Reassessing Steely Dan's "Gaucho" (almost 37 years later)

I have many versions of Gaucho, love it. The 2008 SHM CD is the favourite, as the hihat's on Hey 19 are more audible in the mix. Is it because of source tapes? Or just the chosen mastering?

 

Easy now, no need to get all bent. It's just a song... though a pretty great one, if you ask me. Yeah I know all about the interview in Musician where Fagan cops to lifting the opening riff from Keith Jarrett. There's nothing in there about who or what the song's about. If you have some facts to support your theory let's hear em... don't just tell me to "search the forum". That's weak.

 

What's weak and uninformed is your opinion. It's been discussed at length. I'm not serving it up for you. You're the one making a baseless assertion. You back it up.

 

Third World Man is about Becker

 

Every Steely Dan song ever written is about Becker.

 

LOL, it's my pet theory and I'm stickin' to it...Becker was in the throes of addiction. I haven't read back to the Gaucho theory but that sounds less likely

 

I did. Becker was using and screwing up their relationship. Read his obit in Rolling Stone: "By the time of 1980's Gaucho, Becker's life began unraveling. During the making of the album, Becker was hit by a taxi in New York and was confined to a wheelchair while making the album. The punishing Gaucho sessions strained his relationship with Fagen, and Becker succumbed to a growing drug habit, reportedly heroin. In January 1980 his girlfriend Karen Stanley overdosed in their New York apartment. Steely Dan broke up the following year." According to Fagen "His habits got the best of him by the end of the seventies." I think the lyrics are pretty clear if you don't take them literally, which you never should with Steely Dan. Now your turn. You tell me what "holding hands with the man from Rio" means.

 

Well, and don't forget Keith Jarrett.

It's not just the opening riff, by the way.

 

The other thing with that is that even if they said in an interview with a magazine that the song was about such and such, that doesn't mean that they're not simply creating a fiction for such interviews. It's not as if it's far-fetched for an artist to do that. Artists do such things frequently.

People often assume that either lyrics are autobiographical and more or less true, or if not, at least comments that artists make in interviews, in autobiographies, etc. are more or less straightforward and true. Not only does that make me wonder, "Do you not know anything about arts & entertainment businesses?" but "Do you not know anything about human nature?" Since when do you believe that people are necessarily being honest/straightforward/spilling all the beans?

 

And Becker and Fagan admit to doing so regularly!

 

I suspect that with Steely Dan, and with Gaucho in particular, unless we've got the artists telling us who they were writing about (and even then, I might not trust them), I think their characters are largely fictional, although they may have some real life origins.

For me, it's those odd characters that make the album - the dandy of Gamma Chi, the jolly roger who needs to answer for his crimes, Jive Miguel who's in from Bogota, Jack who stalks the dreaded moray eel with his Eurasian bride, the gaucho in your spangled leather poncho (and elevator shoes) and, of course, Johnny, the third world man making the sidewalks safe for the little guy.

So great.

 

As I said before, all of those people are Walter Becker!!!

Thanks for the common sense.

 

So what does any of that ancient history have to do with the fact that "Gaucho" is about a bickering gay couple in a love triangle? By claiming the song is about Walter Becker are you implying Becker was gay, Socal, or that he and Fagen were more than bandmates/songwriting collaborators? Enough with the g-ddamn innuendo already, say what you mean.

Again, read the album by album discussion. We already hashed out the meaning of "Gaucho" in there.

 

For anyone's education, the Musician Magazine interview in question...
Steely Dan interview

 

@ohnothimagen

Hahaha, wow, what a load of condescending b.s.

To declare that a song is "in fact" about something just because you think you "already hashed out the meaning" is pretty hilarious.

I'm not implying anything. I think I was pretty clear. I don't think it's about a gay couple at all. In fact, I don't think there's any homosexuality in the lyrics. I think it's about Becker's heroin use. Which part of that did you not understand?

Do you need me to go through the lyrics line by line?

And wtf are you so touchy about? Lighten up.

 

And...ignore. Condescending? Pot, meet the f--kin' kettle! For a sixty post newbie you should show a bit more respect to yer elders and betters.

 

Gaucho is a classic. Love the album. The mfsl sounds great

 

Yeah. I've had the MoFi CD for years. It's spectacular.

 

Did You find a better version than The mfsl?

 

No. Once I'm satisfied that's pretty much it. You get conflicting opinions of the CD remasters.

I'll probably end up with a nice clean Gaucho LP soon. They're not that hard to find or expensive. My good old original is pretty chewed up, I think.

Still need really good original vinyl of Can't Buy A Thrill, Katy, & Countdown to Ecstasy. Then I'm probably done with the Dan.

 

Yes I understand! After The MFSL I did not look Amy further.
I love The dan But I have all The versions that I like. No need too buy other versions.

 

The 5.1 surround version is sublime.

 

Good vinyl of Katy? Well, good luck. I've been searching so long! I'm hoping for some kind of definitive remaster on vinyl that will finally do the trick.

Come on, Donald! Help us out!

 

In my single disc best of the Dan I only have room for two tracks from Gaucho. It's between the big three, Babylon, Hey Nineteen and TOOM. I'm having a difficult time cutting any of them.
Advice needed!

 

The first two I reluctantly recommend.