Yeah- as I recall Sunken Condos just sort of appeared, no hype, not a lot of promotion outside of that spot on Letterman (and even then there was no interview, just Donald and his band playing the song). Knowing Fagen, the lack of promotion was probably intentional
Quick bump just to say I haven't forgotten...the live/odds and ends discussion begins Wednesday night. Get ready...
Not sure what to make of this...but thought I'd pass it on. Steely Dan's Donald Fagen Sues Walter Becker's Estate Bern
Yeah, that's pretty crazy, but I think we all sort of figured after Becker's passing that a court battle like this wasn't out of the realm of possibility. I'd be brazen to say that if the situation was reversed and it was Fagen who'd died Libby Titus would be doing the same thing Delia Becker is trying to do. What I find amazing is that in all these years they stuck with that original 1972 agreement. It also seems interesting that when Fagen tried to 'tweak' the agreement a few years back Becker shot him down. So, yeah, looks like the plot just thickened. Talking about Alive In America like I was planning on doing tonight sorta pales in comparison...
Well, hopefully we won't need the permission of Becker's estate/widow to carry on the discussion, but here goes: From Wiki: Alive in America is a live album by the American jazz rock group Steely Dan, released in 1995. It is Steely Dan's first live album. Recorded during 1993 and 1994 tours, the concerts from which the album is constructed marked the first live Steely Dan performances since 1974. Track listing All songs by Becker and Fagen, except where noted "Babylon Sisters" – 6:47 "Green Earrings" – 5:20 "Bodhisattva" – 5:47 "Reelin' In the Years" – 6:24 "Josie" – 6:12 "Book of Liars" (Walter Becker) – 4:19 "Peg" – 4:19 "Third World Man" – 6:38 "Kid Charlemagne" – 5:16 "Sign in Stranger" – 6:34 "Aja" – 9:00 ==Recording dates== "Babylon Sisters" (St Petersberg, FL 8/19/94) "Green Earrings" (Irvine, CA 9/10/93) "Bodhisattva" (Detroit, MI 8/27/94) "Reelin' In the Years" (Chicago, IL 8/26/94) "Josie" (Phoenix, AZ 9/18/94) "Book of Liars" (Phoenix, AZ 9/6/93) "Peg" (Detroit. MI 8/27/94) "Third World Man" (Charlotte, NC 9/19/93) "Kid Charlemagne" (Detroit, MI 8/27/94) "Sign in Stranger" (Detroit, MI 8/27/94) "Aja" (Irvine, CA 9/17/94) Personnel Walter Becker – guitar, vocals Donald Fagen – vocals, melodica, electric piano Warren Bernhardt – piano Georg Wadenius – guitar Drew Zingg – guitar Tom Barney – bass guitar Cornelius Bumpus – tenor saxophone Chris Potter – alto saxophone, tenor saxophone Bob Sheppard – soprano saxophone, tenor saxophone Dennis Chambers – drums Peter Erskine – drums Catherine Russell – percussion, background vocals, human whistle Bill Ware – percussion, vibraphone Diane Garisto – background vocals Brenda White-King – background vocals Production Producer: Donald Fagen Engineers: Phil Burnett, Roger Nichols Directors: Warren Bernhardt, Drew Zingg Morpheus Lights Technician: Bryce Heugel Charts Album Year Chart Position 1995 The Billboard 200 40
I still can't find a bunch of my old CDRs, one of which is Alive In America, an album I have listened to exactly once almost ten years ago. So, in addition to discussing Alive, let's use it as a springboard to discuss the Dan's live performances in general. Post as many You Tube links and whatnot as you like but let's not forget do not post any information in regard to how you can lay yer hands on recordings/videos of these performances.
First off, I love the rendition of 'Book Of Liars'. It made me sad that it didn't make the set when I saw them last month. But the rest...eh. I don't own this album any more, nor do I particularly miss not having it. Seeing the credits, it's amazing to see that none of the backing band are still in the touring group. I'd love to see a newer live album with the current group (which had been steady for about a decade now) as a compare and contrast exercise.
Indeed...I think it's safe to say that Alive In America isn't very well regarded. As I recall it barely sounded live at all. Safe to say the audience and soundboard tapes from the '93/'94 tours are superior. My personal favourite is the '93 Madison Square Garden show- their hometown crowd, and they still had a few Kamakiriad songs in the setlist at that point. And "Book Of Liars" Even though it isn't 100% technically perfect -Becker is a little sloppy here and there, and Fagen forgets a lyric or two- I've always thought the July 22 2009 Boston show where they played Aja and The Royal Scam in their entirety would make one hell of a live album. Alas, I'll have to settle for the matrix I made using the excellent soundboard and audience sources...
I always found it ironic that Becker and Fagen were so aggressively anti-taper. Their one attempt at a live album fell very short, shall we say, of many of the fan-distributed shows. I guess their perfectionism got in the way of releasing some of the great soundboard recordings. Sure, it's a hell of a show, but someone played a wrong note or went off-beat for one count, and so it's too flawed to put the Steely Dan name on it. Such a shame for one of the best live bands ever.
I think their anti-taping stance falls in line with their general anti-bootleg stance. Still, fining the venue fifty grand if anyone was caught taping or filming their show seems a little draconian IMO. That said, there are quite a few audience recordings, soundboards and amateur (and even officially unreleased pro shot) video floating around...if you know where to look, that is Oh, I have heard one or two Steely Dan shows that are pretty sloppy, but there's usually reasons for it: illness, that kinda thing. Then of course there's the July 24 2009 Boston "Gaucho Night" show that is really out there; they sound pretty sloppy that night. It wasn't until I read the FAQ book that I found out one of the reasons why: the night before the show Fagen's stepson committed suicide. So understandably he wasn't 100% there on Gaucho night...fair enough. I guess it was to late to cancel or reschedule the gig. The show must go on, as it were... I have very few regrets in life, but not seeing two of my favourite bands- the Stones and Steely Dan- live is definitely one of 'em.
I’d love to hear a compilation of every tune The Dan has done live since 93; cherry pick the best cuts and that may wash the taste of AIA away.
Allegedly called 'Alive' because there was so much post-production that they felt it couldn't be called 'Live'. I like it. I own it. I play it. But... it's sterile.like Brian Wilson's live Pet Sounds and those Randy Newman Songbook albums where it seems the life has been sucked out the songs. As others have said, (as with Wilson's Pet Sounds shows) there are better unofficial recordings out there (the St Louis show from 94, for example). Imagine all those people who had waited years to hear Reelin' in the Years and they're faced with this arrangement! Not unlike my disappointment at hearing the re-arranged Here at the Western World on Fagen's Morph tour...
That probably wouldn't be that hard to do... The first time I heard the '93 "Reelin'" arrangement I had to turn it off. "WTF is this supposed to be?!" I asked myself. I'm sure I wasn't the only one I would have preferred they didn't even play the song at all instead of using that...second arrangement.
After 7 amazing studio albums I felt extremely let down, & also very puzzled when I first heard Alive In America. This thread has prompted me to listen again on Youtube & I still feel let down.
Yes, there are plenty of live Steely Dan performances available on You Tube that are better than Alive In America...
I've only heard it a few times but the last time was when we were right in the middle of their prime albums and I blasted it loud loud and I really enjoyed it. If you guys can just retry "Aja" from the album and play it loud, it's definitely the highlight plus it wasn't on any of the 70's live unofficial albums. It's nice just to hear some cheering at the start of it after so many studio songs we've been through. As the only live album, it's nice to have but if it took almost 25 years to come out after they began as a band, why not just give the full show? The 11 tracks I can see as being somewhat sterile but we can expect that from a band like this. Anyway, I re-listened to "Aja" tonight and it has a fuller sound and it's nice to hear it not so perfect. That main riff hits harder with more guitar running through it than on the studio version. The drumming is just about as good and the finale is pretty exciting. I guess it could be even better now that I'm hearing it on a lesser volume but I think we would all like a couple of more options for live material-either an anthology that includes stuff from '74 and the later years or a full show from any era that is better than this.
Has anyone seen the Steely Dan Ultimate Music Guide on US magazine racks yet? If not, when should we expect it to start appearing?
No idea, I ordered my copy direct from the UK. Finished reading it this morning, actually. A lot of their opinions on the albums could have come directly from this discussion
Am I the only one who likes the live revamp of Reelin' In the Years? I won't say it's superior to the original, but it rests a little better with the Royal Scam/Aja/Gaucho vibe of their later career. I don't seek it out as a definitive version, but I always enjoy it when it's on.
