So true. I'm 64 and have been a Danhead since I was 14. He who is tired of the Dan is tired of life itself. They are the greatest American band ever. x
"Drink Scotch Whisky All Night Long And Die Behind The Wheel" and "I Cried When I Wrote This Song. Sue Me If I Play Too Long" are often quoted lyrics from this amazing song.
I’m 57, so I’ve been listening to Steely Dan for a long time. It’s a joy to watch you listen for the first time. These songs are timeless and never get old. I suggest you listen to everything by them. Love watching all your videos. Keep it going man!
The sax player is Pete Christlieb. He was the sax player on the Tonight Show with Johnny Carson in the 1960's and '70's. DF said he was watching the Tonight Show, heard Christlieb, contacted him and asked him to play on the album. DF said he said he had never heard of Steely Dan. He's in his nineties now. P.S. One of the sidemen on an album said Steely Dan pays VERY well.
Great documentary! It features some of the greatest (mostly unsung) background singers of the rock era - It won an oscar! Well worth watching! (may not feature these particular background singers though IIRC).
@@RandyHall324 You’re right, these three aren’t. I mention the documentary because so often these artists are overlooked. The guitar solo, the drum fills, saxophones etc get attention but the background vocals are just as important to the end product✌🏻🤟🏻🤘🏻
Fuck me what a beautiful song .. 49 years I have been listening to the dan they are without a doubt the best session band ever ever ever to put out our records ... 🎉🎉🎉🎉😊
Can't go wrong with The Dan! Try "Black Friday" on for size. Also "My Old School". "Hey 19" is a good one too, "the Cuervo Gold, the fine Colombian. Make tonight a wonderful thing" 😊Becker and Fagin were meticulous about their sound which is why they stopped performing live and became a studio band. They wanted perfection and they got it
Hey Lee, that was probably one of the best reviews I have ever heard from you or any other reaction channel on RUclips! Congratulations! You were spot on on everything you said. I really enjoy your steely Sundays! May I suggest you do …”don’t take me alive” for your next steely Sunday review. This song has probably the best guitar intro I have ever heard in my life and I think he will enjoy it very much. Keep doing what you’re doing. Such a great review and appreciation for one of the best band ever! Really enjoyed it. 👏✌️🎶
Same here. I visited a record store in 1993 and Kid Charlemagne was played in the background. I had never heard anything quite like it. Bought all of their (and Donald Fagen's) CD's within a year or so.
Excellent Tune. One of their best, which is hard to pick. Easy to understand what this tune is about. A Masterful Gem from the minds that make this wonderful Soft-Rock/Blues/Jazz tune that can be played 1000's times and you still love it.
I've been listening to reactions for a couple of years now and I want to say you have a better ear for music than most. You don't over react and your analysis is really good. A lot of folks don't like reactors who talk during the music but it's understandable because most are overreacting and doing it to bring attention to themselves you don't do that. Being over sixty you should understand that we would gather together put on some vinyl and share our thoughts on the music and I enjoy listening to music with you and your channel thank you.🎸🎶🥁
Every track on Aja (7 songs) was recorded with 7 different line ups, all the greatest session musicians at the time. You can never tire of Steely Dan and for me who has been a fan since I was 7 and heard Do It Again I can still play these songs and find something new. Unsurpassable for me.
Victor Feldman doesn't get much noteriety but he was a very famous studio musician in the late 50's through the mid 80's when he died all to young in 1987. He apparently played on the first 7 Steely Dan albums. Donald and Walter knew talent when they "heard" it!
Steely Dan's stature at this point meant they could get both Larry Carlton AND Lee Rittenour, when most people would have been perfectly happy with either one of those mofo's. I think I saw somewhere this song was about a guy stuck in a suburban rut with dreams of being a bebop sax player, who confronts the sacrifices needed to chase his dreams. And you're right that SD had a sound like no other, because nobody else would put the work into creating something this meticulously smooth. BTW, the nearest band to this at the time were The Dooby Brothers.
Maybe their best and most popular song. When I first heard Aja, this was the standout track and as a sax-playing whiskey drinker it had a big appeal. Now, though, the best track on the album (if not of all their albums) for me is Home at last.
Imagine any other song you can think of that had these 3 guitarists: Larry Carlton, Lee Ritenour, and Dean Parks. Also give Pete Christlieb on tenor and Pretty Purdie their flowers as well.
Yeah😂😂😂they know they were pissing off a lot of people back then...so we went to their concerts like we did with a lot of bands and got the long version in concert. 😂😂😂 Steely Dan along with Yes, is one of my all-time favorite band. Different styles, but excellent musicianship!!! Steely Dan is very Jazz and R & B with a little funk. Love this band!!!😊😊😊😊
Crimson Tide of course refers to the University of Alabama football team, perennial winners. As a joke, Donald and Walter contrast this with the lowly Wake Forest University fighting Deacon Demons.
Love the Dan and especially this album. On a completely unrelated note I stumbled on a video of Gene Krupa playing “Sing, Sing, Sing” on the Ed Sullivan Show in 1960. I’m no drummer but I found it pretty amazing. As a drummer you might already be aware of Krupa, he was an influence on people like Keith Moon and John Bonham.
As the last child of 7 in a family growing up in the late 60s early 70s, I heard Steely Dan from an early age and singing along seems to come without effort. It is so refreshing to see a younger generation begin to explore what this band accomplished.
Happy Sunday L33. What I see is you going back to the roots of today’s music. The Beatles, Steely Dan, the Eagles and other bands that survived over the years gave us great music - much of which was understated by many. Keep enjoying what you’re doing. Good luck with the interview.
Great reaction as always. Aja is filled with dark, seductive romance and it's meticulous, elegant aura. But please, find Green Earrings from Royal Scam to complete that brilliant album.
Pete Christlieb sat in “The Tonight Show” orchestra for years along with another powerhouse session player, Ernie Watts who has his own memorable solos in pop songs. The Tonight Show had a stellar band with the great Doc Severinsen as leader. Here’s a clip of Christlieb on fire with Watts. He also played an amazing solo on the Dan’s song “FM” from the movie of the same name. Christlieb laid down some great intricate solos. In the modern era, the incomparable Chris Potter does the same. ruclips.net/video/YGiZSZNYs1s/видео.htmlsi=9BTUEiTDCeYDWt7h
This album was played at every party that I attended in the Seventies. I subscribed watching you talk about the Beatles. Enjoyed watching a young person be blown away by!
This album came out as I was starting university. You could hear it blasting out of every room in ny hall of residence. A lot of people bought it to show off their new stereos. I've heard it thousands of time and it still sounds fresh.
I had an original master disk pressing of this album on vinyl. It was absolutely PHENOMENAL when you put some power behind it on a good set of speakers! The good old days!
In case nobody else has commented this is a song celebrating the midlife crisis of a fading "60s hipster". The Deacon Blues reference was a nod to the Wake Forest Deacon's college football team which lost like every game in two or three seasons around the time the guys wrote this song.
Took a 10-day road trip in the early ‘80 down the Oregon and California coasts then went to Vegas (for the first time) on the way back to Washington. I was 21. This is the only album we listened to the entire trip. The. Only. One.
My daughter is a metal head and she's always said she doesn't like jazz turned her on Steely Dan and her perspective on music is growing and changing I tell her there's nothing wrong with like in metal don't limit yourself that's why your daddy's got such a diverse collection music because there's so much good stuff out there and it depends on your mood and how I'm glad to see the younger generation appreciating some of the things of the older
The term 'catchy' often has a negative connotation when it comes to music. It usually means over-produced, sellout, simple, etc... Not THIS song! It IS catchy, but that's because of the insanely good melody, harmony, instrumental, percussion, etc. I LOVE this song! It's one of my favorites from one of my favorite bands ever!
Everybody, but EVERYBODY loved it when I played this one - solo acoustic - my daughter, Latin jazz songstress Laura Fernandez, the Beer Store employee who couldn't believe I was playing the Dan outside her store. This one and 'Kid Charlemagne'. I skipped the solo sections on my own. Forgivable, I hope.
Love your analysis of this great song. These guys had it figured out. Write great songs with fantastic lyrics and get great, fantastic musicians to bring them to life.
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I have said it before and at 71years I will say it again: "You never grow out of Steely Dan....you grow into them!"-Jack
That's the perfect way to put it 🙏👍
So true. I'm 64 and have been a Danhead since I was 14. He who is tired of the Dan is tired of life itself. They are the greatest American band ever. x
Anyone who hasn't heard Steely Dan has no idea what they are missing.
Exactly. These guys are pure magic 😊😊
Umm, isn’t that true for any band?😂
@@chrisblack1119 That can be true, but we're talking about Steely Dan. 😉
You're right there . @sirsuse. There is a lot of Steely Dan to miss...
@sirsuse by definition if you haven't heard something you don't know what you haven't heard 😅🤣😂😆
I don't think I'm being hyperbolic when I say I'm so thankful we have music like this. The standard is impeccable and they consistently hit it.
The Dan got the Grammy for best engineered album , it’s in the top 1% of best albums of all time!! 😎
Sez who?
Steely Dan: Your favorite band's favorite band.
Heard this entire album a million times and counting. ❤
1Million x 45 minutes.
That means you are over 2100 years old...!
Me too!
@@alldayadventures5418 I listened to it many times a day. 😀
I've had my album since 77 I believe 😊
@@Kathy-bk6cg Ditto.
"Drink Scotch Whisky All Night Long And Die Behind The Wheel" and "I Cried When I Wrote This Song. Sue Me If I Play Too Long" are often quoted lyrics from this amazing song.
No they aren't
This album does not disappoint.
I played that ALBUM daily on my drive to work! Awesome🥹
I’m 57, so I’ve been listening to Steely Dan for a long time. It’s a joy to watch you listen for the first time. These songs are timeless and never get old. I suggest you listen to everything by them. Love watching all your videos. Keep it going man!
So glad you enjoyed the video my friend. Steely dan has been a blessing for my ears... and my channel. They are the best. Thank you for watching 😁
Steely Dan, wow what a band. So many good songs... Timeless
The sax player is Pete Christlieb. He was the sax player on the Tonight Show with Johnny Carson in the 1960's and '70's. DF said he was watching the Tonight Show, heard Christlieb, contacted him and asked him to play on the album. DF said he said he had never heard of Steely Dan. He's in his nineties now. P.S. One of the sidemen on an album said Steely Dan pays VERY well.
Thank you for the shout out to the backing vocalists- “20 Feet from Stardom” is a really good documentary about them.
I'll have to check it out, thank you! Sounds intriguing 🤔
Great documentary! It features some of the greatest (mostly unsung) background singers of the rock era - It won an oscar! Well worth watching! (may not feature these particular background singers though IIRC).
@@RandyHall324 You’re right, these three aren’t. I mention the documentary because so often these artists are overlooked. The guitar solo, the drum fills, saxophones etc get attention but the background vocals are just as important to the end product✌🏻🤟🏻🤘🏻
They create such an ambiance... I remember driving in the late 70's listening to this as the summer sunset was happening...windows down loving life
Great times. Perfect song for that.
Fuck me what a beautiful song .. 49 years I have been listening to the dan they are without a doubt the best session band ever ever ever to put out our records ... 🎉🎉🎉🎉😊
Nobody can touch the Dan/ been a fan since 74😊
It is so right that you recognize how great Steely Dan is. Your channel is full of the best music of many kinds.
I'm glad you enjoy the variety my friend. I am in debt to all of you wonderful people for showing me all of this beautiful art.
Can't go wrong with The Dan! Try "Black Friday" on for size. Also "My Old School". "Hey 19" is a good one too, "the Cuervo Gold, the fine Colombian. Make tonight a wonderful thing" 😊Becker and Fagin were meticulous about their sound which is why they stopped performing live and became a studio band. They wanted perfection and they got it
If I had one song played at my funeral, this would be it.
Thanks for commenting while the track is playing instead of stopping it to talk. Appreciated. I never get too much Steely Dan.
you can listen to this a 100 times and still discover new nuances
Deacon Blues is my second favorite SD song. FM is my favorite! All other SD songs are tied for third place. 😀 Thanks for Steely Sundays! ❤️
I personally love Midnight Cruiser bes, Deacon blues second and FM third.
Hey Lee, that was probably one of the best reviews I have ever heard from you or any other reaction channel on RUclips! Congratulations! You were spot on on everything you said. I really enjoy your steely Sundays! May I suggest you do …”don’t take me alive” for your next steely Sunday review. This song has probably the best guitar intro I have ever heard in my life and I think he will enjoy it very much. Keep doing what you’re doing. Such a great review and appreciation for one of the best band ever! Really enjoyed it. 👏✌️🎶
Check out the archives. Lee reacted to Aja, don’t take me alive and other SD. Join Patreon
I grew up in the 70s and from the first time I heard them, they have been my favorite band.
Same bro, same
Same here. I visited a record store in 1993 and Kid Charlemagne was played in the background. I had never heard anything quite like it. Bought all of their (and Donald Fagen's) CD's within a year or so.
I can remember SD being dissed like...San Francisco 49er fans have cheese and wine at their tailgate parties while listening to SD.
GO niners 💛❤️🥰
"Aja" is the album you use to show off your sound system.
Excellent Tune. One of their best, which is hard to pick. Easy to understand what this tune is about.
A Masterful Gem from the minds that make this wonderful Soft-Rock/Blues/Jazz tune that can be played 1000's times and you still love it.
I've been listening to reactions for a couple of years now and I want to say you have a better ear for music than most. You don't over react and your analysis is really good. A lot of folks don't like reactors who talk during the music but it's understandable because most are overreacting and doing it to bring attention to themselves you don't do that. Being over sixty you should understand that we would gather together put on some vinyl and share our thoughts on the music and I enjoy listening to music with you and your channel thank you.🎸🎶🥁
Good song to relax too ! Kid Charlemagne is a great one too!
This album changed my life when I was 15. I’m 61 now, and this is still one of my favourite songs. Beautifully played and so moving.
This one is special. One of the best chord progressions ever wrote imo.
Was glad I got to see them live,before walter passed away a couple years later…One of the best concerts I saw
Every track on Aja (7 songs) was recorded with 7 different line ups, all the greatest session musicians at the time. You can never tire of Steely Dan and for me who has been a fan since I was 7 and heard Do It Again I can still play these songs and find something new. Unsurpassable for me.
Lee, you're the best reactor to SD that I've heard! Thanks you!
Victor Feldman doesn't get much noteriety but he was a very famous studio musician in the late 50's through the mid 80's when he died all to young in 1987. He apparently played on the first 7 Steely Dan albums. Donald and Walter knew talent when they "heard" it!
Hey Lee! SD rocks another Sunday! Great reaction for 66 people in the chat. Nice job!👍🎵🎼🎶😎
The Dan never misses
Us old heads always are welcoming. I hope you are enjoying your journey.
Steely Dan's stature at this point meant they could get both Larry Carlton AND Lee Rittenour, when most people would have been perfectly happy with either one of those mofo's. I think I saw somewhere this song was about a guy stuck in a suburban rut with dreams of being a bebop sax player, who confronts the sacrifices needed to chase his dreams. And you're right that SD had a sound like no other, because nobody else would put the work into creating something this meticulously smooth. BTW, the nearest band to this at the time were The Dooby Brothers.
Maybe their best and most popular song. When I first heard Aja, this was the standout track and as a sax-playing whiskey drinker it had a big appeal. Now, though, the best track on the album (if not of all their albums) for me is Home at last.
Love home at last
Home at last!!!!!
Glad you made it home!
Every instrument is tight in this song, but the snare and high hat drive the entire thing, its perfect
Imagine any other song you can think of that had these 3 guitarists: Larry Carlton, Lee Ritenour, and Dean Parks. Also give Pete Christlieb on tenor and Pretty Purdie their flowers as well.
Great reaction! Thanks so much for your insights and the love you’re showing for Steely Dan and for this amazing song.
Yeah😂😂😂they know they were pissing off a lot of people back then...so we went to their concerts like we did with a lot of bands and got the long version in concert. 😂😂😂 Steely Dan along with Yes, is one of my all-time favorite band. Different styles, but excellent musicianship!!! Steely Dan is very Jazz and R & B with a little funk. Love this band!!!😊😊😊😊
Crimson Tide of course refers to the University of Alabama football team, perennial winners. As a joke, Donald and Walter contrast this with the lowly Wake Forest University fighting Deacon Demons.
That's great lol they are quite clever
Love the Dan and especially this album. On a completely unrelated note I stumbled on a video of Gene Krupa playing “Sing, Sing, Sing” on the Ed Sullivan Show in 1960. I’m no drummer but I found it pretty amazing. As a drummer you might already be aware of Krupa, he was an influence on people like Keith Moon and John Bonham.
Nice reference to kid charlemagne.
As the last child of 7 in a family growing up in the late 60s early 70s, I heard Steely Dan from an early age and singing along seems to come without effort. It is so refreshing to see a younger generation begin to explore what this band accomplished.
If you had a dart board with all Steely Dan songs on it and you threw your dart chances are good that your dart will land on a great song.
As Bernard says, him on a song u got a hit!
I never listen to a Steely Dan song and think to myself "it could have been done better". Everything is so on point it's sublime. Musical perfection.
Happy Sunday L33. What I see is you going back to the roots of today’s music. The Beatles, Steely Dan, the Eagles and other bands that survived over the years gave us great music - much of which was understated by many. Keep enjoying what you’re doing. Good luck with the interview.
Purdy, famous for the "Purdy Shuffle," is also possibly the greatest pocket player who ever picked up sticks.
Truly a remarkable piece of music. A thing of beauty.
"Everything is so tight." They used stopwatches, etc. They were merciless.
Oh man, wait for Lee Ritenour. Artist in his own right (song: is it you?) You'll get to it.
Thanks.
Love this entire album!
Me too so far! Every song has been insane so far
Great reaction as always. Aja is filled with dark, seductive romance and it's meticulous, elegant aura. But please, find Green Earrings from Royal Scam to complete that brilliant album.
Many drummers have heard of the fanous "Purdy Shuffle"
the drummer here is the famous Bernard Purdy
Pete Christlieb sat in “The Tonight Show” orchestra for years along with another powerhouse session player, Ernie Watts who has his own memorable solos in pop songs. The Tonight Show had a stellar band with the great Doc Severinsen as leader. Here’s a clip of Christlieb on fire with Watts. He also played an amazing solo on the Dan’s song “FM” from the movie of the same name. Christlieb laid down some great intricate solos. In the modern era, the incomparable Chris Potter does the same.
ruclips.net/video/YGiZSZNYs1s/видео.htmlsi=9BTUEiTDCeYDWt7h
I’ve seen them in concert four times on beautiful summer evenings.
I bet that was an amazing experience!! I would have loved to have seen them like that. Sounds relaxing as hell 😌
This album was played at every party that I attended in the Seventies. I subscribed watching you talk about the Beatles. Enjoyed watching a young person be blown away by!
Loved the Dan since my teenage years early 70s
Could never choose a favorite
Well possibly whichever one I'm listening to?!!!...
The thing about Steely Dan songs, almost every song has its hidden gems that is there just waiting for you to discover.
This album came out as I was starting university. You could hear it blasting out of every room in ny hall of residence. A lot of people bought it to show off their new stereos. I've heard it thousands of time and it still sounds fresh.
The song is about being a Wake Forest Deacons football fan after they'd had yet another sad season.
Glad you are enjoying it. Get back to Royal Scam and "GREEN EARRINGS" my friend. SO funky... Happy Listening
Deacon Blues has stuck in my head for decades Lee, be forewarned. Lol
THIS ONE GOT YA...IT'S ONE OF THE BEST IN MY OPINION.....
Steely Dan is the best. Deacon Blues is one of my favorites along with Hey 19
They were great to dance to, as well
I had an original master disk pressing of this album on vinyl. It was absolutely PHENOMENAL when you put some power behind it on a good set of speakers! The good old days!
I loved a description about this classic Steely Dan song as being about asprliring to a romanticized image of "epic loserdom".
I just saw a RUclips short of Dean Parks playing his acoustic guitar part for the first time in 45 years! Wonderful!
In case nobody else has commented this is a song celebrating the midlife crisis of a fading "60s hipster". The Deacon Blues reference was a nod to the Wake Forest Deacon's college football team which lost like every game in two or three seasons around the time the guys wrote this song.
If I was absolutely forced to pick just one SD song as my favorite...this would probably be it 🥰
I see why! This song is pure ear sex LOL
I’m so happy you like this one…now please do the rest of the album, especially the title track
Check out the archives! Aja was his first reaction to the Dan! ❤
Took a 10-day road trip in the early ‘80 down the Oregon and California coasts then went to Vegas (for the first time) on the way back to Washington. I was 21. This is the only album we listened to the entire trip. The. Only. One.
My daughter is a metal head and she's always said she doesn't like jazz turned her on Steely Dan and her perspective on music is growing and changing I tell her there's nothing wrong with like in metal don't limit yourself that's why your daddy's got such a diverse collection music because there's so much good stuff out there and it depends on your mood and how I'm glad to see the younger generation appreciating some of the things of the older
R & B isn't my thing but few artists bring something special too it. SD does that
You forget "Green Earrings"?
Yes! Such an amazing song!...And Sign in Stranger, an underappreciated gem.
@@debbiewalker31 exactly!!
The term 'catchy' often has a negative connotation when it comes to music. It usually means over-produced, sellout, simple, etc... Not THIS song! It IS catchy, but that's because of the insanely good melody, harmony, instrumental, percussion, etc. I LOVE this song! It's one of my favorites from one of my favorite bands ever!
You got it! Welcome to the SD club.
This is probably my favorite SD song..I love the lyrics.... Sue me if I play to long :)
Everybody, but EVERYBODY loved it when I played this one - solo acoustic - my daughter, Latin jazz songstress Laura Fernandez, the Beer Store employee who couldn't believe I was playing the Dan outside her store. This one and 'Kid Charlemagne'. I skipped the solo sections on my own. Forgivable, I hope.
Show Biz Kids please! Such a great song. Well, all Steely Dan songs are great, but that’s my favorite! ☮️❤️
Top tier for sure! One of my fav SD songs! So many layers of perfection, just gets better the more you listen to it.
Ricky...don't lose that number ❤😂
Rose Darling is my favourite Steely Dan song ❤
Green Earrings is another don’t miss
Love your analysis of this great song. These guys had it figured out. Write great songs with fantastic lyrics and get great, fantastic musicians to bring them to life.
That entire album, AJA, is a smash !!!!! Every song is sooooo good !!!!! IMO. I believe the best album ever produced !!!!!!!
Beautiful horns are soooo smooooth.
Probably my favorite song from The Dan. Thanks Lee, always appreciate your reactions.
Glad you enjoyed it my friend! I appreciate you 🙏 you rock
I’ve seen them more than a few times. Probably in my top five bands. ❤ #walterbecker
Dude isolate the guitar , incredible.
music perfection
This is my favorite song on my favorite album! I’m from Maryland too!!
Excellent review. Babylon sisters from Gaucho is my request. Not as strong as Aja but a stellar Dan number.
I have to say this album is pretty much perfect. I can’t think of one thing not good about it. You should check out some Boz Scaggs if you like SD.
I can't wait to hear the rest. They are so good lol
@@L33Reacts yes, they are😊