I've had many favorites over the years, often resulting in over-saturation and getting tired of the song. Off the top of my head, today I'd go with Razor Boy.
I grow to love "Deacon Blues" more and more as the years go by. The Pete Christlieb sax solo is the icing on the cake, and the fact that he improvised it in just two takes makes me appreciate it even more. "They (Fagen and Becker) told me to play what I felt. Hey, I'm a jazz musician, that's what I do ... so I recorded my first solo ... we listened back and they said it was great. I recorded a second take and that's the one they used. I was gone in a half hour. The next thing I know I'm hearing myself in every airport bathroom in the world."
That would be the b-side of Hey Nineteen, a live version of Bodhisattva…recorded in 1974 but not released until 1980.
Steely Dan is a funny band for me. For the last 20 years I've gone through phases of loving them, and then phases of thinking they are pretentious and overblown. The latter feelings emerge when I get on my metal and hard rock obsession. But now...the warm weather's here, I'm chilling out, and it's time to pull out that trusty Citizen Steely Dan box set. So, yeah...loving them again. I can't pick one, so I'll go with ten. Each of these songs just amazing 10 out of 10 stars. 1. Dirty Work 2. Kings 3. Razor Boy 4. Boston Rag 5. Through With Buzz 6. Don't Take Me Alive 7. The Royal Scam 8. Deacon Blues 9. Black Cow 10. Babylon Sisters and ten is not even enough...I could easily list ten more.
Ugh, difficult to pick a single favorite. Top would probably be Kid Charlemagne or Don't Take Me Alive, with Black Cow right behind them. After that comes Boston Rag, King Of The World and Kings. The best songs no one talks about much, but that are also incredible are Barrytown and Everyone's Gone To The Movies.
I'm not sure that I'd call it my favourite SD song, but I do enjoy it immensely. My introduction on LP to this group was the Greatest Hits, and SBK hypnotized me straight off; never before heard anything like it. The Beatles had done the drone tape loop thing with "Tomorrow Never Knows", but SD did it so perfectly that it felt like a real cadence of live vocals, yet sounding so mysteriously... artificial... Rickie Lee Jones recorded several years ago a really swell cover, faithful to the out-of-tune "Ya- ya-a-a-a"s near the end... lol
I agree on Barrytown, but Everyone's Gone To the Movies is too creepy. Musically a great song but hard for me to get past the subject matter.
Josie When I heard the whole album (unreleased at the time), I was meh on half of it, liked the rest. Then Josie at the end. I said to a friend, 'That is the best song they ever did, I'm buying it asap.' Obviously, I've changed my tune about the overall album, but not its best song.
Doctor Wu, hands down among many other strong contenders. That song, both lyrically and musically, just sends me with its poignant blend of disappointment, scorn, tenderness and joy. A top shelf bittersweet ballad, for sure...
Oh yeah, it is absolutely creepy, but, as someone who grew up in the 70s (born in 69), it really captures the dark underbelly of a decade that people look back on as all fun and games.
“Glamour Profession” from Gaucho has been my favorite for the past few months. It’s been getting nonstop play now. Gaucho is a great album I’m surprised it gets a lot of negative feedback. To me it’s just ol reliable classic Steely Dan
