Perennially listed as one of the Top Ten albums of all time, Steely Dan’s 1977 Aja is a perfect marriage of intelligent rock and tasty jazz. By this time, Steely Dan, like the latter period Beatles, had essentially become a “studio band”, with only Walter Becker and Fagin as the original members. The rest of the band are a mix of the best jazz musicians from the studio, including (deep breath) Larry Carlton/g, Pete Christlieb/ts-fl, Victor Feldman/key-vib, Chuck Findley/tp, Steve Gadd/dr, Jim Horn/fl-ts , Wayne Shorter-ts-fl, Tom Scott/wwinds, Joe Sample/key, Chuck Ran=iney/b, Bill Perkins/fl-ts , Steve Khan/g, Jim Keltnerr/dr, Jackie Kelso/fl-asand Lee Ritenour/g, to name a heavy handful.
The songs themselves are as clever and sophisticatedly swinging as the musicians, with “Black Cow”, “Deacon Blues”, “Peg” and “Josie” absolute classics, with “Aja” and the rest not far behind. The vocal harmonies on “Peg” are simply inspiring, with Gadd’s drum work a workshop in itself. Shorter, held in the reins, is magnificent, with solos by Carlton and Ritenour in classes by themselves. Possibly the apotheosis of Western pop music. And we haven’t even talked about Fagin’s lyrics, which can be a combination of Raymond Chandler, PJ O’Rourke and Johnny Mercer. Still inspiring after all these years.