Steely Dan

Steely Dan is an American rock group from Annandale-on-Hudson, New York, founded by Walter Becker and Donald Fagen. It begins in 1971 and remains active from 1972 to the present. Becker plays guitars, bass and backing vocals, while Fagen handles keyboards and lead vocals. The group’s members across its history include David Palmer, Jeff “Skunk” Baxter, Cornelius Bumpus, Denny Dias, Jim Hodder, Royce Jones, Michael McDonald and Jeff Porcaro.

Becker and Fagen meet at Bard College in 1967 and start writing songs together before working in several local groups. After moving to New York City, they try to establish themselves as songwriters and work on the soundtrack to the film You’ve Got to Walk It Like You Talk It or You’ll Lose That Beat. In 1970, they contribute to Linda Hoover’s I Mean to Shine. They later join the touring band of Jay and the Americans, then move to Los Angeles, where producer Gary Katz hires them as staff songwriters for ABC Records. With Katz and engineer Roger Nichols, they form Steely Dan, taking the name from a reference in Naked Lunch.

The band’s music combines rock with jazz, Latin music, rhythm and blues and blues, and it becomes known for detailed studio production and lyrics often marked by irony and ambiguity. It starts out as a conventional live band, but Becker and Fagen stop touring by the end of 1974 and continue Steely Dan as a studio-based duo using rotating session musicians.

Albums and key recordings

The debut album, Can’t Buy a Thrill (1972), brings commercial success and includes the singles “Do It Again”, “Reelin’ In the Years” and “Dirty Work”. Countdown to Ecstasy (1973) is less commercially successful at first, though it gains recognition later. Pretzel Logic (1974) includes “Rikki Don’t Lose That Number”. Katy Lied (1975) and The Royal Scam (1976) continue the group’s studio-led approach and dependence on session players.

Aja (1977) marks a high point commercially and critically, reaching high chart positions and winning a Grammy Award for engineering. Its singles include “Peg”, “Josie” and “Deacon Blues”. Gaucho (1980) is affected by technical, legal and personal problems, including lost recordings and disputes with record labels, but still achieves commercial success with “Hey Nineteen” and “Time Out of Mind”.

After Gaucho, the group disbands in 1981. Becker and Fagen work separately during the 1980s: Fagen releases The Nightfly (1982), while Becker works as a producer and musician. They reunite in 1993, resume touring and release the live album Alive in America (1995). Their first studio album in two decades, Two Against Nature (2000), wins multiple Grammy Awards, including Album of the Year. Everything Must Go follows in 2003.

Later activity and recognition

After 2003, Steely Dan focuses mainly on touring. Becker later releases the solo albums 11 Tracks of Whack (1994) and Circus Money (2008), while Fagen continues his solo career with Kamakiriad (1993), Morph the Cat (2006) and Sunken Condos (2012). Becker dies in 2017 from complications related to esophageal cancer, and Fagen continues performing under the Steely Dan name.

The group is inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2001 and sells more than 40 million records worldwide. Its music is also recognised for combining genres and for its emphasis on studio craftsmanship.