I'm in my early 40s and (REALLY) discovered The Dan over the last four or five years. Sitting alone in the house during a global pandemic..... King of the World was an anthem. But you are correct sir, Aja is is the right answer. Front to back INSTANT classic.
When you started trying to figure out the lyrics, I literally said to myself out loud 'good luck buddy' 😂 The tub you were thinking of were steel or pan drums. But I think it's actually a xylophone or vibes synth patch. Sax player was the late great Wayne Shorter who played with Miles, Coltrane, Blakey, Weather Report (who if you are not familiar with, you should definitely check out). In short, the dude played with all the BIG names in jazz and was pretty big name himself. Steve Gadd (the drummer) is just a monster on the kit. Much like everyone else in this lineup he has played with everyone. His work with the band Stuff is off the charts awesome.
My guess is the "people on the hill" are the rich people living in the Hollywood hills. Dime dancing could be a reference to social clubs where girls dance with customers at 10cents a dance.
I always interpreted it as meaning their work. Dime Dancing is a job. Once their job is done, they vacation in Asia. Get away from the Rich people and the whole LA/Hollywood scene. But the cool thing about art like this, when it's top-tier, is that I can be interpreted in many ways.... so there probably isn't a right or wrong.
Seriously, don't try so hard to figure out Steely Dan's lyrics. You'll get headaches. Most of their lyrics are either metaphors, semi biographical/inside jokes, stories about the seedy side of life, or just pure nonsensical. Focus on the music, more than the lyrics.
@@brianfiori4086 Maybe so, but in multiple cases I've not had any success figuring them out. And I've not worried about it because the music was so good and so well crafted.
@@markstromberg1148 They’re not nonsense, but they’re often obscure cultural references (as well as personal ones and inside jokes, as noted above). Example in the first verse is dime dancing. There were old time dance halls in big cities where you could dance with a woman for 10¢. It was called “Dime-a-dance” and the girls were called taxi dancers. There’s also some overlap with prostitution, as you might imagine. So the singer-nararator is saying that when his professional paid gigs are through (with the prostitution association), he seeks relief in “Aja”. What is Aja? It’s a place that he describes. There are drug overtones (China White and Opium), but it could be music that he enjoys playing or a place where he can play that music. But all that said, the music comes first.
We are dealing with recordings of another level. Becker & Fagen were engineers or something . Just super genius stuff . Mind blowing for even metalheads ,rockers and hip hoppers !!!
There is a documentary that is available on RUclips called "The Making of Aja." In it Donald Fagen tells the story of having a friend in high school whose older brother went to Korea, met a woman there named "Aja," married her and brought her back to the US. Donald Fagen says that the song is about the tranquility that can come from a relationship with a beautiful woman.
The "dime dancing" I'm pretty sure refers to the deal in the past, maybe WW2 times, where you go and dance with women for ten cents a dance. You can imaginge how serious a relationship is that mainly involves a 10 cent dance would be. He's saying once the cheap thrills are done, he wants a more serious relationship.
Finally! Someone hits the nail. Dime dancing was popular in the Pacific Theater of WW2. Asian--AJA--dancing with American, Aussie, etc. troops who would by a ticket to dance for a dime. Of course, some of them would by up dozens upon dozens of tickets and dance with all the ladies all night. So, yeah, when a guy runs out of tickets...he runs to the girl who serves as his anchor.
Steely Dan lyrics go over all our heads. Some songs have a pretty clear meaning but others continue to be very vague even after all these years. "Hey Nineteen" has a pretty clear cut meaning that I think you'll enjoy. I'd love to see you stay with the Aja album since you're already here. My favorite is "Home at Last"! I hope you'll find time to do that one at some point. Looking forward to the rest of your Dan journey!
Exactly, some of have listened for 40 years and still have questions about the meaning of the lyrics. Don't get caught up in that, just enjoy the ride.
Don't stress about the lyrics: I give them a pass - 46 years on, whilst I immerse in a peak Steely Dan song. You'll never get tired of this: One day it's Wayne Shorter's sax, another it's Gadd's drumming. Donald has the best voice. I like watching reactions to it; Most understandably are blown away.. It's unquestionably on my own desert island. I still don't know what the lyrics allude to.
This is a masterpiece, and quite possibly one of the most complicated musical arrangements i've ever heard in a single song. It's almost like there are 3 completely different songs blended together that shouldn't work, but DOES. Steely Dan is legendary, and will probably go down as one of the most underrated artists of all time.
Stay on the Steely Dan tip.....Finish this record check then check out the Royal Scam.....Kid Charlemagne...Larry Carlton's amazing guitar solo on that gotta check it out...
There's a documentary about the making of this album and it's incredible! I would strongly recommend that you finish out this entire album (which is, no exaggeration, probably the greatest pop album ever recorded) and then watch the documentary. It's called, "The Making of Aja". Once you're finished you'll understand clearly just how legendary these guys are!
35 years , of Steely Dan Lyrics..and every decade the meaning changes...a lot of the songs deal with addiction, sex, relationships....but they don't throw it in your face...it's Art. Hope we meet next decade . ❤😂
This is the incomparable Wayne Shorter on tenor sax. A different saxophonist than Pete Christlieb or Tom Scott on Black Cow and Deacon Blues. They used different sax players over the years and I guess tried to fit the player to the song. So many great players over the years. Michael Brecker, Chris Potter, Phil Woods, Walt Weiskopf, John Klemmer, Cornelius Bumpas, Savid Sanborn, Lou Marini and others as soloist or section players :)
Chris Potter on "West of Hollywood" goes places that only the absolute icons of jazz have ever gone. He will someday be spoken of in the same breath as John Coltrane, Dexter Gordon, Sonny Rollins, and Charlie Parker.
Did we grow up with just the BEST music ever?!???!!!!??? Honestly, as kids listening to our music, we weren’t analyzing the words. Just relax and let it flow. Not all our songs had deep meaning.
I am a huge Neil Peart fan and he is my favorite and all time best drummer, but this song contains some of the best drumming ever from the great Steve Gadd. Simply amazing, as is this whole album, one of the best albums of all time. Donald and Walter were masterful, meticulous perfectionists in the studio.
Dont worry about the lyrics until youve enjoyed the listening of the great music .Fagen and Becker are usually cryptic regards the lyrics and I think that they have always enjoyed puzzling their audience with their lyrics. Wayne Shorter on sax, Steve Gadd on drums, I am pretty sure Denny Dias on guitar and a list of other incredible musicians on this beautiful track.
I have been listen to Steely Dan since the beginning, I usually just treat the voices/lyrics as another musical instrument, but over the years is fun to try to figure out the lyrics, although there are some we prob dont want to understand, lol...hey, is Steely Dan! For more fun, watch what you can about the recording of Aja, I think they used like 60 or more studio musicians
Pretty sure this is a drug reference song. The man comes home to reality after his 'dime dancing'.. partying. BTW I think it's a wooden xylaphone not a steel drum. (I think that's the instrument you were referring to) Also.. I think we have similar tastes... that sweet jazz guitar and sax/drum bit.. yeah.. magic stuff
I really appreciate your reactions and your knowledge!!! I would really love it if you would take a listen to Boston. They were, in my opinion, THEE band from 1977. Their debut album was unmatched... literally every song a hit!! If you listen to "More than a Feeling" (Studio version... not live) trust me you'll be hooked... Especially if you read the back story of the album was produced. This is classic Rock at its best!!! Keep up the great work!!!
Patrons in a dance hall typically purchased dance tickets for ten cents each, which gave rise to the term "dime-a-dance girl". In the 1920s and 1930s the term "nickel hopper" gained popularity in the United States because out of each dime-a-dance, the dime dancer typically earned five cents. In the lyrics " After my dime dancing is through I run to you" ... I interpret that as a man going to a dance hall and dancing with the ladies (at a dime a dance) then afterwards they come running home to the one they care about. Something like that. Take care...
You are right. Every note is written and meant to be expressed in some special way, with performers percolated and filtered to create the sound searched for by Donald Fagen
You should watch the Making of Aja Documentary. During WWII There were places for soldiers to dance, and charge a dime a dance. Up on the hill is thought to be referring to a psychological movement called Est. It was an in thing for the Beautiful People.
Donald Fagen and Walter Becker were both huge jazz fans, very familiar with all the old jazz clubs in NYC. There’s a great record of them, it’s called piano jazz where they are interviewed by Marion Mcpartland, who had a show on npr I think. They play live in the studio and you hear them talking about their love of jazz. At one point she asks Donald if he’s still buying jazz records and he says I just keep buying the same ones over and over. ! Great interview
on this track they use wayne shorter on sax r.i.p. played with miles davis,herbie hancock just to name a few you have to be exceptional to play with this legends and the drummer the great steve gadd play sessions on a lot of albums chick correa paul simon miles I'm sure herbie and 100's of bands and singers !
They don't only hire session musicians, they have tryouts. They don't call it that but when they plug in 15 guitarists to see which one has the best feel for the solo on "Peg", that's a tryout. Apparently Aja was the name of some dude's step-mom who made a real impact on Fagen. Notice how celebratory he sings her name. It's like an unveiling of something priceless. If you have a place on the hill in LA, you're one of the uber-rich. I think the point being made is the aloofness beyond all of our mortal worries those who live in rich enclaves can afford. "They think I'm okay, or so they say." Not only are they insulated, they're inscrutable. They may hate you but saying so would be bad PR. Aja represents a time and place where he can be himself. He doesn't have to worry about what others think because it will affect his bottom line. "When all my dime-dancing is through..." As far as saxophone, Steely Dan had tryouts every time. They've been through a few. You might be talking about Pete Christlieb, or Michael Brecker, or Phil Woods, but I think on this particular track it was Wayne Shorter. However, if you want to hear a sax go off? You need to hear this...ruclips.net/video/7ES0OdVB8Yo/видео.html Get in a lounge chair and sit outside, get a strong drink because this is a ride. Chris Potter is sick!
I will try to keep this short. Aja is a rehab place, think Betty Ford. It is up on the hill on the coast in California. The singer goes there everytime he hits bottom. When all my dime dancing is through, I run to you. In other words, he is doing a song and a dance just to get a dime bag, the minimum you can get and he has to beg for it. He goes to the rehab clinic on the hill. In the clinic they give you the I'm ok you're ok line from the title of a 70's self help book.
"Double helix in the sky to night" (Our Milky Way galaxy), "throw-out the hardware" (drug paraphernalia), "let's do it right", (we don't need stimulants to enjoy this). When all of the Dime Dancing (sometimes referred to as Taxi-dancing), is through, I run to you. Dime-dancing was popular in the 1920s, where you paid a dime to dance with a man or more likely, a woman. Once he has finished with this frivolously, flirtatious dancing, he will go back to his woman. Wayne Shorter is a saxophonist God playing on this! Check out "Weather Report" or Miles Davis' work with Herbie Hancock.
Very glad you were able to enjoy the music on this one! Regarding lyrics, you seem a little stressed out when you try to interpret the Steely Dan lyrics. I suggest letting that go on the first listen and allowing your intuition to guide you with later listenings. I think you'll enjoy it more. But great observations about the music!
Steely Dan in my opinion is a "thinking man's band". I have heard them described as.... "Your favorite bands.... favorite band". Wayne Shorter is the sax player on this track.
I find most Steely Dan lyrics humorous & a bit weird but the music is sooo good. Song lyrics that I can relate to are: Rikki don't lose that number, Bad Sneakers, Reeling in the Years, Only a fool would say that, Dirty Work, Any Major Dude & others
🤗 Subbed for the Dan! Its okay to not figure out the lyrics as most reactors try to do. 🙄 Thats like figuring out Floyd and/or Rush lyrics. 😂 Sometimes just enjoy the song. 😉 This aint homework & we aren't grading you. ☺️ Just appreciate when folks find the Dan! 🥰🐰
No, not your average band, at all! This is the genius of Donald Fagan, Walter Becker and ALL the phenomenal musicians they used throughout their spectacular careers…
@ Church Boy Reactions! Aja Backing Vocals - Donald Fagen, Tim Schmit* Bass - Chuck Rainey Drums - Steve Gadd Electric Piano - Joe Sample Guitar - Denny Dias, Larry Carlton, Walter Becker Percussion - Victor Feldman Piano - Michael Omartian Synthesizer, Whistle [Police Whistle] - Donald Fagen Tenor Saxophone - Wayne Shorter
The best thing to do is search the meanings behind the songs before doing a Steely Dan reaction, then when u listen to it with your audience it will all make sense. Understand also that Donald Fagen majored in English Literature when he attended Bard University in upstate New York. English Lit has many metaphors and analogies as does some of SD's music.They loved it when their fans struggled to figure out the lyrics, SD were cynical in that way. All I remember about the song is that Aja is the name of a Korean woman who married a college friend of either Walter Becker or Donald Fagen, or something like that. Steely Dan dedicated the song to the bride. The correct pronunciation of her name would be how you first pronounced it, but it would sound a bit off in the song. So pronounced Aja, like in the continent would make more sense.
Really enjoyed your reaction, this great music continues to impress me after countless times hearing. The sax was Wayne Shorter who recently passed. Keep on!!!
Check out Peg from Steely Dan. I really really dig funk and that tune has got some firm roots in that older feel good funk grooves! You will not be dissapointed!
Steely Dan brought in two of my favorite musicians just for the song "Aja": Michael Omartian (piano), and Steve Gadd (drums). I still have two of Omartian's Christian albums from the late 1970's. His writing, arranging, and even piano recording techniques are legendary. Gadd and Omartian together = gold.
I could be wrong about this, but I believe the "dime dancing" refers to "taxi dancing" which was a thing during WWII. Dance halls would have girls who would dance with servicemen for dimes. That's also where the phrase "dance card" comes from. That said, I think the lyrics here are meant to be more impressionistic, and not so literal.
You remind me of a friend who used to constantly ask during a ton of questions during a movie about what everything was about. My advice to him is what I recommend here: Let it play out. If you stop interrupting everything to try to analyze it without knowing what else it reveal is a fool's errand, IMO. Especially for Steely Dan where, in most of their songs, the meanings can be varied, and take a long time to comprehend. The music is just (or more) complex, and is best understood over many listens. I've heard this song hundreds of times and find new things in the lyrics, and music, most every time
Aja is pronounced pretty much like Asia. Steely Dan started as a full band that toured. Eventually, it was a studio duo, plus whichever studio guys fit the song the best. If the guys in the room weren't nailing it, they'd get another set of musicians to try to nail it.
Also, almost every song by Steely Dan after their 2nd or 3 album are completely different bands with the exception of Donald Fagen and Walter Becker....they would just use the best studio musicians and try to build each song with the musicians who were best for that song. They knew how they "wanted it to sound" beforehand.
its the jazz legend wayne shorter on sax. he played with all the other greats like miles davis, john coltrane, herbie hancock, etc. probably one of their best featured musicians on an album if not the best.
I've often wondered if the dime reference is for a dime bag and maybe there's a ritzy LA rehab up on the hill... which could tie into the sound of a police whistle which happened between the two. All just an exercise in music-listening brain ramblings. ☺️
I feel lucky to have grown up during the late 70s, a time that the music of Rush, Jethro Tull, Genesis, Dire Straits, and Steely Dan was the popular music of the day. These guys were musical geniuses!
“Double helix” is the shape of DNA. To me, that lyric is talking about procreation, or sex, lol. Throw out the hardware, don’t use protection, do it right. Lmao 😂
I dont know if they're steel drums or if those are xylophones in the instrumental section. All i know is that it's incredible musicianship and the sounds, the textures, they got out of their session musicians
5:55 Chopsticks! Well, sort of. Jazz Chopsticks. He’s hitting two keys at a time, equally spaced at each beat, like the basic song. But he’s also giving the melody a stereotypical oriental flavor. Edit: Is it keyboard or vibraphone?
The instrument you're thinking of is the marimba's. People for some reason seem to love Steve Gadd, the drummers part, but to me it's repetitive, bombastic, and doesn't really go anywhere. Whereas Wayne Shorter's sax solo is creative, it explores the harmonics of the chord structure and the theme, and is colorful, playful, and serious at the same time. Shorter was a true master. During the Great Depression men would go to dance halls and pay women a dime for each dance they had with them. So, "dime dancing" could then be his dalliance with other women, other jobs, other musicians etc., while he always returns to the thing he truly loves.
The double helix reference is about the shape of a strand of DNA. The hardware is probably a reference to artificial sexual hardware. Throw out the hardware let's do it right. Their lyrics can be rather abstruse at times, but I love the fact that it makes you think about what they're trying to say. Sax player is Wayne Shorter who played with Miles Davis and Weather Report to name just two of his credits
I'm sure other Steely Dan fans are going to tell you that their lyrics are sometimes difficult to decipher. Just enjoy the music and their cryptic lyrics.
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Steely Dan lyrics are an artistic canvas with intentional multiple meanings. Can be slightly different for anyone. But the general idea and impression is there in the eclectic nature of it. It means something to more people when they make images in their mind. It has it's own brilliance and genius.
When all my dime dancing is through, I run to you, is basically saying, once he has sown all his oats and had enough good times, then he will settle down with her.
Dime dancing was popular during the forties where the dance halls would have pretty girls to dance with for a dime a song. This was big for soldiers on leave during ww2. The reference to "when all my dime dancing is through I run to you" is about the narrator saying when he is done running from girl to girl he'll run to his true love, a girl named Aja. As for the rest of the lyrics....who knows? The instrument you were curious about is a marimba, basically a xylophone made of wood.
Patrons in a taxi-dance hall typically purchased dance tickets for ten cents each, which gave rise to the term "dime-a-dance girl". Other names for a taxi dancer are "dance hostess" and "taxi" (in Argentina). Best. Mike.
This is the third reaction of Steely Dan I've seen you do and you are going to drive yourself crazy trying to figure out their lyrics. Most of the time the lyrics are extremely vague and many times meaningless. I heard Walter Becker say in an interview "we sometimes pick words because they sound good". Steely Dan was always about the music the lyrics are less important, You are not ever going to get "Moon, June, Spoon", from them, just relax and enjoy it .But I can tell you a Steely Dan song that has a meaning to it ( in their own style), "Only a fool would say that" from "Can't Buy a Thrill". It is their answer to Lennon's "Imagine".
![[Paris Olympics] Performance by Australia's Olympic Break-dancer Rachael Gunn breaks the internet](http://i.ytimg.com/vi/i1rl1KhKIjE/mqdefault.jpg)
The legend Steve Gadd on drums. Pure GOLD!
My understanding is that it was done in one take.
I am 71 years old and "Aja" is one of the greatest songs of my life. This album is very special.
I'm in my early 40s and (REALLY) discovered The Dan over the last four or five years. Sitting alone in the house during a global pandemic..... King of the World was an anthem. But you are correct sir, Aja is is the right answer. Front to back INSTANT classic.
Amen brother! Same here...Thank God for those days!!
The sax player is Wayne Shorter, a great player.....drummer is Steve Gadd one of the best,
From Weather Report!
When you started trying to figure out the lyrics, I literally said to myself out loud 'good luck buddy' 😂
The tub you were thinking of were steel or pan drums. But I think it's actually a xylophone or vibes synth patch.
Sax player was the late great Wayne Shorter who played with Miles, Coltrane, Blakey, Weather Report (who if you are not familiar with, you should definitely check out). In short, the dude played with all the BIG names in jazz and was pretty big name himself.
Steve Gadd (the drummer) is just a monster on the kit. Much like everyone else in this lineup he has played with everyone. His work with the band Stuff is off the charts awesome.
It's a marimba
My guess is the "people on the hill" are the rich people living in the Hollywood hills. Dime dancing could be a reference to social clubs where girls dance with customers at 10cents a dance.
I always interpreted it as meaning their work. Dime Dancing is a job. Once their job is done, they vacation in Asia. Get away from the Rich people and the whole LA/Hollywood scene. But the cool thing about art like this, when it's top-tier, is that I can be interpreted in many ways.... so there probably isn't a right or wrong.
Steely Dan is sometimes referred to as "Your favorite musician's favorite musicians"!
Or, your favorite band's favorite band!
Seriously, don't try so hard to figure out Steely Dan's lyrics. You'll get headaches. Most of their lyrics are either metaphors, semi biographical/inside jokes, stories about the seedy side of life, or just pure nonsensical. Focus on the music, more than the lyrics.
@@butterflymama0838 That IS kinda strange, especially since he asks questions concerning whichever SD song he's reacting to.
So true. Steely Dan is about the vibe; the lyrics can often be nonsense.
@@markstromberg1148 The lyrics may be hard to decipher, but they are never nonsense.
@@brianfiori4086 Maybe so, but in multiple cases I've not had any success figuring them out. And I've not worried about it because the music was so good and so well crafted.
@@markstromberg1148 They’re not nonsense, but they’re often obscure cultural references (as well as personal ones and inside jokes, as noted above).
Example in the first verse is dime dancing. There were old time dance halls in big cities where you could dance with a woman for 10¢. It was called “Dime-a-dance” and the girls were called taxi dancers. There’s also some overlap with prostitution, as you might imagine.
So the singer-nararator is saying that when his professional paid gigs are through (with the prostitution association), he seeks relief in “Aja”. What is Aja? It’s a place that he describes. There are drug overtones (China White and Opium), but it could be music that he enjoys playing or a place where he can play that music.
But all that said, the music comes first.
We are dealing with recordings of another level. Becker & Fagen were engineers or something . Just super genius stuff . Mind blowing for even metalheads ,rockers and hip hoppers !!!
There is a documentary that is available on RUclips called "The Making of Aja." In it Donald Fagen tells the story of having a friend in high school whose older brother went to Korea, met a woman there named "Aja," married her and brought her back to the US. Donald Fagen says that the song is about the tranquility that can come from a relationship with a beautiful woman.
The "dime dancing" I'm pretty sure refers to the deal in the past, maybe WW2 times, where you go and dance with women for ten cents a dance.
You can imaginge how serious a relationship is that mainly involves a 10 cent dance would be. He's saying once the cheap thrills are done, he wants a more serious relationship.
Finally! Someone hits the nail. Dime dancing was popular in the Pacific Theater of WW2. Asian--AJA--dancing with American, Aussie, etc. troops who would by a ticket to dance for a dime. Of course, some of them would by up dozens upon dozens of tickets and dance with all the ladies all night. So, yeah, when a guy runs out of tickets...he runs to the girl who serves as his anchor.
Lowering yourself to market necessities.
Steely Dan lyrics go over all our heads. Some songs have a pretty clear meaning but others continue to be very vague even after all these years. "Hey Nineteen" has a pretty clear cut meaning that I think you'll enjoy. I'd love to see you stay with the Aja album since you're already here. My favorite is "Home at Last"! I hope you'll find time to do that one at some point. Looking forward to the rest of your Dan journey!
Yes!!!
Exactly, some of have listened for 40 years and still have questions about the meaning of the lyrics. Don't get caught up in that, just enjoy the ride.
Wayne Shorter on sax. This was his first and only take. One of the immortals.
Weather Report !
He really really really wants to know the literal meaning of the lyrics DURING the song on the first listen. The most impatient music reactor ever.
Don't stress about the lyrics: I give them a pass - 46 years on, whilst I immerse in a peak Steely Dan song.
You'll never get tired of this: One day it's Wayne Shorter's sax, another it's Gadd's drumming. Donald has the best voice. I like watching reactions to it; Most understandably are blown away..
It's unquestionably on my own desert island. I still don't know what the lyrics allude to.
This is a masterpiece, and quite possibly one of the most complicated musical arrangements i've ever heard in a single song. It's almost like there are 3 completely different songs blended together that shouldn't work, but DOES.
Steely Dan is legendary, and will probably go down as one of the most underrated artists of all time.
Stay on the Steely Dan tip.....Finish this record check then check out the Royal Scam.....Kid Charlemagne...Larry Carlton's amazing guitar solo on that gotta check it out...
There's a documentary about the making of this album and it's incredible! I would strongly recommend that you finish out this entire album (which is, no exaggeration, probably the greatest pop album ever recorded) and then watch the documentary. It's called, "The Making of Aja". Once you're finished you'll understand clearly just how legendary these guys are!
35 years , of Steely Dan Lyrics..and every decade the meaning changes...a lot of the songs deal with addiction, sex, relationships....but they don't throw it in your face...it's Art. Hope we meet next decade . ❤😂
This is the incomparable Wayne Shorter on tenor sax. A different saxophonist than Pete Christlieb or Tom Scott on Black Cow and Deacon Blues. They used different sax players over the years and I guess tried to fit the player to the song. So many great players over the years. Michael Brecker, Chris Potter, Phil Woods, Walt Weiskopf, John Klemmer, Cornelius Bumpas, Savid Sanborn, Lou Marini and others as soloist or section players :)
Chris Potter on "West of Hollywood" goes places that only the absolute icons of jazz have ever gone. He will someday be spoken of in the same breath as John Coltrane, Dexter Gordon, Sonny Rollins, and Charlie Parker.
I loved how you succumbed to the vibe at 10:00
Did we grow up with just the BEST music ever?!???!!!!???
Honestly, as kids listening to our music, we weren’t analyzing the words. Just relax and let it flow. Not all our songs had deep meaning.
That drum groove at the end is the sickest groove I have ever heard
I am a huge Neil Peart fan and he is my favorite and all time best drummer, but this song contains some of the best drumming ever from the great Steve Gadd. Simply amazing, as is this whole album, one of the best albums of all time. Donald and Walter were masterful, meticulous perfectionists in the studio.
HAHAHAHAHA! When you start wagging your finger you know they cooking!!!
That's Wayne Shorter on tenor sax. One of the greatest of the greats, co-leader of Weather Report.
Dont worry about the lyrics until youve enjoyed the listening of the great music .Fagen and Becker are usually cryptic regards the lyrics and I think that they have always enjoyed puzzling their audience with their lyrics. Wayne Shorter on sax, Steve Gadd on drums, I am pretty sure Denny Dias on guitar and a list of other incredible musicians on this beautiful track.
I have been listen to Steely Dan since the beginning, I usually just treat the voices/lyrics as another musical instrument, but over the years is fun to try to figure out the lyrics, although there are some we prob dont want to understand, lol...hey, is Steely Dan! For more fun, watch what you can about the recording of Aja, I think they used like 60 or more studio musicians
I see you've got your bass there. This is the incredible Chuck Rainey filling in the low end.
Pretty sure this is a drug reference song. The man comes home to reality after his 'dime dancing'.. partying.
BTW I think it's a wooden xylaphone not a steel drum. (I think that's the instrument you were referring to)
Also.. I think we have similar tastes... that sweet jazz guitar and sax/drum bit.. yeah.. magic stuff
I really appreciate your reactions and your knowledge!!!
I would really love it if you would take a listen to Boston. They were, in my opinion, THEE band from 1977. Their debut album was unmatched... literally every song a hit!!
If you listen to "More than a Feeling" (Studio version... not live) trust me you'll be hooked... Especially if you read the back story of the album was produced. This is classic Rock at its best!!!
Keep up the great work!!!
that sound or instrument your tripping is the vibes or xylophones !
There’s a RUclips showing the two of them listening to several outtakes and mixing the songs just the way they wanted them.
Dime dancing up on the hill at the Dude Ranch. He was grinding on sold old rich bag, then the shift ended, and he went back to Aja, his lady.
Patrons in a dance hall typically purchased dance tickets for ten cents each, which gave rise to the term "dime-a-dance girl". In the 1920s and 1930s the term "nickel hopper" gained popularity in the United States because out of each dime-a-dance, the dime dancer typically earned five cents. In the lyrics " After my dime dancing is through I run to you" ... I interpret that as a man going to a dance hall and dancing with the ladies (at a dime a dance) then afterwards they come running home to the one they care about. Something like that. Take care...
You are right. Every note is written and meant to be expressed in some special way, with performers percolated and filtered to create the sound searched for by Donald Fagen
You should watch the Making of Aja Documentary. During WWII There were places for soldiers to dance, and charge a dime a dance. Up on the hill is thought to be referring to a psychological movement called Est. It was an in thing for the Beautiful People.
Donald Fagen and Walter Becker were both huge jazz fans, very familiar with all the old jazz clubs in NYC. There’s a great record of them, it’s called piano jazz where they are interviewed by Marion
Mcpartland, who had a show on npr I think. They play live in the studio and you hear them talking about their love of jazz. At one point she asks Donald if he’s still buying jazz records and he says I just keep buying the same ones over and over. ! Great interview
Drummer, Steve Gadd is brilliant on this song. Larry Carlton is the guitarist . Wayne Shorter is the sax player.
Steely Dan is a muscian’s band. They have the best session players on their albums. Chuck Rainey is the bassist on this track.
It is beautifully composed. Kick back, relax and enjoy yourself. Only way to listen to genius!
100%
Steely Dan is a mainstay on my "lounge mix", I often play it in the background when I'm entertaining. It's almost audio wallpaper.
on this track they use wayne shorter on sax r.i.p. played with miles davis,herbie hancock just to name a few you have to be exceptional to play with this legends and the drummer the great steve gadd play sessions on a lot of albums chick correa paul simon miles I'm sure herbie and 100's of bands and singers !
This entire album is pure fire!!🔥Much to my hubby of 45 years dismay, it was on total replay for a few years!!
They don't only hire session musicians, they have tryouts. They don't call it that but when they plug in 15 guitarists to see which one has the best feel for the solo on "Peg", that's a tryout.
Apparently Aja was the name of some dude's step-mom who made a real impact on Fagen. Notice how celebratory he sings her name. It's like an unveiling of something priceless.
If you have a place on the hill in LA, you're one of the uber-rich. I think the point being made is the aloofness beyond all of our mortal worries those who live in rich enclaves can afford. "They think I'm okay, or so they say." Not only are they insulated, they're inscrutable. They may hate you but saying so would be bad PR.
Aja represents a time and place where he can be himself. He doesn't have to worry about what others think because it will affect his bottom line. "When all my dime-dancing is through..."
As far as saxophone, Steely Dan had tryouts every time. They've been through a few. You might be talking about Pete Christlieb, or Michael Brecker, or Phil Woods, but I think on this particular track it was Wayne Shorter. However, if you want to hear a sax go off? You need to hear this...ruclips.net/video/7ES0OdVB8Yo/видео.html
Get in a lounge chair and sit outside, get a strong drink because this is a ride. Chris Potter is sick!
I will try to keep this short. Aja is a rehab place, think Betty Ford. It is up on the hill on the coast in California. The singer goes there everytime he hits bottom. When all my dime dancing is through, I run to you. In other words, he is doing a song and a dance just to get a dime bag, the minimum you can get and he has to beg for it. He goes to the rehab clinic on the hill. In the clinic they give you the I'm ok you're ok line from the title of a 70's self help book.
What an excellent explanation of Aja's meaning! Thank you!
"Double helix in the sky to night" (Our Milky Way galaxy), "throw-out the hardware" (drug paraphernalia), "let's do it right", (we don't need stimulants to enjoy this).
When all of the Dime Dancing (sometimes referred to as Taxi-dancing), is through, I run to you. Dime-dancing was popular in the 1920s, where you paid a dime to dance with a man or more likely, a woman. Once he has finished with this frivolously, flirtatious dancing, he will go back to his woman.
Wayne Shorter is a saxophonist God playing on this! Check out "Weather Report" or Miles Davis' work with Herbie Hancock.
Very glad you were able to enjoy the music on this one! Regarding lyrics, you seem a little stressed out when you try to interpret the Steely Dan lyrics. I suggest letting that go on the first listen and allowing your intuition to guide you with later listenings. I think you'll enjoy it more. But great observations about the music!
Steely Dan in my opinion is a "thinking man's band". I have heard them described as.... "Your favorite bands.... favorite band". Wayne Shorter is the sax player on this track.
It’s 70’s lyrics. Often there just to support the melody. Steve Gadd is unforgettable on this track.
I find most Steely Dan lyrics humorous & a bit weird but the music is sooo good. Song lyrics that I can relate to are: Rikki don't lose that number, Bad Sneakers, Reeling in the Years, Only a fool would say that, Dirty Work, Any Major Dude & others
🤗 Subbed for the Dan! Its okay to not figure out the lyrics as most reactors try to do. 🙄 Thats like figuring out Floyd and/or Rush lyrics. 😂 Sometimes just enjoy the song. 😉 This aint homework & we aren't grading you. ☺️ Just appreciate when folks find the Dan! 🥰🐰
No, not your average band, at all! This is the genius of Donald Fagan, Walter Becker and ALL the phenomenal musicians they used throughout their spectacular careers…
love watching aja reactions because they have no idea that Steve Gadd and Wayne Shorter are about to tear shit up
@ Church Boy Reactions!
Aja
Backing Vocals - Donald Fagen, Tim Schmit*
Bass - Chuck Rainey
Drums - Steve Gadd
Electric Piano - Joe Sample
Guitar - Denny Dias, Larry Carlton, Walter Becker
Percussion - Victor Feldman
Piano - Michael Omartian
Synthesizer, Whistle [Police Whistle] - Donald Fagen
Tenor Saxophone - Wayne Shorter
The best thing to do is search the meanings behind the songs before doing a Steely Dan reaction, then when u listen to it with your audience it will all make sense. Understand also that Donald Fagen majored in English Literature when he attended Bard University in upstate New York. English Lit has many metaphors and analogies as does some of SD's music.They loved it when their fans struggled to figure out the lyrics, SD were cynical in that way. All I remember about the song is that Aja is the name of a Korean woman who married a college friend of either Walter Becker or Donald Fagen, or something like that. Steely Dan dedicated the song to the bride. The correct pronunciation of her name would be how you first pronounced it, but it would sound a bit off in the song. So pronounced Aja, like in the continent would make more sense.
Many of the lyrics in this song contain drug related references.
Really enjoyed your reaction, this great music continues to impress me after countless times hearing. The sax was Wayne Shorter who recently passed. Keep on!!!
Up on the hill...upper class.
Check out Peg from Steely Dan. I really really dig funk and that tune has got some firm roots in that older feel good funk grooves! You will not be dissapointed!
Welcome to the journey!! ..
Steely Dan brought in two of my favorite musicians just for the song "Aja": Michael Omartian (piano), and Steve Gadd (drums). I still have two of Omartian's Christian albums from the late 1970's. His writing, arranging, and even piano recording techniques are legendary. Gadd and Omartian together = gold.
I could be wrong about this, but I believe the "dime dancing" refers to "taxi dancing" which was a thing during WWII. Dance halls would have girls who would dance with servicemen for dimes. That's also where the phrase "dance card" comes from. That said, I think the lyrics here are meant to be more impressionistic, and not so literal.
"dime dancin" is what some girls n clubs did back in the day for 10cents a dance, they would dance with others later.
The legendary Wayne Shorter on the sax.
You remind me of a friend who used to constantly ask during a ton of questions during a movie about what everything was about. My advice to him is what I recommend here: Let it play out. If you stop interrupting everything to try to analyze it without knowing what else it reveal is a fool's errand, IMO. Especially for Steely Dan where, in most of their songs, the meanings can be varied, and take a long time to comprehend. The music is just (or more) complex, and is best understood over many listens. I've heard this song hundreds of times and find new things in the lyrics, and music, most every time
Aja is pronounced pretty much like Asia.
Steely Dan started as a full band that toured. Eventually, it was a studio duo, plus whichever studio guys fit the song the best. If the guys in the room weren't nailing it, they'd get another set of musicians to try to nail it.
I appreciate you!
What makes you run for a dime, means you are done working. I think for life.
Also, almost every song by Steely Dan after their 2nd or 3 album are completely different bands with the exception of Donald Fagen and Walter Becker....they would just use the best studio musicians and try to build each song with the musicians who were best for that song. They knew how they "wanted it to sound" beforehand.
The wikipedia article on the Aja album lists the personnel for each track. Not the same people on all tracks.
its the jazz legend wayne shorter on sax. he played with all the other greats like miles davis, john coltrane, herbie hancock, etc. probably one of their best featured musicians on an album if not the best.
"Up on the hill" refers to rich folks. Back in the day, they always lived above the plebes.
I've often wondered if the dime reference is for a dime bag and maybe there's a ritzy LA rehab up on the hill... which could tie into the sound of a police whistle which happened between the two. All just an exercise in music-listening brain ramblings. ☺️
Dime dancing refers to girls going to taxi dance halls, Men and especially G.I 's going off to WW2 would buy dances with the girls.
I feel lucky to have grown up during the late 70s, a time that the music of Rush, Jethro Tull, Genesis, Dire Straits, and Steely Dan was the popular music of the day. These guys were musical geniuses!
Killer Drums
They might hire Jazz musicians but Donald Fagen who sings and wrote most of these songs is obviously a top notch Jazz musician!!!
In the 30 and 40s there were clubs that you could pay for a dance for a dime. It’s the precursor of what we would call gentlemen’s clubs.
the late. great Wayne Shorter on Sax.....formerly of Weather Report and Miles Davis
And they knew who the good players we're in Nyc because they worked in the commercial ditty factory; Brill building.
“Double helix” is the shape of DNA. To me, that lyric is talking about procreation, or sex, lol. Throw out the hardware, don’t use protection, do it right. Lmao 😂
I dont know if they're steel drums or if those are xylophones in the instrumental section. All i know is that it's incredible musicianship and the sounds, the textures, they got out of their session musicians
Back in the day they had dance hall you could go to and pay 10 cents to dance with the girls
5:55 Chopsticks! Well, sort of. Jazz Chopsticks. He’s hitting two keys at a time, equally spaced at each beat, like the basic song. But he’s also giving the melody a stereotypical oriental flavor.
Edit: Is it keyboard or vibraphone?
The instrument you're thinking of is the marimba's. People for some reason seem to love Steve Gadd, the drummers part, but to me it's repetitive, bombastic, and doesn't really go anywhere. Whereas Wayne Shorter's sax solo is creative, it explores the harmonics of the chord structure and the theme, and is colorful, playful, and serious at the same time. Shorter was a true master. During the Great Depression men would go to dance halls and pay women a dime for each dance they had with them. So, "dime dancing" could then be his dalliance with other women, other jobs, other musicians etc., while he always returns to the thing he truly loves.
The double helix reference is about the shape of a strand of DNA. The hardware is probably a reference to artificial sexual hardware. Throw out the hardware let's do it right. Their lyrics can be rather abstruse at times, but I love the fact that it makes you think about what they're trying to say.
Sax player is Wayne Shorter who played with Miles Davis and Weather Report to name just two of his credits
I'm sure other Steely Dan fans are going to tell you that their lyrics are sometimes difficult to decipher. Just enjoy the music and their cryptic lyrics.
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Steely Dan lyrics are an artistic canvas with intentional multiple meanings. Can be slightly different for anyone. But the general idea and impression is there in the eclectic nature of it. It means something to more people when they make images in their mind. It has it's own brilliance and genius.
When all my dime dancing is through, I run to you, is basically saying, once he has sown all his oats and had enough good times, then he will settle down with her.
Becker and Fagan use studio musicians as their band. I believe something like 40 musicians appeared on this album.
Dime dancing was popular during the forties where the dance halls would have pretty girls to dance with for a dime a song. This was big for soldiers on leave during ww2. The reference to "when all my dime dancing is through I run to you" is about the narrator saying when he is done running from girl to girl he'll run to his true love, a girl named Aja. As for the rest of the lyrics....who knows? The instrument you were curious about is a marimba, basically a xylophone made of wood.
This song will give you plenty of "stank face."
Patrons in a taxi-dance hall typically purchased dance tickets for ten cents each, which gave rise to the term "dime-a-dance girl". Other names for a taxi dancer are "dance hostess" and "taxi" (in Argentina). Best. Mike.
It’s interesting to see someone who knows music , hearing this for the first time
Double helix = galaxy
I could be wrong, but I think it was a xeolaphone and a pan flute in that part where you couldn't figure out the instruments.
Up on the hill = rich people
Checkout Josie from this album it has a great bass line by Chuck Rainey !
This is the third reaction of Steely Dan I've seen you do and you are going to drive yourself crazy trying to figure out their lyrics. Most of the time the lyrics are extremely vague and many times meaningless. I heard Walter Becker say in an interview "we sometimes pick words because they sound good". Steely Dan was always about the music the lyrics are less important, You are not ever going to get "Moon, June, Spoon", from them, just relax and enjoy it .But I can tell you a Steely Dan song that has a meaning to it ( in their own style), "Only a fool would say that" from "Can't Buy a Thrill". It is their answer to Lennon's "Imagine".