FEATURE:
“Is There Gas in the Car…?”
IN THIS PHOTO: Steely Dan's Walter Becker (L) and Donald Fagen, pictured here in 2009, ahead of a North American tour/PHOTO CREDIT: CJ Gunther for USA TODAY
Steely Dan’s Katy Lied, The Legacy of the Band and Future Donald Fagen Material
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I do like to post Steely Dan features…
as I feel it is important to keep their name alive. Not to say they are obscure, though there are still no artists out there that you can compare to Steely Dan. Or that are especially influenced by them. I always wonder why. I was re-reading Quantum Criminals: Ramblers, Wild Gamblers, and Other Sole Survivors from the Songs of Steely Dan. Written by Alex Pappademas with artwork from Joan LeMay, it is a fascinating read. I would advise any Steely Dan fan to read it! Even if you are not aware of them, it is a beautiful read that is wonderfully written. There has been a reissuance for Steely Dan in recent years. More people discussing their music. The fact there have been studio album reissues means that more people are connecting with their music. Alex Pappademas argues that people might be picking up on Steely Dan because they are realising how good a band they are. Even though one half of the core members, Walter Becker, died in 2017, there is much more love and appreciation for them now than ever. Maybe because the themes addressed in the songs seem more relevant today. The slow-motion apocalypse as Pappademas writes, together with the self-destructive escapism is very apt now. Revivalism today means that so many older acts are coming into fashion. Through memes, online discussion and the music being easier to share than it was when Steely Dan started life (the 1970s), one cannot say they are obscure. However, there have been no new documentaries or many podcasts about them. Even if they are dissolved, their catalogue remains relatively un-adapted and untouched. No animated music videos created for songs. Album reissues coming about but not a lot in the way of extras, outtakes and demos. I shall come to that in a minute.
Since 2019, there has been much more in the way of discussion and discourse around Steely Dan. However, has this translated into wider culture. Maybe it is a case of the gatekeepers refusing access, yet the lack of documentaries or any new celebration of the band is telling. Artists not covering their songs much and there not being this 2020s version of Steely Dan. I wonder what is holding artists back. I myself have been inspired to write an album, American Grammar, very much in the mould of Steely Dan. Lyrics, song ideas and concepts flow to the mind. The desire to record it at Electric Lady Studios in New York City. Having great musicians playing on these rich, cynical and Dan-esque tracks. An eye-catching and striking album cover. However, this is just a dream as I am not a musician or songwriting – though I can write lyrics and ‘hear’ the tunes. My point is that I wonder what is responsible for a lack of modern-day Steely Dan acolytes. I can’t think of anyone in modern music that ‘follows’ them. Donald Fagen, who founded the group with Walter Becker, is still making solo music. His brilliant latest studio album, Sunken Condos, came out in 2012. I know there was talk he was working on new ideas. His wife Libby Titus died last year, so that might have put any imminent album plans on the backburner. I have been musing about older artists. Donald Fagen turned seventy-seven earlier this month. I do hope there is another studio album coming soon, as I know there is a definite void and desire. Artists like Paul McCartney, Joni Mitchell and Bob Dylan much more in my heart and mind than new artists. There is something about the music made by artists in their seventies and eighties that seems more affecting and powerful. Also, these legends will not be around forever. It is that desire to hang onto them!
Album reissues are a good way for an act to reach new people. In the case of Steely Dan, there is a new reissue for their 1975 album, Katy Lied. Their fourth studio album turns fifty later this year. It is one of their best releases. Out on 31st January, here is some more information:
“You can see it in their eyes, but is it really any surprise to learn that we are finally getting the much-anticipated 200g 45rpm 2LP UHQR edition of Steely Dan’s rightly acclaimed March 1975 album Katy Lied on January 31, 2025?
Once again, the fine folks at Analogue Productions do right by the SD catalog, just as they’ve done with the five previous releases in the UHQR Series for Can’t Buy a Thrill, Countdown to Ecstasy, Pretzel Logic, Aja, and Gaucho. (Click on each title to read our reviews.)
The UHQR Katy Lied has been mastered directly from the original master tape by engineer nonpareil Bernie Grundman and has been pressed on 200g Clarity Vinyl at Quality Record Pressings (QRP). The going freight for this 2LP 45rpm edition is the expected, typical UQHR Series SRP of $150, and it can be preordered from Acoustic Sounds here, and/or from Music Direct here, and/or via the MD link graphic below ahead of the tracklisting section.
As per usual, the premium UHQR packaging for Katy Lied features tip-on, old-style, gold-foil, individually numbered, double-pocket gatefold jackets with film lamination by Stoughton Printing, as housed in a black slipcase with wooden dowel spine. The Katy Lied UHQR is limited to 20,000 numbered copies.
A companion 180g 33⅓rpm 1LP edition of Katy Lied (seen below) will be released via Geffen/UMe as well on January 31, 2025 — but that version has instead been remastered by Joe Nino-Hernes at Sterling Sound from hi-res digital files, and is being pressed at Precision. This edition goes for $29.99, and it can be preordered here. Naturally, AP will be reviewing both new versions of Katy Lied as close to the release date as possible.
Originally released on ABC and later reissued via MCA, Katy Lied is the first “post-touring” Steely Dan album following the departure of guitarist Jeff “Skunk” Baxter and drummer Jim Hodder, and it reinforces chief SD duo Walter Becker and Donald Fagen’s penchant for utilizing top-shelf studio musicians as their core recording partners.
SD’s fourth LP, Katy Lied also features the notable debuts of Michael McDonald on background vocals (“Bad sneakers and a piña colada my friend,” indeed!) and then-21-year-old Jeff Porcaro on drums for the balance of the album. Needless to say, we here at AP can’t wait to get the Katy Lied UHQR in hand to spin and spin and spin — and review for you, of course! Stay tuned. . .“
I do hope we see some further exploration of Steely Dan this year. I have not really seen recent films or T.V. shows where their music has been used. I don’t think Donald Fagen would refuse every request. A film maybe based around their music or a period film where you get a representation of Steely Dan. I don’t think we would ever get a Steely Dan biopic, though I would be intrigued to see Donald Fagen and Walter Becker represented by modern-day actors! Rather than it being exploitative, it is giving credit and respect to a band whose influence has definitely spreads. To new fans. However, in music terms, there remains that question as to why you cannot hear their influence more. I still hold hope we will get at least one more Donald Fagen album. He still tours under the Steely Dan name. I would love to see him perform live very soon. I kind of wish I was an artist so that I could bring some Steely Dan-inflected songs to life. I know the session musicians would cost a fair bit, but, when you consider the results and what would come, it would be worth it! I don’t think it is cost prohibiting artists. Maybe not seeing how effective and wonderful that sound is. The richness of the compositions. The characters they (Steely Dan) weave through their songs. A gulf in the modern day scene that definitely needs to be properly addressed. I do think there is a love for Steely Dan still burning bright. To quote The Royal Scam’s (1976) Kid Charlemagne: “Is there gas in the car…?
“YES there’s gas in the car”!