Now you just need to react to some more of their songs like, Black Cow, Deacon Blues, FM, Aja, Pretzel Logic, Caves of Altamira, Royal Scam, The Fez, Hey Nineteen, Babylon sisters, any major dude will tell you, bad sneakers
Actually...check out Monkey House. They do sound like Steely Dan. (But then one of the Steely Dan guys has been involved with Monkey House, so there is an actual connection.)
@@lwh7301 I trust my ears. MK is on the right channel, his tone, phrasing and idiosyncratic bends/double stops is what I'm hearing. Regardless of what has been said or written about it.
I love that comment, “it doesn’t sound like Steely Dan”, I laughed ‘cause to me as soon as I heard it I thought it sounds exactly like Steely Dan… in any case great tune even greater band, always on a play list back in the day. 😎🍺☮️
@@mrnobody3161 Many of the metaphors in the song are actually about doing heroin. No perfection and grace to be found there... Steely Dan always had interesting, and often quite dark, lyrics that were missed by people who either didn't get the metaphors (like me at times) or who got lost in those great grooves (also me)!
@@christianman73 I've been a fan of Steely Dan since I was a kid, as in kindergarten, and I always thought their lyrics were just "abstract." Later on, I was all "whaaaaaaaat? Naaaaaaaw..."
Only Steely Dan can get you bobbing your head along to lyrics like 'Tonight when I chase the dragon the water may change to cherry wine. And the silver will turn to gold, time out of mind.'
Guys, the song is about doing heroin and the hallucinations that come when you’re high. Chasing the dragon is smoking heroin. The silver that turns to gold is the aluminum foil that turns to gold when the flame hits it through the pipe.
“Hey 19” came out when I was a senior in high school and madly in love with our 19-year-old exchange student from Australia. I had never heard of Steely Dan before, but I was so blown away by that song that I have become a life long Uber fan of them ever since. I really hope Jordan and Amber will consider reacting to “Hey 19” .
Amber & Jay, here are some other good Steely Dan songs to react to: "Hey Nineteen", "FM (No Static at All)", "Black Cow", "Aja", "Deacon Blues", "Doctor Wu", and "Only a Fool Would Say That".
The attention to detail, instrument choices, crescendos and decrescendos, and the musical subtleties make Steely Dan one of a kind. "it's perfection and grace...it's the smile on my face"
It's the music you guys. The overall production is second to none in almost all of their recordings. There are literally dozens of steely Dan tunes that are without peer. Just close your eyes and pick one you won't be disappointed!
Amber you are such the music intellectual. You catch subtleties and nuances of songs. Every time you do your slow dance during songs like this it is like you are being pulled into the song and catching those subtleties that others are not hearing
I was aged 8 years old, I heard Steely dan "reelin in the years" and loved it. At age 12, I heard "Ricky Don't lose That number" loved it, and age 13, "Josie", and i just had to find out who these guys were, everytime i heard their music, I loved it. So when i got my first music system, the first album i bought was "Steely Dan greatest hits" and began a journey of discovering the most wonderul music and lyrics I have ever known, and the two most complex, original spirits who understood me, and who I am, in each of their songs.
I don't know why but this is my favorite Steely Dan song. Mark Knopfler from Dire Straits plays guitar here, Michael McDonald on backing vocals. This was SD's last song to make the Top 40, but they did take a 20 year break afterward....
Steely Dan had some excellent musicians, the writing was excellent, and we got to thoroughly enjoy some great music! Where the hell have bands like this gone????
I am so glad you reacted to this song. It was Steely Dan’s last released single, and I think one of their best. Top notch in every way. Especially production.
Such a groove on this great tune. I was lucky enough to see them in concert about a dozen years ago and this sung swung so hard the entire crowd was on their feet swaying to this jam
Steely Dan...soundtrack to my college days early 80s. A VERY important band in my musical journey, absolutely love everything about them. Ok guys, there's ALOT of amazing SD songs you have not done! - Kid Charlemagne - Haitian Divorce - Royal Scam - Bodhisattva - Babylon Sisters - Deacon Blues - Black Cow And more but there's a nice list
Michael McDonald, *again*, guest starring on the harmonies. I'm pretty sure Amber caught that. 😄 I strongly recommend that you guys hit the "Aja" album again and try out "Deacon Blues" (as another poster said, a song for the losers), and "Black Cow". I love "Time Out of Mind". It is somewhat atypical of Steely Dan's music. It sounds as close to a radio-friendly pop/rock song as a Steely Dan song can get.☺️
Chasing the dragon is having to take stronger amounts on each succeeding usage of (insert drug of choice) to achieve the original feelings of euphoria the first time one gets high. Donald Fagen didn’t use drugs regularly because his high was muscic. Unfortunately, Walter Becker did develop a bad drug addiction after Gaucho due to his a car accident and girlfriends death by overdose. They did help each other on their solo projects, but wasn’t until the 1990’s that they teamed up again to tour. At this time, Donald flourished because the anxiety over live performances became manageable. He really enjoyed himself while playing, as is evident in the live performance clips in the mid to late 1990’s and the 2000’s. He grew into his looks and confidence and Walter was healthy. That’s the sweet spot for me of Steely Dan. I went o the Feb. 17th concert for Steely Dan/Eagles in New Orleans this year and it was more than the plane tickets from Seattle and back.
Wayne Shorter, sax player for Miles Davis in the sixties, and co-founder of Weather Report called Steely Dan the masters of jazz/pop fusion. And Chasing the Dragon was slang for smoking heroin or opium.
"Chasing the Dragon" is a euphemism for smoking Heroin, which was one of Walter Becker's vices. "The Water will change to Cherry Wine" refers to sticking a Syringe with a fix of Heroin (the 'water') into your arm then pulling the plunger on the syringe back to draw a bit of Blood (the 'cherry wine') then pushing the plunger down, emptying the syringe with the fix into your vein. "It's direct from Laos" is a reference to Laotian Heroin, at the time one of the most potent available.
I'm from Montréal and when you hear Steely Dan in a café at spring, you just can't wait to be on a terrace. For me their sound makes me fell joy and I feel the fresh wind on my face.
How good was Steely Dan? Shortly after they released this record/LP, the band called it a day. 20 years later they reunited for the "Two against Nature" LP..and against all the rap, pop and hip-hop, won the Grammy for album of the year. No doubt about it, Becker and Fagan were the very definition of master songwriters.
Amber you and Jay play me a Monkees song on the 24 of April for my Birthday. I will be 75 years old and I love some Monkees songs. My name is Carolyn White from Mississippi. Thanks to y’all playing such good music.
It has been said that "Tonight when I chase the dragon....the water may change to cherry wine" are heroin-use references. Water changing to cherry wine is a euphemism for pulling back on a syringe to draw your blood into the heroin mixture like you see Vincent Vega do in Pulp Fiction, the clear liquid turns red.
This song was Steely Dan's very last Top 40 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart. The song peaked at the #22 spot during the early spring of 1981. The great Mark Knopfler of the British group, Dire Straits, plays lead guitar on this song. This song is a definitely banger indeed.
Absolutely love Steely Dan. They were so amazing. I would think y'all would love Hey 19. One of my favorite songs by them. Appreciate them more and more over they years
I grew up in the 70s...Musical Genius, however the lyrics celebrate the smoking or snorting of Heroin. Looking for love...1st heroin trip, chasing the dragon is chasing the high of the 1st trip, water changing to cherry wine is the liquid pipe color change from clear to red when heated, Silver to gold is the aluminum foil color changing when heated
Listening to this today, I realized that parts of it sounded a lot like something by Michael McDonald, and was surprised to find that he did indeed participate in making this particular song on the album. He's only credited with background vocals, but the keyboard stabs remind me a lot of his style.
amber-you can always hear what is right there in the song-even when you are not sure what it is you are hearing. granted, this one is a real crazy one-what the lyrics are saying compared to the feel of the song. and I guess what our exposure is to certain ideas and how they work. anyway-love your channel. I love this song., even though it slightly spooks me the more I found out about it, steely dan do have genius in their art. thanks for posting.
Amber's comment about a slow trip is more accurate than she probably realized given that the song is reputedly about heroin abuse, namely Walter Becker's.
Steely Dan slowly morphed from this innovative rock band over time to this mature Asian jazz rock fusion sound with incredible production quality. That’s what makes them incredible, they let their sound grow and evolve while most bands play their early hits into their 60s. You have to listen to Aja. But be prepared.
Reminds me of back in the day When I was a teenager driving around in my 68 Charger crusin to Steely Dan . love it, thanks for the memory. By the way it was on a eight track player .lol
Mark Knopfler of Dire Straits on lead guitar. I read that he recorded like 24 hours worth of playing and ended up just having tidbits used. Still really dig the tune!
This is probably my favorite Steely Dan song/album ( Gaucho). They have the most talented musicians on this track not to mention the background vocals of Michael McDonald, Valerie Simpson, Patti Austin, and Lesley Miller.
My love for music originated from my brother…music opposites! Oldest bro was Blue Oyster Cult, Toto, Black Sabbath, Uriah Heep…many more. Other bro introduced me to The Beatles, George Benson, Fleetwood Mac, Bill Withers…and many more. So grateful to see you react to music I grew up knowing. Continue the journey…🎵🎵🎵
This is more Steely Dan vibes than the songs you two have reacted to so far. You've got a ways to go to understand and realize the true Steely Dan vibe! Great reaction choice; keep going! Thanks! ✌💙✌
Never heard that one. Everything they did was so clean and so jazzy original. Amazing, loved it. I agree with comments below, still many great Steeley Dan songs to hear and react to.