Hello again, dear readers! It has been a long time since my last column but I am back with a flourish and a fanfare, ready to muse on songs old and new. This column contains my musings on new releases by two of my favorite recording artists.

Steely Dan  "Two Against Nature:" Don’t Ever Change, Guys!

As anyone who knows me is well aware, Steely Dan is my ALL-TIME FAVORITE BAND! Ringleaders Donald Fagan and Walter Becker have always been harmonically sophisticated in a hip way; writing deceptively simple-sounding songs. Baby boomer that I am, a lot of Steely Dan’s music is in the Soundtrack of My Life. "Do it Again" came through like a psychedelic samba into my Junior Year of high school. "Countdown to Ecstasy" was the #1 8-track in my first car (the ’65 Ford Custom 500 that was about twelve different colors). "Katy Lied" kept me afloat emotionally my Junior year of college. My brothers and I used to dissect each album as it was released; spending whole afternoons debating the merits of "Katy Lied" versus "The Royal Scam." One of the best days of my whole life was when we got tipped off about the ’95 Hammerstein Ballroom shows where we literally first on line and saw the show from five feet in front of Donald Fagan.

At this point, Dear Reader, you might be thinking that because they’re such favorites of mine they’re going to get a pass. Quite the contrary - -  I am always much more critical of my favorite bands, especially when they have waited so long to make a comeback. This long awaited collection comes some twenty years after "Gaucho," the duo’s last studio album together. During the interim Dan Fans have had to content themselves with "Steely Dan Gold," "A Decade of Steely Dan," "Citizen Steely Dan," and other repackages. The boys whetted our appetites in 1995 with "Alive in America" and great though it was, it was yet another twist on the existing songs. Since the new release was announced Steely Dan fans everywhere have held our collective breath; wondering if our boys still "have it."

Well gang, I am pleased to say that the answer is a resounding "yes!" "Two Against Nature" is everything even the most rabid Steely Dan fan could have hoped for. Happily, Becker and Fagan didn’t decide to go off in any radically new musical direction; electing instead to stay with their tried-and-true mix of jazz vocabulary, offbeat lyrics and the usual "hot licks and rhetoric." As always, Steely Dan’s songs are inhabited by interesting - if a bit shady - -   characters. Their day, sardonic wit has not deserted them, either.

The CD opens with "Gaslighting Abbie," a song with that cool, funky groove that Steely Dan has made their specialty. "What a Shame About Me" is about two middle-aged people who had a relationship in college and run into each other years later. As another middle-aged guy, the lyrics, "I’m worried about my future now or maybe this is it/It’s not all I hoped it would be/What a shame about me" are especially biting.. "Janie Runaway" is your typical Steely Dan ode to adult male misbehavior with a younger woman, in the tradition of "Hey Nineteen" and "Babylon Sisters." Again a nice, tight, greasy groove holds the whole thing together. "Cousin Dupree," the current single, is an ode to lusting after a pretty young cousin…He asks, "What’s so strange about a down-home family romance?" Lyrically, Becker and Fagan are in fine form.

Musically, Steely Dan has taken a different tack than previous releases. Their classic albums of the Seventies like "Aja" and "Kay Lied" boasted a veritable "who’s who" of top-shelf studio players. Larry Carlton, Chuck Rainey, Larry Carlton, Phil Woods, Michael Omartian, Jeff "Skunk" Baxter and Rick Derringer all left their thumbprints on the music, not to mention the otherworldly backing vocals of one Michael McDonald.

This time around Walter Becker takes a much more "hands on" approach; playing most of the bass and guitar parts himself. Fortunately, the sound doesn’t suffer for it in the least. His guitar soloing is reminiscent of Skunk Baxter’s playing. The remainder of the parts are played by the current Steely Dan band, with former Doobie Brother Cornelius Bumpus being the only familiar in the bunch.

"Two Against Nature" is satisfying in every way, and gets an enthusiastic "thumbs up" from this reviewer!  

Michael McDonald - -  "Blue Obsession:" STOP BEING SUCH A WUSS, MIKE!!!

If I could sell my soul to the Devil to sing like any one person, it would be Michael McDonald. He fronted the Doobie Brothers during what I consider to be their best period, singing some of their biggest hits. "What a Fool Believes," "Minute By Minute," and "One Step Closer" all are graced by his distinctive voice.

After going solo, McDonald released some good songs like "I Keep Forgettin’" "Sweet Freedom," and "Jah Mo Be There." But then he got into a deadly rut over the past few releases. In recent years I have been wishing he would give us a break from all those limp ballads and sing something more uptempo, as he did so soulfully with the New York Rock and Soul Revue. I mean, if I hear him do one more smarmy, overwrought ballad like "On My Own," I’m gonna barf!

The new CD "Blue Obsession," is at least a step in the right direction if not wholly satisfying. McDonald showcases that incredible instrument of his by taking two covers and making them the highlights of the album. He does a spectacular job with - -   of all things - -  a gritty rendition of Neil Young’s classic "Down By the River." He also gives Marvin Gaye’s "Ain’t That Peculiar" the "NY Rock and Soul Revue" treatment, with very satisfying results. Two of his self-penned tunes are also worth mentioning. "Build Upon It," has a nice Gospel flavor and he outright ROCKS for a change on "Obsession Blues." So the CD does have its moments.

Unfortunately, the aforementioned songs represent only four of the 12 tracks. The rest of the CD is an assortment of wimpy ballads and overwrought, lightweight material. "Kikwit Town," a collaboration with drummer Chester Thompson (ex-Phil Collins, Mothers of Invention), is a depressing dirge. "You Can’t Make it Love" and "All I Need" and "Someday You Will" are the same kind of mid-tempo, homogenous songs he’s been putting out lately.

Mike’s music gets airplay on the "Smooth Jazz" station here in NY but am I the only one who wants to hear this guy ROCK a little more? Can somebody do something to wake this guy up? He needs to get a ruthless, hard-ass producer who will hold him to two ballads per CD. Hey Mike, I’m available! LOL

How long must we keep dialing Soul-Meister Michael McDonald and getting Air Supply?

Peace, Man.

Last Updated 12.9.04