Wow, what a contrarian top five, except for “Deacon Blues.” Then again, Countdown to Ecstasy and Pretzel Logic are the pinnacle to me. (You can read about each at Critical Conditions among a multitude of SD stories.)
Deacon Blues and Gaucho or my 2 favorite songs, but the drum and sax solos on Aja by the great Steve Gadd and the late, great Wayne Shorter are probably what I think of most often.
Because Steely Dan is one of those polarizing bands — you either love or hate them — I’m firmly planted in the always have, always will love them camp and, therefore, I couldn’t pick a favorite song. I couldn’t even pick a top five, but these five are outstanding, to be sure.
First and foremost, I’m glad you’re okay! You’ve had a good run of bad luck with severe weather over the last several months.
My vote was easy: “Deacon Blue.” Everything here is fantastic, but everything on Aja is just a cut above.
Aja is a no-skip album for me. Even the title track, which is long and not really my favorite, is still something I really enjoy.
I complete agree about "Kid Charlemagne" as a song which includes many of the elements that make Steel Dan great.
The songs that I might list among my favorites that didn't make your list would be "Home At Last" and maybe "Gaucho"
“Home at Last” is a real good one—that whole second side of Aja is such a strong run of songs.
Dude, the dreary architecture of your soul…Cousin Dupree is the one for me
Wow, what a contrarian top five, except for “Deacon Blues.” Then again, Countdown to Ecstasy and Pretzel Logic are the pinnacle to me. (You can read about each at Critical Conditions among a multitude of SD stories.)
Deacon Blues and Gaucho or my 2 favorite songs, but the drum and sax solos on Aja by the great Steve Gadd and the late, great Wayne Shorter are probably what I think of most often.
Because Steely Dan is one of those polarizing bands — you either love or hate them — I’m firmly planted in the always have, always will love them camp and, therefore, I couldn’t pick a favorite song. I couldn’t even pick a top five, but these five are outstanding, to be sure.