COUNTDOWN TO ECSTASY

Steely Dan a great American band, truly talented individuals, Becker and Fagan are geniuses with that unique immediately identifiable sound. I must admit in my formative years they absolutely blew me away, so I'm not sure how this album avoided my clutches. Was it worth the wait, I think it was, although I'm still a fan, that thrill of the new all those years ago has receded, become comfortingly familiar to the extent that it's hard to to disconnect oneself and give an objective view. What I will say that certain Steely Dan songs have a strong emotional pull on me, Do It Again, Rikki, Haitian Divorce, Dr Wu and on this album Razor Boy, ( I love that vibraphone/marimba and the pedal steel ) falls into this category not to mean it's best, I just get that similar kick from it, others like Bodhisattva, Boston Rag and My Old School are perhaps to well known to me from compilations. What I will say is while I may feel a little short changed on an immediately classic number this is still an intoxicationg listen, every track is a winner and a grower, listen closely and be overwhelmed by the musicianship, unadulterated class, the fresh sounds to me like Your Gold Teeth, with it's stabbing piano and funky rhythm overlayed with loose jazz guitar runs and King of the World are my big hitters.

Donald and Walt and their session musicians do a swell job at jazz fusion and this is just the second step of their discography.

5.0

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