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Steely Dan

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donberry

Super Member
just wandering back in time here. In germany in the 70's as we all spent ourpaychecks on stereo equipment, I remember when we really wanted to check out the quality of the equipment,the first stuff we always grabbed was Steely dan. If it passed the steely dan test, we kept it. For me, it was the Aja album.
Would buy a new album, made sure we recorded it to our reel to reel on the first recording and used that recording to see how good it was.
Remember first time u heard steely dan on some heresy's ?
The always present debate with the guy who owned the harmon kardon gear as he always let us know he had the flatest response.....(personally I had a Kenwood 9800 with tuner)
ahhhh, the memories. If only my brain weren't so fried and I could remember more
 
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I remember a number of times in the late '70s and early '80s carting in to a dj gig nothing but a half-assed setup of a single TT, graphic eek set up with a volume control, an RIAA phono preamp, a 50W/ch power amp I built using an Acopian computer power supply chassis, and a couple of modified KLH model 6 speakers--and a library of mostly Dan. I was always a major hit, got lots of tips, plus more major cash from the bar, and all the food and grog I was willing or able to consume. :thmbsp: Easy money, if you ask me....! :D The Dan was big back then.... :yes:

The only things that live on of that ol' dj rig at this point that weren't cannibalized for parts are the TT (Sony TTS series) and the KLH speakers (which now my younger bro has been using for the past 20+ years or so....I actually had to replace the woofs in them due to edge-rot for him since then.... :sigh:)
 
Last year's Musicdirect catalog has a listing for a repress of Aja. The heading says "Play Aja: Sell Speakers."
That just cracks me up.
 
Turn up the Eagles, the neighbors are listening ...
Aja's great, but it was Show Biz Kids, FM, Hey 19 and Katy Lied that brought down the house at Nokia last year.
 
Amazing sounding albums ...

I actually just bought that Donald fagen "nightfly" boxed set , the dvd 5.1 discs are pretty slammin !
 
Listening to Aja with the lights off and the tubes glowing is one of my favorite repeatable experiences in life.
 
wank said:
Last year's Musicdirect catalog has a listing for a repress of Aja. The heading says "Play Aja: Sell Speakers."
That just cracks me up.
Click to expand...

Hey, it worked, didn't it? It certainly did with me...I bought the Infinity RS4's that I still use today because the salesman played "Aja", and I'm not embarrassed to admit it!

--Bob
 
When I heard Aja was about to be released I couldn't wait, but then that was because I loved Royal Scam so much. I still like the music on Royal Scam a little more, but Aja did not disappoint... both are among my all time faves.
 
I picked up Aja when it was released as well. It made me go back and pick up everything Steely Dan had recorded before it was released. The Royal Scam is my fave, but Aja is really, really close.

A fun watch is the Eagle Vision DVD Steely Dan:Aja. I wrote a review for it while on the staff of a DVD website....no longer affiliated :)

http://www.dvdtalk.com/reviews/24949/steely-dan-aja/
 
Yeah gotta agree on the "Dan" . I started listening when the first album was released . Was that 73-4' Can't buy a Thrill ?
I've got the Box set in CD . Aja , Katy Lied ,Coundown to Ecstasy in Vinyl .
 
Remember Don Kirshners "Midnight Concert" series? Steely Dan played once, '72. They played Reelin in the Years. I've been a rabid fan ever since.

One thing that disappoints me about Aja is the drums. A lttle wooden. Not much leading edge attack and no natural reverb and decay. Top end, though, is probably reference quality. Otherwise, a turning point for the Dan, just when you thought it couldn't get any better...

I have been fortunate to see them live 2 times. I like 20,000 people sing-alongs!
 
It's rumored that Don & Walt are serious audiophiles...you'd have to think so given their obsession with the ultimate recorded sound attainable. In my various experiences as a broadcast engineer, a Steely Dan recording has always been my calibration benchmark. If the radio station sounds good playin' The Dan, then you've got it dialed in. Back in my AM radio days, "Josie" was my go-to cut for equipment setup. I think it's one of the best AM radio songs ever...Walt's guitar just cuts through and the rhythm section nails it all together.
 
Sorry guys but as great as "Aja" is, "Gaucho" might be a smidge better, it was recorded some three years later and to me has just the slightest bit of clarity improvement over Aja. Really though its just splitting hairs and speaking of Fagan's "Nightfly" I found it on vinyl and OMG is it wonderful, best 3 bucks I've ever spent. On the cover of the "Nightfly" album is Fagan listening to a record on an unidentified turntable does anyone know what brand or model? And my favorite Dan album... it changes every time I listen! I love em' all!
 
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