5. “Reelin’ in the Chips” ft. Julian Wass

04/04/23 • 48 min

Film composer Julian Wass shares his "Steely Dan journey" and talks about how getting into them while in music school completely altered his perspective as a student. He also recounts how seeing an ad for the "Reelin' in the Chips" Las Vegas residency inspired a road trip to finally see them live, as he and Alex compare notes on the Steely Dan concert experience.

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"Drop Him Near the Freeway" ft. Steven Hyden

Music critic Steven Hyden (author of the best-selling Twilight of the Gods) joins the podcast for a discussion about Steely Dan's ever-shifting legacy and their place in music history. He explains how their tenure as a studio-only ensemble anticipated how contemporary records are made, and how the reputation of the albums made during that era (such as Gaucho) has evolved as a result.

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6. “He’s an Artist, a Pioneer” ft. Peter Jones

Author Peter Jones joins the podcast for a discussion of his recently published Donald Fagen biography Nightfly. He talks about how hearing Aja as a journalist and musician in the late 70's "detonated a bomb in his brain" and completely changed how he thought about songwriting. He also shares some of the most interesting discoveries unearthed in his research for the book, and explains why he chose not to idealize Donald despite a lifelong admiration of his work.