Being a Steely Dan obsessed fan (I’ve seen them 20+ times including Fagen solos and Dukes of September concerts, read Fagen’s book and met him briefly at a book signing- he’s not what I would call sociable) I am afraid I will break down for 2-3 of the UHQRs coming out. My copies of Royal Scam and Pretzel Logic were standard issues, so they’re definite candidates. I have Gaucho an an excellent Japanese pressing so that’s out, I have Can’t Buy from Speakers Corner, which is fantastic, Katy Lied on an Original Mofi that doesn’t sound great, but is my 2nd from the bottom favorite, so I’ll stick with that, and Countdown is at the bottom, and even though it’s on a standard pressing, it sounds decent and I won’t be paying $150 for that. That leaves Aja. In my mind a top 10 album of all time. I have it on an Original Mofi, which I will probably end up selling and buying that UHQR.
I wish they would issue Kamakiriad on vinyl, and Morph the Cat reissue in the US (it previously was released in Europe and the prices are not worth it for my least favorite album of Fagen). Of course Nightfly is a classic, only outshone by Aja (I have it on an excellent Japanese pressing so didn’t go for that One Step which I hear is unbelievable), Sunken Condos was issued on clarity vinyl (or at least the vinyl is clear) and is second to The Nightfly, but not that close in Fagen’s solo offerings (were really SD albums but don’t get the same notoriety).
I have record store day issues of SDs 20th century albums, and they are excellent sounding, so I will stick with them. I even have a pre SD Fagen/Becker album that was really a movie soundtrack - You Gotta Walk it Like you Talk It that is kind of like a fossil that had maybe one SD worthy track. I think I’ve played it 2-3 times.
In all of the 13 albums in their catalogue of mine (I didn’t mention the Northeast Corridor live album I bought the day it came out) aside from You Gotta Walk it, there is only one song I skip. It’s a Becker (RIP) song and vocal and it’s easy to do so as it is the last song on side 1 of Everything Must Go, their last album.
I can’t say that about any other group, even the Beatles.
Anyone seen them more than 20 times?
Please help me…..