Little did we appreciate at the time back in the 1970s, because Steely Dan was simply so popular as a “rock” group, but by the time this 1975 album came out, they were essentially becoming a hip jazz combo with sophisticated lyrics, incredible melodies and harmonies, and yet still catchy phrases. This was the apotheosis of when jazz and rock was fun and brainy.
By this time, the “band” Steely Dan consisted of Donald Fagen/key-p-voc and Walter Becker/b-g-voc, with the rest of the musicians being the crème of the jazz crop, including Hal Blaine/dr, Victor Feldman/key-vib, Wilton Felder-Chuck Rainey/b, Larry Carlton-Elliot Randall/g, Jeff Porcaro/dr, David Paich/key, Phil Woods/as and Bill Perkins/ts, to just scratch the Baked Potato surface. And let’s not forget the rockers like Rick Derringer who sat in for a bit. This is jazz-rock at it’s rockiest!
The album is a quantum leap from the previous Pretzel Logic (which was a major leap forward in its own right), with some amazingly clever and dark tunes that you’d sing along to, and not even realize that you were reciting a chorus about a dying patient asking the doctor having an affair with his wife to save his life, as on “Doctor Wu”. All the while, Fagen is calm and wry, and Woods is swinging.. WHEW! Then you’ve got a hip shuffler like “Black Friday” that grooves to an ominous chorus, and then some guitar work by Carlton on the bluesy“Chain Lightning” that makes you wonder “where is this guy coming from?” The fun calypso’d “Everyone’s Gone To The Movies” and “Your God Teeth” make Dave Frishberg green with envy as well. Mensa music.