Steely Dan Overview

My perspective on Steely Dan is a fan of their music, not a fanatic. That said, I do have most of their recordings. I recall their songs from the radio as they were released and was always impressed with their compositions. As their music still sounds fresh decades later one must be impressed. Their songwriting with their accessible melodic hooks, complex harmonies and time signatures grab your attention. The strong instrumental soloing maintains it.

Steely Dan's albums typically follow a common theme where there are a few must have songs rounded out by a solid collection of really good material. They have very few songs that are complete duds. There are some tracks where as I am listening to the song I am thinking that I can pass on this one; then an amazing guitar solo saves it.

The variety of styles Steely Dan incorporate in their music is impressive ranging from rock, jazz, blues, funk, latin, and pop. Frequently they will uniquely tie several styles into a song. Of course Steely Dan is not a set band of the same musicians. In fact, it changes not only from album to album, but from song to song. With all this diversity it is amazing that Steely Dan's albums are consistently strong and the flow of the material from track to track keeps your attention.

Steely Dan Shopping Guide
Because every Steely Dan album has some indispensable songs the clear choice is to get them all. One way is with their box set Citizen Steely Dan, that has their first seven albums on four cd's. It includes a few extra bonus tracks including "FM," the soundtrack to the movie. If you do not plan to get them all, you may be better off with one of their best of collections. If you plan to get individual albums check our reviews.

In general, Steely Dan's early albums are more rock based, and their later ones more jazz oriented.

A brief Steely Dan Bio is provided by Djangomusic.

Steely Dan discography at Amazon

Guitarist Larry Carlton solo album On Solid Ground includes an instrumental version of "Josie."

Steely Dan discography

Steely Dan Web-sites

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Steely Dan's Home page	Steely Dan's official site is quite good. They have band history, faq, tour information, what's new, lyrics, and much more.
Andy Metzger's Steely Dan page	Andy's website is an outstanding and comprehensive resource for the Dan fan. I liked the inclusion of the unreleased material contents within the album section.
Steely Dan database	Fan site with a database of information regarding official releases, related albums, bootlegs, appearances, and much more.
Steely Dan lyrics	A site with lyrics to Steely Dan and numerous other bands.
Banyan Trees	The fan site, Under the Banyan Trees With Steely Dan, has been around since 1995 and is worth a visit.

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