inSipid Dan

  The drawback to the pub's musical mix (I assume it's via one of the
  streaming services) is that I'm occasionally subjected to [1]Steely
  Dan, [2]The Grateful Dead, and other classic rock bands I can typically
  do without (GD's [3]Touch of Gray being a notable exception). As
  always, follow your own joy and enjoyment.

  If you are a Steely Dan, the band, fan, you may want to stop here.

  If you're a [4]William H. Burrows fan or really like [5]Naked Lunch,
  this does not go there. I like the author and the book, and kind of
  enjoyed the movie. Maybe someday I will write about them. This is not
  that day.

  Steely Dan is the worst. They're not rock. They're not jazz. They're in
  a self-imposed purgatory separate. They're languid and tepid. They're
  pop without the sense to lean into it.

  For as much press ink is spilled talking about the individual
  contributors' musical chops, the music is bland. The lyrics are
  trivial. The singing is incidental to the music, which isn't good to
  begin with. Repetition is the band's stock-in-trade.

  The problem begins and ends with [6]Donald Fagan. [7]Walter Becker, the
  other half of the band, passed away in 2017. While obviously complicit
  in SD's sound and style, this is Fagan's band.

  All of Steely Dan's "hits" will make me change the dial or skip the
  song, but if I go into a business playing [8]Reelin' In The Years I
  will physically leave. Other than [9]Billy Joel's [10]Pianoman (in the
  running for the worst super hero ever), there is no song that triggers
  such a visceral negative reaction. The difference is that I like most
  of the rest of Joel's catalog. That is not the case with Fagan and SD.

  You are on your own journey so follow your joy, but this band is not
  mine.
    __________________________________________________________________

  My original entry is here: [11]inSipid Dan. It posted Sun, 07 Jul 2019
  16:15:34 +0900.
  Filed under: culture,

References

  1. https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Steely_Dan
  2. https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Grateful_Dead
  3. https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Touch_of_Grey
  4. https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/William_S._Burroughs
  5. https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Naked_Lunch
  6. https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Donald_Fagen
  7. https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Walter_Becker
  8. https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Reelin'_In_the_Years
  9. https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Billy_Joel
 10. https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Piano_Man_(song)
 11. https://www.prjorgensen.com/?p=3019

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