Ryan Grissom I started listening to Steely Dan at 5. I’m 27 now. I listen to absolutely everything, but I truly believe that Steely Dan provides you with a deeper and keener sense of understanding and appreciation for all types of music which differ from each other.
Sometimes while watching you Jamel it feels like I'm sharing all the songs I know so well with a good friend that has never heard them before. It is both rewarding and entertaining, just your expressions make me laugh. Thank you for looking at these classics with your heart and feeling the groove that I grew up with. It makes it all new to me again too.
Yes, he makes it so much fun. I love watching his reactions. Someone that appreciates the music from the past the way it should be appreciated and respected.
Possibly my favorite lyric ever is in this song: "I cried when I wrote this song. Sue me if I play too long." This song is gansta in the smoothest way possible.
If that actually did matter in the 70s then disco duck wouldn’t have been a number one hit. Every generation has masters and amateurs who accidentally make it big. I think people forget just how much terrible music there was in the 70s and 60s because they only remember the good stuff
@@Glassandcandy Disco Duck was a hit because it was funny, not because it was great music. As for terrible music, yeah, they had some back in those eras, but it was the exception, not the rule, like this era now.
why not? i'm sure it would have gotten some of your students who wouldn't otherwise pick up a book reading one. i can understand, though, if you were teaching anything before high school
We revere artists of the utmost calibre like Picasso and the likes. I think Steely Dan is that in music. There are many good and even great groups that come along every decade, but Steely Dan to me is of the greats. The kind that make an indelible dent in the ripple of time.
I saw them this year for the first time - unfortunately post Becker, but still. I have only twice in my life felt I was in the presence of a musical genius (Jeff Lynne being the other). It was magic.
@@alliswede42 They are not together. The song was written over 40 years ago. The OP is here right now. And the song is fictional, so nobody was crying, except the OP. And he's alone in doing that. Unless you're doing it as well. In which case, I have to ask: What are you doing with such a cry baby when you could have a drink with a real man like me?
@@SpaceCattttt say what you say. I'm quitting the deacon board, leaving the church, learning to play the saxophone, checking out all the action in town. I'm gonna drink all night and die in a car crash! Remember my name dammit! Lol
Discovering Steely Dan's catalog in my early 20s has been one of the greatest musical journeys I've had yet. As I grow older, their music only becomes better. Absolutely phenomenal band.
I think Rikki don’t lose that number was the first song I heard by steely Dan probably 1972 it was about the same time I heard right place wrong time by Dr. John Although Zouzou mamu was the first song I heard by Dr. John
When I was a kid in the early 80s my mom used to put on Stealy Dan while we cleaned the apartment on Saturday mornings. I can smell the bleach when I hear this song.
#145 on Rolling Stone's Top 500 Albums of All Time (1977 ABC Records). Won Grammy for Best Engineered album (Roger Nichols, Elliot Scheiner, Al Schmitt, Bill Schnee ; Assistant engineers: Joe Bellamy, Lenise Bent, Ken Klinger, Ron Pangaliman, Ed Rack, Linda Tyler. Produced by Gary Katz.
I'm a 67 year old music FREAK. Your reactions bring a joy to my retired bored life that I can not put into words. If I could then I would have made a fortune as a songwriter. Thank you my Brother.
Did you listen to it SO MANY TIMES that when you hear it today, your mind/memory automatically puts in the "clicks" from the track changing? I'm that way with a few...
The drummer on this track is Bernard Purdie, a legend in R&B and funk. He's famous for his Purdie Shuffle. He's still alive, I believe. Glad to see you loving this track. I lived through the era when this music was new and can remember that it was so unique.
@@patriciawright8786 Beato’s channel is for musicians, really. It can get very technical. I’m just happy to have both of these guys & hope Jamel keeps it going.
Watch 'The Making of Aja' video sometime. They were beyond perfectionist. The best description I have heard of their process is "Taking the music to absolute perfection, then bringing it back down a notch to make it more enjoyable".
Steely Dan are unique band, they 'll be still fresh in 200 years from today (my humble opinion). Their musical , compositional, creativity skills are unbelievable. Love and peace from Athens Greece.
Unfortunately, every time someone posts the live version, which is really smokin', RUclips takes it down. But hopefully some version by them will be on RUclips somewhere.
Pete Christlieb: Sax Solo They tracked down the sax player in the Tonight Show band, Pete Christlieb, who recorded his part after a taping of the show. There are many tales of musicians being asked to do take after take during a Steely Dan session, but Christlieb was done in 30 minutes, and it was his second take they used. Note: This Tonight Show Band was during the Johnny Carson era of the show.
Just to give you an idea about the caliber of musicians who played on Johnny Carson, I have a distant cousin who left the brass section of Wild Cherry to play with them. Unfortunately, Johnny retired next year.
Ken Welch: Cool story. Yeah, no doubt there was high quality musicians in Johnny's Band. With Doc Severinsen as band leader you had to have some chops to play in that league. Little known fact, Johnny Carson was an amateur drummer. Though I'm not sure that amateur is the right word here. There's a couple of clips of him drumming and he was good.
@@MsPrincesspaulina That's why he was always drumming with his pencils on his desk while the band played during commercial breaks......he was actually a pretty decent drummer!
And...Indeed....they were some of the best musicians on the planet! Once I started playing trumpet in junior and senior high school band, my band mates and I made it a point to watch Carson whenever we could and note when the band got a chance to play on air!
I was in the Navy and had to drive across the U.S. and head for Maryland from California and bought this groups album with this song on it before I left and listened to it on my cassette player in my car all the way to Maryland. Sure brings back memories back then in the fall of 1978.
Jamel, most of us have heard these songs hundreds of times but this music formed us on many levels. We come here to watch you feel the music with us. Thank you
I remember when this album hit the scene,summer of 77,I was 18, pure ecstacy,I wore out this Album! Iv,e been a fan since 74, no other band ,can hold a candle to these Cat,s! Musical Perfection Baby! I love your reaction! 😊👌👆,Clay
I'd love to see you cover some Supertramp, I don't think I've ever seen anyone cover them. Possible tracks: The Logical Song Breakfast in America Take the Long Way Home Goodbye Stranger
One of my favorite songs! "I cried when I wrote this song Sue me if I play too long This brother is free I'll be what I want to be" has to be one of the coolest song lyrics ever penned!
"Peg" and "Deacon Blues" are all from the "AJA" album. One of the best albums ever made. IMO. Peaked at #3 in 1977. Was stopped by Saturday Night Fever LP sound track and Rumors LP by Fleetwood Mac that held both top spots for a year.
World War Disco...The enemy of all music. The enemy of man himself. The beginnings of the end, for intellectual pursuits.... My Black Sabbath tank destroyed many a dancing fool...Not too many of us left, that were in those trenches...Salute! :)
@@godbluffvdgg Come on, the only music heads that didn't like disco were the ones that couldn't dance. Dance music has always been. No one's dancing to Sabbath at a wedding.
"Oh, they aint playing with those drums" Say hello to Bernard "Pretty" Purdie - the man has worked with ALL the best! en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bernard_Purdie
@@williamfenton8043 Good Drummer but..STOP YO SELF! Not even in the top thousand best...Although, If you asked him; He'd tell you he is......Unless you want to say: "In My opinion"...
It’s crazy seeing purple just now in the last few years reacting or knowing about Steely Dan, my dad put us on this back in the 90s riding round in his S10. We asked if they were black or white? He said both. As black boys we were blown away. Love steely Dan.
Thank you for loving this music as much as us "old timers" loved it back in the days. Like someone typed, I feel like I am listening to this music with an old friend. You are the best.
Also, I'd like to see J AKA J react to "The Low Spark of High Heeled Boys" it's a FANTASTIC song; Steve Winwood's vocals are up there in the Pantheon of rock singers. The song has a little bit of everything in it, especially the blues
Try playing Donald Fagan’s first studio solo album, “The Nightfly”. React to “New Frontier”, “I.G.Y.”, or “Ruby Baby”. Actually, there’s not a bad cut on the whole thing. You won’t regret it. Seven Grammy nominations.
Love a lot of Steely Dan but for whatever reason, 'The Nightfly' album doesn't do it for me. But Steely Dan fans tend to love it so I suppose I'm in the minority. Given this, I hope he reacts to several more Steely Dan songs first.
This is so funny! I suggested the same thing on his reaction to another Steely Dan tune(I'll be damned- can't remember which one) just a few days ago. Maybe if he sees it a few times he'll give it a shot... Hopefully!
This is my go-to warmup song at the start of drum practice, and has been for about 40 years. I never get tired of Bernard Purdie's groove on this one, and it's a great exercise in trying to relax and find that pocket.
Got my headphones on and crying. Had the album while working through a divorce with my babies' momma. This music softened some hard times, but now the emotions flood back out.
The Aja album was conceived at fellow band member Walter Becker’s home in Malibu, CA in 1976, which is one of the many reasons why the compositions on this album are so beautiful. 🥰
I can feel that. When it was released, my girlfriend and I played it often; it was part of the soundtrack to our early romance. One of my "Desert Island" album choices.
Was all of Aja recorded in CA? I seem to recall an interview where they stated that when they were in CA they were homesick for NYC and wrote NYish songs and when they moved back to NYC their songs had a CA vibe. I could be wrong. But think it was from the VHS special about Aja.
LOL...No they weren't...If you're referring to Becker and Fagan...If you're referring to the dozens of musicians used on many of their albums. Then yes, they used some of the best studio musicians...But; those people weren't in the band...
@@godbluffvdgg I'm referring to their studio craft. They were legendary in their OCD in perfectionism. The top session players they hired have lamented about this over the years. I'm not sure why you think this is "LOL" worthy. It's common knowledge.
My favorite lines from this song are: "They got a name for the winners in the world. I want a name when I lose. They call Alabama the Crimson Tide. Call me Deacon Blues." I mean, who writes that?? That's amazing lyrics, right there. Edit: I hope I'm not spamming you. I just have a lot of thoughts to get out. 😄
It's amazing how a song can take on meaning when you actually read the lyrics. It's so easy to get swept up in the overall beauty of a song like this that I can fail to piece together the story line. Thanks for posting that clip of the song.
Yeah, Becker and Fagan were the epitome of cool...Their writings, at the time, showed us what the upper class were doing. They were in the "now" Everyone else was singing about history or the future.
@@mikebetts2046 It's because during the writing of the album Alabama were perennial favorites at college athletics (football), but Wake Forest were doormats.
If the music moves you so strongly, imagine growing up in that era of time...that vibe is what's in the spirit and soul of the people of that great era.
The album had an extraordinary quality. Holding that record, it just felt different than other records. The sound coming from it was so crisp and clean compared to every other at the time.
Thank you, Dad & thank you, Mom, for keeping this album in constant rotation during my childhood. As a 51 yr old now, I couldn't be more proud of my musical background.
Развлечения
Listening to Steely Dan refines a person's taste in music.
Ryan Grissom I started listening to Steely Dan at 5. I’m 27 now. I listen to absolutely everything, but I truly believe that Steely Dan provides you with a deeper and keener sense of understanding and appreciation for all types of music which differ from each other.
Indeed 💯
BEST COMMENT EVER!!!!
Absolutely!
Absolutely! As lifelong musician, I have so much appreciation for the sheer genius of these guys.
If this song isn’t playing at my funeral, I’m not coming.
zorak1704 😂 😆
Now that would be a sign off.
your comment is such a Classic. It's so original.
You ought to have it Patented. These are the "originals" that commercial add producers are seeking.
LMAO!!!
Oops awesome
Sometimes while watching you Jamel it feels like I'm sharing all the songs I know so well with a good friend that has never heard them before. It is both rewarding and entertaining, just your expressions make me laugh. Thank you for looking at these classics with your heart and feeling the groove that I grew up with. It makes it all new to me again too.
the 'joy of discovery' ...makes life worth while-
AMEN brother, just the right person for the job in my eyes.
Same here!
Yes, he makes it so much fun. I love watching his reactions. Someone that appreciates the music from the past the way it should be appreciated and respected.
Amen!
Possibly my favorite lyric ever is in this song: "I cried when I wrote this song. Sue me if I play too long." This song is gansta in the smoothest way possible.
Steely Dan were gangsta before the gangs were, dog. They picked up where the Rat Pack left off.
Mine also
I love it
There's a live version on RUclips where ,shit can't think of his name, is in tears at the end of the song....
@@georgeerhard1949 I never thought about them that way! Definitely feels like the continuance of the rat pack. Great comment!
Mom and dad named me after that album Aja Aaliyah Reid
Yo awesome name.
One of the most amazing albums ever !
Your 'Rents have Great Taste in Music, and appreciation of it as seen by them naming you after this album/song.
You had some very cool parents then.
I know and have met other Ajas with the same story. Awesome!
Bernard "Pretty" Purdie played drums on this track -they use him to calibrate metronomes. His groove is a thousand miles wide and just as deep...
A true in the pocket GROOVE MASTER!!👌👍👊😎✌💯💯💯💯🔥🔥🔥🔥
Pockets deeper than the ocean
@@CamerOneiric exactly... very deep
Facts! He and Stubblefield are my favorite drummers.
He also said boop boop didah bowp, boop boop didda bowp bowp!
Steely Dan knew the importance of having backup singers of the highest order!!
Steely Dan were master craftsmen at a time when that actually mattered a damn.
If that actually did matter in the 70s then disco duck wouldn’t have been a number one hit. Every generation has masters and amateurs who accidentally make it big. I think people forget just how much terrible music there was in the 70s and 60s because they only remember the good stuff
@@Glassandcandy Disco Duck was a hit because it was funny, not because it was great music. As for terrible music, yeah, they had some back in those eras, but it was the exception, not the rule, like this era now.
“FM....no static at all”...another good one...
Jamel, FM is the title song about a Radio Station. It's supposed to be loosely based on the Big Rock Radio Station in LA at the time . KMET, 94.7 fm
FM is definitely worth his time but Jamel is long overdue for a Black Cow reaction vid...
FM was my first recommendation for him. Love that song.
NAW !
That whole Aja Album is their Greatest album.
YES ! I said album ! 🤣🤣😂😂
Yes! FM and Black Cow fit right into the Deacon Blues vibe for sure!
I was an English teacher late seventies and on. These lyrics were a gift. Didn't tell my students where the band name came from.
why not? i'm sure it would have gotten some of your students who wouldn't otherwise pick up a book reading one. i can understand, though, if you were teaching anything before high school
My 10th grade English had a study lyrics by Billy Joel Dylan Lennon and Steely Dan
Have to stop typing in a hurry lol 😆
Steely Dan is just Pure Genius
Their music really is genius! They are so clever and strategic with lyrics! They tell such a interesting story in every song.
We revere artists of the utmost calibre like Picasso and the likes. I think Steely Dan is that in music. There are many good and even great groups that come along every decade, but Steely Dan to me is of the greats. The kind that make an indelible dent in the ripple of time.
I saw them this year for the first time - unfortunately post Becker, but still. I have only twice in my life felt I was in the presence of a musical genius (Jeff Lynne being the other). It was magic.
When you listen to Steely Dan you are in church.
I'm 65 years old.Still have this album. Aji ❤️
I've seen grown-ass men cry to this song. It's a remarkable piece of music.
I just did now.
Err...what? I find it sardonically uplifting, personally.
You're in good company. He cried when he wrote this song.
@@alliswede42 They are not together.
The song was written over 40 years ago. The OP is here right now.
And the song is fictional, so nobody was crying, except the OP. And he's alone in doing that. Unless you're doing it as well.
In which case, I have to ask: What are you doing with such a cry baby when you could have a drink with a real man like me?
@@SpaceCattttt say what you say. I'm quitting the deacon board, leaving the church, learning to play the saxophone, checking out all the action in town. I'm gonna drink all night and die in a car crash! Remember my name dammit! Lol
Discovering Steely Dan's catalog in my early 20s has been one of the greatest musical journeys I've had yet. As I grow older, their music only becomes better. Absolutely phenomenal band.
Been listening to Steely Dan for 40+ yrs.. "Your reaction is golden," Keep jammin
Well put, Jay!
me too! I've been listening to SD since I found out about them in the early 70's. I love seeing people discovering this music today
I think Rikki don’t lose that number was the first song I heard by steely Dan probably 1972 it was about the same time I heard right place wrong time by Dr. John Although Zouzou mamu was the first song I heard by Dr. John
I love me some Steely Dan. It takes me back to the good ole days. They just don't make music like this anymore.
Halaluja
The entire Aja album is gold. (Gold, Jerry, Gold!)
The soup counts
You should try the swordfish. Best swordfish in the city. The best.
Gold, Jerry, Gold!!!😆😂🤣
~ I’ve been working out, I’m HUGE ~ Kenny Bania😃
I was in the pool! - I was in the pool!
No soup for you!
"I cried when I wrote this song
Sue me if I play too long."
When I was a kid in the early 80s my mom used to put on Stealy Dan while we cleaned the apartment on Saturday mornings. I can smell the bleach when I hear this song.
And you are lovingly reminded of your mother.
I have a similar bleachy-clean memory of my mom. Can smell it now.
It celebrates a certain kind of “loserdom” as Becker called it. They made an artform of songs about losers; all of them classics.
"Aja" is one of the all-time great albums. Ask any music aficionado.
Agree
#145 on Rolling Stone's Top 500 Albums of All Time (1977 ABC Records). Won Grammy for Best Engineered album (Roger Nichols, Elliot Scheiner, Al Schmitt, Bill Schnee
; Assistant engineers: Joe Bellamy, Lenise Bent, Ken Klinger, Ron Pangaliman, Ed Rack, Linda Tyler. Produced by Gary Katz.
What’s amazing about this album. There’s so many musicians featured. Walter and Donald were musical surgeons
no Doubt the Genius of it never wears out
Any major dude will tell you....
I think the best lines are at the end: "This brother is free. I'll be what I want to be."
Too true John!
The ultimate song about being an alcoholic, womanizing, loser. Only Becker and Fagen could make it sound so heroic.
You forgot to mention gambler.
So true.
Wanker too Id guess
That's excellent 👌☺️!!
Yes and he kills himself at the end...
I'm a 67 year old music FREAK. Your reactions bring a joy to my retired bored life that I can not put into words. If I could then I would have made a fortune as a songwriter. Thank you my Brother.
Jamal is the first reactor I discovered and he still remains my personal favorite!!
I had the "AjA" on a 8 track in my 1975 Oldsmobile Cutlass Supreme jamming back in the old school day.
Cool. My first car in '82 was a 76 cutlass supreme. I listened to SD on the way to school everyday and my sister just had to deal with it.
Did you listen to it SO MANY TIMES that when you hear it today, your mind/memory automatically puts in the "clicks" from the track changing? I'm that way with a few...
Cutlass - there was a car!
My man.
The drummer on this track is Bernard Purdie, a legend in R&B and funk. He's famous for his Purdie Shuffle. He's still alive, I believe. Glad to see you loving this track. I lived through the era when this music was new and can remember that it was so unique.
Check out Rick Beato’s extensive interview with Bernard! They get into some Steely Dan tracks in detail.
Yes - classic BP!!!
@@dstroviolin I like Rick Beato's show. But, I must say that I enjoy this guy more.
@@patriciawright8786 Beato’s channel is for musicians, really. It can get very technical. I’m just happy to have both of these guys & hope Jamel keeps it going.
There’s comfort food. Steely Dan is my mac-n-cheese
The best phrase I’ve ever heard was the 1st time I heard you say “soul has no color”. Love that!
Steely Dan were perfectionist musicians, especially in the studio.
Yeah, Michael McDonald said they almost killed him recording "Peg".
Watch 'The Making of Aja' video sometime. They were beyond perfectionist.
The best description I have heard of their process is "Taking the music to absolute perfection, then bringing it back down a notch to make it more enjoyable".
“Do It Again” from Can’t Buy A Thrill.
You will be “doing,” (listening) this song Again and again and again . . .
😈🌹😈
Or the mashup of Do It Again and Looks That Kill from Motley Crue.
Used to be my favorite SD tune by a mile. Still up there (though Aja, Babylon Sisters and others have crept ever upwards over the decades)!
Christine Vergona - Best part of that song is the electric sitar solo.
I loved only A Fool Would Say That from that album.
Haha... the "Grounghog Day" of tunes...
I'm hearing this tonight with you for the millionth time - and I'm still in awe of what a beautiful song this is.
Steely Dan are unique band, they 'll be still fresh in 200 years from today (my humble opinion).
Their musical , compositional, creativity skills are unbelievable.
Love and peace from Athens Greece.
Agreed....Steely Dan is a Band that will rank with the Immortals !
@@goobfilmcast4239 so true
If someone hasn't suggested it yet: Steely Dan's "Babylon Sisters."
I've suggested it, hopefully he'll get to it someday, my favorite.
👍
Yougottoshakeitbabyyougottoshakeitbabyyougottoshakeit...
@@joeday4293 :)
Unfortunately, every time someone posts the live version, which is really smokin', RUclips takes it down. But hopefully some version by them will be on RUclips somewhere.
Pete Christlieb: Sax Solo
They tracked down the sax player in the Tonight Show band, Pete Christlieb, who recorded his part after a taping of the show. There are many tales of musicians being asked to do take after take during a Steely Dan session, but Christlieb was done in 30 minutes, and it was his second take they used.
Note: This Tonight Show Band was during the Johnny Carson era of the show.
Just to give you an idea about the caliber of musicians who played on Johnny Carson, I have a distant cousin who left the brass section of Wild Cherry to play with them. Unfortunately, Johnny retired next year.
Ken Welch: Cool story.
Yeah, no doubt there was high quality musicians in Johnny's Band. With Doc Severinsen as band leader you had to have some chops to play in that league.
Little known fact, Johnny Carson was an amateur drummer. Though I'm not sure that amateur is the right word here. There's a couple of clips of him drumming and he was good.
@@MsPrincesspaulina That's why he was always drumming with his pencils on his desk while the band played during commercial breaks......he was actually a pretty decent drummer!
And...Indeed....they were some of the best musicians on the planet! Once I started playing trumpet in junior and senior high school band, my band mates and I made it a point to watch Carson whenever we could and note when the band got a chance to play on air!
sounds like the BAKER STREET story.
The drummer playing in this his Groove is so good and so accurate you can literally use it to reset an atomic clock
Bernard Purdie doing the Purdie shuffle. One of the all time greats.
I would pay 30 years of salary to hear the song for the first time again.
"Drink Scotch whisky all night long, and die behind the wheel..."
If you want better lyrics than that I'm sorry, there aren't any.
It's actually, dine behind the wheel. As in a musician who drinks scotch on the gig and eats on the road.
I know some better lyrics.
"Imma keep on all my chains, while I'm makin love to you
Baby girl, do you like me in my durag"
Thundercat though
Andrew Kosiba it’s definitely die behind the wheel
@@mrtyreus0 LOL! Driving to the gig, dropping Taco Bell in your lap.
Captain Speirs
No (thank you)!
Steely Dan - Haitian Divorce (IMO their most underrated song ever)
Ian T agreed dude. Groovy as hell
No hesitation...
Waa waa waa waa waa waa waa. I love the reggae influence in that song
Facts
Got married to just have my own “Haitian Divorce” 😝
I was in the Navy and had to drive across the U.S. and head for Maryland from California and bought this groups album with this song on it before I left and listened to it on my cassette player in my car all the way to Maryland. Sure brings back memories back then in the fall of 1978.
Jamel is getting caught up on ear treasures these past months. Aja was a complete masterpiece, and you felt it, J!
This song has been giving me chills for over 40 years. You just made me cry, brother. That's why I love you and your love of music. You get it!
I got it too.
Fills my soul Tina, fantastic, 60 now still got a taste for it, good luck, Andy UK!
Agreed…
Especially with his reactions to RUSH music…Got me choked up a few times.
Re: "Deacon Blues" sounding similar to "Aja" or "Peg"--all the songs on the Aja album have a common musical thread, so you're absolutely right!
YES - the beginning of "Deacon Blues" sounds like "Aja" and the sax lines are similar to "Peg".
CORRECT 👌🧓
This is one of the best songs they ever wrote. And I love the lyrics towards the end of the song. Donald Fagen pulls no punches with them.
Jamel, most of us have heard these songs hundreds of times but this music formed us on many levels. We come here to watch you feel the music with us. Thank you
“groovy as hell”! That’s partly because “they done did it... they done hired the the hit maker... Bernard Pretty Purdue”!!!
smithshaven I can only hit the thumbs up button once!
@@richardsears4811 cosign
I remember when this album hit the scene,summer of 77,I was 18, pure ecstacy,I wore out this Album! Iv,e been a fan since 74, no other band ,can hold a candle to these Cat,s! Musical Perfection Baby! I love your reaction! 😊👌👆,Clay
One of the greatest songs ever written. One of the greatest albums ever played.
“Learn to work the saxophone 🎷 I’ll play just what I feel.... “ 🎵🎶
I'd love to see you cover some Supertramp, I don't think I've ever seen anyone cover them. Possible tracks:
The Logical Song
Breakfast in America
Take the Long Way Home
Goodbye Stranger
School, Rudy, In the Quietest Moments, Gone Hollywood.................
Hell yeah. Goodbye Stranger is the SHIT
And don't forget "Bloody Well Right" 😊
Mournblade7 Yeah. Literally anything off the Breakfast In America album!
Listen to the Albums Crime of the Century, and Breakfast in America. IMHO there is not a bad song on any album.
One of my favorite songs!
"I cried when I wrote this song
Sue me if I play too long
This brother is free
I'll be what I want to be" has to be one of the coolest song lyrics ever penned!
Ahh-men to that.
I'm a big fan of Steely Dan I've always enjoyed listening to their music
I swear, the background vocals on this track our perfect. Wow!!
Love Steely Dan, bringing back my youth. Love it
"Peg" and "Deacon Blues" are all from the "AJA" album. One of the best albums ever made. IMO. Peaked at #3 in 1977. Was stopped by Saturday Night Fever LP sound track and Rumors LP by Fleetwood Mac that held both top spots for a year.
Aja and Rumours two must-have LP's no questions asked.
When was the last time 3 iconic albums held the top 3 spots like that? 30 years ago? More?
Grammy Awards
Year
Winner
Category
1977
Aja
Best Engineered Recording, Non-Classical
World War Disco...The enemy of all music. The enemy of man himself. The beginnings of the end, for intellectual pursuits.... My Black Sabbath tank destroyed many a dancing fool...Not too many of us left, that were in those trenches...Salute! :)
@@godbluffvdgg Come on, the only music heads that didn't like disco were the ones that couldn't dance. Dance music has always been. No one's dancing to Sabbath at a wedding.
Why do I cry when I hear this? Tears of joy dancing and partying all night long to the Dan
Man I bought this album the day it dropped in 77. I just wanna know, will I ever hear it without getting gooseflesh?
Front to back, the whole album is a masterpiece.
ole9421 My favorite track changes constantly.
It's true!
agreed. Today. Tomorrow could be Pink Floyd but when I listen to steely dan, I'm yeah best band album. Each time you just dig it more and more.
You can say that for virtually every one of their albums,they are master classes in making music in the studio.
Fagan was a genius.
"You hear that, them drums, pah-pah-tata-ting!" Oh we do, mate, we do!
“We” didn’t have this great music. We all have this music ... now.
What? You don't think MY WAP by Cardi B is a work of art? I sure hope not. It's a load of crap. Heartbreaking nonsense that passes for "music" now.
loved the look on his face when the "die behind the wheel" lyrics came up. brought a smile to my face.
That lyric is so sad but so sexy too.
The Clifford Brown story.
@@Joes0s yes!
I cried when i wrote this song,sew me if i play too long-timeless lyric
Sue, not sew😉
@@benwade7334 OMG! Right?
This Brother is free; I'll be what I want to be.
"Oh, they aint playing with those drums" Say hello to Bernard "Pretty" Purdie - the man has worked with ALL the best!
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bernard_Purdie
Just the best of all time
The Purdie shuffle
@@williamfenton8043 Good Drummer but..STOP YO SELF! Not even in the top thousand best...Although, If you asked him; He'd tell you he is......Unless you want to say: "In My opinion"...
@Nemo....he played with my band in New York at the Radio City Music Hall
Aja is one of my favorite albums. Not a bad song on the whole damn thing. I circle back to it all the time.
My favorite song from my favorite album ever. Amazing lyrics and musicians like Pete Christlieb on the sax solo he also played the FM solo....
One of their more upbeat ones is "Bodhisattva." You should check that one out too for sure
And Pretzel Logic.
Ooh! Yes! Good one :)
Superb!
The Live version off of "Steely Dan - Gold" has a LONG intro by a very drunk MC... and then they just rip into the song.
Countdown to Ectasy hooked me for life!
This is my favorite song from Aja, and the whole album is great.
Of all the Steely Dan songs so hard to name a favorite.
It’s crazy seeing purple just now in the last few years reacting or knowing about Steely Dan, my dad put us on this back in the 90s riding round in his S10. We asked if they were black or white? He said both. As black boys we were blown away. Love steely Dan.
Thank you for loving this music as much as us "old timers" loved it back in the days. Like someone typed, I feel like I am listening to this music with an old friend. You are the best.
Also, I'd like to see J AKA J react to "The Low Spark of High Heeled Boys" it's a FANTASTIC song; Steve Winwood's vocals are up there in the Pantheon of rock singers. The song has a little bit of everything in it, especially the blues
I WOULD LIKE TO HEAR LOW SPARK OF HIGH HILL BOYS BY TRAFFIC LEAD SINGER STEVE WINWOOD GOOD SONG
Agreed, that would be a great song for him to do!
yes! Traffic was an amazing band & their music still sounds fantastic in 2020
Try playing Donald Fagan’s first studio solo album, “The Nightfly”. React to “New Frontier”, “I.G.Y.”, or “Ruby Baby”. Actually, there’s not a bad cut on the whole thing. You won’t regret it. Seven Grammy nominations.
😍Agreed!
Love a lot of Steely Dan but for whatever reason, 'The Nightfly' album doesn't do it for me. But Steely Dan fans tend to love it so I suppose I'm in the minority. Given this, I hope he reacts to several more Steely Dan songs first.
This is so funny! I suggested the same thing on his reaction to another Steely Dan tune(I'll be damned- can't remember which one) just a few days ago. Maybe if he sees it a few times he'll give it a shot... Hopefully!
New Frontier!
@@HidingFromFate Different strokes... It has more of an 80s feel? Not quite SD tho, although I like it. Not for everyone tho... ✌ Peace
I think Jamel is going to be a Steely Dan fan life now. It's hard to listen to them and not feel relaxed.
This is my go-to warmup song at the start of drum practice, and has been for about 40 years. I never get tired of Bernard Purdie's groove on this one, and it's a great exercise in trying to relax and find that pocket.
Steely Dan and the Doobie Brothers...man you are playing my album collection. FM should be next
Got my headphones on and crying. Had the album while working through a divorce with my babies' momma. This music softened some hard times, but now the emotions flood back out.
I understand. God bless you brother.
I mean... this song is the very definition of sophistication. Melodically, few tracks are this subtle. So brilliant
The Aja album was conceived at fellow band member Walter Becker’s home in Malibu, CA in 1976, which is one of the many reasons why the compositions on this album are so beautiful. 🥰
I can feel that. When it was released, my girlfriend and I played it often; it was part of the soundtrack to our early romance. One of my "Desert Island" album choices.
Except that *this* song: 'Deacon Blues', is from 'The Royal Scam' album.
Nope, it’s on Aja
@@elizabethbennett6603 we know. But it was written during the royal scam’s production
Was all of Aja recorded in CA? I seem to recall an interview where they stated that when they were in CA they were homesick for NYC and wrote NYish songs and when they moved back to NYC their songs had a CA vibe. I could be wrong. But think it was from the VHS special about Aja.
They are known as one of the best studio musicians of their time.
Saw them live. Not bad live either.
LOL...No they weren't...If you're referring to Becker and Fagan...If you're referring to the dozens of musicians used on many of their albums. Then yes, they used some of the best studio musicians...But; those people weren't in the band...
@@godbluffvdgg I'm referring to their studio craft. They were legendary in their OCD in perfectionism. The top session players they hired have lamented about this over the years.
I'm not sure why you think this is "LOL" worthy. It's common knowledge.
My favorite lines from this song are:
"They got a name for the winners in the world. I want a name when I lose. They call Alabama the Crimson Tide. Call me Deacon Blues."
I mean, who writes that?? That's amazing lyrics, right there.
Edit: I hope I'm not spamming you. I just have a lot of thoughts to get out. 😄
It's amazing how a song can take on meaning when you actually read the lyrics. It's so easy to get swept up in the overall beauty of a song like this that I can fail to piece together the story line. Thanks for posting that clip of the song.
Yeah, Becker and Fagan were the epitome of cool...Their writings, at the time, showed us what the upper class were doing. They were in the "now" Everyone else was singing about history or the future.
And do you know the reasoning why he can be called Deacon Blue??.....
@@MANDINGLOST00 No, and too lazy to search. Go ahead and tell us.
@@mikebetts2046 It's because during the writing of the album Alabama were perennial favorites at college athletics (football), but Wake Forest were doormats.
Absolutely Jamming ,Fantastic Artist STEELY DAN So Enjoyed back in the day !!!
I was sitting in my basement, smoking that Mexican sinsemillia and blasting Steely Dan with the lights dimmed. DAMN !!! Welcome to real music.
Love watching your reactions, the love of music that shows on your face
Hey Nineteen, Any Major Dude, and Bad Sneakers - More Steely Dan classics!
So many layers to their songs! The production was just sick! An army of musicians and singers on every album
I cried the first time that I heard this song, and it's the one that made me like them.
"Don't take me alive", another Dan hidden gem!!
You have said, "Music unites". Seeing your joy in hearing this musics brings joy to me. I'm so happy you're loving these classics.
When I hear this song, it takes me back to Kent State when I was a student there in 1977.
KSU 1990 grad right here! History major...lots of time at Bowman Hall. Love this band so much!
If the music moves you so strongly, imagine growing up in that era of time...that vibe is what's in the spirit and soul of the people of that great era.
Hearing this song again Just gives me GOOSEBUMPS!!!
Thank you for Reacting to this!!!
The album had an extraordinary quality. Holding that record, it just felt different than other records. The sound coming from it was so crisp and clean compared to every other at the time.
I STILL get goosebumps listening to this song! Perfectly produced!!
"They got a name for the winners in the world. I want a name when I lose."
I SO LOVE STEELY DAN!!! So many memories growing up listening to them.
I have this song in my head all the damn time. It’s a shower classic for me.
This is a masterpiece.
Thank you, Dad & thank you, Mom, for keeping this album in constant rotation during my childhood. As a 51 yr old now, I couldn't be more proud of my musical background.
Jeff 'skunk' Baxter (guitarist) played with them and the Doobie Brothers
The WHO- LOVE Reign O'Er me. You will be blown away.
yes for sure
Haha... I'm already blown away anticipated it...
While you are there you might as well try 5:15 also from Quadraphenia. Best bass line ever
They always told a story when singing their songs. This set them apart.
I'll be 60 in September. I've been listening to Steely Dan since my teens. Simply the best.