Electric Light Orchestra vs Steely Dan |
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rogerthat
Prog Reviewer Joined: September 03 2006 Location: . Status: Offline Points: 9869 |
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Commercial success? Yes. But pop oriented? Other than Peg, not really. They were just talented enough to write a fresh bunch of standards. But the music stayed jazz-rock all the way to the end, maybe leaning more and more jazz by Aja/Gaucho. But not pop and this should be very clear when those albums are contrasted with the BeeGees or ABBA's Voulez Voulez/Super Trouper.
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AFlowerKingCrimson
Forum Senior Member Joined: October 02 2016 Location: Philly burbs Status: Offline Points: 16222 |
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Well, I think it's very debatable whether or not SD were pop or not. I respect your opinion but I think they were just not the same kind of poppy pop you have these days. You know there is such thing as intelligent pop and imo that's what SD were. Plus they had six top twenty(and a few more in the top forty)hit singles and that's ultimately what makes something pop or not(imo). Pop stands for popular and that's what they were. So pop oriented(like later Genesis) maybe not but pop by default? Definitely.
Edited by AFlowerKingCrimson - February 17 2019 at 18:29 |
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rogerthat
Prog Reviewer Joined: September 03 2006 Location: . Status: Offline Points: 9869 |
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If pop means popular, then that would make Floyd, Yes, ELP, Zeppelin, Queen, Sabbath, all pop. All sold tons of records in the 70s and all had at least one hit single too IIRC. Perhaps you do consider them pop but I wouldn't and not many would. The prominence of guitar solos in Dan's music firmly slots them in rock. Note I say prominence. Sure pop acts occasionally had solos like Carpenters' Goodbye to Love but by and large no whereas the vast majority of Dan songs have guitar solos and are indeed guitar driven. Everything that isn't hard rock isn't pop. As for later Genesis, no, SD's songwriting was way more sophisticated than them, no comparison. |
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iluvmarillion
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I voted for ELO but I concede Steely Dan made better albums. I can't name one great ELO album except for maybe Face The Music, but gee, ELO wrote some great songs.
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Icarium
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Jeff Lynne have one of the most powerfull singing voice in rock
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Logan
Forum & Site Admin Group Site Admin Joined: April 05 2006 Location: @ wicker man Status: Offline Points: 32705 |
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No pop pop so much, but pop rock as a fair classification I would say for Steely Dan and ELO. I would describe music by Steely Dan as "pop rock," as with ELO. Pink Floyd is popular, but I would not think of it as pop rock in the same way, more art rock (some of it I would). Queen, however, I would more comfortably put under the pop rock moniker along with ELO and Steely Dan. Some 80s albums by Yes I could also describe as pop rock. Edited by Logan - February 18 2019 at 00:26 |
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Just a fanboy passin' through.
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rogerthat
Prog Reviewer Joined: September 03 2006 Location: . Status: Offline Points: 9869 |
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Maybe by default, it could be called pop rock since you had metal, hard rock, punk in the 70s. I would call Dan just quintessential American music and that is probably why a lot of progheads see them as commercial because in prog, the American genres only seep in when the music is going commercial. I wouldn't say Dan were any more commercial than Dylan. Accessible, yes. |
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Jeffro
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Steely Dan!
Not a fan of ELO outside of a couple songs. ELO has this.....sound....to their music that I don't like. I can only describe it as the ELO sound. I've tried the early stuff and while far more intriguing than their later music it still doesn't connect with me.
Edited by Jeffro - February 18 2019 at 12:24 |
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rogerthat
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I feel pretty meh about ELO. Admittedly, I have never gone beyond Eldorado but the meh-ness didn't particularly enthuse me and I didn't feel like investigating their other stuff.
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Logan
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I have nothing against pop or pop rock, I love lots of music that could be classified as pop rock (David Bowie, Supertramp, The Beatles, The Velvet Underground, Blondie, Elton John, Peter Gabriel, The Byrds, Fleetwood Mac, Matt Berry, The Rutles, etc.) Steely Dan was moved from Crossover Prog to JRF at this site. To me Steely Dan made sense in Crossover as the pop connection seems obvious to me (West Coast pop rock with arrangements of a jazzy nature or Pop Jazz-Rock). |
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Just a fanboy passin' through.
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Icarium
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I love what i have heard so far listening to the first four ELO albums. Love the swirly string arrangement, makes them have a unique flavour of sounds no other bands really have. That icy precision of violin and the calm warm presence of cello is so appreciated. It affects the rythmic element. Bombast and elegance, yet with an integral element of 60s influence yet they sound very prescent in the 70s. The combined efforts of synths and string instruments adds a sonic richness. On the Third Day is a particular strong album. With some breathtaking things happening.
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tboyd1802
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Never cared for ELO. Steely Dan takes this one easily for me...
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He neither drank, smoked, nor rode a bicycle. Living frugally, saving his money, he died early, surrounded by greedy relatives. It was a great lesson to me -- John Barrymore
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Slartibartfast
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Eh I had one ELO (Out of the Blue) once upon a time but Steeley Dan, I have everything from their classic period in a verrry nice box set to their last ones and a DVD. Not that I don't like ELO.
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Released date are often when it it impacted you but recorded dates are when it really happened...
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Walkscore
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The first two ELO albums are really excellent (especially the debut album!), but after that they become overly-commercial.
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dr wu23
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^Totally agree.....the first with Wood and then the second are both good...after that I lost interest though Third Day and Eldorado have their moments.
But Dan for the win here....and imho it's not even close.
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YESESIS
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I've said it before and I'll say it again, I'd put the first 7 Dan albums up against the first 7 by ANY other music artist. They truly are that good. I like the first 3 Fagen solo albums a lot too, especially The Nightfly is just ridiculously good.
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irrelevant
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Both are top 10 for me.
Voted for Steely Dan.
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Ivan_Melgar_M
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For me SD is more boring than a Sunday without sports.
ELO no doubt
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Tom Ozric
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iluvmarillion
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SD come across to me as silky smooth which isn't boring to me. It takes a great level of musical skill to do what SD does. ELO on the other hand sound all over the place to me. Wood was a great musician. Jeff Lynne is a great musician. I'm just not sure I care for the other band members of ELO. I prefer listening to Jeff Lynne on his own singing and playing a guitar without the backing band.
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