I was 16 when I got a cassette of Steely Dan's Can't Buy a Thrill. I bought it (from Columbia House, that fabulous membership club where you got 11 records or cassettes for a dollar, provided you bought two more at an incredibly high price. I was interested in the stuff I heard on the radio--"Reelin' in the Years", "Do It Again"--but the more I heard the other cuts, the more I liked them.
Steely Dan isn't for everybody. Their lyrics range from the mildly depressing to the extremely depressing. They paint pictures of losers, criminals, and the underside of human existence. But it's done so well, with such intricate musical structure, that you ignore the downer lyrics and feel the vibe. They combined rock with jazz and baked a new pie that required a bit of time to acquire the taste, but it was all you wanted after you did.
A lot of their songs made the Radio ("Rikki Don't Lose That Number", "Aja", "Hey Nineteen", etc.), but like so many bands I love, the deeper cuts provide the best experience. That's especially true of today's Time Machine offering. It's from waaaaay back, and tells yet another story of someone gone bad or had something bad befall them. But the upbeat tune masks it so well you willingly sing the lyrics anyway. So I'll gladly get on the Wolverine heading for Annandale. Come with me...
I'm not fond of their past couple of albums, but their output from 1973-1980 is top-tier. See you tomorrow...
Pete
1 comment:
Great guitar work by Jeff"Skunk" Baxter!!
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