anthony Jackson, (and a little Walter Becker), laying down those perfect bass lines track after track. I think I'll cue Aja up this week for a thousandth re-listen....

 

[Pbassmanca]

It was a lot of fun seeing Bernard Purdie run through Kid Charlemagne with Vulfpeck last year, though.

Yeah most definitely. Joe Dart was smiling so big through that whole tune it looked like he was going to break his face.....

 

[InZeroGravity]

Like everything until Two Against Nature. To me it sounded like a meh (carrot?) cover of Steely Dan. Haitian Divorce is one on my favs.

 

[Bad azz tone]

True that! Still their worst effort was better than some others best. Alas, I guess it just proves, anyone can cut a stinker. That said I really liked the groove in Third World Man,it's really dynamic,especially being a slower song. And the vocal harmony is spot on!

 

[JimK]

I think I'll cue Aja up this week for a thousandth re-listen....

I OD'd on The Royal Scam, Aja, & Gaucho...for decades. Seriously.
Recently, I have gone back to their earlier albums...give them another go. Nice nuggets you may have forgotten or missed out on.

 

[mrcbass]

Couldn't vote as none of the options really applied; somewhere between the most bestest and pretentious - I like the chord changes even though it can be tough to work out their songs.

I count myself as a fan even though I don't go much deeper than greatest hits. I've explored the depths a little, but nothing really hooked me. I loved their progressive approach and desire to break out of the standard pop/rock sound.
And any group that included Jeff Baxter is OK by me.

The music is meticulously crafted, but a lot of time their lyrics make no sense. In my circles, any lyrics that seem like nonsense are called "Steely Dan lyrics". Maybe it's just over my head....

 

[Nedmundo]

I appreciate Steely Dan and realize they were a fantastic band of top-flight musicians, but I can only handle them in small doses. I love them for three or four tracks, but I'm usually bored after five.

Last year I played in a cover band that did a blues rock version of "Josie," which was an absolute blast to play.

 

[LBS-bass]

How did I manage to miss this thread for so long? Hands down one of my top five favorite bands.

I spend a lot of time working up and analyzing Chuck Rainey's bass parts on many of these songs; Becker's too, but Rainey is a quiet force to be reckoned with. There is simply nothing so sweet as his work on Kid Charlemagne or Don't Take me Alive, or most of the Aja LP. These guys wrote some great music and brought in superb studio musicians to make it the best it could be. Do I ever expect to play any of these things live? Most are not likely but I've been lucky to play several of their songs.

I was lucky to see them live several times during the past ten years before Becker passed away. Always a great show.

 

[LBS-bass]

Yacht Rock at the highest level. Comes across as a bit sterile to me, though.

I feel this way about a LOT of Fagen's solo work. Becker brought in just enough edge to keep Fagen from going off the rails into smooth/light jazz mediocrity. Some of their later work together also suffers from this.

 

[JimK]

After Gaucho, there was not a SD album for years...Fagen's The Nightfly was a very welcomed addition when it was first released.

 

[DrThumpenstein]

Their music challenges both sides of my brain. One of the first songs I remember really getting into was Rikki when I was an impressionable 14 year old. Their lyrics were beyond me at that point, but their sound was like no one else. Tasty bass lines! Fun, interesting, challenging.

Thanks for asking! I'm gonna go home and play some Steely Dan tonight!

 

[LBS-bass]

After Gaucho, there was not a SD album for years...Fagen's The Nightfly was a very welcomed addition when it was first released.

I liked Nightfly a lot, also Kamakiriad. Didn't care for much else he did solo. Just too smooth-jazz for my taste.

 

[GIBrat51]

I have a friend who constantly confused them with these guys... which can happen, I suppose, if you're way too stoned, and not real bright. I really like these guys too, by the way...