January 2003 BlueBook Entries

Date: Fri, January 31, 2003, 22:03:17 ET
Posted by: hoops, chicago

Dennis and Randy:
That's good news. It would be a shame to see his life wrecked over this.

Dennis:
Good luck with the Gig. http://www.katylied.tv

All:
The clavinet thread has been cool.

SueDave:
I haven't purchased the second book on "Kind of Blue" but I remember glancing at it in the book store and thinking it was kinda rushed. Will give it a second lookover.

DJ:
Thanks for the comments on Bird and Dizzy.

Remember that Phil Woods is supposed to be on with Marian McPartland in the upcoming week. That's 11 am Chicago time on http://www.wbez.org or 91.5 fm for me.

Cool posts everyone.

jim

Date: Fri, January 31, 2003, 20:43:07 ET
Posted by: µ,

Randy: Thanks for sharing that. Given that the history of an accused sexual predator is admissible evidence in court, then this treatise written By Pete Townshend a year BEFORE his arrest has great legal relevence. You have convinced me now given this info, which would be public information, that it is most likely that Pete is telling the truth...and the implementation of the British law has become Draconian in nature and would damage real progress towards managing this grave problem. The passage regarding Tommy really gave me the creeps, in an Oliver Twist way or worse. Perhaps it was the awful movie, but I never thought of Tommy's plight in that manner. I can really see a link to sexual abuse now. That deaf, dumb, and blind kid - a child who has been abused, blocks those memories out if possible...The rock opera then may have been a creative path for that to be expressed by Pete's subconscious - just never occured to me before...

Which reminds me, I've always thought of Kamakiriad, which is a real bookend to The Nightfly, as a series of subconsciously driven surreal dreams as the protagonist works out his fears of the near future...i.e., writing creatively, recording, touring etc. Anybody else feel this way? It fits in with the 50s lithograph B-movie merged with 50s ads of progress and fashion...whereas the Alice in wonderland mirror image is The Nightfly as a post-modern view back into the mind of the man as a teen looking optimistically into the future using the imperfect point of view of the cynical adult...but then that's now explained in the DVD-A liner notes...

Date: Fri, January 31, 2003, 19:04:47 ET
Posted by: Randy, Northern NJ/USA

While this may be "off topic," it is important; below is the text to a piece I wrote regarding the whole issue with Pete Townshend; it was written the week the news story broke, and ties in with the previous post:

(TEXT AS FOLLOWS)

In regards to the recent news concerning Pete Townshend, I thought I would note to those who may (or may not) care that I am a regular reader of Townshend's site, which includes Pete's "Diary" entries, a number of which involved Pete's distress over the availability of child pornography on the Internet; in one entry (the link to which can be found below via a site other than Pete's), he discussed a friend who had experienced abuse that he had met through his work as a fund-raiser for a drugs and alcohol abuse program. In general, it appears that what has happened via the news media has largely been a misunderstanding; other diary entries (from last year) on Townshend's site dealt with other elements of Townshend's interest in ridding the Internet of child pornography; he specifically posted (as well as having been very vocal in general, particularly in England) about the availability of images on the net; Townshend mentioned that he came across numerous porn sites simply by typing the word "sex" into the Google search engine (he does have a teenage son, making this a valid concern and consideration); Townshend also reported through his site diary entries that some search engines were limiting or considering limiting ALL viewing through predetermined filtering (which he appeared to be against based on free speech issues unrelated to pornography).

In addition, it has been reported for some time that Townshend has been working on his autobiography, and his admission of various sorts of unusual behavior on the part of a somewhat mentally-ill grandmother he stayed with for an extended time as a child were also previously widely reported (more so in England that the U.S.) What was not known was that Townshend had suffered some form of sexual abuse at the hands of this aforementioned grandmother, which was part of the root of his research concerning his autobiography as well as his tentatively planned campaign against child pornography. Townshend was well versed with the research required for a book project, as he worked for a time in the nineteen-eighties as an editor at Faber & Faber, a publishing house in England; while Townshend may have committed a crime under British law simply by way of locating sites containing child pornography (granted a somewhat naive approach to his research), I would hate to see a complete lack of consideration before judgment among fans and the press until all the surrounding issues are made clear, since much of what relates to Townshend's arrest was discussed openly on his website during the course of last year.

It largely appears that the "witch hunt" tactics of the British authorities ignored the issue of context in Townshend's case, and much of the American press specifically did a great disservice to the public by reporting the story in a much sensationalized and biased fashion. It is difficult to launch a campaign against something if one has no concept of it's ease of availability and content; I highly doubt Townshend would have discussed this topic (and his findings) so openly during the course of last year if he was also attempting to download and distribute illicit photos of children. He may have been in error in terms of his approach, but I hardly think he should now be viewed (or convicted as) a pedophile.

Here's a link to one of Townshend's (six page) diary entries from last year concerning this issue:

http://www.thesmokinggun.com/archive/petetownshend1.html

Randy/NIGHTFLY62@aol.com

Date: Fri, January 31, 2003, 16:45:23 ET
Posted by: ds, chicago

Pete Townshend may have some proof in his battle to clear his name against child-pornography allegations.

Britain's Internet Watch Foundation (IWF), which works "to minimize the availability of illegal Internet content, particularly child abuse images," has announced that Townshend contacted the organization last year regarding some of the websites he had found while allegedly doing research into pedophilia. The IWF denied any such communication when Townshend was arrested earlier this month, but has now been able to produce some emails from last summer and autumn that seemingly back up the Who leader's claims.

Townshend issued this statement on his website (petetownshend.com): "You may recall that among the media frenzy of a couple of weeks ago, representatives of the Internet Watch Foundation told the press and the news stations that they had never heard from me. I, of course, know that I did communicate with them several times last year, and they have now supplied to us copies of my emails to them, one in August and the rest in November. My lawyers have written to the founder of the IWF, Mark Stephens, who was adamant that they had never heard from me, asking for an explanation."

For it's part, the IWF says it had no choice but to deny any prior contact with Townshend: "Because of the provisions of the Data Protection Act, we are unable to comment or disclose information about the personal details of individuals who make reports to us unless they give their permission."

Townshend was arrested and released on bail on January 13 after British police searched his house as part of Operation Ore, an ongoing pedophilia investigation. He has so far not been charged with any crime. He was taken in as part of an ongoing investigation into Internet child pornography around the world after his name and credit-card information was found at a pedophile website. Townshend has admitted visiting a handful of child-pornography sites and using his credit card to enter one, although he claims he was doing research for his upcoming autobiography, and that the book will include a claim of sexual abuse between the ages of five and six-and-a-half years old while he lived with his maternal grandmother (the alleged abuse came from a male friend of his grandmother's).

In an interview with the British tabloid The Sun published before he was taken into custody, Townshend said, "I am angry about child porn on the Internet, and deeply wounded at the inference that I might be a pedophile. I have looked at child porn sites maybe three or four times in all, the front pages and previews. But I have only entered once using a credit card and I have never downloaded. With hindsight it was very foolish, but I felt so angered about what was going on, it blurred my judgment...I have never purchased any forms of child pornography or wished to own any...I was stupid to try to deal with my anger about child porn on the Internet alone. We must try to stop it but if we can't do that we should invest our energy in helping victims of abuse...it is important that the police are able to convince themselves that--if I did anything illegal--I did it purely for research. I am not a pedophile...I sincerely believed that the police would know my history as someone who works tirelessly to help the abused, and that since 1978 I have run a charity which has contributed millions to organizations working to prevent violence and abuse."

-- Bruce Simon, New York

Date: Fri, January 31, 2003, 14:55:55 ET
Posted by: sharkdeVille, down in tampa

The clavinet features prominently in the music of Stevie Wonder. Think "Superstition"...
he even sings about clavinets on a few tunes.

Date: Fri, January 31, 2003, 10:59:28 ET
Posted by: Danfan,

What you are referring to is Steely Dan's appearance on NBC's Today Show. I was unable to tape the appearance but there are some awesome photos of it at Fogel's Fotos: http://www.asan.com/users/petefogel/today.htm

The Today show also has released a compilation CD of songs taken from this series and another is a possibility. However, no word on whether that such a CD would include a Steely Dan track.

Let's hope they do it again this spring on the Today Show.

I thought it was funny that they performed in front of a Dean & Deluca's and I was proud that the Montana Steely Dan fans were represented.

Date: Fri, January 31, 2003, 10:55:19 ET
Posted by: Martin, Germany

Hi ,

this is martin from germany.

thanks for keeping up this site. it's a valuable source of s information to me.

can you give me advice where i can get in contact with collectors of sd audio/video material.

While being in NYC in May 2000 (not knowing of dandom), sat in front of my hotel-room tv-set being confronted with a live performance of the 2000 sd-band on "breakfast tv" at rockefeller center. (must have been may 6th, 2000)

I immediately took a cab there but nearly missed the whole show. I was able to video-tape "black friday".

Do you think there's anyone out there who can help me out with a complete recording?

thanks in advance and best wishes

martin

Date: Fri, January 31, 2003, 07:49:10 ET
Posted by: Howard,

Clavinet?

Short answer: a Clavinet is a bit like a harpsichord with electric guitar pickups.

Longer answers:
http://www.soundofmusic.se/synth/clavinet/clavinet.htm
http://www.melmusic.com.au/articles/Clav.html

Google is a wonderful thing...

Howard

Date: Fri, January 31, 2003, 05:24:56 ET
Posted by: Clas , Stockholm

A Clavinet origins from those old Harpsichords.

Howard can tell you more about it.

Date: Fri, January 31, 2003, 00:06:57 ET
Posted by: suedave,

See it for yourself:

http://www.howeart.net/imagesNEW/DoubleHelix.jpg

Question for you all: when I go to amaxon.com, as I usually spell it, which thankfully gets me to the right place, I see at least three books out on Kind of Blue.


The 1st, the Kahn book (very good rating), the third, The Making of Kind of Blue: Miles Davis and His Masterpiece by Eric Nisenson (not a good rating)

The second, Miles Davis Kind of Blue by Hal Leonard (Editor), has this in it's review: "For musicians in the know, this book can only enhance one's ardor for the album Quincy Jones calls his 'orange juice' and Donald Fagen hails as 'The Bible.'" Does anyone know if this is as good as the Kahn booK?

I'm glad that the 'playing in the back of the stage' Walter, has finally moved to the front, but it seems real fans always had him there. Nice show.

Hoops, thanks for continuing to post all these great articles!

Date: Thurs, January 30, 2003, 18:51:54 ET
Posted by: Michelle, NJ

That is so neat, DJ! I had never caught the bit about "a dizzy weekend smacked into a trance." Neato!

I like the confessional.

What exactly is a clavinet ? How is it different from an Electric piano or Synth?

The Love Supreme topic is a good one. Maybe someone can suggest an approach to getting into it.

Mich

Date: Thurs, January 30, 2003, 17:11:50 ET
Posted by: DJ, Chicago

Relaxin' at the Camarillo

Ah yes, a nice hour lunch with a 1/2 bottle of Pinot Grigio and an hour to kill at work so thought I would lay down a few thoughts about the book I am reading lately, Bird Lives!: The High Life and Hard Times of Charlie (Yardbird) Parker. I am sure quite a few of the dandom folks have read this, but I am finding it an interesting read. Ross Russell definitely has a knack for getting across the feelings, moods, and genius of Parker and the whole start of the bop era in general.

I would imagine that Walt and Don were on top of this the year it came out in 1973 it's topics resonate through Parker's Band which came out a year later. Who knows? I was 4 at the time.

I wonder about the lyrics "We will spend a dizzy weekend smacked into a trance" since it proves no secret that Charlie was jealous of Dizzy's fame and recognition at the time. The passage is probably just one of those subtle things that dan fans marvel over for no reason, or were the boys jousting in Dizzy's name to the song? We can get into the 'smacked' business here too since Charlie did love his Horse.

A bit of non-music trivia from the book: Charlie ate 20 hamburgers at one sitting, he also won a pizza eating contest, and my favorite did 16 double shots of whiskey in two hours before a set.

Anyway, rambling on here. Can't wait for "Everything Must Go" and possibility of a tour and whatnot. I am unfortunately out of town this weekend or I would be all over the Katy Lied gig.

dj

Date: Thurs, January 30, 2003, 16:17:04 ET
Posted by: Jesse, Toronto

The new deluxe "A Love Supreme" is very, very essential to any jazz collection, as it has the only live version of the "A Love Supreme" suite, that the quartet ever played (at the 1965 Antibes Jazz Festival), and it also has the alternate takes with Archie Shepp and Art Davis. Great stuff.

Date: Thurs, January 30, 2003, 15:27:42 ET
Posted by: In the Spirit of Steely Dan, A little humor

CONFESSIONAL

An old man walks into a confessional. The following conversation ensues:

Man: I am 92 years old, have a wonderful wife of 70 years, many beautiful children, grandchildren, and great grandchildren. Yesterday, I picked up two college girls, hitchhiking. We went to a motel, where I had sex with each of them three times.

Priest: Are you sorry for your sins?

Man: What sins?

Priest: What kind of a Catholic are you?

Man: I'm Jewish

Priest: Why are you telling me all this?

Man: I'm telling everybody.

Date: Thurs, January 30, 2003, 14:52:25 ET
Posted by: Howard,

David - there are a lot of Steely Dan tracks that use the Clavinet.

Some have already been mentioned (Night by Night, Green Earrings). Others include Peg, Black Cow, Babylon Sisters, and I'm sure there are other tracks from Royal Scam and earlier albums that haven't been mentioned yet...

Howard

Date: Thurs, January 30, 2003, 14:35:14 ET
Posted by: Duncan, db

for the UK Folks...
re: feb 11th 03
''Dear Duncan,
I hope I am able to help. GMT isn't too commonly used in the US, but I looked it up on a web site and Eastern time in the states corresponds to 0500 GMT. Central time, 0600 GMT. Mountain time is 0700 GMT and Pacific time is 0800 GMT. So if it is midnight here (I am eastern time), does that mean it is 5:00 AM in the UK?
The best thing to do, I think, would be to scout out a station. For example, tonight on WBGO out of Newark, NJ (eastern time) Piano Jazz airs at 7:00 pm. So, if the above calculations are correct, you should be able to hear the show between Midnight and 1AM. Of course, if that is too late for you, I'm sure you can find another station that airs PJ in our afternoon, your evening, or in our morning, your afternoon. Again, our web site, www.pianojazz.org should have all the programming information including times and time zones.
The Steely Dan program begins airing on Feb 11th and unfortunately, it will not be available to listen to after it has been broadcast. Stations have roughly a two week period in which to air the Piano Jazz program, so you may be able to listen once on one station, and find the program again on another station, the next week.
We will surely rebroadcast this program at some point, but I cannot tell you when. Most likely it will be at least a year before it is rebroadcast.
I hope that helps. Good luck in your search.
***** ****
Production Assistant



try live streaming from
www.wbgo.org

happy listening all

Date: Thurs, January 30, 2003, 14:31:37 ET
Posted by: Clas , Stockholm

David - unless I'm totally wrong, there's a Clavinet on "Greenearrings".

Date: Thurs, January 30, 2003, 13:22:17 ET
Posted by: H&A,

Depending on how your feel about "‘70s retro festivals" , the below quoted review could be considered slander.

Road warrior work ethic? Is he talking about the same band?

Date: Thurs, January 30, 2003, 12:01:13 ET
Posted by: The "Not-Previously-On-The-Internet-As-Far-As-I-Know" , Classic & Crusty Article Series

New Musical Express
May 25, 1974
An Interview by Steve Clarke
Individual Pix of Becker and Fagen by Joe Stevens

---

Reelin’
in from
Woolies

YEP. WOOLWORTH'S WAS WHERE
WALTER BECKER GOT TURNED ON
AND DONALD FAGEN GOT HIS
TICKET TO RIDE FROM THE
BEATLES. TOGETHER THEY'RE
THE CORE OF STEELY DAN, AN
AMERICAN CULT BAND CATCHING
ON IN BRITAIN

WOOLWORTH'S seems hardly the place to get turned on to rock music—that's where Walter Becker's ears started to twitch at the sounds of The Beatles' "No Reply" (side one, track - one "Beatles For Sale"). And that convinced him there was more to rock than three chords.

For Becker's songwriting partner, Donald Fagen—the two are the writing force behind Steely Dan—it was "Ticket To Ride", heard on the radio one summer that nibbled a hole in his prejudice against rock music.

Becker, however, is still prejudiced against rock and doesn't like it if there aren't enough chord changes, unless it's played extremely well.

Steely Dan, hailed as positively the best American band of the 70s, have finally made it to Britain after one false start. You remember, they were supposed to be coming before—and according to them that tour was never booked in the first place:"The story was a complete and utter fabrication," claims Becker.

Although each musician in the group counts, it's Becker and Fagen's songwriting that really makes Steely Dan something special. Both of them have similar backgrounds and attitude, getting into jazz a long time before appreciating rock.

Fagen, he says he's done this bio speel about two million times now: he learned to play piano and a little alto-sax as a child, taking his licks from jazz records, and tried to play like Red Garland who is Miles Davis's old piano player. "I picked up that style. Later I found that I could pick up almost any style from records."

He admits one reason why he got info jazz was to be hip. But when he started buying good jazz records he realized the music was for him. Fagen and Becker met at Bard College."Walter was the only person I knew who used to listen to the same jazz stations—New York jazz stations which are now defunct…so's jazz, as a matter of fact."

He whines his story in a definitive New York accent. Dressed in T-shirt, jeans and white sneakers with a red flash and wearing heavy-framed glasses, still looking like a college academic.

"We more or less thought along the same lines and we both had a rather bizarre sense of lyrics," he says.

The songwriting-partnership is a real one, although Fagen says he usually comes up with most of the source idea and then they take it from there, each one adding a line here, a line there.

Becker and Fagen eventually ended up as staff-writers for ABC Dunhill across the country in Los Angeles. That lasted only six months, during which time they wrote songs for, among others, Barbara Streisand.

Says Fagen: "We weren’t doing so good 'cause we're sort of funny. When you're writing for other artists it's difficult to get them to do songs if the lyrics aren't absolutely banal."

And that's really why Steely Dan was formed.

THE EXACT formation of the group is a little difficult to pin down, although Becker and Fagen and Gary Katz (their producer and also a long-time friend of theirs) stress that the process wasn't in any way loose.

"Every day we'd bring in another musician or two, and the president of the ' company told him he was in the band.

"They (ABC Dunhill) really didn't know what was going on. See, we had a little office with a piano. Finally we moved out of the office and moved into this other little room and set up our equipment and stopped writing songs and started rehearsing.

"It was a sort of a secret.”

"But we just weren't able to find all the musicians we wanted within one phone call. We needed people who could negotiate the chord changes and stuff and the same time we needed guys who'd work for nothing—and they're very difficult to find."

Fagen says Katz kept the record company cool—they were still under the impression Becker and Fagen were staff-writers—and kept them in the dark about what they were doing.

Anyway, there are currently eight in the band—a nucleus of five (Becker, Fagen, drummer Jim Holder, guitarists Jeff Baxter and Denny Dias) plus second drummer Jerry Porcaro, keyboard-player Mike MacDonald and percussionist Royce Jones.

"We're a big noisy band now," comments Fagen.

For one American tour the group were augmented by several black back-up chicks, but dropped them because that was getting too much like show business.

Fagen sees the band as a flexible, unit: "It's kind of a workshop…'cause we're always juggling musicians around—although lately the eight musicians we have now seem to be working out very well. The band as it stands is now quite stable."

At one time there was another singer, David Palmer, but things didn't work out and he ended up singing on only a couple of tracks on their debut "Can't Buy A Thrill" album.

Back to Fagen: "I did most of the singing on the first album and on the albums since. But then we realised that in order to sell records you have to go out and actually play."It was very difficult to convince me to get up in front of people and sing. But finally I got enough, courage to do it, And I’ve been getting into it slowly. Now it's come together pretty well."

"Can't Buy A Thrill" was recorded over a couple of months before the group ever worked live. In fact Becker and Fagen had done very little live work at all then, although the rest of the musicians had been on the road with various outfits.

"The first album was more or less experimental. I think the latest one comes closest to what we've been wanting to do," says Fagen.

Two American hit singles came from "Thrill", "Do It Again" and "Reelin' In The Years.”

Now, if like me, you were under the impression Becker and Fagen didn’t compose “Do It Again” (it’s described on the sleeve as traditional) then you’re wrong.

You should never believe anything it ever says on a Steely Dan record. It's mostly a bunch of lies and bullshit that we write just to confuse the listener. But we did write it sort of like a ballad, and it told a story,” illuminates Fagen.

AND NOW let's talk a little about Becker and Fagen's fascinating lyrics.

"We don't necessarily try to communicate any specific thing to the listener. It's more or less we try to communicate an impression, and the listener has the freedom to interpret as he wants, says Fagen.

I can see what he means. I thought - Pretzel Logic—the song, not the actual album—was a totally surreal lyric with no real meaning. But according to Fagen it's about time travel:

"When it says, ’I stepped up on the platform / The man gave me the news', we conceived the platform as a teleportation device. And there are other key lines like ’I’ve never met Napoleon but I plan to find the time' ,

"What we're actually saying is I plan to find the time in that he lived in."

And here's Fagen's conception of "Rikki Don't Lose That Number", the single from "Pretzel Logic":

"That's a very simple love song to a young lady. I always thought it was a rather erotic, decadent sort of thing. Here you find a guy, a rather rich gentleman living in a resort, and he somehow manages to capture this young lady."And what about "Show Biz Kids" from "Countdown To Ecstasy". Exactly what is it that those girls chant incessantly?"You go to Lost Wages,” meaning Las Vegas. Like, it's a kind of joke in the United States to call Las Vegas 'Lost Wages' 'cause it's a gambling centre.

”’Through With Buzz' was just about a more-or-less platonic relationship between two young people. There's nothing really sexual about it until one, of the young people in the relationship realises he's being used and starts having paranoid fantasies and breaks off the relationship. There's no symbolism or anything. We never used puns."It's a very saccharine sounding track with a very cynical lyric. We often do that for an ironic purpose. That is to juxtapose a rather bitter against rather sweet music."

I suggested that the "Pretzel Logic" album seemed their most accessible album.

"We really don't think about it. The record company was starting to get annoyed with us because they couldn't get a single off 'Countdown To Ecstasy'. The only thing we did was tightened up the arrangements. The songs weren't quite so long. And 'Night By Night' was basically written for commercial purposes.”

When we recorded ‘Do It Again' we thought it was something we could sort of stretch out on and take solos. I did a long solo—about six minutes—it ended up as the single"

Date: Thurs, January 30, 2003, 11:29:12 ET
Posted by: hoops, chicago

Hey!

Joe, Keith, David others;

I received Ashley Kahn's "A Love Supreme" book for Christmas. I've been swamped with several other books I have to read or review for school, so it hasn't gotten the attention I'd like to give it, but with at least a few others here reading it as well, I'm sure it will pull me a long into paying more attention. Kahn's book on "Kind of Blue" was great and helped me to appreciate that album even more. Fagen is briefly quoted in that one as well.

With the Coltrane book, I've only made it through the forward and most of the introduction. I also went through the index to look for Becker and Fagen. Based only on that, it's really an intriguing book. I have a mixed bag of spiritual influences and have always sensed the spirituality of "A Love Supreme" so now I eagerly anticipate reading about its genesis and background. At the same time, I think some of what I have read in the intro is rather hyperbolic.

Of course, I'm excited that Fagen is quoted three times (and disappointed Becker is not); however, having simply read the quotes out of the context of the whole book, I'm not really sure they add much except to say that Donald Fagen is awed by Coltrane, which we Danfans already knew. Again, perhaps that's an unfair assessment for me to make at this point.

I only own the same version Joe, Keith and others own. The jacket notes and a couple of other comments in the book so far suggest that it is ideal to have the double-CD version, although I sure can't tell yet how essential it is to appreciating the book or the album.

Speaking of Fagen getting quoted and Becker not, it still annoys me that on the "Storytellers" DVD, they depict Steely Dan with just a picture of Donald, as if he were Mr. Steely Dan. One of the shots on the VHS version does include Walter. To me it is just as bad as an article that refers to Steely Dan as "him" and "he."

Randy:

I think it's admirable to seek out Sweet since maybe he will have an angle or info that we don't know about. I also think that Sweet's book is an essential starting point, especially for casual fans wishing to gain a greater understanding of Steely Dan's background. I've had a couple contacts with Sweet in the past three years, including once when he attempted to re-start "Metal Leg" right before 2vN came out. In talking with him, my impression is that he's moved on from Steely Dan and that it's not something that holds his interest as it once did. Furthermore, I find that much of his book was essentially a compilation of articles you can find on the web (like at Granatino's SD Resource), Fogel/Pascador-era "Metal Legs" and Sweet's conjecture presented as fact. (My only complaints about the book were that it had no index and that Sweet tends to connect-the-dots when in fact he doesn't have all of the dots.) Sweet broke ground in that he was able to get all these sources together as never before; yet some ten years later, I think there are other sources that are more knowledgeable or appreciative of what the Dan are up to these days. (No, I'm not putting myself in that enlightened group.) Simply my two piasters.

Re: Audio Revolution:
The two most popular Chicago area rock critics don't get Steely Dan at all; I'm already feeling pissed off thinking of their potential reviews.

Enuff of me already.

Date: Thurs, January 30, 2003, 09:54:36 ET
Posted by: Joe Murtha,

Kieth: A Kahn treatise of "Time Out" works for me. Certainly as essential a jazz album as you stated. Personally, I'd like to see Kahn do a "Blues and the Abstract Truth" as well.

I would agree that Walter's take on Coltrane is conspicuous in it's absence and would have been fascinating.

Don't know much about the 2-CD Love Supreme. Maybe it includes some tracking from the legendary second day session which included additional bassist Art Davis and Archie Shepp? Don't know. The 20-bit single CD copy suffices for me.

Cool observation regarding Sony studios, Miles and the Dan. I never connected those two dates.

David: Congenial is the word for Mr. Charlap, huh. Very soft spoken and unassuming.

I was lucky enough to catch Phil Woods at the Hartford Jazz Fest last year. Joe Sample's Trio was on the same bill. What a night that was. Anyhow, another Woods solo on a Dan record would suit me just fine. Who knows?

Date: Thurs, January 30, 2003, 09:35:22 ET
Posted by: The Ear ,

David: There's a clavinet part on "Night by Night" (Pretzel Logic), mixed kinda low...probably the most integral use of clav, though, was on the unreleased track "You Got the Bear"...guess that doesn't count, does it?

Date: Thurs, January 30, 2003, 09:33:53 ET
Posted by: Randy, Northern NJ/USA

Steely-folk:

I am in the midst of some further research on Steely Dan; actually one should say I am continually researching Steely Dan, since it has been ongoing (with heaps of other stellar musicians), for the last twenty-three some odd years; but that aside, I recently have made an attempt (with the generous assistance of veteran rock journalist Chris Charlesworth) to contact Brian Sweet, the author of 'Steely Dan: Reelin' In The Years'; should there be any response (dependent upon content), I will post whatever would be of interest to all of you.

One element which I am attempting to clarify is the involvement (or lack thereof) of Larry Carlton in the 1975 'Katy Lied' sessions; he is regularly "over-credited" with performances on those sessions, when there is apparently evidence that he was a late edition to the sessions and thus was ONLY invited to add rhythm guitar parts to one of the last songs cut for the sessions, "Daddy Don't Live In That New York City No More." There are other issues which shall remain classified until further factual information can be obtained (he said with a literary flourish), i.e., any further findings will be posted here if and when they become available. Stay tuned.

"No static at all..." - Steely Dan, 'FM'

Randy/NIGHTFLY62@aol.com

Date: Thurs, January 30, 2003, 08:54:55 ET
Posted by: Pepe,

Hey David, yes the clavinet was on the Aja album, I think Joe Sample played one on Black Cow in fact. Also check out the book "The Wild Boys" by Burroughs.

Date: Thurs, January 30, 2003, 08:34:20 ET
Posted by: Jaco, Clavinet

David: Most certainly. Listen to "Kid Charlemagne" , for example.




Regards




Jaco

Date: Thurs, January 30, 2003, 07:05:30 ET
Posted by: Mike, Louisville, KY

Take numero seven: Good to see the word is still spreading, but did you check out AudioRevolution's review of 2vN? This might be the most inaccurate article I have ever read. Pay particular attention to the third paragraph. Here it is:

"Five years ago, I don’t think that anyone, even the Psychic Friends Network, could have predicted that in the year 2000, two of the hottest albums on the charts would be by Santana and Steely Dan. The jazz-pop-R&B brainchild of Walter Becker and Donald Fagan, Steely Dan is back with their new album ‘Two Against Nature.’

It’s been over 20 years since Steely Dan released a studio album and it appears that all of the musical trends that have occurred in these past years have not influenced the band in any way, shape or form. You aren’t going to be surprised with a Steely Dan rap or grunge guitar track popping up on the album. A staple of classic rock stations, with hit songs such as "Reelin’ in the Years" and "Ricky Don’t Lose That Number," Steely Dan picks up where they left off with their last studio release ‘Gaucho.’

Although they have not released any studio albums in that time span, they have remained a steady touring act, going out on the road virtually every year, playing smaller club venues, state fair concerts and ‘70s retro festivals around the world. This road warrior work ethic has served the band well, keeping their musical chops, up and the band is as tight as ever on "Two Against Nature." However, the fact that they never stray from their patented sound is a failing. I would think that somewhere along the line, some other influences would have found their way into Walter Becker and Donald Fagan's songwriting repertoire.

Devout Steely Dan fans may be thankful that this new album sounds as if it had been written and recorded in the late ‘70s. To a certain extent, this is exactly what I expected to hear. With that in mind, I don’t feel that there is much to get excited about on 'Two Against Nature.' The Steely Dan sound is there and the recording clarity is excellent, but the great pop hooks and catchy rhythms that brought them such success are just not here on this album."

-- Bryan Dailey
Music Editor - AudioRevolution.com

"Smaller club venues, state fair concerts and ‘70s retro festivals around the world"???? I'm glad "the band is as tight as ever" though. Jeez, I think I know where I won't be getting my news from.

;-)

El Sup

Date: Thurs, January 30, 2003, 06:15:14 ET
Posted by: avg, espresso daily grind

Take numero seven. The word still spreads:

http://www.audiorevolution.com/news/0103/29.steelydan.shtml

Date: Wed, January 29, 2003, 22:18:57 ET
Posted by: David,

I was not aware of the new Coltrane book. The Miles book was great. Another author did one too. On the way home tonight I went and picked up Kahn's A Love Supreme Book. Kudos to Joe. Maybe we could all read it like one of those Winter Reading Projects. It would be a great way to while away the winter hours.

I got to see Charlap in Minneapolis/St Paul when I was on business before the holidays. Very congenial. Very much a gentleman. He signed CDs and chatted with everyone. When I told him I was a Steely Dan fan, he also said he played on the next album. Will Phil Woods also be on the next album----since they both appear together so much?

I understand that Steely Dan is from Burroughs' The Naked Lunch but I was wondering how else to get started with approaching Burroughs' work from the vantage of a Steely Dan fan. Which recordings should I get? Which other books? I think that would be a great page: it could be called BilldoeDan.com or something.

Triva question that I don't have the answer to. Has a clavinet ever appeared on a Steely Dan track?

Date: Wed, January 29, 2003, 16:12:20 ET
Posted by: Michelle, Princeton Junction NJ

Hi everyone!

I remember in thePBS show when Walter was asked what his favorite of "all the albums" was. The reporter meant Steely Dan albums. Walter cleverly replied, "Kind of Blue." He's a stitch! It is a great album, though. I've had a bit harder time appreciating A Love Supreme. The tracks are so long so it's in bigger bites.

I think it's so sad about Pete Townsend. Now he is a marked man, like when George Michael was found beating his monkey in the toilet in L.A. Of course, Pete is a genius and Geo Michael is not. Everybody's got something to hide except for me and my monkey! Speaking of monkeys, does Michael Jackson still have one? Sorry, couldn't resist!

See ya!

Mich

Date: Wed, January 29, 2003, 14:52:08 ET
Posted by: Keith, Owings Mills, MD

Hi Joe. I just recently acquired the Coltrane book after also being impressed by Kahn's Miles book. I wonder if Kahn will go on to a book on Brubeck's Time Out? Seems like a candidate, if you ask me. Those three, Kind of Blue, A Love Supreme and Time Out are the three most essential late 50/early 60s Jazz albums ever.

I haven't gotten to the part where Fagen offers his comments but how come they don't include Walter? His opinion is just as valuable.

One very cool Steely Dan connection to Kahn's Kind of Blue book. For this book, Kahn was able to arrange for the original master of Kind of Blue to be played. They had not been played in years for any audience. These tapes were played at Sony Studios on 54th Street in Manhattan in Mid-January 2000. The very next event in the same studio was the taping of Steely Dan's PBS special aka the plush video. Pretty amazing, old and new history happening in those four walls,

I've noticed that there is a new double CD version of A Love Supreme. Is this worth buying? I already have the 20-bit mastered CD from a few years ago.

Date: Wed, January 29, 2003, 12:28:52 ET
Posted by: Joe Murtha,

Hoops! et al,

Just copying some recent blathering from the yellow book, Jim...

"Everything Must Go"?

May 6th can't get here soon enough for me.

Working on CDSD Rev 3.0 and a Next One screensaver. Any suggestions
on content are more than welcome.

2003 shaping up pretty well so far.

New Dan in May and our man William Gibson out with a new tome, "Pattern Recognition". The review I read has Mr. Gibson deferring his cyberpunk prose style for a more Pynchon-esque treatment this time out.Sounds interesting, no? I'll have to pick this one up for sure. I wonder if we'll stumble upon the requisite Dan allusion here and there? Hmmmm...

Apparently D&W have decided to return the favor and tip their hat to Gibson on the new one.

Haven't been here for a while. Has anyone mentioned Fagen's excellent
comments in Ashley Kahn's recent Coltrane tribute? Don't know if this
is old news but this one and Kahn's "Kind of Blue" chronicle are definite keepers in my book.

In Kahn's "Love Supreme" tribute, Fagen comments at length regarding
Van Gelder's unique studio recording techniques.

Fagen on Coltrane: "I've always been attracted to music that scares
me. Like Coltranes saxophone playing."

There are a few other choice Fagen-isms sprinkled here and there as
well.

Caught The Bill Charlap Trio Saturday night at "Smoke" in NYC. A set of entirely stunning standards. Bill Evans incarnate. Just fantastic musicianship throughout. Ron Carter was amazing, as always.

A quick chat with Bill before the set. He said he played on (2) tunes from "Everything Must Go" and that they were both "really rockin' tunes" with "very tight grooves."

Also chatted with Mr. Carter. What a class gentleman he is. Very impressive individual.

Date: Wed, January 29, 2003, 12:16:43 ET
Posted by: Big Fan,

So many articles - I can’t remember what has been posted and what hasn't.

Here's one I don't think was posted: I could provide links to all of the current articles - Billboard, Rolling Stone etc in one place if anyone is interested.

Pacific Business News of all places:
http://pacific.bizjournals.com/pacific/stories/2003/01/20/daily32.html

I know it was mentioned the first day of the news release - that Manic Street Preachers has an album by the same name "Everything Must Go” from 1996. Do you think SD had to get a release to use the same title? I have to admit that it crossed my mind that the ODP was having some fun about the title and then the story got repeated on the online news community. Is there any chance that's not really the title?

Date: Wed, January 29, 2003, 11:43:12 ET
Posted by: Scallion, down on the farm

http://www.theonion.com/onion3903/index.html


Picture of Pete Townshend with caption: "Can't Explain"

Date: Wed, January 29, 2003, 10:46:07 ET
Posted by: Peg,

Peg's Quick Concert report: Charlie Haden is about is a close to God as one can achieve on an upright bass. Gonsalvo Rubalcabas is astounding...a sense of joy similar to Monk. They're playing in Cleveland soon, and more dates as well.

Date: Wed, January 29, 2003, 06:21:15 ET
Posted by: avg, ain't nada in Chicaga...

Eleven Whacky Ways to capture and keep the piano jazz:

- You catch the stream on one hand and on the other hand, you manually insert it into the hard drive.
- You buy the show transcript, have tribute bands reenact it live.
- You tape Roger to the chair and then, you tape the radio show analog.
- Aww.. scrap it. Everything must go.
- You produce a clone of yourself, young. You download your memory into it and hope for timely reruns.
- You listen to every occurence of the show, commit it to memory, then burn it to DVD-R.
- Repeat Zeohippus ten times, real fast, then hold your breath indefinitely.
- You run as a Republican. Once elected, you use your clout to change NPR's status from public to private. Then, you use what's left Daddy's bread to buy it.
- You look up Marian_plays_with_Steely_Dan(3).zip on Kazaa, with the porn filter on.
- You dance in place, paint the face and act like you belong here.
- You stop waiting for the RIAA inspections to resume and you go it alone.

Date: Wed, January 29, 2003, 01:59:47 ET
Posted by: Gambler, rolling again

Good catch on the Newsday bit, avg

Date: Wed, January 29, 2003, 01:58:14 ET
Posted by: Gambler, at Rambler's

The amount of time elapsed between the release of Aja and Gaucho is about the same as the amount of time elapsed between the release of Two Against Nature and Everything Must Go.

Youwannamakeabet that the release date for Everything Must Go slips to late May or June? May be.....

Gambler

Date: Tues, January 28, 2003, 13:15:38 ET
Posted by: avg , late edition

http://www.newsday.com/business/columnists/ny-pigear3106299jan28,0,7880590.column?coll=ny-business-columnists

"But Congress has yet to formally address the salvo fired last March by South Carolina's Democratic Sen. Fritz Hollings, who essentially wants to embed copy-protection controls in all PCs and consumer electronic devices. Bottom line: you'll be severely restricted in copying Steely Dan's "Aja" to your MP3 player or iPod."

Touché. Great choice, exemplary.

Date: Tues, January 28, 2003, 12:57:00 ET
Posted by: hoops,

Looks like two great minds were checking out the PJ site at the same time. As if I hadn't said it enough, I'm very excited about this show.

As mentioned yesterday, I'm planning to catch the stream to my hard drive for the Steely Dan appearance. If nothing else, maybe we can do a tree. Looking forward to any suggestions folks might have about doing this to get a primo recording.

Here in Chicago (and on the net), WBEZ (91.5, http://www.wbez.org ) will likely air Steely Dan on Sunday, February 16 at 11:00 a.m. Chicago/Central Standard time.

Date: Tues, January 28, 2003, 12:55:35 ET
Posted by: µ, Tejas

Lester: Check out under "where to listen." Many of the stations use Windows Media Player to stream rather than Real Crappy Audio. WinMP I've found has far better sound quality and can be downloaded for PCs or Macs. Plus NPR has placed a great emphasis on the quality of thier audio - this is heard even in their news programs..

You don't have to stick to your state - you may have to play around to find the best stream...

http://www.tpr.org/ from San Antonio is a start (8pm Sat CST for Piano Jazz)...


bon chance...

Date: Tues, January 28, 2003, 11:41:04 ET
Posted by: Lester the Dayfly ,

I just checked the "Piano Jazz" website...it claims Becker and Fagen's appearance begins airing February 11 and that the featured selections include "Peg," "Josie," "Mood Indigo" (!) and "Hesitation Blues" (wonder which "Hesitation Blues" this refers to).

Now if I could only listen to the show on my trusty radio...there's no FM station with a decent signal in my area that carries the program.

I do hate those awful Real Audio streams (sigh)...anybody planning on recording the show?

Date: Tues, January 28, 2003, 11:35:16 ET
Posted by: Piano Jazz Site,

http://www.npr.org/programs/pianojazz/upcomingguests.html

Start Date-Check local listings
January 28
Phil Woods
Saxophonist Phil Woods is a true master of bebop. Whether weaving jazz improvisations with the other members of his group or playing feisty crackling licks on cool solos, Woods' playing is always compelling. He built up his amazing technique with Dizzy Gillespie, Quincy Jones, Buddy Rich, and his Quartet, redefining bebop his way.
Featured Songs: "How About You" and "Fine and Dandy"

February 11
Steely Dan
Steely Dan guitarist Walter Becker and singer/pianist Donald Fagen grew up listening to Bill Evans, Charles Mingus, Louis Armstrong, Duke Ellington and Charlie Parker -- and all of these influences can be heard in their unique style. Since the late '60s, the duo has been honing their integration of jazz and rock, continuing to move ahead in their musical explorations.
Featured Songs: "Josie," "Chain Lightning," "Mood Indigo," and "Hesitation Blues"

Date: Tues, January 28, 2003, 10:23:42 ET
Posted by: Ruthie,

hey everybody in the NYC area, the Piano Jazz date with SD is Thursday Feb. 20 (WB's birthday!) on WBGO (88.3), from 7pm- 8pm

Date: Tues, January 28, 2003, 00:43:11 ET
Posted by: Rob Meany, Minneapolis

Hey folks:

I'm in a Minneapolis band called Terramara. Listeners are constantly
comparing our sound with the illustrious Steely Dan. We are not worthy, but I would admit the influence and there are definitely similarities in style. That said I thought I would spread the word and see what members of the Dandom think. We have mp3s and other info up on our sites:

http://www.mp3.com/terramara
http://www.cdbaby.com/terramara
http://www.terramara.com

Any feedback or tongue lashings are welcome.

Rob Meany
Terramara

P.S. If you are in near the Minneapolis/St. Paul, you may want to check out a new Steely Dan cover band called Steely Band. They are a thirteen-piece and really pull it off.

Date: Mon, January 27, 2003, 23:09:16 ET
Posted by: Paige, Santa Barbara

Michelle...

Nice post. Proof once again, that love hurts.

-Paige

Date: Mon, January 27, 2003, 18:47:49 ET
Posted by: shark deVille, countin down in tampa

Does anyone here listen to Ween?


At their core, they're two mega-talented punks from Jersey with a perverted sense of humor, as well as a knack for writing interesting chord progressions, great hooks, and hilarious and bizarre lyrics in just about any genre of music. (sound familiar?)

Their first albums were just the two of them (Dean & Gene) helming a 4-track, playing all the instruments. As their cult following increased, so did their clout and their past several albums have been real studio affairs. They frequently employ top-notch studio guys to fill a part here, add a solo there.

Their most recent album 'White Pepper' is great listening, and there's a tune on there called "Pandy Fackler" that's been compared to Steely Dan more than once. One critic even called Dean's vocal a "dead-on Fagen", but I don't quite hear it.

You will undoubtedly hear the similarities to the Dan on that tune, and it's possible that it's a tongue-in-cheek nod to the boys. There's a great outside keyboard break, a "horn-y" arrangement, and some very jazzy chords. And it's a character study that would surely make Donald & Walter smirk... Pandy Fackler is a mentally retarded prostitute.

There's also a "tribute" to Jimmy Buffett on this album called (get this) 'Bananas & Blow'... and a superb thrash metal ode to a Burt Reynolds classic: "Stroker Ace"...

Some of these tributes, like these guys do with Buffett, and Steely Dan did with the Eagles are definitely tongue-in-cheek, and pretty hilarious.

There's even some almost touching songs on this album.

Seriously, check these guys out!
Go to allmusic.com and punch in Ween. Their bio sounds like a warped description of D&W.

Date: Mon, January 27, 2003, 17:58:45 ET
Posted by: hoops, chicago

PianoJazz with Marian McPartland will air a segment with Phil Woods starting tomorrow. Then, of course, in a couple of weeks, we have Becker and Fagen and McPartland.

I have access to a PowerBook G4/667 w/ OS 9.2.1 & 10.2.3 with 12 GB free, defragged disk space, iTunes, Real player, and Toast Titatnium and a 10BaseT connection. And that's what I have done in the past. But was wondering if anyone had any suggestions etc or new approaches I should consider with spending little money.

Thanks!

Date: Mon, January 27, 2003, 17:16:39 ET
Posted by: avg, for the record

take six:

http://launch.yahoo.com/read/news.asp?contentID=212019

Date: Mon, January 27, 2003, 16:20:15 ET
Posted by: Michelle, Princeton Jct, NJ

I was reminded of another take on Katy Lied:

"The male praying mantis cannot copulate while its head is attached to its body. The female initiates sex by ripping the male's head off."

Just a little over three months left!

Mich

Date: Mon, January 27, 2003, 13:12:05 ET
Posted by: Cool review I'd forgotten about,

Here's a cool review from 1996 that someone on the yellow posted about:

http://www.post-gazette.com/soundscene/pages/20010125steely06.asp

Date: Sun, January 26, 2003, 23:57:49 ET
Posted by: meredith, texas

thought I would deurk and ask some questions.

am i the only one who doesn't understand the line about the horseshoe crab? granted, it's steely dan so it must be dirty or illicit, but i feel like i missed a class in street smarts. i haven't the foggiest idea of what this is. don't feel like you have to be too explicit though.

also, the title everything must go seems a little ominous to me. i expect it will make more sense when we get the cd.

that's it. hope to see you at a danfest this year.

Date: Sun, January 26, 2003, 15:25:00 ET
Posted by: Peg, it will come back to me...

Well here I am, the blessed winner of a horseshoe crab hunt and now realize that I cannot find my horseshoe crab lasso. (Will Rogers, where are you?) In case anybody has wondered, 'tis a short, boring story of how I came up with the exact date of May 6...let it suffice that Bob Dylan was involved. ("Isis, oh Isis..."). Thank you, Ole, and Hoopsie, too, for giving me the chance to guess. You guys are the best.

The title Everything Must Go has had me wondering. Will the cover have a FOR SALE! sign, a dog walk area, or a freeway? Or the same flamingos from 2VN, this time being carted to the dumpster?

I have to put in a plug here for an awesome funk -- and I mean funk like it's supposed to be -- jam band called Garage Majal. If you Dan people ever get a chance to hear them, go.

As a magazine editor I'm always reading press releases and my God, what fun that Dan press release is, and oh what fun it must have been for the person who wrote it. As I read it I was wondering who it was, whether the Boys approved it, etc., etc. Can't wait to see if they'll be on morning TV again! (Somehow I just doubt it!!)

Date: Sun, January 26, 2003, 14:49:19 ET
Posted by: Boston Rag,

Happy Super Sunday!

I had a Super Saturday yesterday, groovin' to the DTS Surround of "The Nightfly" that I won with Hoop's latest contest! Thanks again Hoops! The Nightfly has always been one of my favorite discs.
I really love the mix on the DVD-A. When Donald sings "I know you're mad about Brubeck....BRU-BECK". It really leaps out at you!
Eargasmic!!!

Lucy - Root Boy Slim and The Sex Change Band (with the Rootetts) were for real. Gary Katz, Donald and Walter were all involved in his first major Warners release back in the late 70's. I had the pleasure of seeing Root Boy in 1979 at the Paradise in Boston. You knew watching him that he was an accident waiting to happen. His heavy drug-taking and drinking was no act. He died about 10 years ago. He released a few more albums in the late 70's/early 80's. All of his work is out of print.

Mark in Boston

Date: Sun, January 26, 2003, 14:34:15 ET
Posted by: Invigler Numero-Uno,

Today's New York Times Magazine (with Bushee on the cover) has an article about Warren Zevon. Wouldn't that be a great miracle if these weren't his last days?

Or go to http://www.nytimes.com/2003/01/26/magazine/26ZEVON.html?8hpib

Zevon sure could pass for Becker's cousin if not his brother.

The NYTimes mag also has a picture of Reagan morphing into W. It's scary and uncanny all at once, as is that article.

Well, I've got more invigling to do.

IN-U

Date: Sun, January 26, 2003, 07:09:41 ET
Posted by: avg, my usual numbers

5000 hits is about right, considering I posted. ;-)

Great stuff, Andy. Nice job on the lift.

Thomas Broberg also, is back on board. Check it out. Promising.

Date: Sun, January 26, 2003, 04:32:53 ET
Posted by: Mme Erzulie, Oslo, Norway

I'm just chiming in with Lisa, saying I absolutely love these old interviews and stuff. Every time I get your newsletter, it's like a tiny birthday or christmas eve or something. So keep up the excellent work!

Lisa: From what I've understood, Don and Walt respect/like The Eagles, as they've honored eachother with mentions in songs (Everything You Did and Hotel California (Steely knives)).

Date: Sun, January 26, 2003, 00:18:04 ET
Posted by: hoops, chicago

In reverse appearance of posts…

Andy:
I'm sure it must feel good to be back. It reminds me of when the Dandom Digest and web site went on hiatus during part of that awful year for me in 1999. It was so great to get back. Regarding your call for articles and so forth, as you probably noticed since October I've been posting "not-yet-as-far-as-I-know-on-the-Internet" Dan articles. After they appear here, I thought that they should go to some archive. John Granatino has been doing that as I suggested that to him. Otherwise the articles be lost and he's done a great job in the past. Maybe you and John could collaborate or serve as mirror sites or something. It would be cool to be able to search both your and John's collections. Good luck, thanks for letting us know you are up and thanks for telling us how we can help.

Oleander:
Maybe we could all head out to the Outer Banks and build Steely Snow Sculptures. That would be unique! Or we all get drunk and make snow angels or whatever imprints like snow horseshoe crabs. I've been saving and making frequent flier miles since last tour and I think I have enough for two round trips this tour, assuming there is one! Would be great to see at last. :-) I was listening to an NPR story on BMWs today and I thought of "Becker Motorwerks" THANKS—you're wonderful!

Mµ:
Thanks. I am aware of the geography—since I helped O. with the previously posted web page and it was what I was referring to—but thanks for the clarification. Hadn't looked at it that way.

Lisa:
Good to hear from you. Hope Kurt and Sara are well. It was at their house almost 20 years ago that my appreciation of Steely Dan moved to a new level.

Lucy:
Your post was such a sweet thank you. When I was entering the last article, I was thinking, "boy, wonder if anyone reads these…maybe I should be doing something else." Thanks to the inveiglers, too. Next week is "How Walter Discovered Jazz at Woolworth's" or something like that, followed in a week or two by "The Becker and Fagen Laugh-In" Remember Rowan and Martin?

Danfests:
As I was discussing on the Dandom Digest yesterday, the Danfests Registry and StAl's Ticket Exchange will be ramping up to full speed again. In terms of Danfests, check out http://www.dandom.com/danfests

Speaking of which, things are picking up for the Dandom Digest again. The membership list went well over 1,300 again this past week. And if you removed web crawlers and spiders, the BlueBook has been viewed over 5,000 times in the past three weeks. Before I saw that, I figured maybe 200 views in that period. Althought I'm sure that's still a pretty modest number, I had no idea. Finally, a lot of people sending me personal emails writing about the next one. People are pretty shy about sending to the Digest but there's some great stuff, better than I would write. Don't be shy.

I better get going…see you soon. I enjoy your writing.

jim

Date: Sat, January 25, 2003, 19:27:43 ET
Posted by: Andy, Washington, DC

Lots of good news flowing out of Dan land in the last few days. Hopefully this will be as exciting and interesting as the months leading up to 2vN were a few years ago. Anyway, I wanted to let you know that my web page is back up at http://www.andymetzger.com--much the same as it was when it went down. I'm still working on a few parts of it, but everything you need should be there.

In a few weeks I hope to get a searchable database of Steely Dan articles, interviews, news clippings, etc. up on the site. If you've got any interviews or articles or stuff like that, give me an e-mail (andy@REMOVEbest-met.com); I'm always looking for new stuff. I'll keep you posted on the progress.

See ya around,
Andy

Date: Sat, January 25, 2003, 19:10:41 ET
Posted by: oleander, outre banks

I am a long-time inveigler. If Paige would send me some of his medicine too I might get really good at it.

Hoops--tobogganing on the beach; quite unusual. They got about a foot more snow than we did. Mu's right; NC is a long state, but I'd hightail it to an OB DanFest in a jiffy.

jk--yer on. I say April 1.

Date: Sat, January 25, 2003, 18:50:46 ET
Posted by: µ,

Whereanon: the operative word is "when" - there's a statute of limitations on the net - that was 6 months ago - and only the briefest of mentions before cancellation...whatever...now, if had snowed in Kitty Hawk and Jockey's Ridge in August - THAT would be something!

h: if that was your hook - sorry

Date: Sat, January 25, 2003, 16:46:29 ET
Posted by: Paige, Santa Barbara

Lisa...I'm sure that you know that Proctor is a part of Firesign Theater...the best cerebral comedy I've ever heard.

Lucy...Love your enthusiasm...I will forward some of my medication to you so that you can make it to May 6th.

-Paige

Date: Sat, January 25, 2003, 16:08:02 ET
Posted by: Mock Turtle,

Lucy, are you by any chance related to Larry King? Just Wondering.

Date: Sat, January 25, 2003, 14:59:54 ET
Posted by: Rich, NYC

Hi!

This is my first time posting ever. This has a lot of interesting Steely Dan information. I am especially interested in any Danfan events in the NYC area. Thank you.

Rich

Date: Sat, January 25, 2003, 13:14:24 ET
Posted by: Where were Mu?,

Mu, I caught that Hoops is referring to Oleander's idea for all Dan Fans to gather for an Outer Banks Danfest which was postponed until another time. Go to http://www.dandom.com/danfests/raleigh There is a map of Outer Banks. Aerial Shots. Which reminds me, looking forward to another Danfest hosted by the gracious Oleander.

Date: Sat, January 25, 2003, 13:00:43 ET
Posted by: Lucy, Redmond, Washington

Hi!

Look out for the new Steely Dan album! Can't wait! Any word on how many songs? What's this horseshoe crab business???? Whatever, we all seem to be lapping it up! (Ewwwwww!) Lisa, some of that is pretty funny!

Speaking of lapping it up, I'm really lapping up these rare article reprints that Hoops is putting up. Am I the only one who loves these things? THANK YOU HOOPS! It must be a lot of work. I hope everyone else appreciates your efforts.

Here's some various threads that popped into my mind when reading.

Fagen has "Brooklyn drawl?" C'mon! That's Joisey.

Where Becker and Fagen talk about how they have no idea what the audience expects of us. I bet today couldn't be further from the truth with all of us fans on the net and the Steely Dan mail bag.

I thought the reference to the mood rings was a funny blast from the past. Surprised they didn't mention earth shoes too.

Steve Gadd was new to them (!) when they made Aja.

What Babs record is I mean to Shine on? Has there ever been a Becker/Fagen demo of that one released?

I like how they view Rainey and Carlton as members of their in-studio band.

They sure have taken a complete 180 on touring, haven't they?

Is "The Bees Knees" a pun on the "Bee Gees" or was that another band in the 1970s? I don't think Walter laughs at his own jokes anymore which shows you how much he has matured.

I think Only a Fool Would Say that, Chain Lighening, and most of their songs is good time music, any Steely Dan music is good time music.

Didn't Becker and Fagen learn about a Haitian Divorice from one of their recording engineers who had to get one during the making of Royal Scam? I keep thinking it was Roger Nichols or Elliott Shriner.

Do Becker and Fagen really have contempt for Jimmy Buffet in real life? And the Eagles too? I am a Parrothead. Or is this them just razzing them.

I thought Donald's comments about If a Person is on the edge we could throw him off was funny. Then I wondered, how many Steely Dan fans are on the edge? Are they out there? Like I sat next to this one fan at the Gorge who get shouting Book Keepers Son as a song request but it got nutty and then he kept shouting it even after the encore was even done.

I agree that Steely Dan should write movies because all of their songs are like movie plot lines like out of CSI or Miami Vice.

I don't remember Root Boy Slim. Is he for real? Or did they make him up?

Is this new record they are coming out with their last for Warner Brothers? Isn't Reprise for old fogey acts? If so, I think it's insulting.

Walter's Kewpie Doll's comments made me think of the Wonderwaif shirts and the Children's Fez Birth Control tip shirts in 1996.

Well that's it.

Good to see so many smiling Steely Dan Fan faces around here lately.

---Lucie

"Make Mine A Double Sam"

P.S. Hoops, How do I get the Digest again? Mine stopped coming.

Date: Sat, January 25, 2003, 12:39:14 ET
Posted by: µ ,

jk: I remember it well...only time will tell if This One's ADD or AAD - we do know it is not DDD...

hoops: believe it or not Oleander is as far from the Outer Banks as you are from Erie, PA...

Date: Fri, January 24, 2003, 23:13:13 ET
Posted by: Lisa Gordon, Flipping the pages and...

SD mentioned in the January '03 issue of the "Funny Times" under the article "Planet Procter"--Compiled by Phil Proctor

(BONUS: Some of these are actually funny. :P)

MORE GRANNY WINNERS
The Beatles: "I Get By With a Little Help From Depends"
Steely Dan: "Rikki Don't Lose That Clapper"
Herman's Hermits: "Mrs. Brown, You've Got a Lovely Walker"
The Rolling Stones: "You Can't Always Pee When You Want"
Creedence Clearwater Revival: "Bad Prune Rising"
Marvin Gaye: "I Heard It Through the Grape Nuts"
The Who: "Talkin' Bout my Medication"
The Troggs: "Bald Thing"


Strange place for the Dan to show up, but it made me smile nonetheless.

Here's to the new "new one" and a great year of Steely delights. :)

Date: Fri, January 24, 2003, 20:38:38 ET
Posted by: C,

Good show.

Date: Fri, January 24, 2003, 19:21:38 ET
Posted by: jk,

did you notice the line: and finally the 5.1 mix?

jk

Date: Fri, January 24, 2003, 19:19:19 ET
Posted by: h,

I believe it was somewhere, jk--it was debated too, I think around November, but great to read again.

jk and everyone. As you will recall, I caught Charlap last November with Phil Woods, here in Chicago at the Jazz Showcase. I found myself by chance between then while at the bar and we had a great conversation. Both seemed like great people, aside from being great musicians. SueDave wants to organize a Danfest for Charlap's gig in Seattle. I can see that it gets listed at http://www.dandom.com/danfests Thanks for the link, jk.

Oleander: Thought of you when I saw the news and they discussd snow on the Outter Banks. LOL! I'm so skeptical of the release date so I have to wait for it to really happen on May 6. I still owe Oleander for the 2vN date contest.

Sue Dave: I am with you...who are the sax players? Don't tell me no sax…

Anyone want to join me as I inveigle tonight?

Must get auto-hyperlinking...must get auto-hyperlinking.

h

Date: Fri, January 24, 2003, 19:07:02 ET
Posted by: jk,

http://www.nprjazz.org/feature/charlap_b.html

Date: Fri, January 24, 2003, 19:04:56 ET
Posted by: jk,

Pianist Bill Charlap
was born and raised in New York City. He is the son of
Broadway composer Moose Charlap ("Peter Pan") and singer
Sandy Stewart (Benny Goodman) and has been playing the piano
for as long as he can remember. In addition to leading his
own trio with Peter Washington on bass and Kenny Washington
on drums, Charlap has been a member of the Phil Woods
Quintet since 1995. He has performed with Benny Carter,
Clark Terry. Jim Hall, Al Grey, Red Mltchell, Frank Wess,
Warren Vaché, Milt Hinton, Louie Bellson and Grady
Tate among many other jazz superstars. Charlap was a member
of the Gerry Mulligan Quartet for two years in the late '8Os
and, has been accompanist of choice for several noted
vocalists-including Tony Bennett and Carol Sloane. Bill has
appeared on over 50 CDs as a sideman as well as recording
under his own name.

Date: Fri, January 24, 2003, 18:51:11 ET
Posted by: jk,

did someone post this already?


News
The Toy Specialists Outfits Presence Studios


Westport, CT (October 17, 2002)--New York-based rental company, The Toy Specialists at Scharff Weisberg recently supplied Presence Studios in Westport, CT with a package of outboard equipment. The equipment was used to complete Steely Dan's newest album produced by Walter Becker and Donald Fagen, and mixed by Elliot Scheiner. The Toy Specialist's format conversion facility, TransferMat, also worked on the project, converting the 2-inch analog masters to 24-Bit Digidesign Pro Tools files for the mix and then to DASH tape for mastering.
The project is being recorded and mixed in Studio A on Presence's Neve VR-Legend 60. "We've been working on this album with Walter, Donald and Elliot for 14 months, first recording overdubs, then mixes and recalls and finally the 5.1 mix," comments Presence Partner, Jon Russell. "They are among our most discriminating clients so when they request an esoteric piece of equipment, or when they need equipment of the highest caliber, I always go to The Toy Specialists because I know they'll have it and that it will be in good shape."
The full package provided included Summit TLA-100 Limiters, Prism Dream AD-2 A-to-D Converters, Prism Dream DA-2 D-to-A converters, dbx 160SL Compressor Limiters, Meyer HD-1 Powered Monitors, Massenburg 8200 Equalizers, and Massenburg 8900 Compressors. "We have enjoyed working with all the folks at Presence Studios since their move to Westport many years ago," commented The Toy Specialists' Bill Tesar. "Jon and Kathy run a very professional operation. It's a pleasure to provide them with the latest toys for the many high profile projects conducted there."
TransferMat's involvement in the project began in the summer of 2001 when engineer Roger Nichols came to them with basic tracks for two of the songs. The tracks were recorded on 2-inch analog tape at 15 IPS with Dolby SR. TransferMat transferred the songs into Pro Tools using Apogee AD-8000 converters to create 24-bit files. The Pro Tools sessions were then transferred to DASH tape, utilizing the Apogee UV22 dithering process to feed 16-bit signal to the DASH machine. Also, on several occasions, T.J. Doherty, who had been handling most of the overdubbing sessions on the project, brought in DASH reels to be cloned via DASH lock.
The Toy Specialists at Scharff Weisberg
212-333-2206

Date: Fri, January 24, 2003, 16:08:08 ET
Posted by: jk,

ok - so i miscalculated my timing on the release date of emg a little bit . . .

so i'd like to be the first to guess when the single will be released or when radio starts playing it.

i'm going to say march 25 - is that a tuesday?

and let's guess the title of the single. how about: the dawn horse - new york lai - mr sam - three sisters - wanda's bodega - canadian star (with lyrics) - gold teeth III - stop yer yakkin - days of whine and tears - segway:my scooter - coolie baba - hoops' pad - the boy king - 202-456-1111 - watermelon pie - where's lisa? - another song about monkeys - wetside story - sharon - trouble time - simone - islands in the blue - sail the waterway - the steely dan show - jivie the hipster - the girl's got moxie - lay down with dogs . . . - fresh ground pepper? - jumpin'julia turnstiles - Anna Logg - carey - cinder annie - 12 step bar blues.

will walt play bass on tour?

i also have a great idea about how we all can participate and celebrate the release of emg in may!

jk



(say no to war)

Date: Fri, January 24, 2003, 14:37:20 ET
Posted by: Lawrence,

http://www.seaworld.org/go2camp/pictures/pictures/5-001/pages/P1010042.htm

Date: Fri, January 24, 2003, 13:13:43 ET
Posted by: John Dawson, Baltimore and DC

Anybody else out there ever inveigled himself?

Date: Fri, January 24, 2003, 12:27:05 ET
Posted by: h,

This week, the "Classic Metal Leg & Other Steely Dan Articles That As Far As I Know Have Never Been On The Internet" series covers an interview sent to me from the U.K. by Andrew Hopkins. Andrew has been collecting Steely Dan articles since the early 70s and he has generously sent a huge collection of 40-plus articles for my enjoyment and eventually yours. Thanks, to say the least, Andy!

Where possible, I've tried to reatin the British spellings, authour misspellings (to show that maybe the author doesn't know the material that well), and type sizes (like in the headline below.) This one I had to mostly type by hand since the paper is so old and yellow and can't be scanned easily.

After they appear here, "long lost" arcticles that have appeared here since last October, like perhaps the Sounds interview below, or the Chicago Tribune interview with Donald Fagen for the Rock and Soul Revue or the St. Louis Post-Dispatch review of Two Against Nature, etc. will be archived at John Granatino's very becoming Steely Dan Internet Resource site under the "Steely Dan Reading Room" page, http://www.granatino.com/sdresource/views.htm. To reflect the same sentiment of the greater Dandom, thanks very much, John!

---

Sounds
October 22, 1977
An Interview by Sylvie Simmons.

---

STEELY
DAN DARE
TO GIVE
SYLVIE SIMMONS
A MORE-OPEN-THAN-USUAL INTERVIEW

IT'S NOT every day that Steely Dan bare their souls to the public. But amid the palm trees and coke bottles at the Bel Air Hotel, all was revealed—if not all, at least a lot for Steely Dan. Warning: at times this interview degenerates into the Becker and Fagan Laugh-In, a crazy double-act in which Walter B. (bass, vocals, long hair) and Donald F. (keyboards, vocals, Brooklyn drawl, shades) play off each other with the sole purpose of pushing unstable journalists over the edge.Beach boys Becker and Fagen left their Malibu home for nearby Bel Air to promote (promote?) their latest offering, 'Aja’—follow-up to last year's 'Royal Scam', and their sixth album since the birth of the Dan in '72.

This one is not, despite the rumours they've spread to the contrary, a double album in the States (sense of humour, remember?) It just looks like one. They needed a gate-fold cover to fit all those sleeve notes on. Journalist Michael Phalen's terrifying tale of an interview rife with insults and threats and a CIA-like confiscation of the tape, a warning to would-be interviewers, balanced with some real nice guys-type praise from the president of ABC records; can they be talking about the same people?

Part I. Aja, an Oriental name of no significance, probably Korean.

Did you start out with any particular idea or concept in mind?

Fagen: We do it song by song. We don't really plan the shape of an album, except perhaps subliminally. First in this album we ended up with too many medium or slow-tempo songs, so we went in and cut a couple of up-number ones. 'Peg' was the last cut. We had a song slated for it, ‘Here At The Western World' that had originally been cut for the 'Royal Scam' album. It was laying around and we liked it a lot, but it didn't fit on 'Scam' and we thought we had too many songs in that tempo on this album, so it's still sitting around. We'll get it out sooner or later.

Are you influenced, or put under any pressure, by what your fans expect of you?

Fagen: No, not really. We really aim to please ourselves you know.

Becker: Plus we have no way of knowing what the audience expects of us.

Fagen: I think we put pressure on ourselves. I think we've topped ourselves every succeeding album in quality.

Becker: Good for you! I never know for sure. I have a good feeling about this one, but it's too hard to tell when you've been working on it for as long as we have. I mean, you can't listen to it objectively any more without dissecting it in your mind in a funny kind of way, because you know how it was put together. But I'm really proud of it. Now I can forget about it and start the next one.

Fagen: I usually think the one we just did is better than the last one. Must be something to do with our mood rings, I guess. When we were writing this our mood rings were green.

Any particular favourite?

Becker: The title song I like. It was an interesting cut. We'd gotten this drummer we didn't know but we'd heart a lot about named Steve Gadd—he was flown in from New York. We had a chart for the tune, and it was like eight pages long—three music stands in front of every musician. What's on the charts is very specific for some of the players—like the keyboards—but very open for others. Like, there's nothing written for the bass player except the chord symbols, the guitar player basically works on his own concept, and particularly the drummer—he really had to outdo himself on that one.

No track immediately offers itself as a single. Are you releasing one?

Becker: I'm sure we will, but I don't know which tune it will be. When we write the songs and prepare the album, we really don't concern ourselves with that, because we're not a good judge collectively of what's going to strike the public's ear in that way. And a lot of our things are too long—there's all kinds of restrictions in radio here, it can't be more than 2-1/2 minutes long or something.

Fagen: It's a very unlikely choice for American radio because of the length of the cut.

Becker: They're still a very puritanical society as far as the media goes. I think it's loosening up a bit, but not on Top 40 radio. You're allowed to have simulated orgasms on record

Fagen: Yes, as long as you do it quietly.

Part II. The Way We Were And The Way We Are Now.

You-started out as pop songwriters, didn't you? (After two years as back-up musicians for '60s pop-harmony group Jay And The Americans, Gary Katz, their producer, found them a cosy niche at ABC as staff songwriters. One of their pop songs, titled 'I Mean To Shine', was recorded by no less than Barbra Streisand).

Becker: Well, not really. We tried to be, but we weren't. When we came out to ABC we were hired as staff writers; we would be writing songs for their artists roster. We knew very well that what we were going to do was end up with our own band, recording our own songs, as no-one else particularly wanted to record our songs. Then and now. So we just kind of played at that for a while, then once we had the band assembled we said, hey, we're ready to record, and that's it.

We had what is now a studio at ABC, which was then under construction, making more offices for accountants or something. Anyway, there were these empty offices, and they were nailing up stuff during the day. We had all our amplifiers in one of these rooms. After six we went over there with the band and rehearsed for a couple of hours. That's where we got our first album together.

(Original members Jeff Baxter, Dave Palmer and Jim Hodder have long since passed on. The only old Dan remaining is guitarist Denny Dias. Otherwise it's session men—the best.)

How did you come across the musicians on Aja?

Becker: We hear them on records—

Fagen: We meet them at parties—

Becker: Yeah, and we ask other musicians about them, and go out and buy more records, and hear about them that way. Then we just call them up and hire them and see what happens. Sometimes we run into cases where we thought we had the perfect musicians for a particular thing, but then nothing happens and we all go home early. Usually something happens because we check out as much as we can, what kind of musicians they are, what they're capable of and best at.

They're quite happy to adapt to your concept?

Becker: It seems to happen by itself because of the nature of the songs, and because of the kind of freedom they have at the sessions. In other words, there are certain things - certain harmonics and certain motifs in our music - they do have to pay attention to. And I guess that's what takes care of the continuity in the sound. But they also have a certain freedom. There are always-sessions where they can play A little more than they do at most of the other things, and do what they do best, rather than being too confined. We never ask anybody to consciously adapt to our style. In fact a lot of musicians come here, and I don't think they have any idea of what our style is—don't know or care.

Will you ever get a permanent band together?

Fagen: We use a lot of the same players anyway. On the last three albums—like, Victor Feldman's been on all three, Chuck Rainey's always at the sessions, and Larry Carlton. We' actually have a band with a few substitutions.

Part III. In which the Dan are contented to sit In Malibu and live off the royalties.

Rumour has it that you’ll be touring the States before long.
(Steely Dan haven't toured since’74. Their only visit to Europe was a year earlier.)

Becker: Not that I know of! We had intended to tour, but the album release was delayed, so we put it off. Now we've no plans to tour.

Fagen: Making these records pretty well takes up our time. Once we've finished one we start the next. That's the reason we haven't been touring.

Becker: Touring is an expensive hobby.

Fagen: We spend money on a tour. We have an expensive set-up. We don't like playing big halls—the sound is bad. So we have 4,000 people coming in, and it's not enough money to meet the expenses of putting on a show.

Becker: And we spend a longer time preparing our albums, I guess, than other people do.

Fagen: Stevie Wonder spent 2-1/2 years on his record.

Becker: But we found from past efforts that being on the road wasn't enhancing what we were doing in the studio. So we decided that we'd do either one thing or the other.

Do you go see other bands?

Becker: Very rarely. In concert halls here you get a lousy sound, parking costs a buck and stuff like that. No.

Part IV. Lyrics, language problems, black humour and the American Dream.

Your lyrics have sometimes been called impersonal.

Becker: We don't feel the urgent need to bare our souls that Ted Nugent probably does, or Kiss or Queen or Black Death or The Bees Knees or …(collapses in laughter).

Fagen: We write the same way a writer of fiction would write. We're basically assuming-the role of a character, and for that reason it may not sound personal. But I try to assume the role and make it believable—not to the extent of doing dialects

Becker: I've heard you do dialects—

Fagen: I say his words, try to express some of his emotions, some of his problems, hang-ups—primarily the hang-ups.

Becker: This is not the Loving Spoonful. It's not real good time music. Anyway, we think those are happy thoughts.

Fagen: It's a part of life, so why not enjoy it?

Becker: Also we feel that these give us the more fertile ground that we've been trampling on for the last five years. It's bard to keep trying to write a song about something you haven't written about before—you keep coming back to the same themes. There's some truth in the fact that happy situations tend to be more or less static and-not that interesting to hear about.

Fagen: When you read a novel in which there are no rough spots for the characters to get over, if everybody did The Hustle from the first page to the last, it wouldn't be much of a novel. It wouldn't enlighten you in any way.

Do you look on your lyrics as enlightening?

Becker: Not in a Buddhist sense.

Fagen: But they do shed light on certain situations. I think a lot of people in Britain know about Haitian divorces now that probably didn't before.

Becker: Of course, you can't get a Haitian divorce any more. You used to be able to go to Haiti and get a divorce real fast. They give you this document in French with ribbons and plumes and everything, and it's recognized by the American government. In a way that's enlightening. It's a situation people probably thought we made up. There are probably people out there who think we made up the name Haiti. We've been accused of everything else.

Fagen: There are people who think we made up the word 'Aja'.

But your lyrics are nothing if not obscure.

Becker: To us it, s a perfectly straightforward story. On the other hand, if anyone finds the lyrics obscure, there's always the music. So, even if you don't know anything about Haitian divorces—

Fagen: You can always look in the Steely Dan Listener's Companion.

Becker: We feel that we use basically the English language. In the United Kingdom, I don't know if people know what the word ‘scam’ means. There was some question as to whether the word 'pretzel' makes sense to English people. There were a lot of reviewers asking us what a pretzel was.

Fagen: So it's basically just a language problem.

Becker: We hadn't anticipated either of those things. So it may appear to people in the United Kingdom that we are writing very much in code.

They're pretty cynical though, and bitterly realistic.

Becker: A lot of what you'd call bitter or cynical, we'd call funny.

Fagen: We think these are very funny songs that we're writing. And when we're writing them, we really do have a grand old time yukking it up about the lyrics'

Becker: We may have a slightly blacker sense of humour than your average person. I'm always surprised that divorces and things aren't funnier than they are. The American Dream? That’s very funny too.

What about your home, California?

Becker: I think that's very funny—it's probably the funniest of the 50 states that I know of.

Fagen: We're not as negative as the Eagles. They're totally down on California.

Becker: When we first came out here it was pretty different from New York, and it does give you a creative vacuum in which to work. It gave us some new characters and new ideas, and it gave us a laboratory-type sterile atmosphere to work in. Because if you walk down the street here in California, you'll be the only person doing it. Nobody gets out of their cars here. It's a different kind of society.

Part V. Time to light another cigarette, get some fresh gum, and discourse on books, films and fans.

Becker: We're pretty bookish guys.

Fagen: In our profession, we're as bookish as I've met. But I think that's more a reflection on what everyone else is doing than what we're doing. I think people should be asking themselves why they're so god dam illiterate.

What do you read?

Becker: I like instruction booklets a lot, science fiction and recipes. My favourite author in the English language is Vladimir Nabokov. Of course he just recently died. So 1 feel that now he's dead, he won't be writing any more, so I have nothing new to look forward to until they start publishing whatever they can find in his apartment,

Fagen: I read novels, history, anything that's lying around. The only things I don't. read much are self-help manuals or poetry.

What would you say is the effect of your lyrics on the audience?

Becker: We hear from a few psychotic fans, threatening and maligning us, or alternatively renting huge football stadiums to perform in and telling us after the fact, or writing to us in strange languages -

Fagen: If a person's on the edge, you know, we could probably throw him off.

Becker: We're just trying to cheer people up. Also we're thinking about writing a movie.

How near to a reality is that?

Becker: Very far. It's just –

Fagen: Just a gleam in Irving Azoff’s eyes.

Becker: It's the potential ringing of cash registers in our manager's mind. Irving's been encouraging us. He keeps telling us, 'Hey, if you guys can write these songs you can write movies, it's the same thing. You just fill out a couple of hundred pages with the same story on it.”

Part VII. Heroes and villains; featuring a change of record company and Irving Azoff’s strange disease.

Another quote. Mike McDonald (keyboards on 'Katy Lied,’ back-up vocals on 'Aja’) said 'you'd have liked to have been Duke Ellington and Charlie Parker.’

Becker: I'd rather be Charlie Parker than anything.

Fagen: Everyone would like to be possessed of genius.

Becker: Those are a couple of our heroes. Do you mind being Duke if I'm Charlie?

Fagen: No, I'll be Duke Ellington.

Becker: We have other heroes, other jazz musicians, but those a two are particularly outstanding examples.

Fagen: Like Root Boy Slim. (sings: "put a quarter in the juke, boogie till you puke”) He’s the sound of the ‘70s. When Root Boy goes (sings: "Awl riite") that's the sort of thing that can really get us going.

Why are you changing record companies? (Steely Dan have one more album to do with ABC before moving to Warners.)

Becker: When we realised our contract was going to be up, we shopped around.

Fagen: We were just going to sign up with ABC, but they didn't want us enough.

Becker: They weren't putting up the same amount that Warner Brothers was. And they have this nice building at Burbank, Warners—

Fagen: Knotty pine—

Becker: Very ethnic. This move will mark a new development in the band's career, because from that point on, instead of that ABC label in the centre of the records, there's going to be a WB label with palm trees—

Fagen: Coconuts, everything.

Becker: Actually the reason we signed with them was because of Bugs Bunny and Daffy Duck being Warner Brothers characters. We try to catch the Bugs Bunny show in the afternoons when we can. Of course, you can't see it every day, so that influenced our decision a lot.

Any other reason?

Becker: Irving Azoff, our manager, wants us to come out and socialise, mix with the other guys from the other bands a lot more now.

Fagen: We were supposed to go to the Eagles' wedding.

Becker: No, that wasn't the Eagles' wedding; it was Jimmy Buffet's wedding—

Fagen: Or birthday party.

Becker: We couldn't make it. I was in San Francisco and the wedding was in Colorado. Irving got some kind of amoeba disease which we tried to keep secret. The water supply in Colorado is a little tainted, We want people to know that so they won't go there and ski.

Part VIII. The Future

Becker: We've already started writing our next album, and of course we'll be working on the theme song for Irving Azoff's forthcoming movie (eventually titled, ‘FM’). That's about all—Donald's going to learn how to drive his new Jaguar.

Fagen: We're buying up options on science-fiction stories to be made into movies, going down to Washington D.C. to see Root Boy a lot.

Becker: We're going to branch out and start to merchandise the Steely Dan name—

Fagen: Steely Dan breakfast meats—

Becker: Kewpie dolls and things like that. Anything we can put the Steely Dan name on and sell for some of the coin of the realm. That way we can become real capitalists. That's the only thing left for us.

Fagen: Except for politics, and that's so boring.

Becker: Anyway, Irving's going to run for governor of California next year.

So I guess we're just going to keep on doing the same thing we've been doing all along—whatever that is.

Date: Fri, January 24, 2003, 08:24:32 ET
Posted by: take five, like now

http://pacific.bizjournals.com/pacific/stories/2003/01/20/daily32.html

avg

Date: Fri, January 24, 2003, 08:17:48 ET
Posted by: avg fan, rise and shine

Steely Dan's Aja part of the 2003 Grammy Hall Of Fame selection:

http://www.businesswire.com/cgi-bin/f_headline.cgi?day0/230240077&ticker=

Date: Fri, January 24, 2003, 00:24:14 ET
Posted by: suedave, here in the western world

One great way to whittle away the time from now to May 6th...

My friend Stan from Kansas let me know that the one and only Larry Carlton will be playing at Dimitriou's Jazz Alley April 10-13 in Seattle. Danfest on Saturday April 12th? Mark your calendar. Tickets are not on sale yet. Thanks Stan!

Susan

Check his website to see if he is coming to your town larrycarlton.net.

Date: Thurs, January 23, 2003, 21:43:18 ET
Posted by: oleander, out on a limulus

Ladies and gents, WE HAVE A WINNER!

Yes, the lovely PEG has won The Next Betting Pool! She guessed the release date of "Everything Must Go" ON THE NOSE!

And what will the lovely lady be taking home, Jim?

A horseshoe crab-hunting vacation with William Gibson!!

You need not be present to win.

plumb giddy... oleander

Date: Thurs, January 23, 2003, 20:13:10 ET
Posted by: Mr. LaPage, Wishing it was May

A very good pre-Dan taste of WB singing is "I Can't Function", where HE sings lead and DF is harmonizing, at least in my opinion. This tune is on Android Warehouse (among other releases) and is one of favorites from this time in the history of this Dynamic Duo.

COME ON MAY !!!!

Date: Thurs, January 23, 2003, 17:20:08 ET
Posted by: Kevin , B.

I'm giddy about the new album! Go Steely Dan! Go!

Very clever Mark in Boston! Granted I didn't get the Harry Potter thing either, (1990 Steely Dan album?) but, Hey Mike and Earl, I've come to expect only clever and funny jabs on the blue.

I was reading another one of those articles where the record industry execs cry they are being killed by on-line sharing and piracy. I agree that piracy causes some decline, but a recent internet study I saw claimed that people who download music off the web actually purchase more CD's , not less. The larger issue here is that record companies promote their artists as the next great hope and again they're a one hit wonder. No one buys the marketing anymore, and most popular music now all sounds the same as every record company tries to cash in on the latest fad. I find it difficult to believe that record companies are not making money, and blame piracy.

I'm someone who owns over 4000 vinyl records (yes, vinyl) and then bought thousands of CDs. As I recall, one rationale from the record companies was that CDs were cheaper to make, not to mention they sounded so perfect, we'd never have to buy these again. So now I fail to see how record companies who said they were losing money when making vinyl records, and moved into making CD's because they were cheaper, now claim to be still losing money. If it costs betweem $7.99 to 9.99 for a vinyl record back then(late 80's-90's), than why does it cost $15.99-22.99 for a cd, if the reason they switched was because Cd's are cheaper to make?

The reason......soak the consumers (and the artists) for as much money as they can! You hear a lot about recording artists who have filed for bankruptcy because they have no money, or artists who are suing their record companies or accounting companies for mismanagement of their revenues from their careers. Artists need to take responsibility as well, most of us are not previlaged enough to earn anything close to what the big names get, however they should remember that their 15 minutes of fame will not last, so keep some of the money they make, don't squander it trying to live beyond their means, or else they won't have anything left beyond their careers.

Speaking of the record companies, I hope Warner Brothers does right by publicty on "Everything Must Go." Everything must go into promoting this one!

Can't wait for May to buy a thrill!

Kevin

Date: Thurs, January 23, 2003, 16:53:10 ET
Posted by: Billboard adds,

"The group is expected to tour in support of "Everything Must Go," but no dates have yet been unveiled. "

Date: Thurs, January 23, 2003, 16:49:59 ET
Posted by: avg fan, take 4

http://199.249.170.183/billboard/daily/article_display.jsp?vnu_content_id=1802879

Date: Thurs, January 23, 2003, 16:18:40 ET
Posted by: Boston Rag, Dorktown

Hey Scott -

Harry Potter has a close friend named Ron Weasley.
Walter Becker has a close friend named John Beasley!

It's fuckin' amazing!!!

(Hey what is this the yellow GB? Sorry, just giddy from yesterday's news)

Mark in Boston

Date: Thurs, January 23, 2003, 15:23:20 ET
Posted by: HeyMike, the ditch out in the valley

Scott..only if you're dork

Date: Thurs, January 23, 2003, 14:33:58 ET
Posted by: Earl, Delaware

Scott,

After you sober up, could you please clarify what you were trying to say? Thanks.

Earl

Date: Thurs, January 23, 2003, 14:25:41 ET
Posted by: avg fan, everything, as in everything?

Yes, trying to figure out what this means for three months... brr
And zeohippus?
ODP web feature in the meantime, I hope.

"... sex and violence in Hollywood." DAN ... that to succeed politically you MUST ... You can't
GO for the ... you have a solid, STEELY... win victories in Congress on EVERYTHING ..."
That's a start...

Date: Thurs, January 23, 2003, 14:17:33 ET
Posted by: scott,

The last Harry Potter novel was published in 1990. In January 2003 it was announced that the much anticipated next Harry Potter book will be released later that year.

The last Steely Dan album was released in 1990. In January 2003 it was announced that their much anticipated next recording will be released later that year.

Is there a connection here?

Date: Thurs, January 23, 2003, 14:12:07 ET
Posted by: , take 3

http://www.livedaily.citysearch.com/news/4541.html

Date: Thurs, January 23, 2003, 14:08:21 ET
Posted by: Eric, San Diego, CA

A fall tour seems most likely to me, rather than summer. Also, I wonder if the "Everything Must Go" title has anyting to do with the falling of the WTC towers. My understanding is they started this album sometime around then. Thoughts anyone?....eb

Date: Thurs, January 23, 2003, 14:05:47 ET
Posted by: µ,

Mr. Sam - Great story, but did you get laid?!

Date: Thurs, January 23, 2003, 13:06:13 ET
Posted by: avg fan,

One has the feeling we'll see that news release again in various forms but for the record... press release dress rehearsal, take two:

http://www.undercover.com.au/20030123_steelydan.html

Date: Thurs, January 23, 2003, 12:46:39 ET
Posted by: Mme Erzulie, Magnolia Boulevard

If they tour, they could call it the Everyone Must Go/Come (to the shows) Tour...

And if the tour is in the summer... that should be the cool part of the summer!

I haven't bought 11TOW yet, but I love Walter's singing on both Turn that Heartbeat over again and on the live version of Book of Liars.

And I live in Norway, by the way, so if what Warner Brothers Norway says is correct, I guess I'll be listening a good week before the rest of ya! Muahahahaha!!!

Goodbye, dear...

Date: Thurs, January 23, 2003, 12:31:00 ET
Posted by: Mister Sam, Coincidence? You be the Judge!

Hi Folks,

Been lurking here at the Blue for the past several months, but just haven't had much to say. Thanks to all you contributors (especially you, Hoops!) for the marvelous reading material. Also, let me extend a very belated thank you to Mr. StevieDan for posting the lyrics to Mister Sam several months ago. It was much appreciated I assure you.

Anyhow, as fate would have it, yesterday, I finally experienced a cosmic display of synchronicity that I now feel compelled to share with my brothers and sisters here in Dandom Land. It's time to testify!!!

Yesterday evening, you see, I was shopping for a special bottle of Scotch to celebrate the official press release when I had another in what's become a long procession of Steely Dan shopping moments.

This particular discount liquor outlet, mind you, is a bit off the beaten path. Hence, I usually reserve going there for those times when I'm Jonesin' for something a bit exotic. As an added bonus of going there, though, the muzak service to which they subscribe broadcasts generous amounts of original Dan recordings and Dan covers (esp, the Ben Folds version of Barrytown.)

Anyhow, as I entered the store, I was immediately greeted by the wonderful intrumental break of, get this, "Turn That Heartbeat Over Again." Naturally, I smiled (thinking, "how appropriate on this glory day"), and proceeded to sing along to the final verse as I bopped through the spacious aisles toward my favorite collection of libations.

Normally, this establishment just airs the closed-circuit muzak service to which they subscribe. Hence, I was thinking that one Dan song to greet me was as good as it was gonna' get. On this visit, however, much to my surprise TTHOA was immediately followed by the adrenalin-pumping strains of "Bodhisattva". What a thrill!! I surmised instantly that a store employee was spinning Disc 1 of the Citizen Steely Dan collection.

Upon, reaching the checkout counter I inquired jubilantly as to who had the incredibly good taste in music. I figured that this paragon of culture was undoubtedly celebrating the good news of the day. My cashier, however, simply shrugged his shoulders, and said, "I don't know. Who is this, by the way?" Seeing how young and innocent this guy was, I just had to laugh and proudly proclaimed, "THAT, my friend, is Steely Dan."

At that point, my eyes quickly scanned across the other registers, and quickly locked on the eyes of a cashier two lanes over. Apparently, she had overheard my inquiry. She responded with a big warm smile, and thanked me for the compliment on her musical taste.

Sensing that I was in the company of a fellow dan fan, I asked her if she had heard the good news. Apparently, she had not. The fact that she had chosen that day and time to turn off the muzak, and spin a SD CD instead was pure coincidence! I happily passed on the news to her of The Next One's pending release.

This came as welcome, though totally unexpected, news to her. She immediately declared her intentions to buy the album as soon as it came out, and asked if I thought the band would tour this year. I told her there was no definitive tour news yet, but that I'd gladly keep her in the loop. Two degrees of Steely Dan folks. Web Drone to me to her.

Twenty minutes later, I arrived home, shook off the bitter cold, and connected to the Internet. Imagine my surprise when I surfed over to the Bluebook, and found Mu's freshly posted comments about TTHOA at the very top of the Bluebook! (Can't remember the last time that I read any references to that song here.)

Is all of this merely a coincidence? Perhaps. Then again, maybe it's just another ethereal expression of Zappa's Big Note theory. In any event, it's moments like these are apt to challenge one's long held beliefs about the order of the universe.

Dreaming about the cool part of the summer,
Mister Sam

PS - TOURING PREDICTIONS? I'm guessing that we'll see a late-Summer amphitheatre and early-Fall orchestra hall tour this time around. If you're out their listening Messrs. B&F, here are some good indoor venues you might consider (assuming they're all still standing):
* The Warner Theatre or Lincoln Theatre (Washington, DC)
* The Meyerhoff or Lyric Opera House (Baltimore, MD)
* The Stanley Theatre (Pittsburgh, PA)

Date: Thurs, January 23, 2003, 10:30:06 ET
Posted by: Paige, Santa Barbara

Ah...so Walter has harmonized with Donald (and others)...I stand corrected. "Turn That Heartbeat Around" is indeed an excellent song.

Job interview this morning....cross your fingers. This nightmare may be over soon.

-Paige

Date: Thurs, January 23, 2003, 08:47:30 ET
Posted by: Pepe,

Eohippus was the ancester to the horse. In
Latin it means "dawn horse."
"Neohippus! Think about it, Neo means new, "hippus" of course
means horse and could mean "hip".

Date: Thurs, January 23, 2003, 02:28:15 ET
Posted by: suedave,

Oooooyaaa, its a good day for the Dandom.

A tune sung by Walter? Fantastic, I love his bluesy voice. I'm sure the song will be a good fit for him, all the ones he's sung before generally are. No mention of SAX players on the new one? Think they are just background players? That's a bit odd, but hey, perhaps what must go is all the preconceptions!

Date: Thurs, January 23, 2003, 01:23:24 ET
Posted by: Sean,

Mu- I don't know? Looks to me like she's ready to give him some head.

Date: Wed, January 22, 2003, 23:24:46 ET
Posted by: µ - slap to the forehead, Cold Shower, New Mexico

Duh, the cutoff frame withstanding, it finally dawned on me that the couple in the DVD-A Maxine pic is slow dancing as young couples did on TV in the 50s - no pressing of bodies together - don't mess up that crease...

Date: Wed, January 22, 2003, 21:48:54 ET
Posted by: edbeatty, temecula,california

Hey,
Now thats what I wanted to hear about.
Are we ready for some touring?

Ed

"the summer will be so sublime"

Date: Wed, January 22, 2003, 21:48:33 ET
Posted by: µ,

re: Maxine. Her left hand seductively holds a man's left arm in a suit jacket. Note the "Pleasantville" use of red fingernails over a black and image. Look how the picture is tilted to the right, giving the woman a more vulnerable and romantic look, while the man appears more strong and towering, as if she's found a safe haven (e.g., "try to hang on"). The sweater and watch are perfect...

Date: Wed, January 22, 2003, 21:12:07 ET
Posted by: µ,

Paige: From Can't buy a Thrill, Turn That Heartbeat Over Again is the only song in the official discography that credits Walter with a Dan vocal...my guesses on this one:


With stocking face I bought a gun
The plan was set
The plan was done (Donald - far right channel. Unmistakable)

Looked at my watch
And headed for the door (David Palmer about 2:00 - doing a Donald imitation...almost - higher register and different tone)


Now the food here ain't so good no more (Walter with a Donald-like Vocal - slightly *different timbre* in left channel? could be Donald,? But I'm sticking with Walter - check out the sound later on "Paraguay")

And they've closed the package store (Walter and Donald - this I'm sure of)

CHORUS:
Love your mama, love your brother
Love 'em till they run for cover
Turn the light off, keep your shirt on
Cry a jag on me (Walter, Donald, and Palmer - pretty sure of this)

Oh Michael Oh Jesus you know I'm not to blame
You know my reputation for playing a good clean game
Oh Michael Oh Jesus I'll keep my promise when
You turn that heartbeat over again (Donald doubled up, and David Palmer)


I love this recording - may be my favorite on the first one, especially the instrumental break - but then I go for the instrumentation, tune, harmonies, and production more than lyrics...

Date: Wed, January 22, 2003, 19:23:35 ET
Posted by: angel,

Paige: They harmonized a bit on Stone Piano.

Date: Wed, January 22, 2003, 18:22:50 ET
Posted by: Paige, Santa Barbara

JK....

Just a few comments concerning Walter...

I've been told many times that I have not given 11TOW enough of a chance. I really tried....tried hard out of respect for Mr. Becker.

It reminds me of the old axiom that Bob Dylan is proof positive that you can become a pop/rock icon without knowing how to carry a note.

I look at Walter in the same manner.

For me (and me only apparently)...Walter represents the darker side of Steely Dan...the side that I personally like. If you listen to Donald's solo work, you don't hear the same cynicism and acerbic humor that Walter brings to the table.

Because I am more addicted to their lyrics then their music, it follows that Walter IS Steely Dan. He certainly is an exceptional and creative bass player and his "minimalist" guitar solos fit well into SD's new "easy listening" mode. Personally, I miss Skunk Baxter and I'm pleased that Harrington is playing on the new one.

I have the greatest respect for Walter Becker...perhaps more than I do Donald.

I just got one problem. I honestly don't think that Walter can sing. I mean, I'm not even aware if he has ever tried to harmonize with Don...their voices being so different.

Anyway...having said all of this, I will remove 11TOW out from under my coffee cup and give it another try. I ain't promising anything.

Thanks for the post.

-Paige

Date: Wed, January 22, 2003, 17:55:46 ET
Posted by: jk,

paige i've been doing research on the subject for years. you do not like 11tow because you haven't listen to it enough. force yourself to listen to it - you will be rewarded!


tommy heinson: i love waltah!


jk




buzzflash.com

Date: Wed, January 22, 2003, 15:04:17 ET
Posted by: Queen of the World,

Anybody else see a possibly ominous link here?

First album: Can't Buy a Thrill
Last album: Everything Must Go

After all, Donald just turned 55...maybe the future looks desperate and dark and he's eyeing a condo down in Tampa.

Say it ain't so, boys!

Date: Wed, January 22, 2003, 14:36:47 ET
Posted by: Earthbound,

Fuckin' A!

I'm slightly freakin'...
Anyone sense a tour this summer?!
Jon Herington remains. Excellent.

HEYMIKE, RazorBoy, Campbell, et al
in da MILW/CHI zone: Break out dem
hooters & hats, bruthahs 'n sistahs!
There's gonna be fire in the hole
and nuthin' left to BURN come May!
I smell a FESS! C'mon daddy!


Geeked to the maximum,
Keith

El Sup...SUP?! Looks like a road trip
to yer town too! Cisneros! Jimbo!!

Date: Wed, January 22, 2003, 14:34:45 ET
Posted by: Earthbound,

Fuckin' A!

I'm slightly freakin'...
Anyone sense a tour this summer?!
Jon Herington remains. Excellent.

HEYMIKE, RazorBoy, Campbell, et al
in da MILW/CHI zone: Break out dem
hooters & hats, bruthahs 'n sistahs!
There's gonna be fire in the hole
and nuthin' left to BURN come May!
I smell a FESS! C'mon daddy!


Geeked to the maximum,
Keith

El Sup...SUP?! Looks like a road trip
to yer town too! Cisneros! Jimbo!!

Date: Wed, January 22, 2003, 14:02:52 ET
Posted by: Bill, TheGreatBeyond

Everything Must Go!

Go = Motion!
Motion = Tour!
Tour = Party!
Party = Good Times!
Good Times = Er...uh... Good Times!!!

Thanks for being here Jim!
Rock on!

Date: Wed, January 22, 2003, 12:25:02 ET
Posted by: Barbara Barrington, Tacoma, WASH.

Hi everyone!

Just had to de-lurk to say how excited I am about the new album. The chat here is great.

Hoops, I really like the All Things Must Pass connection. Good take on it. With Steely Dan, I'm sure it works on a lot of levels.

They HAVE to do Josie and Deacon Blue on the next tour. They are Steely Dan essentials.

I'm also glad to see Walter finally getting his due with a song of his own. I hope this means a solo album is in the wings. Someone on the yellow board said the Walter track would be a throwaway. NO WAY! I wish there were more songs with Walter singing. Also, Walter's Jack of Speed was SOOO MUCH BETTER than the one on the last album. Someone was saying Walter should sing on Josie. I agree.

I noticed that that New York caricaturist, Hircshfield, died at age 99. Has he ever drawn Becker and Fagen? If not, it's too bad since he should have.

Looking forward to Dan Fests and Wing Dingers.

Barbara

Date: Wed, January 22, 2003, 11:18:49 ET
Posted by: Paige, Santa Barbara

Like everyone else, my heart is racing a little faster this morning.

The title "Everything Must Go" is exactly what I would expect from Steely Dan. Nice title...even if it IS a complete sentence.

Pleased to see that Harrington is contributing on lead...In my humble opinion, he is underrated as a lead guitarist. Walter singing? Let's just say that 11TOW is not my favorite.

What I hope for and what I miss most, are those two "angry" young men from albums past...their cynicism and raw exposure of society's darker side (thanks Walter). I guess what I'm trying to say is that I hope that this new release is harder and more in your face...that is ROCKS. The title may be a hint in that direction.

The soundtrack to my life continues.

-Paige

Date: Wed, January 22, 2003, 10:33:53 ET
Posted by: Big Fan,

Wow,
I'm ready!!!!!!!!

Date: Wed, January 22, 2003, 10:16:55 ET
Posted by: Tom S. , New Baltimore, MI

The New One! Yeah!

Regarding the Maxine photo. I assumed it was a tree, not a log. Which reminds me of Firesign Theater:

This land is full of trousers!
this land is full of mausers!
And pussycats to eat them when the sun goes down!
-- Firesign Theater

Dan Fests and Listening Parties. Yeah!

See ya!

Date: Wed, January 22, 2003, 10:05:14 ET
Posted by: Boston Rag,

Waarner Music Norway has a release date of 4/28/03.
I'm starting to get Norwegian wood!!!

http://www.warnermusic.no/utgivelser.asp

Mark in Boston

Date: Wed, January 22, 2003, 09:15:08 ET
Posted by: Amanda,

You gotta love that title!

Date: Wed, January 22, 2003, 09:11:06 ET
Posted by: Sean, Quincy, MA

KICK ASS! A release date! How many days is that? How many hours? How many Minutes. Hoops, email me and I'll set you up with a countdown clock for your site! This rocks!

Sean

Date: Wed, January 22, 2003, 08:59:32 ET
Posted by: Earl, Delaware

OK...unless they go back to their early days, the album is titled "Everything Must Go" from one of the album tracks. If they depart from that trend, then the "Everything Must Go" could definitely refer to their changing philosophies about recording.

Or perhaps a sad way to look at it is this...they have said that they keep tapes and tapes of old riffs, vamps, song ideas, etc. What if they basically tried to use as many of those as possible? It is difficult to tell how many more albums they will be able to create after this one. In other words, everything must go because it may be their last?

One of the awesome things about these guys is that, as the years have passed, they've been more amenable to being interviewed. I am hoping that they get out there and do some more interviews this time around. Piano Jazz should be a treat, but I also hope that they get even more mileage out of this album than they did 2VN.

Wow, May 2003 will be a month to remember for me. SD #9, and Child #1.

Earl

Date: Wed, January 22, 2003, 08:33:43 ET
Posted by: Boston Rag, Paradise

"Hey -- is that a horsehoe crab?" that sounds like a Walter lyric to me! I hope the next line isn't "-- or are you just happy to see me".

Live tracking and "it's wiggy". Wow! Sounds like it might have a few driving tunes and dare I say - rockers on it????

May 6 is the U.S. release date. I wonder is it will be any sooner in Europe? Also, I wonder if the days of advance singles are over in the music industry. I don't know if I can take it waiting 13 weeks!

Alright, time to start planning Danfests and listening parties!


Mark in Boston

Date: Wed, January 22, 2003, 07:48:16 ET
Posted by: Steve Anglesey, London

I draw to your attention this somewhat similarly-titled album, released in 1996 by Wales stadium punksters The Manic Street Preachers.

http://www.allmusic.com/cg/amg.dll?p=amg&uid=7:45:25|AM&sql=A7f57gjtro6in

It is very good indeed and stuffed with the kind of elliptical lyrics we all know and love.

Date: Wed, January 22, 2003, 07:25:18 ET
Posted by: HeyMike, These Suburban Streets

Hee Haa, what great news to wake up to!!!Let me be amoung the first to call it E.M.G. A Summer Tour HAS to be in the works!!

Date: Wed, January 22, 2003, 06:55:54 ET
Posted by: George,

Wow. I am deeply impressed. You did not sleep. You did not work. You did not eat or drink - NOT. Just to wait all those long days and nights for the release of THIS precious piece of news. The loyal longing dandom!!!

Yes I like it. EVERYTHING MUST GO. Excactly the attitude that I'd expect from the boys. Er, um, sorry, I mean, gentlemen. And I am already totally excited about it. Fever's rising, pulse's increasing, etc, etc ... Well, let's mark our calendars! FTO already requested ;-)

Date: Wed, January 22, 2003, 06:19:22 ET
Posted by: chris mueller,

woo-hoo! at least we have a fixed date now . . . so does this mean a tour would be summer or fall?

c

Date: Wed, January 22, 2003, 06:00:33 ET
Posted by: Average Fan, not necessarily representative

I kinda miss that zEohippus. What was that about?
Is it a song title? It should be.

But "Everything must Go" is surprising, I must say. It is actually a complete sentence, much like "Can't buy a thrill". Becker singing, don't know what to think of that but hearing him on bass is always a treat.
And the change in approach here is reiterated, going analog, yes.

Anybody had an advanced copy yet?
Strike that. Ahem...
Anybody else can hear "That's when she jumped the turnstile"? already

Date: Wed, January 22, 2003, 05:51:21 ET
Posted by: Mike, Louisville, KY

Looks like insomnia has its rewards.

El Sup

Date: Wed, January 22, 2003, 04:49:24 ET
Posted by: Eric, San Diego, CA

Looks great! Heart is fluttering here! "Everything Must Go". Mind racing... Need to relax lol, I can't!

Date: Wed, January 22, 2003, 04:12:14 ET
Posted by: hoops, Chicago

Boo Hoo! Becker and Fagen didn't get nominated for the Songwriter's Hall of Fame this year, although I am pleased for Van Morrison (who could care less about such inductions). I mean, if the writer to the themes for "Happy Days" and "Love American Style" can get nominated...

Well, the album release date is all just starting to soak in...of course, many of the players are those we have chatted about here but there are some surprises too. Can't wait to hear what people think.

I better get to bed!

SWEET DREAMS!


h

Date: Wed, January 22, 2003, 04:01:45 ET
Posted by: hoops, chicago

Stevie:

"LOST OUR LEASE"??? Oh no! You make it sound like Steely Dan is going out of business. GASP! Hopefully they are just moving.

My other immediate association with the title was that it was that it was a play on George Harrison's album title, "All Things Must Pass." But "Everything Must Go" is the yuppie shopper's version of that title. Then of course, one could read even mo...I'll stop. :-)

WHAT'S EVERYONE ELSE'S TAKE ON THE NEW ONE'S TITLE and ALL THE REST???? Can't wait to hear,

I seem to remember that "Kama"'s second to last release date was early May. Wonder if it will slip to late May???? HOPE NOT :-)

Date: Wed, January 22, 2003, 03:50:34 ET
Posted by: SteveeDan, Not too far from Steely Dan's publicity in the Valley

Hi Everyone !!!

It's true, Everything Must Go ... at least by May 6, 2003 ...

WE'VE LOST OUR LEASE !!!

Let the Dan Fests begin !!!
Walter sings one tune on the new record ... that's a first.

When will we get concert tour information?

I believe the flood gates have just opened !!!


SteveeDan

Date: Wed, January 22, 2003, 03:44:24 ET
Posted by: Beerberian Early Bird, in heaven

January 22, 2003
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

REPRISE RECORDS TO RELEASE EVERYTHING MUST GO, STEELY DAN'S FIRST ALBUM SINCE 2000'S GRAMMY®-WINNING TWO AGAINST NATURE

In Stores Tuesday, May 6

Steely Dan is releasing Everything Must Go (Reprise) on May 6. It is Walter Becker and Donald Fagen's first release since 2000, when their Two Against Nature -- the duo's first studio release in 20 years -- garnered multiple Grammy® awards including "Album Of The Year".

Listeners anticipating Steely Dan's patented amalgam of sonic perfection, sinuous musicality, and subversive storytelling will not be disappointed by the new release, whose musical allusions range from Pharaoh Sanders to Tommy James, and whose literary echoes bound from William Gibson to Burmashave. Featured lyrics include such catchy phrases as "and that's when she jumped the turnstile" and "hey -- is that a horseshoe crab"?

Everything Must Go took roughly a year to record -- a veritable wind sprint given Becker and Fagen's legendary meticulousness in the studio. "We went for live tracking this time and got great, in-the-pocket tracks," says Becker. Donald Fagen adds "It's mad: it's wiggy: I love it".

The core band included Keith Carlock (drums), Ted Baker (keyboards), jazz sensation Bill Charlap (keyboards), and Jon Herington and Hugh McCracken (guitars). Becker played bass and guitar, while Fagen contributed keyboards, organs, Rhodes, synths, and -- on all but one cut -- lead vocals. Becker's solo singing on one tune marks the first such credit for him in Steely Dan's studio oeuvre.

Engineering were Elliot Scheiner, Dave Russell, Roger Nichols -- all of whom received Best Engineering Grammys® for Two Against Nature -- along with newcomer T.J. Doherty. Superstar tracking and mixing engineer Elliot Scheiner comments on the process, saying "We did a few things differently -- including tracking and mixing in analog instead of digital. That contributed to giving this album a really rich and satisfying sound".

Steely Dan's official website -- Becker and Fagen's personal internet playpen since 1996 -- can be found at www. steelydan.com, and will be running news, updates, and commentary throughout this promotional season and beyond.

----
Steely Dan inveigled themselves onto the soundtrack of the '70s with radio hits such as "Reeling in the Years", "Rikki Don't Lose That Number," "Peg", and "Hey Nineteen" culled from their seven platinum albums issued between 1972 and 1980 (including 1977's groundbreaking Aja). Both their sound and their notoriety survived the '80s despite Becker and Fagen's only occasional surfacing for a solo project. They reunited as Steely Dan in the early '90s, touring successfully throughout the decade and releasing a live album in 1995 (Alive In America).
In 2000 they released their multi-Grammy® winner Two Against Nature, and were awarded ASCAP's prestigious Founders Award. The year 2001 saw Steely Dan's induction into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame; no one is entirely sure if the honor was because of or in spite of Becker and Fagen's intensive 3-year "campaign" on steelydan.com to catch the Hall's attention -- a campaign during which they proffered various inducements to Hall voters, such as a 3-M digital recorder, Mr. Fagen's childhood piano, and a case of honey mustard.

Date: Wed, January 22, 2003, 03:40:15 ET
Posted by: hoops, Chicago

My cat and d og both woke me up about 45 minutes ago. Now I can't go back to sleep. Obvi ously they woke me to tell me "Steely Dan Newsletter #20" was being emailed to u s announcing Everything Must Go is coming out May 6 (this year :-) ). !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! WHOO HOOOO!!!!!!!!

h

Date: Wed, January 22, 2003, 01:58:08 ET
Posted by: Steve, Chicago

Can anyone bring me up to speed with any news on the incredible Drew Zingg? I never thought Larry Carlton's playing could be equalled until I heard Drew! I heard that he was playing with Rickie Lee Jones a while back. It doesn't appear that he has a website I can find. I would be grateful for any info - or at least any current releases he plays on, etc!

Best regards and thanks for this fabulous Dan site --

-- Steve

Date: Wed, January 22, 2003, 01:52:34 ET
Posted by: Steve, Chicago

Can anyone bring me up to speed with any news on the incredible Drew Zingg? I never thought Larry Carlton's playing could be equalled until I heard Drew! I heard that he was playing with Rickie Lee Jones a while back. It doesn't appear that he has a website I can find. I would be grateful for any info - or at least any current releases he plays on, etc!

Best regards and thanks for this fabulous Dan site --

-- Steve

Date: Tues, January 21, 2003, 20:13:42 ET
Posted by: Peg, Frozen Custardome

Aw, everybody, the horsie artwork is just some nice way to keep us all guessing. They're probably snickering as they read what we write in these pages here...Darn, why do they do that!???

I like what appears to be a Latiny look to the entire artwork and secretly have been hoping they would add a bit more Latin beats to their tunes (tastefully, as only they can do). But maybe that's because I've got it on the brain now. (I have a Latin band.)

Brrr back at ya, Hoopsie.

Date: Tues, January 21, 2003, 18:16:15 ET
Posted by: hoops,

The artwork is great...see how eager/desparate we are for the next one??? Put me in the camp that is skeptical that this is the new album's cover and title. If it were, methinks The Webdrone probably would have sent out an SD newsletter saying as much. Still, funny stuff. As for when we will hear something: well, whenever they're ready they will and we always are ready.

Great to see a "Katy Lied" date after so long. (Didn't they have a gig the same weekend the previous year?) I only remember because it conflicted with the same Birthday event I have to attend this year.


Brrrrrrr...it's cold.

h

Date: Tues, January 21, 2003, 18:01:15 ET
Posted by: HeyMike, the coming is so close at hand

Earl...I think you're having a flashback brothah...I don't see it!

Date: Tues, January 21, 2003, 10:36:53 ET
Posted by: Gretchen Lupkas, CT

I would love to see them at a small venue, such as Oakdale in Wallingford. A set I'd like to see them play:
1. Home At Last
2. Aja
3.

Date: Tues, January 21, 2003, 10:27:30 ET
Posted by: Shaun, :))

Yo!
Checked out that DVD picture of Maxine. Now I really know what she was doing at Lincoln Mall. Oh baby! Try to hang on Maxine!

Earl- I doubt very much that's the name of the new one.

Mark- 7 days? Try 7 months.

Date: Tues, January 21, 2003, 10:17:07 ET
Posted by: Earl, Delaware

Could it be as simple as they find that photo interesting? It has a horse, but in the middle you can see a man that appears to be naked, with a particular extremity being exposed at the bottom. Looks as though the horse is looking to crack him in a place that he won't be too happy about.

I've found that the title page to the steelydan.com site has been more introspective than predictive. Zeohippus sounds like something U2 would name their album, not SD.

Later,

Earl

Date: Tues, January 21, 2003, 10:05:56 ET
Posted by: jk,

hello.

did anyone happen to record norah jones with marian mcpartland on piano jazz ?

jk

Date: Tues, January 21, 2003, 08:48:39 ET
Posted by: If it is the cover, I like it

If not, no skin off my ass.

Date: Tues, January 21, 2003, 07:42:06 ET
Posted by: Howard,

Re: ODP update

Interesting picture. But let's not jump to conclusions here... (as if we ever did that before!).

Leading up to the release of 2VN, there were several pieces of artwork previewed on the site. Some, but not all, of these were eventually used for the CD insert. My guess is that the new image is one of several that will appear over the coming months. Again, some of these will no doubt appear on the CD insert and perhaps even on the CD cover, but let's see the candidates first before we pick the likely winner for the cover.

I wouldn't read too much into the "Rayna/Grockel" text - this is just the artwork credits. Compare with "Photo Credit: Crebas/Van Maldegem" which was the text for the "Two horses" photo.

OK, back to the research on the hippus/zeohippus thing...

Howard

Date: Tues, January 21, 2003, 05:49:07 ET
Posted by: Don't Know, ..

... where to find all this. When I load the ODP I get the same old message from December.

Date: Tues, January 21, 2003, 01:02:57 ET
Posted by: Boston Rag, hip horses

And there's the celestial beast Leohippus - a lion-headed horse with a serpentine tail. Gee, maybe the boys are doing a cover of America's "Horse With No Name", which Steve Martin points out has one of the stupidest lines in a song - "For there ain't no one for to give you no pain". Hey Walter - that might even top "Is there gas in the car? Yes there's gas in the car!"

I'm predicting we'll be hearing a new SD song within 7 days!!!


Mark in Boston

Date: Mon, January 20, 2003, 23:44:01 ET
Posted by: suedave,

how about eohippus...Eohippus, Dawn Horse. 5 Million years BC, a tiny swamp dwelling creature that was to survive and evolve into the modern day horse. Equine, noble, spirited, symbol of freedom, catalyst of revolution and change. A horse, a horse, my kingdom for a horse.

Better yet, we have alt words to ponder as well: Rayna/Grockel

Rayna
A queen.

grockle n :
tourist, day tripper, holiday maker, by southerners of northerners, islanders of mainlanders, but esp. by Cornish and Devonians of the rest, “particularly during the grockle/emmet open season”.

I don't mind that they are playing with us. No matter what it is, since it seems shaped like a CD, I just want to rip it open and play what is inside. Fun fun fun.

Date: Mon, January 20, 2003, 23:42:23 ET
Posted by: Fabergé, again, Queens

I'm buckled in Firemop, or as Steely Dan fans, should "we say strap it on" ????

It will be enertaining to see how many newspapers and shows list this as the album's new name. Ha ha ha ha ha.

The name reminds me the SD web page where they list all the names they thought of before settling on Steely Dan.

Back to ordering my own copy of the Nightfly DVD-A.

Fab

Date: Mon, January 20, 2003, 23:09:46 ET
Posted by: Firemop, Dallas, TX

Heh, They are toying with us. The N has taken a turn, and now it's a "Z". Zeohippus? "Rayna/Grokel" pops up on the MSIE tooltip, too!


I am buckled-in now. Is the ride about to start?

Date: Mon, January 20, 2003, 22:05:33 ET
Posted by: Boston Rag, Neohippus Pt. 2

I just googled on "Neohippus" and found out that word is also a synonym for the genus Equus. The art work looks like a kicking horse. Also, didn't the ODP feature Steely Dan and Steely Dan Jr. (two horses) a couple of months ago? OK, now I'm going crazy...


Mark in Boston

Date: Mon, January 20, 2003, 21:31:56 ET
Posted by: Boston Rag, Neohippus

"Neohippus" was the title of an album by Jack Walrath that's on the Blue Note label. I think the album came out in the late 80's.

1977 of course was the year of "Aja". OK Donald and Walter, let's stop the cryptic bull and get some new song samples up on the web site!

Mark in Boston

Date: Mon, January 20, 2003, 21:04:29 ET
Posted by: Fabergé, Queens

It could be The Next One, or it could be the Elephant Keepers trying to deal out a red herring???? (Is it ok to mix metaphors?) Would be a great candidate, though.

Heard "The Nightfly" on a full DVD-A sound system. Holy shit! It's the cat's pajamas. Beats SACD, DTS and Stereo hands down. Well worth the investment.

It DOES look like "Maxine" is, ahem, "servicing" some guy in that DVD-A screen. But who's to say it's a guy...????

Au revoir.

Fabergé

Date: Mon, January 20, 2003, 20:49:17 ET
Posted by: Firemop, Dallas, TX

Neohippus 77? check out steelydan.com!
Is it the title of the new one? Is this the album art?
Inquiring minds want to know!

Date: Mon, January 20, 2003, 12:06:06 ET
Posted by: Boston Rag, Get what you are due....

This sounds like a Royal Scam but it's not.
Gee, has anyone NOT bought a CD since 1995???
Check it out....


CD MAP Settlement

go to www.musiccdsettlement.com



Mark in Boston

Date: Sun, January 19, 2003, 23:10:42 ET
Posted by: Bob Blum, Katy Lied

KATY LIED
Performing the songs of Steely Dan
featuring Guitarist Dennis Shepherd

10 pm
Saturday Feb 1st
Chicago City Limits
1712 W Wise Rd, Schamburg, IL
847-524-9910

For more info see, http://www.katylied.tv

Hope to see you!!!

( Looking forward to more Danfests this year! )

Date: Sun, January 19, 2003, 22:53:00 ET
Posted by: Maxine'sister,

Hi everyone.

For those of you who have the DVD-A of The Nightfly, check my sister's photo for Maxine. Is she holding on to a trouser leg? Where's her mouth? Are you thinking what I am thinking? Bad sister! Bad!

Date: Sat, January 18, 2003, 23:27:48 ET
Posted by: John Granatino, Dallas

Did anyone else catch the Stones live on HBO tonight? They are old, but man they still rock!

Date: Sat, January 18, 2003, 19:07:20 ET
Posted by: suedave,

Hi Dan Fans,

By surprise I caught NPR's Jazz Profiles show this afternoon, it was about Horace Silver. You may get a second chance to hear the show in your area, since there is a 2 week timeframe for NPR stations to replay the show. Also they post a summary of the show.

http://www.npr.org/programs/jazzprofiles/latest/index.html

Steely Dan was of course mentioned.

Happy listening,
Susan

Date: Fri, January 17, 2003, 23:38:18 ET
Posted by: Mike, Louisville, KY

Theolonious: Here is an answer about your "Dallas" question.

Dallas & Sail the Waterway were released by Steely Dan about 5 months prior to the release of Can't Buy a Thrill. Dallas features Jim Hodder on vocals (see Midnight Cruiser) and Sail the Waterway features Fagen. Two versions were released. Version one featured Dallas on Side A and Sail the Waterway on Side B. Both tracks were in mono. The other version featured Dallas on both sides. However, one side was in stereo and the other was in mono. The 45's were given out a promos and were recalled within 2 weeks. The reason was that the song "Dallas" featured a slide guitar and has a very country-ish feel to it. The management did not want the public to get the wrong impression about what type of band Steely Dan was. The song was later covered by the band Poco. When the band went back into the studio, these tracks were forgotten and the rest is history. At least one other track from those "first" recording sessions exist: Everyone's Gone to the Movies (featured as a bonus track on the Citizen Steely Dan Box Set). The stereo version of Dallas is nearly impossible to find (I came across one for $0.50 in a sale once - lucky!). Dallas has only appeared on the afforementioned singles, the +four EP, a Japanese Steely Dan best of, and an interesting compilation entitled "Tanks for the Mammaries". Why it wasn't included on the box set is beyond me especially when a picture of a flyer advertising it appears in the booklet.

Hope this helps,

El Sup

Date: Fri, January 17, 2003, 21:02:46 ET
Posted by: µ,

C: Dave Hollad is you best work yet...and I thought you hated jazz...

If hoops is 6 ft 5 in, then Pompe must be 6 ft 1 in ...now wonder the lady on the right is gaping...

Date: Fri, January 17, 2003, 17:37:32 ET
Posted by: Clas, Scandinavia

take a look at Hoopsie;

www.steelydangallary.se

He's backstage, meeting Pompe.

Date: Fri, January 17, 2003, 16:15:42 ET
Posted by: oleander, I might be moving to Montana soon....

suedave--yowza! Just be sure you get the IMPORT version; it's not on the other one.

Yo, Thelonious!

Date: Fri, January 17, 2003, 06:38:16 ET
Posted by: Mme Erzulie, Direct from Lhasa

Hello one and all.

This is my first interaction with the dandom ever, and already the feeling can compare only to spending a dizzy weekend smacked into a trance.

Short about myself: Born 1981, (guess that makes me somewhat of a rookie here, huh?) in Oslo, Norway (the only scandinavian capital unmentioned in "The Steely Dan Show"). I play the bass semi-professionally, but I also study at the university of Oslo and work part time. I got my first ever SD cd (Aja) from a drummer friend of mine as a X-mas gift in '99. Before this point, I had never even heard their name. But I really dug Aja, and soon purchased "Best of". At first, I was disappointed with the non-Aja songs (looking back, that really embarasses me, but it's true), but kept listening to it, and as I'm sure you've all experienced, SD music grows on you, ending up with a firm hold on your heart and both your nuts. However, it wasn't long before I was totally hooked, and within a matter of months I posessed all 8 studio albums as well as The Nightfly. Both Kamakiriad and 11 Tracks of Whack is on my list, as well as Android Warehouse and other pre-SD stuff. They quickly took the place as my all-time favourite band, and I worship almost everything they've ever done and will hopefully continue to do. It should be mentioned that I managed to whittle away my only chance till this day to see SD live, much like a reckless child throwing away a vial of ambrosia, only later realizing what he did, when they appeared in concert early in 2000, when I still wasn't 100% into them. How many times I've cried myself to sleep over that blunder (not many, I don't cry much, but if I was an emotional person; plenty). Ok, sorry about the length of this, not very short after all, hope I'm not boring anyone to death here.

Anyway, to contribute something Dan related:

Just before Christmas, I almost bought a Legends collection or something like that with only Becker and Fagen playing many of their songs. But I was short on money, and had to use the money for gifts instead. I was just wondering if anyone here have (heard) it, and if so, what you think of it.


Which songs I would like to see live:

Entire Can't Buy a Thrill album except for "Do it again" (never fancied that one much)
Entire Countdown to Ecstacy album except maybe "Show Biz Kids"
Entire Pretzel Logic album
Entire Katy Lied album except "Daddy Don't Live In That New York City No More" (another song I never particularily fancied)
Entire The Royal Scam album except "The Royal Scam" and possibly "Everything you did"
Entire Aja album except "Aja" and perhaps "Deacon Blues" (yes, I know that's practically 'everyone's' favourite, and it used to be mine as well, I don't know, I've had the habit of skipping it, so...)
Entire Gaucho album
Entire 2VN album; maybe except "Shame about me"
Entire Nightfly album

No?? Too long? Pshish! I know I would gladly listen to every note. If I was forced to narrow down the number of songs? Well, that would depend on which season the concert was held, SD songs/albums fit into seasons for me.

Summer Show: (no particular order)

Reelin' in The Years
Rikki Don't Lose That Number
Almost Gothic
West of Hollywood
FM
Kid Charlemagne
Midnite/Midnight Cruiser
Brooklyn
Turn that heartbeat over again
My Old School
King of the World
Pearl of the Quarter
Babylon Sisters
Jack of Speed
Negative Girl
Bodhisattva
Black Friday
Hey Nineteen
Fire in the hole
Kings
Dirty Work

Autumn Show: (no particular order)

Caves of Altamira
Green Earrings
The Fez
Sign in Stranger/Don't take me alive
Dr. Wu
Any world that I'm welcome to
Throw back the little ones
Rose Darling
Bad Sneakers
Third World Man
Gaucho
Your Gold Teeth pt. 1 & 2
Razor Boy
Boston Rag

Winter Show: (no particular order)
Entire Pretzel Logic (should be played in same order as on CD (This is one of the few CD's I never put on shuffle.)
Entire Aja except for "Aja"
Entire Nightfly album (should also be in CD order)

Spring isn't really a season for me. Go figure.

Thirtyfive Sweet Goodbyes, Johannes

Date: Fri, January 17, 2003, 04:30:04 ET
Posted by: Theolonious, Mondo, Montana

Greetings Earthlings:

Yo Hoops!

I am sooooo excited that 2003 will bring another dose of much needed sonic refreshment.

On the topic of SD covers, I found a version of a song called Dallas on the web that is purported to have been written by D&W. I also saw a reference that Poco had recorded it . Can anyone tell me who I am listending to? (bye, bye Dallas, shoulda stayed at the Palace) Is it really an early SD gem?

Angel: Watching Concepts for Jazz and Rock piano is veritable nectar. Sitting at the feet of my guru. Very tasty, hope you enjoy it..

I am delighted that they will be on Piano Jazz.. I've been listening to Marianne for years now and I always hoped they would get together.

Looking forward to reuniting with "those of my kind" in 2003.

Remember, Peace is patriotic!

Date: Fri, January 17, 2003, 02:39:47 ET
Posted by: Sean,

John G. Great interview in issue 14 of Metal Leg. Donald picks 10 Desert Island discs from the 70's. Some cool choices. Love the Dr. John song.

Date: Fri, January 17, 2003, 01:06:57 ET
Posted by: suedave, here in the western world

Ole, thanks, didn't know about the Herbie Hancock cover, I love him, that one is now on my wishlist. It is out of stock at Amazon but they have an interesting way of dealing with finding one for you via resellers.

Hoops, odd phrasing in the Royal Scam review, but he's right - not a bad album in the bunch! Can say the same thing now that they are up to 8 originals, and counting. Can't say that about too many bands, though it does occur to me that I may be a bit biased.

I hear Steely Dan frequently at my local grocery store, at the Bon Marche, and now and then when they switch to the local news on NPR - even heard parts of the title track of 2VN - that was special. I just wonder how many people at the stores like the music but don't know who is playing.

Date: Thurs, January 16, 2003, 22:09:41 ET
Posted by: hoops, the prize vault

From: hoops@dandom.com
Subject: Re: New Year's Dandom Contest: win!Win!WIN!

Dare I say it again???" Happy New Year" to all the citizens and denizens of Greater Dandom.

Thanks to all of those who wrote in to the Digest and posted to the BlueBook from Dec 31-Jan 3. The winners have been randomly selected.

There are four prizes in the Kitty. First winner gets first pick of the prize kitty; Second winner selected gets second choice, etc.

The prizes are:

* DVD-A of "The Nightfly"
* Cassette of "The New York Rock and Soul Revue" courtesy of Steve De Rose
* CD of "Glengary Glen Ross"
* Steve Shapiro's "Xylophobia" CD (played on "Negative Girl")
* A dollar in the kitty to make the moon look pretty.

Without further adieu,

1st Winner: Mark Drinan
2nd Winner: Jeremy Daly
3rd Winner: Big Fan
4th Winner: Steve De Rose
5th Winner: igotthenews@earthlink.com

Winners should email me a ranking of their prize preferences and I will do what I can to accommodate these requests. Winners should also include their snail mail address so I can send the prise.

Thanks bunches TO ALL for ALL that you share.

Peace and Love and all that stuff, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah…

hoopsie

Date: Thurs, January 16, 2003, 22:06:13 ET
Posted by: angel,

John Granatino: The update on your site looks GREAT. Spent way too much time reading the Elliot Randall interview. Thanks for new lunchtime reading material.

Quickly back to my choice of "Razor Boy" from MM&I Soundtrack. What grabs me on that song is that it seems to be sung in a slightly lower key then what Donald did it in. Which gives it a slightly sexy sound. A new and interesting layer added onto an already puzzling song. Also the hypnotic outro, that so reminds me of "On the Dunes".

Just got my copy of "Concepts in Jazz/Rock Piano". Looking forward to screening it. Woohoo!

Date: Thurs, January 16, 2003, 20:35:17 ET
Posted by: hoops, chicago

Just catching up after taking a week or two off from here to cleanse the palette. Lot of interesting posts. Just to weigh in on the Steely cover thread,

Favorite: Joe Jackson's "King of The World." The piano is amazing, I think it's the only Dan cover ever that reaches the same level the original SD recording, whil remaining unique.

Rickie Lee Jones' "Show Biz Kids" is pretty damn great too. Before it came out, I heard rumors that the lines "Show business kids making movies of themselves/You know they don't give a fuck about anybody else" was going to be left off Rickie's version. LOL they were very wrong! It's like a mantra.

I really like Jennifer Warnes' "Big Noise, New York" but not as much as I used to. I love her voice and I love the music (including Donald on backing vocals, if I'm not mistaken). Although the musical arrangement is great, I'm not so sure any more that it matches Warnes' vocals. Still, I think it's up there.

I tend to agree that Diana Ross' "Love Will Make It Right" grates on me. Don't care much for her deliverly nor the synths. (Change my mind somebody, I'm open).

Can't reply to all these great posts, but here's a few comments:

• Justin Morell's CD is incredible and probably the only new CD from last year that I give 5/5 stars. I had great fun interviewing Justin last spring and it appears on the BlueBook archives on November 1, 2002 (go to http://www.dandom.com/guestbook/112002.html and scroll almost to the bottom. ) That prods me that I need to finish more fresh interviews and get them out there.

• Couldn't find if anyone answered Mr. LaPage's question about backing vocals on Fourplay's cover of "Snowbound," but the answer is that it only features the word "Snowbound" lightly sung by some backing vocalists at the same points Fagen sings it on the original.

• Hey Dudey, I concur!

• Saw "Catch Me If You Can" last night. Nothing Steely Dan in it, but I think Steely Dan fans would really like it. Based on a true story, the plot and characters read like the storyline from a Steely Dan song. Great stuff. They do a pretty good job of catching certain 60s details as well.

Well, more to catch up on. My apologies if I haven't replied yet to your email.

h

Date: Thurs, January 16, 2003, 20:29:25 ET
Posted by: HeyMike, That ditch out in the valley

Peg..you reminded me of a day a few days before Christmas, I went to Walgreens twice that day. Both times a Dan song was on overhead and....I was wearing a 2000 tour t-shirt! Cosmic maybe...

Date: Thurs, January 16, 2003, 19:50:16 ET
Posted by: h,

Here's another. Is it me or does this sound like it was translated from another language?

---

Steely Dan
“THE ROYAL SCAM”
Anchor ABCL 5161

One of the most astute things Bowie ever came up with was the notion that rockanroll is predominantly a medium in which the practitioners, the rock and roller, only has a single statement to make. Which makes a rock and roll career one in which a stance is adopted, a statement made, and anything which follows is, well, repetition of one sort or another. Not a universally true notion maybe, but definitely applicable in many cases.

Like The Who. And Steely Dan. But where in the former repetition has meant post-‘Subsitute’ burn-out and prolonged boredom, in the latter the attention is still held. Five albums into Dan’s career and I’m still absolutely trans-fixed and hanging on their every song.

“Scam” doesn’t offer solutions to the problems raised on albums one to four. It’s still dealing with America’s sickness—this time ‘round with faithlessness in love, kamikaze crime, alienated immigrants, all of which comes down to loneliness. Again. And again the only trace of lyrical positivism is contained in nostalgic impulse; the ‘Caves of Altimira’ takes its place with ‘Bad Sneakers,’ ‘Any World That I’m Welcome To,’ ‘Barrytown,’ ‘Boston Rag,’ and ‘Mr. Parker’s Band.’ As homage to a long, gone golden age.

So Dan are, in their own words, ‘Do(ing) It Again.’ It’s still all about futilities. So how come it doen’t get to become just one more repetitive downer bore. Because it ain’t no downer, that’s why. If you just look at the lyric sheet, then you’re making a big mistake. The whole point is and always has been is that songs are songs are songs. Not poems. Which means there’s the music to think about and react to also.

Dan plays off the lyrics agains an unfailingly exuberant and craftsmanly setting. Lyrical chaos against terse, beautiful musical order. And Humour. Steely Dan aren’t despairing nor detached. They give a da(m)n—listen to the delicate, humourous lyricism of the hook on ‘Haitian Divorce.’ Beauty.

Dan have been and gone and done it again. And I love them for it. The best, it seems.

— MIKE ALLEN, Liquorice, Autumn 1976

Date: Thurs, January 16, 2003, 17:26:32 ET
Posted by: Michelle, NJ

Peg--Who'da thunk it!??!! THE DAN HAVE A WICCUM CONNECTION!

Thanks for giving me a grin.....awwwww. :-)

See ya everyone. Can't wait for the next one.

Mich

Date: Thurs, January 16, 2003, 16:46:39 ET
Posted by: Peg, Blissed by Muzak

I kid you not, the Muzak just started up "Ruby Baby" when I opened this page to write!...woooo.
Reason for writing twice in one day is that I just realized a bizarre and who knows, cosmic coincidence. The last installment of the Harry Potter series came out in July 2000. The Dan was on tour by then. The next installment of Harry Potter will comeout June 21, 2003. What does this mean.....? Another woo, please, doctor.

Date: Thurs, January 16, 2003, 16:46:16 ET
Posted by: Peg, Blissed by Muzak

I kid you not, the Muzak just started up "Ruby Baby" when I opened this page to write!...woooo.
Reason for writing twice in one day is that I just realized a bizarre and who knows, cosmic coincidence. The last installment of the Harry Potter series came out in July 2000. The Dan was on tour by then. The next installment of Harry Potter will comeout June 21, 2003. What does this mean.....? Another woo, please, doctor.

Date: Thurs, January 16, 2003, 16:35:51 ET
Posted by: Mike, Louisville, KY

Philippe: The original version of F.M. appears on the soundtrack to the movie F.M. and on the collection A Decade of Steely Dan. Both are available on CD. The F.M. soundtrack also features the only CD appearance of "F.M. - Reprise".

El Sup

Date: Thurs, January 16, 2003, 14:35:29 ET
Posted by: h, chgo

This week, the "Classic Metal Leg & Other Steely Dan Articles That Apparently Have Never Been On The Internet" series covers some reviews sent to me from the U.K. by Andrew Goodwin. Andrew has been collecting Steely Dan articles since the early 70s and he has generously sent a huge collection of 40-plus articles for my enjoyment and eventually yours. Thanks, to say the least, Andy!

"Long lost" articles reproduced here since last October, like perhaps the Sounds review below, or the Chicago Tribune interview with Donald Fagen for the Rock and Soul Revue or the St. Louis Post-Dispatch review of Two Against Nature, etc. will be archived at John Granatino's very becoming Steely Dan Internet Resource site under the "Steely Dan Reading Room" page, http://www.granatino.com/sdresource/views.htm. Thanks very much, John!

---

Steely Dan:
the truth is superfine
STEELY DAN: ‘KATY LIED’ (ABC Records ABCL 5094).

YOU KNOW how it is with these aces: first time, you think, human tasty muzak; next play, you start to ge hooked onto a melody here and there and a fragment or two of those enigmatic lyrics; the third time around you’re just plain hooked. They’ve never made a bad record, and the departure of Skunk Baxter and Jim Hodder doesn’t seem to have changed that one iota. The arrangements and production are once again so perfect they’re almost clinical, the musicians, a studio-welded bunch of craftmasters, beyond reproach and the songs a clutch of Becker and Fagen’s impeccable originals. Steely Dan that oft sought-after phenomenon, 70s rock: the ultimate synthesis of everything everyone else has done, cast in the crucible and returning in a new guise. From Latin to Motown, from those chilling west Coast harmonies, to the supple rhythmic base, they’ve soaked it all up and come out sounding like no-one except themselves. For once they’ve printed the lyrics on the inner sleeve, but to tell the truth, their meaning still escapes me nine times out of ten for with Steely Dan, it’s as often the mood that music and words combined create, as the straightforward lyrical meaning, that counts. Thus on “Everyone’s Gone To The Movies,” the opening line”: “Kids if you want some fun” is couched in such a musical context that you just know something wicked this way comes. Similarly, there is an implicit sneer in the tones of ‘Daddy Don’t Live In That New York City No More’ which gives the simple lyrics a real leery edge. I’ve no idea what’s going on in ‘Dr Wu’ from which the album title is taken, but the cool pastoral mood and especially the lilting jazzy sax solo set off the gentle ambiguity of the words to make a fine song. All the familiar hallmarks of Steely Dan are here: the progressive chord changes with guitar, piano and voices in harness, the ethereal voices, the deft instrumental work, the smoothness that never degenerates into blandness; even the occasional dash of real punchy rock and roll. Hell, it’s the superfine misture as before, what more could you ask for? — Mike Flood Page, Sounds, 5.4.75

Date: Thurs, January 16, 2003, 12:38:40 ET
Posted by: µ,

DJ: I really dig what Justin Morell Quintet did to The Royal Scam...way cool...

Peg: that's the vibe...you just wait!

Date: Thurs, January 16, 2003, 09:30:37 ET
Posted by: Sal , Philly

Hi,
A guy named "St.Al" sent me over to this site when I complained about the subject matter (war) over at his guestbook. (Banyantree?) Well, he was right. Much better over here.

Does anyone here know a release date for the new record?

Did anyone notice that on Donald Fagen's birthday a few days ago, all of the radio stations were playing Rod Stewart? I found out that Rod and Donald share the same birthday. All I heard all day was Rod's stuff. Not one SD song. A bunch of bull if you ask me.

Sal

Date: Thurs, January 16, 2003, 08:16:56 ET
Posted by: Peg, Muzakally speaking

Hey, Mu, no, it's not just you, I don't think. I've been hearing more Dan on our channel at work, at the store, etc., and even more from 2VN...Beneath these songs they have placed a subliminal message that says, "If you think this is great, just wait for the Next One....If you think this is great, just wait...."

Date: Thurs, January 16, 2003, 05:41:58 ET
Posted by: Philippe,

Hello there, this morning I was listening to "Another brick in the wall" and its FM inspired guitar solo, that made me realize I don't have on cd the "original" FM version, I mean the one with the guitar solo. As far as I know, each time they rereleased it lately, it had the long sax solo on it . Anyone can help?
As for the release date for the new one, I'm afraid february won't be a glamour period with all the sh.. that's going to happen then.
Maybe somewhere around may or june ?
Bien le bonjour chez vous.
Philippe

Date: Thurs, January 16, 2003, 01:44:56 ET
Posted by: John Granatino, Dallas

Hi all,

Over the holidays, thanks to being reunited with one of my old computers, I found a number of Metal Leg articles that I had previously transcribed but never uploaded to my site. So I have been busy uploading those articles. Issues 18 and 19 are mostly up, and I have 20 and 21 on deck. Please see http://www.granatino.com/sdresource/mllist.htm for a table of contents to the material.

All the best,
John

Date: Thurs, January 16, 2003, 00:31:54 ET
Posted by: µ, Tejas

Has anyone else noticed a dramatic surge of Dan (and not Muzak covers) in grocery stores latel?. Heard Dr.Wu in its glory picking up some milk 2 nights ago. Is this the first wave of subliminal brainfeed before the Next One??

Olé: The Joe Jackson live track does sound great...right back at ya

Date: Wed, January 15, 2003, 23:47:19 ET
Posted by: oleander, cover me

"YGT II" by Herbie Hancock. Good. ("The New Standard" import)

"I.G.Y." by Patti Austin. Good. ("Street of Dreams")

"Chain Lightning" by Leon Redbone ("Me Myself et al." soundtrack but not on the cd) Well, I like it.

"King of the World" by Joe Jackson. Good. ("Summer in the City," live)

Ditto on "Lazy Nina" by Monkey House (thanx Muy Mu)

Happy belated birthday to Mr. Fagen.

Happy belated New Year to you blue people.

Date: Wed, January 15, 2003, 23:23:30 ET
Posted by: Boston Rag.,

Viper - You might not like the Diana Ross vocals on "Love Will Make It Right" but Donald did some outstanding synthesizer work on the track. Really haunting and moody.

Mark in Boston

Date: Wed, January 15, 2003, 15:45:13 ET
Posted by: South Brunswick High '65 ,

Here I am, Wednesday morning about 9AM...outside of
this brownstone on 93rd East 7th Avenue West...and I'm
shouting up to Apt. 3B "Hey Fagen, Wake Up" and next thing
I know I hear "Shut the Fahhhk Up !" It sounded just like
Donald. What a thrill !

Date: Wed, January 15, 2003, 13:26:36 ET
Posted by: Clas, Scandinavia

Agneta Fältskog (the blond from ABBA), "Shine", produced by Peter Cetera.

Date: Wed, January 15, 2003, 11:40:42 ET
Posted by: The Viper, The Suburban Streets

Sure hope Katy Lied wasn't caught up in that Internet pedophile sting operation.

Worst Steely Dan cover? Actually it's a Donald tune. "Love Will Make It Right" by Diana Ross. Gary "Whatever happened To Him" Katz was producer in charge of that travesty. Donald's demo could only be better. Diana can't project Donald's sneering vocal style. All she projects is her hair.

"Giles of The River" is one of my guilty pleasures. So is "I Mean To Shine." I tune out Babs on the latter, and imagine Donald singing. It's got an upbeat feel to it that is BUTTER.

Not following "The Meek Shall Inherit Nothing" comment. Coffee. Need coffee.

Date: Wed, January 15, 2003, 10:53:48 ET
Posted by: DJ, Chicago

Good-->"Home At Last" Justin Morell Quintet
Bad--->"Do It Again" Smashmouth-->has it been 15 minutes yet>

And yes, where's Katy Lied playing next?

jonesin' myself,
dj

Date: Wed, January 15, 2003, 09:47:08 ET
Posted by: Eligible Voter , Best/Worst SD Covers

Best: John Tabacco's "Oh Wow It's You Again".
Worst: The "Me, Myself & Irene" soundtrack...all of it.

Date: Wed, January 15, 2003, 08:20:44 ET
Posted by: Jaco, Fourplay

Mr Lapage:

Yup, it's an instrumental, mostly chilled jazz sorta stuff, nice slinky guitar solos, very nice. I picked up the old fretless bass and tried to jam along when I downloaded it but was shocked to find they had changed the key! The impudent strumpets!


Regards



Jaco

Date: Wed, January 15, 2003, 01:17:54 ET
Posted by: Mike, Louisville, KY

Becker and Fagen's "Canadian Star" performed by Dr. Strut. An unused insturmental outtake from the AJA sessions that is absolutely stunning!

El Sup

P.S. - How about a bluebook compilation CD of some of the old Becker/Fagen demos? I'd love to hear a nice reworking of "Oh Wow It's You Again".

Date: Tues, January 14, 2003, 22:57:14 ET
Posted by: Mr. LaPage, About 750 miles from NYC

Hey, Jaco from UK....
Is Fourplay's Snowbound instrumental, or does it have vocals?

One of my favorite covers: Deacon Blues by Julian Coryell.

Keep 'em comin'... those best and worst covers...

JL

Date: Tues, January 14, 2003, 20:14:05 ET
Posted by: HeyMike, Pete Pete Pete....

Has anyone seen or heard from Chicago's premier Dan cover band Katy Lied? I've been looking on milk cartons but to no avail. I'm jonesin' for some cool Dan in a warm club. (11 degrees here!)

HeyMike

Date: Tues, January 14, 2003, 20:11:56 ET
Posted by: Mock Turtle,

Favorite SD cover: "The Meek Shall Inherit Nothing" by Zappa

Date: Tues, January 14, 2003, 13:26:22 ET
Posted by: angel,

Covers. My favorite is "Razor Boy" by Billy Goodrum. It is on the "Me, Myself and Irene" Soundtrack.

Date: Tues, January 14, 2003, 11:28:45 ET
Posted by: µ,

covers etc.

Monkey House - Lazy Nina

(a Fagen song never released by DF or Dan)

Ben Folds Five - Barrytown

Jennifer Warnes - Big Noise, New York

(absolutely one of Dr. Fagen's best songs - I like Donald's demo a little better though - found on the Kama single Snowbound)

Date: Tues, January 14, 2003, 11:27:47 ET
Posted by: Peg, Editorial office

Okay, so it is snowing bad. Took me an hour and 15 to get to work -- usually a 15-minute drive. Yet the very thought of the Next OnE coming out soon is enough to keep me going. However, I admit I was downcast that no release date was announced in Performing Songwriter magazine (let alone that they didn't include Donald's birthday). Not like that mag is the beacon of all info, though.
And if they truly are waiting to tour until this fall, it does not bode well that they'll release the NexT OnE in February....more like May, the month I guessed.Anybody got more info?
Hey for a good laugh, see the letter to the editor that Al Dimeola wrote in Jazz Times' latest issue. A real "flamer" as we say.

Date: Tues, January 14, 2003, 04:55:20 ET
Posted by: Clas , Scandinavia

Gallary Gallore, ladies and gentlemen!

New address:

www.steelydangallary.se

Date: Tues, January 14, 2003, 00:18:25 ET
Posted by: suedave,

Benefit Tribute to Elton John??? Aren't benefits usually for causes that have needs, as in financial? That is just too wierd. I've heard Elton spends $38,000 /month on flower arrangements for his house, but thank goodness for the internet, I read it was really only $10,000/month. I would love to see and smell $10K of flowers in his house. Actually I think the benefit is honoring Sir Elton.

I really like Only a Fool Would Say That by Ivy. Or you could twist it up a bit and say Pete - Only a fool would do that

A little punchy and it is only Monday.

Date: Mon, January 13, 2003, 21:41:14 ET
Posted by: Jaco, UK

Or Dirty Work.....


......Showbiz Kids......


....Throw back the little ones.....


....Kid Charlemagne....




I hope this was Time out of Mind, Pete. You gonna tell us Everything You Did?



Regards


Jaco



[I hope this was research]


*not hopeful*

Date: Mon, January 13, 2003, 18:36:03 ET
Posted by: HeyMike, These suburban streets

Pete Townsend doing "Everyone's gone to the movies" ??

Date: Mon, January 13, 2003, 18:03:42 ET
Posted by: Gail,

The NAMM Concert Michael McDonald is playing is actually a Benefit Tribute to Elton John. Who'd imagine? I sure can't picture McDonald tributing Elton John.

Gail

Date: Mon, January 13, 2003, 17:27:46 ET
Posted by: Ron Swider, Zainesville, Ohio

I can't say I am familiar with any covers of Steely Dan songs. But I did see the Donny and Marie where they did "Reeling In the Years." Wish I had a recording of that one. It was so funny and ironic!

Ron Swider,
Zainesville, Ohio

Date: Mon, January 13, 2003, 14:11:03 ET
Posted by: Dirk, Duesseldorf / Germany

favorite covers :
Hiram Bullock - "Pretzel Logic", really love his funky,
unique guitar style
Rickie Lee Jones - "Showbiz Kids"

worst covers :
Falco - "Do It Again", Austrian singer, had a No. 1 billboard
hit in 1986 with "Rock me Amadeus".
Die Sterne - "Any Major Dude Will Tell You" / "Jeder Trottel
wird das erzaehlen". Die Sterne are well known in Germany.
They did a cover of "Any major dude will tell you" with
German lyrics.... But, hey, what's a squonk in German ... ?
So they left it out. And a few other lines, too. Absolutely
awful.

You can find a Real Player clip of that song at :

http://real.amazon-de.eu2.speedera.net/ramgen/real.amazon-de.eu2/phononet/B/0/0/0/0/5/Y/3/6/W/01.04.rm

Dirk










Dan/DF/WB covers, and the worst ones

Date: Sun, January 12, 2003, 23:52:10 ET
Posted by: Jaco, UK

Hey everyone


I noticed that there appears to be a link between Pat Metheny and Steely Dan fans. Well, I certainly am a Metheny fan, and I thought it might interest you to know that his latest album "Speaking of Now" has been nominated for three Grammies! Let's hope he sweeps the board like Messrs Fagen and Becker did a few years back!


If no-one's heard it, this album is [in my opinion] some of Metheny's greatest work, an outstanding work of art......I cant praise it highly enough!



Re. Covers: I liked Fourplays version of "Snowbound" by DF. Very smooth.





Kind regards




Jaco

Date: Sat, January 11, 2003, 22:31:22 ET
Posted by: ß,

More on the sessions from a recent interview with Elliot Scheiner in Mix:

"Like with Steely, we recorded room mics on the new album, and in the mix, I'm using a fair amount of them, which is different for us.

Where did you record that project?

Sear Sound in New York. All analog.

That's a change for you.

No, that's a change for [Steely Dan]. I always try to record analog. That's my primary choice. I talked them into it. It was funny the way that it worked. They did one song there [at Sear] that was for a tribute to Joni Mitchell. They have unbelievable mics there, and when you walk in the door, all of a sudden, it's 1974. It's wild. There are even beads on the entryway. So there's this vibe. And when we got into the studio, I looked at Walter [Becker] and said, “Can we do this in analog?”

You just kind of casually slipped that in, because you were in that vintage environment?

Yeah. And he said, “This is a tribute, let's do it.” So we did it analog, and they were amazed; they'd forgotten how good analog sounds. Because of that, when we started the new record about two months later, they said, “Let's do it analog.” And we did. The basic tracks are all analog; all of the overdubs were done in a workstation.

How about mixing?

Analog and digital. Just last week we finished off a couple of mixes, and Walter said, “Maybe it's time to A/B the analog and digital and see what we're going to use.” So I set it up to A/B, almost perfectly, and the analog killed it. And we were using the 24-bit, 96kHz digital."

http://mixonline.com/ar/audio_elliot_scheiner/index.htm

ß

Date: Sat, January 11, 2003, 13:27:30 ET
Posted by: Mr. LaPage, I'm your man

Of all the covers of Do It Again, which are the best, and the worst? I've got one by Deodato which isn't too bad... pretty good guitar work by John Tropea. It's got horns doing the main theme which gives it the sound similar to Woody Herman's band.

As we all await "The Next One", in the meantime: cast your votes for your all-time favorite Dan/DF/WB covers, and the worst ones (besides the so-called "tribute": "A Bunch of Static on AM Radio")...

J.LaP.

Date: Sat, January 11, 2003, 11:24:35 ET
Posted by: Dudey,

Dude,

Pete Fogel is THEONE AND ONLY DUDE!!!

Dudey

Date: Fri, January 10, 2003, 22:57:59 ET
Posted by: moray eel, State and Main

Paige: That's Paul Hardcastle with a singer named Imani.

Oh... and Happy Birthday, Donald.

m.e.

Date: Fri, January 10, 2003, 16:12:57 ET
Posted by: Gretchen, At the bar

Here's to the one the only the DUDE on his birthday.
Yeah! Jam on.

Date: Fri, January 10, 2003, 15:38:03 ET
Posted by: Randy, Northern NJ/USA

Steely-folk:

Fans of the blues might want to pick up the Fleetwood Mac 6-CD box set, 'The Complete Blue Horizon Sessions: 1967-1969.' For those not in the know, Fleetwood Mac began as a traditional blues band under the leadership of lead guitarist Peter Green, who had succeeded Eric Clapton in John Mayall's Bluesbreakers after Clapton left to form Cream in 1966; Green was more than able to fill Clapton's shoes in Mayall's band and soon went on to form Fleetwood Mac with drummer Mick Fleetwood, bassist John McVie, slide guitarist Jeremy Spencer, and (later) guitarist Danny Kirwan.

The early years of Fleetwood Mac stand as what may be the best representation of British blues (not to mention the best incarnation of the band, in the eyes of many, including yours truly); at only $36.00 for 6 discs, it's a steal, and worth every penny to have the great guitar work and vocals of the vastly underrated Peter Green-

"No static at all..." - Steely Dan, 'FM'

Randy
NIGHTFLY62@aol.com

Date: Fri, January 10, 2003, 14:04:00 ET
Posted by: Paige, Santa Barbara

Thanks Big Fan....
I had no idea that there were so many covers.

It's not Edie...I would know her voice right away...(Great singer)

Another person suggested that it might be Tori Amos.

Thanks...

-Paige

Date: Fri, January 10, 2003, 13:50:42 ET
Posted by: Big Fan,

Paige,
According to the Steely Dan database there are at least 18 covers of Do It Again by various artists. Perhaps you'll recocnize it. I've never heard that version - I'm wondering if it's the Edie Brickell one - I've heard most of the jazz ones. It would be like her to add some lyrics.



http://62.58.175.163/SteelyDanDatabaseScripts/covers.asp?SearchInclude=No&SearchBecker=Yes&SearchAndOr=Or&SearchFagen=Yes&OrderBy=Title#top

The only othe female jazz one I've ever heard of is by Nancy Wilson on Just Beautiful, but I haven't heard that one either:

http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/B000005HFD/qid%3D1042224031/sr%3D11-1/ref%3Dsr%5F11%5F1/102-6824198-7216940

---

Date: Fri, January 10, 2003, 10:18:41 ET
Posted by: Delivery Guys, Yellow Transit Co.

Good morning sirs and madams.

Redelivery of Cake for Mr. Fagen from Mr. Rag. Sorry we screwed up the first one. Consider that we're named "Yellow Truck" but our "yellow trucks" are really colored "Swamp Holly Orange."

DIRECTIONS: Change "Page Setup" to 1200% and use a black cherry-flavored inkjet cartridge.

******
|||||
*********
*~~~~~~~*
* *
*****************
* *
*~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~*
* *

*****************
-------------------------------

Yellow (not really) Truckers

---

Date: Fri, January 10, 2003, 04:57:08 ET
Posted by: Steve Anglesey, London

Donald: Keep the jive alive at 55!

---

Date: Fri, January 10, 2003, 01:08:19 ET
Posted by: Boston Rag,

Ooops. The cake fell over in the van.
Damn those delivery guys!!!


Mark

---

Date: Fri, January 10, 2003, 01:05:59 ET
Posted by: Boston Rag,

Happy Birthday Donald!


|||||
*********
*~~~~~~~*
* *
*****************
* *
*~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~*
* *
*****************


Mark in Boston

---

Date: Thurs, January 09, 2003, 23:58:49 ET
Posted by: Lady Bayside, NY

I feel like I am in a constant state of near-hyperness (okay, I was going to type arousal, but that seemed weird...but it sort of fits) with the possibility of TNO and a tour...the best ever would be able to spend my birthday in the fall with the Dan.

I can't remember feeling this jazzed (sorry for the crappy semantics) since the coming of TLO. Hurry up, guys!

Like that seems possible. Steely Dan, hurry?

Oy.

By the way...I've missed my Dan forums. Lack of web access/time during the day has kept me away. I'll try to be better!

LB

---

Date: Thurs, January 09, 2003, 20:09:30 ET
Posted by: Paige L. Anderson, Santa Barbara

So, I had to replace my car battery about a week or so ago. Of course, whenever you disconnect the battery, all your radio programming gets dumped. What made matters worse, I had given away my only cassette copy of 2VN to my friend?the very cassette that I had been listening to non-stop whenever I drove.

What I was faced with was having to reprogram my radio to all of the "classic" rock" stations that had entertained me between my daily fix of the Dan. I?m not real good at tech stuff?I mean, the clock on my VCR still flashes 12:00 regardless of what time it REALLY is?.sort of in a mocking manner.

So I?m driving?while trying to find a station to rid myself of the torturous white noise that my radio was spitting out. Between dodging cars and luckless pedestrians, I see a button that reads "band." Cool, I want to listen to a band.

I finally locate the scan button and immediately land on the Rush Limbaugh show of whacko conservatives with Southern accents. Before I became physically ill, I switched to Frequency Modulation and hit the scan button again.

What comes up is a "light" jazz station?or what can be called "easy listening" with a jazz touch. I think it is called "Magic 109"?"Smooth Jazz for Santa Barbara."

Now, I?ve always been a "Rock ?N Roll" kid. My only exposure to jazz was when I first heard Steely Dan. And even then, I didn?t think I was listening to anything that came close to jazz. To my amazement (after a few days of listening), I started to enjoy what I was listening to. You get to hear a lot of covers with a "jazzy" touch and all.

It didn?t take long when I began to ask myself if I had suddenly grown old?I had this terrible vision that I was turning into my father?.shudder. I had to get back to my roots?back to Rock ?N Roll?but before I did, a song came on that sounded familiar.

It was a female jazz combo performing what appeared to be a rendition of "Do It Again." I pulled over. Can this be for real. I listened carefully. Sure enough, it was a cover of "Do It Again" and not a bad one at that. It was very close to the original with the tempo slightly slowed. There was some nice touches all the way through the song. I arrived at my apartment and sat in my car to listen to the rest of it in hopes of hearing who the singer(s) were.

The outro of the song was interesting?As the singer was existing the song (background singers repeating in tempo?"do it again") she starts to add a few things?like, "get back jack, get back to Vegas." And, (I believe) "get back to the roulette wheel." The song faded out and I remember mumbling to myself "they get it!" They actually understood the underlying meaning of the song. Okay?maybe it?s no great feat, but "I" was impressed.

They never did state who the artist was. And?in my long round-about way, I wonder if anyone out there knows who this artist is and what CD it appears on.

Just curious.

-Paige

---

Date: Wed, January 08, 2003, 01:53:23 ET
Posted by: Condoleeza Rice, Wyatt House

Danfans

Time again for all you war watchers to match wits on.....

WHO IS MUCHO MACHO????

Round one.

WHO IS MUCHO MACHO?????

Is it:

a) Ted Koppel

b) William Saffire

c) Tom Brokaw

d) George Stepahnoppooppoolpouis-whatevah

FOR $100, WHO IS MUCHO MACHO?


------

Round Two.

WHO IS MUCHO MACHO?????

Is it:

a) Tony Blair

b) Colin Powell

c) Rumsfeld

d) Justin Timberlake

FOR $250, WHO IS MUCHO MACHO?





FINAL ROUND, FOR The big Prize, The World and all that is In It,
WHO IS MUCHO MACHO?????

Is it:

a) Kim Jong II

b) Saddam Hussein

c) Osama Bin Laden

d) My boss, W.!

e) James Cameron

FOR The big Prize, The World and all that is In It, WHO IS MUCHO MACHO?

See you later! Maybe!?

---

Date: Tues, January 07, 2003, 22:28:39 ET
Posted by: µ - spellczech,

back

audio-visual

---

Date: Tues, January 07, 2003, 21:02:58 ET
Posted by: µ,

Peg: I'm jealous. Charlie Haden is the coolest white cat around...he used to look like Brubeck on steroids with a crew cut

Steve Jobs & co. never vack down even in a stagnant economy - they just keep innovating. IEEE 1394 (firewire or i-link) and iMovie, Final Cut Pro, iTunes and other propietary and compatible A/V software have changed audi-visual production forever...


Pioneer has a player with a "Universal" chip that plays both DVD-A and SACD...heard it can be had for under $400...

http://store.yahoo.com/eusa/pioneldv45ad.html


If my ship comes in...

---

Date: Tues, January 07, 2003, 19:41:38 ET
Posted by: Steve, me again

One more thing. The Grateful Dead's American Beauty totally kicks ass in DVD-A. I like it better than the Nightfly DVD-A.

OK

Steve

---

Date: Tues, January 07, 2003, 19:36:25 ET
Posted by: Steve,

How about the NFL admitting they screwed up, costing the Giants a chance at the SuperBowl. Man, I'd have someone's ass!

---

Date: Tues, January 07, 2003, 19:31:46 ET
Posted by: Steve, Oakland, Calif.

First time posting. Roger Nichols is a HUGE Macintosh fan. He writes about them in EQ. I bet Becker and Fagen like Macs too.

Excited about the next one.

Steve
"I recall when I was small."

---

Date: Tues, January 07, 2003, 19:13:10 ET
Posted by: Paige, Santa Barbara

Hoops...

Yep heard about the same Apple products and innovations. It's good to see that their creative spirit is alive and well.

-Paige

---

Date: Tues, January 07, 2003, 17:38:05 ET
Posted by: Sean,

Informative article, anon, thank you. I saw that before. MCA may put out SACD but it doesn't say that Steely Dan sanctions it.

2 Against Nature was released by on vinyl in Europe but it wasn't with Steely Dan's approval. I wonder how they feel about SACD releases since their boy Scheiner is the King of DVD-Audio. Wonder if MCA is releasing them with the SD Seal of Approval

Looking for a good DVD-A and SACD combo player.

Here's what's on my CD changer

Norah Jones / Come Away With Me
Pat Metheny / We Live Here
Peter Gabriel / Up
Paul McCartney / Back in the U.S.
Beck / Seachange

Sean

---

Date: Tues, January 07, 2003, 17:16:59 ET
Posted by: ,

http://www.prosoundnews.com/stories/2002/october/1029.5.shtml

---

Date: Tues, January 07, 2003, 16:48:26 ET
Posted by: Sean,

"Why" that's a great argument for DVD-A and SACD. Have Steely Dan expressed any interest in SACD??

Sean

---

Date: Tues, January 07, 2003, 14:53:32 ET
Posted by: Why The Next One, Will be Kazaaed

http://slate.msn.com/id/2076336/

---

Date: Tues, January 07, 2003, 14:12:15 ET
Posted by: hoops, The GearSlut

Fucking awesome!

• 1" thick ***17" Screen *** PowerBook with 54 MB Wireless, 800 MB FireWire, fibreoptic backlit keyboard that senses when it needs to be backlit, standard BlueTooth, 6.8#

• Full featured 12" Screen PowerBook

• 802.11g Airport Extreme hub with 54 MB Wireless and support for USB printer connectivity and auto bridging between hubs.

What's so cool about Apple product annoucements is that I feel the same thrill of innovation, idealism of future technology. Same feeling captured on "The Nightfly" or when I listen to Steely Dan, which is always the tops.

Honoring my Inner Gearslut,

hoops

---

Date: Tues, January 07, 2003, 13:24:13 ET
Posted by: hoops,

I've not heard any plans for a remastered CD-Audio version of "The Nightfly." Was there any issue about CD remasters like there was with the MCA Steely Dan CDs?

A close second behind anything Steely Dan, is anything Apple. So far Apple has announced a lot of new apps including new iMovie, iTunes and a superfast browser, Safari and now a new presention app. (The presentation is still streaming.) Great stuff.

h

---

Date: Tues, January 07, 2003, 11:00:19 ET
Posted by: Paul.,

Oh Yeah

http://207.178.134.200/45grammys/45final.txt

---

Date: Tues, January 07, 2003, 10:58:44 ET
Posted by: Paul McLauchlin, Whizzooman@nospamrcn.com

Grammy noms just listed.

Norah Jones, who seems to be a "neo-Warner's late 70s" sound kind of artist gets five nods. Shorter, Metheny, Dave Holland, Christlieb, and Patti Austin all nominated. Everything else is blase. I bet Springsteen gets the big ones.

Bill Charlap playing in NYC as part of the 92nd Street Y series. Jan 18. Charlap supposedly helped on The Next One.

---

Date: Tues, January 07, 2003, 08:15:23 ET
Posted by: Lester, WJAZ

The Guestbook is the place with all the action and the fans but thought I'd ask this little bunch a question. Will there be a Nightfly Remastered CD audio? This DVD stuff will be tomorrow's quadrophonic 8 track.

See you!

Lester

---

Date: Mon, January 06, 2003, 14:57:09 ET
Posted by: Boston Rag, MA Venues

Sean and Big Fan -

Here's the venue situation in the Boston area if it is a fall tour:

Fleet Center: 19,600 capacity
Worcester Centrum: 14,800
Orpheum Theatre: 2,800
Berklee Performance Center: 1,220

and the Tweeter Center (19,900) which has had shows as late as the third week in September.

I wouldn't want to battle for tickets at a small venue like the Orpheum.

Although I don't like Donald and Walter becoming "arena-rockers", I vote for the Fleet Center.

Mark in Boston

---

Date: Mon, January 06, 2003, 14:40:10 ET
Posted by: Big Fan ,

I agree about the more intimate venues - but what would the cost be? $100, $150, more? Not that it matters to me as long as I'm employed, but other groups have been asking these kinds of numbers. I can't see them playing the hockey rinks like they did during the 1993 tour (Can that have been ten years ago already? - ouch!) So what does that leave? Would they play places like the Oakdale Theater in CT which holds about 8000-9000. The Meadows in Hartford is one of the few outdoor shed venues that can be closed off. Both the Rolling Stones and Fleetwood Mac have practiced there in the winter because it can be closed off and still lets them set up on a typical stage. Inside it probably only holds a little less than 10,000. Or will they play the casinos - terrible place to watch concerts - rude drunken patrons - the high rollers getting good seats and coming in about half way through the concert? There is no happy medium I guess, but if they play smaller venues two things you can be sure of - the costs are going to be sky high and tickets are going to be hard to come by.

---

Date: Mon, January 06, 2003, 13:53:58 ET
Posted by: Sean, Quincy, MA

If the rumor is true, that Steely Dan will tour in the fall, I hope they play more intimate venues. That would be a good thing. Arenas suck for seeing The Dan. Something lame about seeing the boys with cups of paper beer and Velveeta nachos oozing on the floor while being stuck at the opposite end of the arena. This sounds promising, assuming it's true. I suppose it might be since WB/DF have earned all the trendy accolades (Hall of Fame, Album of the Year), they don't have to get all hugely touristy. Just a thought.

Wouldn't that be a bitch if the next album was even greater than the last, only to not even get nominated for a Grammy?

Here's hoping they can bring touring on their own terms to new heights.

Sean

---

Date: Sun, January 05, 2003, 21:46:54 ET
Posted by: hoops, chicagO

Tones:
Great find. And don't worry even if it was posted before (I don't think it was) as a few others will not have caught it before.

Was listening to Nancy Wilson's "Jazz Profiles" show today. They covered Nat "King" Cole the jazz musician,. It was great. There was a lot of discussion of Nat's innovations in keybaord techniques. I was especially struck by certain parallels between Cole, Ellington and Steely Dan, especially how much of their music was planned out in advance, even the solos—not improvised as a some Jazzers feel is essential. A couple of weeks ago, the show featured Nat's younger brother, Freddy Cole who is talent I was not aware of. Both were great shows.

Maybe you can catch the Nat Cole "Jazz Profiles" since it is broadcast on NPR stations that carry the show at various times in a two week window. The station I listen to tends to be about a week late on this particular show.

"Steely Dan on Ice, Baby!"

Well, if it is true, Steely Dan in the late summer, early autumn is how I best like it too. Thanks for the gossip, Zimm. Fun to contemplate.

---

Date: Sun, January 05, 2003, 18:00:07 ET
Posted by: tones, Night By Night Bird Flying

Happy New Year everyone!

Sorry if this is a repost... Just found on page 12 of Guitar Legends (Guitar World special collector's issue) in an article called "Jimi's Jams - a Host of Modern Rockers Pick their All-time Favorite Hendrix Songs":

-------------------------

Steely Dan's Donald Fagen - "Red House" from Are You Experienced?

"There's a certain kind of internal freedom that Hendrix had to enable him to take a basic blues like this and do something totally original with it. That freedom is related to the kind of irony he approached his material with. Jimi had a pretty good sense of humor - he was a very skilled put-on artist. There are not many musicians you can compare him to. In jazz, the closest comparison would be Eric Dolphy, who also had that tremendous sense of freedom. He said, "I don't care what other guys used to play in this context - I feel like playing this!" And like Dolphy, Hendrix had the technique to pull it off."

-------------------------

peace

t

---

Date: Sun, January 05, 2003, 14:19:52 ET
Posted by: W1P,

If you're coming for NAMM, its a short 60 mile drive to Agoura for Which One's Pink? on 1/18

---

Date: Sun, January 05, 2003, 11:15:51 ET
Posted by: Peg, Venezuela, Cincinnati, Cuba, Etc.

We Dan fans must have some cosmic linkage. Mu, you mentioned Charlie Haden and I'm ordering tickets tomorrow to hear him and Gonzalo Rubalcaba (Cuban pianist) -- they'll be nearby this month. Anybody out there who has not gotten "Nocturne," the album they did together, and won a Grammy, is doing themselves a disservice. It is sweet, smooth, delightful. Pat Metheny, Joe Lovano, David Sanchez, and the most unbelieveable violinist, Frederico Ruiz, are also on this. Don't just think about getting it -- GET IT.
Yeah, I'm not surprised that D&W want to avoid the heat. It was rather simmering in Cincy, too, when they came by. Just as long as they book someplace were I can see them...We have some great indoor venues here as well, besides the coliseum...A show on ice? Gee, that is one heck of a way to illustrate the line "Please take me along when you slide on down." Not to mention they could change the line about being a roller skater...Woo hoo! Cool potential. (No more puns I promise).

---

Date: Sun, January 05, 2003, 02:23:07 ET
Posted by: John Granatino,

Angel,

Thank you for your kind words about the Metal Leg transcriptions! I keyboarded those in over a period of many months in 1996 and 1997 when I had a lot of time during train rides between Providence and Philadelphia to devote to the project.

It's great to see transcriptions (and/or scans) of the later issues showing up now here on Jim's bulletin board. I see his mention that the later issues will be posted on Pete Fogel's site at some point in the future, and that would only be proper given the effort, time and money Pete and Bill Pascador selflessly gave to the printed project a decade ago. Jim, Pete and I have all met each other and I bet we will figure out a way to link all the online issues together in a comprehensive Metal Leg online resource.

By the way for those who noticed the whiskers on my own site, I have been updating and you'll find about a half dozen new links on the Readings and Links pages.

All best,
John
http://www.granatino.com/sdresource

---

Date: Sat, January 04, 2003, 23:35:28 ET
Posted by: The DoubleMint Twins, Semi-famous body-double vixens doubling all over your body

A fall tour? I bet this is part of that ol'rumor that Our Guys will mix it up a bit by presenting the next tour as STEELY DAN ON ICE!!!! (Note: This sould make Boston Rag very happy.)

Here's the apparent rationale: The ice arenas aren't often available until after the hot summer season so that's why the tour might have to wait until at least until September. Plus Donald and Walter will have all summer to practice skating routines. Donald doing a "Hamil Camel" at the end of "Kid Charlemagne" should be totally awesome! I can't wait for Walter's triple axl during the "Josie" drum solo!

With so many top-notch international skaters between the ages of 12 and 18, finding the right skaters to play Janie and Melody should be easy! (Heck, we could even do them!)

Peggy Fleming, wearing Ambush™ and a French twist, could appear during those "Nightfly" tracks inspired by the 1960s.

Dick Button could emcee, freeing Donald and Walter to focus on playing and skating!

I bet Marian McPartland would even guest on some spots recreating the moves of Sonja Henie!!!!!!

Sarah Hughes would be a shoe-in for the "Steely Dan on Ice" shows since she hails from Becker's home borough of Queens!

Alexei Yagudin could cover the vibes!

Tonya Harding would be perfect for a routine based on the female lead in "Down In The Bottom."

But woe to those skaters who fall and must suffer the cool stare of Donald's sunglasses and quivering, curled, thin lips.

We could even score the concerts using the ice skating scoring system. "I give the show at the Ice Palace a 5.8!"

I'm so excited! So everyone! Let's talk it up! If they can have a Rock and Soul Revue, why not a Rock and Ice Revue? What ice skating stars do you want to see on The Next Tour?! What moves should Donald and Walter perform?! I can't wait!

Maybe Hoops can select a poster at random to win a "Steely Dan on Ice" digital snowcone machine with "vibro-erotic" action! (??????????) Whaddya say????

2XMintTwins

---

Date: Sat, January 04, 2003, 16:50:14 ET
Posted by: µ, Tejas - where inside is the cool part of the summer

Zimm: If that's true regarding an indoor Fallish concert schedule, it would a welcome relief. My day gig schedule is much better in the Fall than summer. Also it's hot as hell in August outdoors in Texas: Houston or Dallas. The summer of 2002 is the "coolest" we've ever had (never got out of the mid 90s) and the heat usually runs until October. To be honest, with middle age $100 tickets and 105° don't mix like they used to...

Besides the acoustics at some of the indoor venues here in Texas are far better. The University of Texas has am absolutely gorgeous Performing Arts Center.

http://www.utpac.org/

Charlie Haden and Dave Holland Qunitet are on the schedule this academic calendar year besides plays, opera, you name it

Houston also has a nice arena downtown - The Verizon Wireless Theater featuring Aerial Theater. Great sound for popular artists like Little Feat, Keb 'Mo, BB King, Ben Folds...The head bangers, mosh-ers and rappers can hang in Reliant Stadium 10 miles SW...

---

Date: Sat, January 04, 2003, 12:24:39 ET
Posted by: Keith, Owings Mills, MD

Well, Zimm, assuming your pal has good info, we Danfans are used to waiting so fall isn't that bad. Actually, it would be like the 92, 93 and 94 tours when the shows started mid-August and ran through mid-September. It was a touch chilly at those September shows in 92 & 93, as a I recall.

On the other hand, I wonder if they will play these smaller theatres like Metheny and Joni play???? Oh well, I guess this could mean no shows at Merriwether or Manassas or Camden. Or maybe I will never have the chance to catch Engorgement. On the other hand, how about Steely Dan at the Beacon or Roseland!? YEAHHHH!

Keith

---

Date: Sat, January 04, 2003, 12:01:49 ET
Posted by: Zimm, CT

Greetings-

Heard from our state's local tour guru (yup, he covers the whole state-Connecticut is small enough) that the next tour will likely come in the autumn of 2003 because our boys didn't want a summer outdoor venue type tour again. Experienced them from the front row and the lawn seats, and the lawn seats are just so much more fun. Either way, I'll be in the audience.

Zimm

---

Date: Fri, January 03, 2003, 22:55:24 ET
Posted by: Mike (not Mike McDonald),

Mick McDonald will be playing 2003 NAMM Show Concert at the Arrowhead Pond in Anaheim, California on January 17. NAMM is the International Music Products Association--a non-profit association for the global musical instruments and products industry. I guess it's sorta like a performance at a convention. Also slated to appear are Diana Krall, Ray Charles, Bruce Hornsby, Randy Newman, Take 6 and Brian Wilson. And then there's Jewel, Brian McKnight, Elton John and Amy Grant as well. What a mixed bag!

They then give a link to a Yahoo! Artists page for Mike McDonald at http://launch.yahoo.com/artist/default.asp?artistID=1017474 It has a fan station supposedly designed for Fans of Michael McDonald. It includes selections by Wham and Usher! Oh boy! I see the connection. LOL LOL LOL! Fortunately, Steely Dan are not honored with a similar Internet radio station featuring the music of Wham! and Usher. LOL!

---

Date: Fri, January 03, 2003, 18:54:55 ET
Posted by: Denari & Ballard, The Metroplex

"I think the enemy of creativity in the world today is that so much thinking is done for you. The environment is so full of television, party political broadcasts and advertising campaigns, you hardly need to do anything. We're just drowning under manufactured fiction, which satisfies our need for fiction - you scarcely need to go and read a novel."

"The future is going to be boring. The suburbanisation of the planet will continue, and the suburbanisation of the soul will follow soon after."

"I crawl like a viper through these suburban streets. Make love to these women languid and bittersweet."

Maybe Deacon Blues wasn't such a loser after all.

---

Date: Fri, January 03, 2003, 17:01:46 ET
Posted by: hoops, chicago

Heyya.

Angel:
Thanks for the suggestion about the "Metal Leg" reprints on the web. The intention of these transcriptions is that they will be part of a "Metal Leg" archive at Pete Fogel's site in the not too distant future, when they are good and ready. I know you speak for all of Dandom when you thank John for his efforts in transcribing the issues he did in the mid-90s. Additionally, I appreciate John's efforts since I can only OCR certain articles; others can only be typed.

"Metal Leg," especially the issues by Fogel and company, are essential Steely Dan reading and a standard I think all SD fan resources aspire to. On top of that—it's amazing that most of these "Quality, Quality, Quality" issues were put out before Steely Dan reformed and when Steely Dan tours and albums were simply fan fantasies based on events of a decade before. Yet, there was no talk of "nothing Steely Dan to talk about" between tours like there are amongst some fans more recently. To me, "Metal Leg" kept The Faith and that excites me a great deal, almost as much as the music of Steely Dan.

Big Fan:
Thanks for the links…as always!

Reinhard/George:
Wheredaheckunbeen?

Chicago Jazzfest on Internet Streams:
Many of you remember that we had a great wing-ding in Chicago last Labor Day weekend with a "Chicago Jazzfest/Danfest." Maybe you couldn't attend, or maybe you wish to relive or tape those great performances by Phil Woods, Wayne Shorter, and Danilo Perez, among others. Chicago Public Radio, WEBZ will be broadcasting these performances during the next two months on their new "Performance Space" show. It airs at 8:00 pm (-0600 /Chicago Time/Central Standard Time) Saturdays and repeated at 11:00 pm Sunday nights. The show is streamed over the internet, so check out http://www.wbez.org and click the link to "Performance Space." Of course, those in Chicago can listen at 91.5 FM and those in Northern Indiana and Southwestern Michigan can listen on WBEW, 89.5 FM. The performance by "Aja" saxophone legend Wayne Shorter (with Danilo Perez) will be broadcast February 14 & 15; February 22-23 will feature "A Tribute to Thelonious Monk" with Sphere featuring "Dr. Wu" saxophone legend Phil Woods. But be sure to catch all the other great performances by local Chicago, as well as international, Jazz talents like Von Freeman, Ahmad Jamal, and Patricia Barber. If nothing else, connecting to WBEZ.org will be good practice for "Piano Jazz" which WBEZ also streams world-wide.

After February, the "Performance Space" series will include performances from The North Sea and New Orleans Jazz Festivals, among other events. Sounds like a weekly listening event for me.

Mr Rag:
You mean to tell me there really WAS a 2000 tour? I thought it was all a huge dream! I kept asking people to pinch me cause it was all too greater than reality!

It's so good to read so many great posts. Now that we all have a foot in the year of The Next One, I'm even more excited.

h

---

Date: Fri, January 03, 2003, 16:53:23 ET
Posted by: More details.,

I heard that Pete Fogel and/or Jim McCay serve as body doubles for Donald Fagen during tours! The likeness is uncanny!

---

Date: Fri, January 03, 2003, 15:29:29 ET
Posted by: Tweetie Bird, everywhere

Mark in Mass --

that's funny about the hotel near the Tweeter...because on their last few tours SD didn't stay overnight anywhere near the Tweeter. They based in NYC and flew in for all the gigs in the region, including that one.

Maybe Donald, like Sadam, has a double?

---

Date: Fri, January 03, 2003, 14:39:07 ET
Posted by: µ, Heavy Metal

angel: Guess what...

http://www.steelydan.com/dennys3.html

size is everything...

---

Date: Fri, January 03, 2003, 14:05:00 ET
Posted by: angel, I wait all night for calls like these....

Caller 9: Sounds like a bunch of Urban Legends, to me. Do you know how much one of those 2" tapes weigh? Great story to scare the recruits, though.

---

Date: Fri, January 03, 2003, 14:04:43 ET
Posted by: W1P,

The Steely Damned TONIGHT at the Catamaran (Cannibal Bar) in San Diego! Me and Mrs. Pink are going. See ya all there!

---

Date: Fri, January 03, 2003, 13:54:57 ET
Posted by: caller 9, silence, it breeds whatever

"During a session today I heard a story from another engineer about how on one of the Steely Dan albums, a studio intern left one of the master 2" reels out on the counter in the break room and the maid came in and threw it in the trash. The intern realized what had happened and retrieved it from the trash, but it had been covered with cigarette ash and other debris and was unusable, and the whole reel's worth of material had to be re-recorded."

"I heard the story of an assistant who spilled a coke on the 24 track machine and ruined the tape and caused a lot of damage to the machine. They duct taped the poor bastard to a telephone pole on Santa Monica Boulevard. don't know if it's true, but I never set a coke on a 24 track or a console, after I heard the story."

http://www.musicgearnetwork.com/ubb/ultimatebb.php?ubb=get_topic;f=2;t=004856#000003

Ha!

---

Date: Fri, January 03, 2003, 13:51:39 ET
Posted by: µ,

Mark: Thanks a lot! I had concocted a plan to hypnotize Winona Ryder with silver shiny things and bring her to the next Dan concert. After the show, I'd have Donald sign her left breast and then sell her into white slavery for $500,000. The strategy was then to quickly move the money into a Swiss banc account before Winona stole herself....well, you've just given SD a "heads-up" on signatures as intellectual property...So how am I supposed to put my kids through college Now???!

---

Date: Fri, January 03, 2003, 13:01:33 ET
Posted by: Sharon, West Broadway

Mark- Go sell your autograph on ebay. Leave us 'true Steely Dan fans" alone. What I'm trying to say is..........get the hell outta here!

---

Date: Fri, January 03, 2003, 11:58:25 ET
Posted by: Mark in Massachusetts,

Hey Sean:

The reason I'm selling the signed "Aja" album for $50
is that I DIDNT get a photo of Donald signing it, and
Walter walked right pass me without saying a word.

After the concert on July 15th at the Tweeter Center,
I drove right over to the Dedham Hilton (where the majority
of the Tweeter guests are put up) and about 40 min later
Donald showed up. I said " Hi Donald, would you mind auto-
graphing my Aja album" and he signed it in blue sharpie and
handed it back to me (without saying a single word to me).

If Walter signed it, and I had photos of the signing, I wouldnt
be selling it (at least not for $50)

Regards,
Mark in Massachusetts

---

Date: Fri, January 03, 2003, 10:36:37 ET
Posted by: µ, Hollywood, I hold my middle finger

Claude,

DVD-Video discs are usually, but not always, coded for "region" in an effort (seemingly futile) to control distribution and limit pirating:

http://searchwindowsmanageability.techtarget.com/sDefinition/0,,sid33_gci514667,00.html#2

All DVD-V players read the code, and I assume that that is true for PCs as well (Though I wouldn't be surprised if Steve Jobs of Apple ignored this)

However, I do not believe DVD-As, which is a different format, have a regional code. I have found no evidence that RIAA was interested in using the Hollywood Regional Code system. My eMac with OS 10.2 can read DVD-As and I can watch a video (like New Frontier) or still pics or a combo (like the hilarious smoking cigarette in Donald's hand on The Nighfly cover, and the billowing clouds of smoke after making a selection from the main menu). The audio is read as as the audio on a DVD-V, so the resolution's less than on my JVC DVD-A player. I can't speak for PC DVD players, but a standard DVD-V player cannot read DVD-A in theory. Anyone with a PC and Nightfly DVD-A out there have some insight?


Here's a good lay summary on CDs and DVDs:

http://www.techtronics.com/uk/shop/510-dvd-region-codes.html

---

Date: Fri, January 03, 2003, 05:02:54 ET
Posted by: Doctor Soul, Paris France

Hi Claude Manichon,

Happy new year 2003 to all. I just wanted to tell to Claude that I saw the Nightfly DVD A in Virgin Megastore here in Paris France during one of my December visit...
Have a good hunt
Doctor Soul

---

Date: Fri, January 03, 2003, 01:27:35 ET
Posted by: W1P,

This was posted to the Mike Keneally newsgroup -- can anyone answer this question?
Subject: OT: "Peg" backing vocals
From: Brian Bernardini bbernardini@comLOOKAPITCHFORKcast.net
Date: 1/2/2003 1:42 PM Pacific Standard Time
Message-id:

So I was listening to a show from the "Two Against Nature" tour today, and I noticed that the voicings of the backing vocals in the chorus of "Peg" don't seem as complex as the originals. There's a segment of the "Aja" Classic Albums special where Michael McDonald listens to his isolated multi-tracked vocals, and there seemed to be a lot more 2nds and whatnot. Anybody out there know what the original voicings were?

---

Date: Fri, January 03, 2003, 00:59:48 ET
Posted by: angel,

John Granatino: I just wanted to let you know how important your website has been to me over the past 2 years. Especially the Metal Leg Archives. As I have read the transcriptions that Hoops has made over the past month or so, I have hoped that someday you and he might make an agreement to add them to your site. Sort of an all in one place kind of thing. Especially since things look like they are heating up again, on the Dan front.

Regarding 1/2/3. I had hopes that today would be the release date of the next one. Too bad.

---

Date: Thurs, January 02, 2003, 22:09:43 ET
Posted by: Mike, Louisville, KY

Dream setlist for 2003:

1st Set:

West of Hollywood
Time Out of Mind
Peg
(New Song)
Janie Runaway
Babylon Sisters
Your Gold Teeth w/ band introductions ( 1st half of song - band
intros and extended soloing - 2nd half wrapup)
Dr. Wu
(New Song)
Hey Nineteen
My Old School

2nd Set:

Your Gold Teeth II
Black Cow
(New Song)
Deacon Blues
Only a Fool Would Say That
Barrytown
Black Friday
(New Song)
Kid Charlemagne
Cousin Dupree

Encore(s):

Home at Last
Don't Take Me Alive

On some nights switch out My Old School for Ruby Baby, Black Friday for New Frontier and Barrytown for Girlfriend.

I've said before that Your Gold Teeth has some major potential for soloing and would be perfect for the introductions.

Take care and I'm looking forward to seeing everyone again,

El Sup

---

Date: Thurs, January 02, 2003, 18:16:07 ET
Posted by: Boston Rag,

Dave - I agree that this tour could be their last one. Hell, the 2000 tour could be the last one! They aren't on the road yet! Sorry if I sounded like I was taking things for granted.

Sean - You're right- Mark in Massachusetts is not me. That's another Mark. However I do know that Donald and Walter were staying at the Dedham Hilton on July 15, 2000. It was I who was disguised as a room service waiter who brought up the Swedish Ginger cookies and Dom Perignon to Room 312. Then, when Mr. Fagen was about to sign for the cookies I slipped the black Aja cover under the silver Sharpie and ran off with his signature! BwoooooooHaaaaaHaaaaaa!

Mark in Boston

---

Date: Thurs, January 02, 2003, 17:57:17 ET
Posted by: Claude Manichon, Versailles, France

Bonne Année Danfans!!!

I am questioning about the new Nightfly DVD. I want to be seeking it here in France, but no success for me. Would it be possible to use an American copy with a European DVD player with my computer? I am using Windows and a Compaq with a DVD player, but there are what are called <<regional codes>>. Would this not start playing ?

Please tell me Steely Dan will come to Olympia again! It was very good.

Thank you and have a nice day all of you.

Claude

---

Date: Thurs, January 02, 2003, 17:37:17 ET
Posted by: Reinhard aka George, www.reheller.de

Happy new year to y'all in the loyal Dandom! Yes I'd love to see them again this year, with all the crazy folks that come along, we can party anytime anywhere. Did I hear YES?

Just in case someone should care, I updated my website (http://www.reheller.de) and shame on me the only SD update is the note that says what we hpe for (a CD and a tour).

I believe I could stand SD tours for a long time still, but I agree with the assumption it could be smaller clubs. Although, how would we be selected for the one show allowed per tour per person??? I seem to remember the venues were not really empty.

Again, happy new year ... and fade to blue ...

---

Date: Thurs, January 02, 2003, 17:34:38 ET
Posted by: Rindy, Big Apple

Greetings DanFans,

Happy '03!

I anxiously await the Next One & hopefully Tour Y2K'03.

Would love to hear a few more covers on this tour as others have pined for. Anything in a jazzy vein would be fine with moi.

In terms of their repertoire...

* Two Against Nature
* Haitian Divorce
* Katy Lied
* King of the World
* Home at Last

...are at the top of my wish list.

Peace!

Rindy

---

Date: Thurs, January 02, 2003, 16:58:29 ET
Posted by: Sean, me again!

Oops , hit the button too soon. I was going to add, I have lots of Steely Dan ticket stubs and a sharpie too.

---

Date: Thurs, January 02, 2003, 16:56:44 ET
Posted by: Sean, Quincy, MA

Happy New Year, all!

Did you realize that today's date could be abbreviated as
1-2-3?

Read that many Eurpoean copyrights from the 1950s and 1960s start reverting to the public domain. Apparently, much of Billie Holiday's 50s Verve recordings were copyrighted by Verve France S.A. so they soon will be up for grabs. How much longer does MCA have the rights to the Steely Dan catalogue?

Is this good enough to be enterred into the drawing for the Nightfly DVD-A????

The Mark selling the Aja album, I assume you're not Mark a.k.a. "Boston Rag" since he'd never part with such an item. Anyways, A ticket stub proves nothing about authenticity. I wouldn't touch it with a 10' pole, or a 6'5" Polishman, for that matter.

---

Date: Thurs, January 02, 2003, 15:49:02 ET
Posted by: Dave, Mild Mannered Mohel

Responding to Boston Rag's last one. The possibility that the next Steely Dan tour could be the last Steely Dan tour makes it fresh enough for me. Sure, Becker and Fagen are classy enough to leave the ridiculous "Official Farewell Tour" designations to Cher, Tina Turner and The Who. But given how it takes three or four years for a Steely album lately, I wouldn't be completely surprised if we never see another full-scale Steely Dan tour after the next one. Would they want to tour in their late 50's? Well, if enough scantily-clad "Hey 19's" showed up they might. But really, I bet only sparse club dates and one-offs after the next tour.

I do like the idea of the Wheely Dan selection. Funny, Boston Rag.

Rather then check steelydan.com everyday, I have Internet Explorer set to automatically check the site whenever I start it. However you compulsively check, call us all "rabid for The Next One."

How about they open the second set with John William's "2001 A Space Odyssey Theme?" It would be exciting and fresh, not to mention a cover tune. Donny and Walty could even come out in space suits.

Zits oyf terkish until The Next One,

Dave

---

Date: Thurs, January 02, 2003, 12:40:27 ET
Posted by: Big Fan, At work until the last Space Station parts ship - when you see the launch look for me in the unemployment line

Famous Birthdays in Jan:
http://www.austin360.com/aas/life/ap/ap_story.html/Entertainment/AP.V5476.AP-Celeb-Birthdays.html

Small time band always loved Steely Dan:
http://www.boston.com/dailyglobe2/361/living/Hitting_the_big_time_in_a_small_town+.shtml

The next one mentioned in an article on the Cleveland Browns:
http://browns.theinsiders.com/2/82888.html

---

Date: Thurs, January 02, 2003, 11:53:05 ET
Posted by: mark in massachusetts, whoops

Whoops...my mistake; the concert was on July 15, 2000
I'll also include the ticket stub for the show w/ the album.

Mark in Massachusetts

---

Date: Thurs, January 02, 2003, 11:47:47 ET
Posted by: mark in massachusetts, Signed "AJA" by D. Fagen

Is anyone interested in a signed Aja album by Donald ?
Obtained on July 23, 2000 at the Dedham Hilton, Dedham Massachusetts
after the concert.
Clean, with record...$ 50, plus shipping

Thanks, Mark in Massachusetts

---

Date: Thurs, January 02, 2003, 11:47:01 ET
Posted by: mark in massachusetts, Signed "AJA" by D. Fagen

Is anyone interested in a signed Aja album by Donald ?
Obtained on July 23, 2000 at the Dedham Hilton, Dedham Massachusetts
after the concert.
Clean, with record...$ 50, plus shipping

Thanks, Mark in Massachusetts

---

Date: Thurs, January 02, 2003, 11:39:52 ET
Posted by: John Discepolo,

On Jan. 10, 2003, Donald Fagen will be 55 years old; Whew !!
(Hang in there old fella until after this summer's tour before
you fall down)

JD

---

Date: Thurs, January 02, 2003, 11:11:46 ET
Posted by: jk,

hoopy new year!


jk





buzzflash.com

---

Date: Wed, January 01, 2003, 23:25:48 ET
Posted by: Boston Rag, 2003 Tour Wish List

Happy New Year Dan Fans!

Wow! 2003 to bring a new CD and a possible tour!
I can't wait and I'm now in the habit of checking the ODP at least
twice a day!

Although it's great that there will be a possible tour this summer, I have to say the novelty of it has worn off a bit. After being starved in the 70's to see them in concert and then in the 80's to get a product out, the 90's, it goes without saying, was much more satisfying being a Dan Fan. I never thought I would see 4 Steely Dan tours in a 7 year span. So where I am I going with this?

Well, I want to see something different this time around. Something to spice up the Steely Dan live show. I remember about 10 years ago seeing an Elvis Costello show and he brought up a giant roulette wheel and invited audience members to write song names and post them up on the wheel. Then he pulled someone else out of the audience and asked them to spin the wheel. Elvis and his band broke into the song the wheel landed on. It was pretty cool. I can imagine the laughs that Donald and Walter could get setting this up. "It's time for the Wheely Dan portion of the show!".

The band Phish used to do a lot of cool things during their live shows, including playing a large chunk of one of their albums from start to finish. I'd love to see "Katy Lied" played in it's entirety from "Black Friday" to "Throw Back The Little Ones". Then in the next town, they could do the complete "Royal Scam" in the 2nd set. You would never know what you would get from show to show.

Just a couple of suggestions to punch it up a bit! However, they could come out and play anything and I'd be there drooling.

See you there this summer!

Mark in Boston

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Date: Wed, January 01, 2003, 16:47:50 ET
Posted by: hoops, chicago

I think "Shakedown Street" got me thinking since Donald has had praise for the song in the past. But SdR is probably right; I can't see them doing covers on an SD tour unless it's the "walking music" after intermission or "Toodl-OO." NYR+S is a diffferent story, of course.

This brings me back to that thread from winter 2001, when we discussed second set openers for the hoped-for 2001 tour. I still think "The Real Ambassador" (only version I know of is by Brubeck, featuring Louis Armstrong) would be a great candidate, although it could be a potential train wreck to perform.

Any ideas?

Still, hoping for Walter on "Josie." "Josie" and "Deacon Blues" are essentials for an SD concernt. "Haitian" and "Dr. Wu" are two classics I'd love to hear live. How about "What A Shame About Me?" Heck, do you think they will do anything off 2vN? I'm sure there will be new ditties too, but "Green Earrings," "Chain Lighning" and "Pretzel Logic" are all welcomed in return to the setlist, if you ask me.

h

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Date: Wed, January 01, 2003, 16:39:51 ET
Posted by: hoops, chicago

Happy New Year, everyone!

Steely Dan album? Can't Wait!

Steely Dan Tour? Let's hope so—can't wait!

Danfests? Can't wait to see you all!

Have a GREAT one!

h

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Date: Wed, January 01, 2003, 14:32:52 ET
Posted by: Steve De Rose,

I agree with the choice of "Time Out Of Mind".

I don't know if the Dan would do a Grateful Dead *original*, even one as 4/4 time as "Shakedown Street".

But a cover of a Dead cover of an old R&B song, such as "Turn On Your
Love Light" (which the Dead got from Bobby 'Blue' Bland), or perhaps even "Pain In My Heart" (Otis Redding), might fill, particularly if more selections from the NYR&S Revue are presented.

If they elected to have a set with NYR&S material, who would you like to see in the chorus?

Steve "Pudgy" De Rose 3=)#
"He was a wise man who invented beer." - Plato
http://www.originnet.net/users/pudgym/index.html

--
http://fastmail.fm - And now for something completely different...

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Date: Wed, January 01, 2003, 06:54:07 ET
Posted by: Steve, Chicago

Can anyone bring me up to speed with any news on the incredible Drew Zingg? I never thought Larry Carlton's playing could be equalled until I heard Drew! I heard that he was playing with Rickie Lee Jones a while back. It doesn't appear that he has a website I can find. I would be grateful for any info - or at least any current releases he plays on, etc!

Best regards and thanks for this fabulous Dan site --

-- Steve

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Date: Wed, January 01, 2003, 00:20:56 ET
Posted by: Michelle, Princeton Junction, NJ

Happy New Year everyone!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Can't wait for the new album and tour!!!!!!!!!!!! YAHOOO!

Mich

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December 2002 BlueBook Entries.

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