It's FM Day!

My Husband and I spent a few days living around the Empire State Building in NYC, this summer.

Our Hotel had an excellent rooftop view and of course we got photos.

After reading THIS article, I am dying to return to my hotel on Thursday.

According to the article, there will be a light show on the Empire State Building, today, to commemorate the 50th Anniversary of the FM Radio Transmission tower, which is located at the top of the building.

WCBS radio will play the Steely Dan Song "FM" (from the movie of the same name).

The light show will be coordinated to the music.

Knowing what Steely Dan is named after (a marital aid), there is nothing quite as appropriate as the lights, the music and the building, all screaming Steely Dan, in front of 8 million residents and potentially, the world.

I hope somebody gets it on video and posts it for us fans.

Update: HERE it is!

FM

Worry the bottle Mamma, it's grapefruit wine
Kick off your high heel sneakers, it's party time
The girls don't seem to care what's on
As long as it plays till dawn
Nothin' but blues and Elvis
And somebody else's favorite song

Give her some funked up music, she treats you nice
Feed her some hungry reggae, she'll love you twice
The girls don't seem to care tonight
As long as the mood is right

FM - no static at all

Give her some funked up music she treats you nice
Feed her some hungry reggae she'll love you twice
The girls don't seem to care tonight
As long as the mood is right

FM - no static at all

Where Was That Pretzel Man Located?

A year or so ago, I came across THIS webpage (called Pop Spots) in my travels around the Steely Dan Universe.

It was an exhaustive search for the exact spot that is showcased on the cover of the Steely Dan's 4th album, Pretzel Logic.

One of the landmarks that the writer of this article used, were 2 identical towers on a building, which are on the opposite side of the park. One of the towers is partially obscured by a tree.

I can go through it all for you, but it is better if you click that link up at the top of this post.

Yesterday, our friend's son who lives in New York, showcased that very building, with a photo that is very similar to the one that I had seen in this article. In case you would like to see that, it can be found on THIS post.

So I looked for it and found it and yes, it was indeed that same building.

It is a beautiful area of Central Park and I enjoyed both people's journeys within.

Maybe someday, my Husband and I will walk around in there.

Bodhisattva And Denny

In good news, for me at least, someone with a youtube channel (sgibson), actually did a semi decent recording of the entire Beacon Concert on October 17th.

If you are into it, here is the link to the entire concert.

Entire Concert

Want the cliff notes version of my personal favorites from this gig?

Here is:

Bodhisattva.

Pearl On The Quarter

Green Earrings

Still glad I did not spend money I did not have, to get there. Also glad that someone took pity on us and sent us a crumb to watch. Yay!

The Most Unforgettable Night of Whatever Setlist

Well, it took most of the night to finally hear what was the final show for Steely Dan for 2015.

The special guest ended up being (my personal choice) Denny Dias! I mentioned that possibility HERE, back in May.

From what little I heard as of midnight last night, he played during most all the songs, with the band members who joined HIS band, so many decades ago. That would be Donald Fagen and Walter Becker. :-)

Here is the setlist.

The Most Unforgettable Night Of Whatever

Special Guest: Denny Dias

Teenies Blues
The Freaky Intro from the Boxset.
Bodhisattva
Black Cow
Aja
Hey 19
Black Friday
Pearl of the Quarter
Show Biz Kids
Babylon Sisters
Green Earrings
Daddy Don't Live
Gaucho
Joe Tex (Band Intros)
Josie
Peg
My old School
Reelin' in the Years

Encore
Kid Charlemagne

Well, I was seriously worried that the evening would be something I would totally regret missing, but minus the chance to see friends, before the gig, it looks like most everything played, were things I have seen and heard before.

Thank goodness.

Photo of Denny Dias and setlist courtesy of Reidar Solli, who flew in from Oslo, Norway. He went to all 8 shows and provided us with color from all of them.

He gets super fan of the Beacon dates, in my book. :-)

On The Eve Of "The Most Unforgettable Night Of Whatever"

The 17th of October will be the ultimate Steely Dan fan event. Labeled: The Most Unforgettable Night of Whatever - Featuring Spectacular Musical Guests, Glorious Tunes and Riffage, and Whatever the Party Calls for! Special Guest Madeleine Peyroux opens.

To say the least, if I had a single dollar to scrape together, I would be there...but I don't and so I won't.

As we the fans ramp up for this stellar event, I saw a copy of the setlist that was played at the Rarities and Unreleased concert, 4 years ago. I was in attendance at that show and wrote about it many places, especially my review of the full concert, HERE.

It is not often that I cry at a concert...but I did indeed cry at this one. To hear a song that I never thought I would ever hear live, from the original members of the band who created it, was very emotional to me. I will never forget that night.

Can they top this show? I have absolutely no idea, but I would love to be there to hear what they put together.

Hopefully someone gets video of some of the gems that will be played.

I can't wait to hear about it.

The Making Of Deacon Blues

Donald Fagen and Walter Becker (of Steely Dan) went into this song in pretty great detail in the Classic Albums: Making of Aja program. So I was not totally surprised with the things that I read in a Wall Street Journal article, the other day.

There were new gems to explore and just the fact that this was in The Wall Street Journal, gave it extra cred (at least in my humble opinion).

If you have a few moments, take the time to find out about how the song Deacon Blues came about. Click the link HERE.

Just to jog your memory...the lyrics.

DEACON BLUES

This is the day
Of the expanding man
That shape is my shade
There where I used to stand
It seems like only yesterday
I gazed through the glass
At ramblers
Wild gamblers
That's all in the past

You call me a fool
You say it's a crazy scheme
This one's for real
I already bought the dream
So useless to ask me why
Throw a kiss and say goodbye
I'll make it this time
I'm ready to cross that fine line

CHORUS:
I'll learn to work the saxophone
I'll play just what I feel
Drink Scotch whisky all night long
And die behind the wheel
They got a name for the winners in the world
I want a name when I lose
They call Alabama the Crimson Tide
Call me Deacon Blues

My back to the wall
A victim of laughing chance
This is for me
The essence of true romance
Sharing the things we know and love
With those of my kind
Libations
Sensations
That stagger the mind

I crawl like a viper
Through these suburban streets
Make love to these women
Languid and bittersweet
I'll rise when the sun goes down
Cover every game in town
A world of my own
I'll make it my home sweet home

CHORUS

This is the night
Of the expanding the man
I take one last drag
As I approach the stand
I cried when I wrote this song
Sue me if I play too long
This brother is free
I'll be what I want to be

CHORUS

It's The Beacon!

"The Most Unforgettable Night of Whatever - Featuring Spectacular Musical Guests, Glorious Tunes and Riffage, and Whatever the Party Calls for! Parking Validated for First Dozen Diehard Fans"

Yes, this is what came into my in-box yesterday. A week of Beacon Theater dates (8 of them, actually) culminating it this last date. The Most Unforgettable Night of Whatever.

You just know that this date is the one that is driving us mega fans wild. What could it be? Will Denny Dias appear after all these years? He is actually going to be playing Steely Dan songs earlier in the summer, so that is not impossible. I have seen Michael McDonald, Larry Carlton, Dean Parks, Chuck Rainey and, Bernard Purdie to name a few, so that doesn't sway me.

What other song could they bring back, from those long ago days, that they haven't already brought back?

No matter what, it will be an interesting night and I am going to take a pass on it, because I will have spent a week in New York. There is only so much money in the angel vacation fund and I have blown it all on July.

Ah well, I was there for Second Arrangement, so I can rest on my laurels.

You know that my heart will be there that night and maybe (with luck) someone will Tweet the setlist to us.

Here is the link to the Beacon Dates. Actually all the dates, so far.

Steely Dan At The Santa Barbara Bowl: April 15, 2015

Set List:

Cubano Chant (Ray Bryant Cover)(Band Only)

Black Cow

Aja

Hey 19

Black Friday

Babylon Sisters

Show Biz Kids

Time Out of Mind

Godwhacker

Razor Boy (The Danettes Sing)

Bodhisattva

Daddy Don't Live in that NYC No More (Walter Becker sings)

Green Earrings

I Wanna Do Everything For You/band intros (Joe Tex Cover)

Peg

My Old School

Reelin' in the Years

Encore:

Kid Charlemagne

Untouchables (Nelson Riddle Cover) (Band Only)

I had really thought I would sit this mini tour out. Coachella was pricy as all heck, but Santa Barbara (which I went to in 2013) was a very nice venue and the tickets were not totally overpriced. So I talked it over with my Husband and we decided to get a room in Ventura and attend the concert.

Last time we were just a few rows back and we had nothing but trouble, so we went for the upper areas. Not as high up as we ended up in the Forum, so we had a nice view, for the inexpensive price we paid.

Things that were different this time around.

I finally got to hear Razor Boy! I was so excited last year, when they added it to their repertoire, but when they finally got to the Forum, it was gone from the setlist. I am so glad they brought it back this year. The back up singers sang the vocals and there was a lovely trumpet interlude in the middle. Similar to how they handle Dirty Work in concert. A piano piece began the song and it was truly beautiful. Great job of remaking an oldie but goodie.

Green Earrings is always a major thrill for this "angel" and it went as one would expect. I have been in love with this tune since I saw it on the PBS special back in 2000.

Godwacker always makes me happy when I hear the Trusty Angel Girl line and this time was no exception.

Bodhisattva brought the crowd alive! I hear they opened the first weekend of Coachella with this song and what a song it is. Always makes me happy to hear it. This time Keith Carlock added a longer drum solo in it and that just upped the wonderfulness, even more. :-)

A great concert that made me glad I went to the effort of attending. The major downer was that there was serious pot smoking going on around me and my Husband and to say the least, I was getting a contact high at one point. I think things are getting more relaxed in this regard and that is not all for the good.

Oh well...the headache eventually went away.

Donald Fagen Riffs On The Coachella Roadtrip (Part 1)

I don't know how many there will be, but similar in style to his book, Eminent Hipsters, Donald Fagen gives us a bird's eye view of the upcoming mini-tour.

More to come.

You can read it: HERE.

UPDATE:

Part 2 turned up and you can read it, HERE.

Steely Dan Plays Germany 2007

A rare concert video just posted up on Youtube. A really well done video of a concert that Steely Dan did back in 2007. Live from Germany, no less. You can view it HERE.

I have no idea how long it is going to stay up, so if you want to watch it, do it soon.

Tracks include:

Bad Sneakers

Godwacker

Two Against Nature

Hey 19

Peg

Green Earrings...and more.

Making me excited to see them in 2 weeks.

2015 Touring Dates On The Way

We knew the boys were coming over to the Left Coast to play 2 dates at the Coachella event, in April. What has happened before, is that when they have a date, they book a few shows around it, to make it worth bringing out the band and all their gear.

So we waited and we waited and yes, the other day they announced several dates around the Southern California area. The two that interest me are Santa Barbara Bowl (unfortunately on a weeknight) and San Diego (on the weekend).

My Husband and I talked about it and we both would prefer to shoot for the Santa Barbara Bowl date. I am a little worried, because it is an outdoor venue and it is still April, but Humphreys By The Bay is also outdoors and also in April. So we will do what we can afford and try to make it work for us.

We both enjoyed the concert we saw there back in 2011. You can check out that review HERE. As my Husband said to me, we do not get the end of a row this time. When you read the review, you will see why.

Wish us luck on Saturday getting some inexpensive tickets.

==============

The photo is a very cool drawing by Dan Meth and you can see his work on danmeth dot com.

Happy Birthday Donald Fagen!

Donald Jay Fagen, was born in Passaic New Jersey, 67 years ago today.

As people who read this blog know, he is the frontman to super group, Steely Dan. He has also toured with Michael McDonald and Boz Scaggs, as a piece of the Dukes of September Rhythm Revue. He is now also a published author, with Eminent Hipsters.

He is an all around talented performer and he has made it to another Birthday.

We, his fans, are happy he did so and hope he continues to make music, far into the future.

Happy Birthday Donald!

Photo from the Dukes of September Tour (back in November of 2012).