Steely Dan

Many years ago, when I moved into a college-like dormitory, I was playing a mix tape of Steely Dan which ended with "Deacon Blues", and after the tape finished the guy next door knocked and said, "Turn on Steely Dan again!" We became good friends, until he moved back to Texas and we lost touch. Sometimes I wonder what he's up to nowadays...

"Can't Buy a Thrill"

  1. "Do it Again" (5:56)
  2. "Dirty Work" (3:08)
  3. "Kings" (3:45)
  4. "Midnite Cruiser" (4:09)
  5. "Only a Fool Would Say That" (2:54)
  6. "Reelin' in the Years" (4:35)
  7. "Fire in the Hole" (3:26)
  8. "Brooklyn" (4:20)
  9. "Change of the Guard" (3:28)
  10. "Turn that Heartbeat over Again" (4:58)

The band's first album, with "Do it Again" being the standout track. I also like "Reelin' in the Years", but "Dirty Work" is kind of a joke. Not terribly familiar with the rest.

"Countdown to Ecstasy"

  1. "Bodhisattva" (5:16)
  2. "Razor Boy" (4:10)
  3. "The Boston Rag" (5:48)
  4. "Your Gold Teeth" (6:45)
  5. "Show Biz Kids" (5:21)
  6. "My Old School" (4:46)
  7. "Pearl of the Quarter" (3:55)
  8. "King of the World" (5:03)

One of my favorites...a good CD to just lie back and zone out to. The swelling melody of "King of the World" is a great CD-ender.

"Katy Lied"

  1. "Black Friday" (3:33)
  2. "Bad Sneakers" (3:16)
  3. "Rose Darling" (2:59)
  4. "Daddy Don't Live in that New York City Anymore" (3:12)
  5. "Doctor Wu" (3:59)
  6. "Everyone's Gone to the Movies" (3:41)
  7. "Your Gold Teeth II" (4:12)
  8. "Chain Lightning" (2:57)
  9. "Any World (That I'm Welcome To)" (3:56)
  10. "Throw Back the Little Ones" (3:11)

Humm, can't say I recall much from this one...never liked "Black Friday" much, and the other titles fail to bring up any recognition in my mind...

"The Royal Scam"

  1. "Kid Charlemagne" (4:38)
  2. "Caves of Altamira" (3:33)
  3. "Don't Take Me Alive" (4:19)
  4. "Sign in Stranger" (4:22)
  5. "The Fez" (3:59)
  6. "Green Earrings" (4:05)
  7. "Haitian Divorce" (5:50)
  8. "Everything You Did" (3:54)
  9. "The Royal Scam" (6:31)

I think someone told me that this was Steely Dan's best and most underappreciated album. Whoever he was, he was wrong. There's no radio hits at all (I think I might have heard "Kid Charlemagne" once, though) and although the music makes for some cool jazzy background noise, it really isn't anything special. Definitely a collection-filler.

"Aja"

  1. "Black Cow" (5:10)
  2. "Aja" (8:00)
  3. "Deacon Blues" (7:36)
  4. "Peg" (4:00)
  5. "Home at Last" (5:35)
  6. "I Got the News" (5:07)
  7. "Josie" (4:30)

One of the most significant Steely Dan albums, since it contains three of their best (and most popular) songs: "Peg", "Josie", and "Deacon Blues". This one's so damn common in the used bins that I never bothered buying it for many years, until I found a near-mint copy for only $6.99 and decided ENOUGH ALREADY, I'm buying the goddamn thing!

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