If there ever was a venue ideally suited for a particular band or artist then I would have to argue that the Beacon Theater, Manhattan s majestic, upper west side art deco performance space, is the perfect concert locale to host Steely Dan and their 10 piece band.
The partners Dan - Walter Becker and Donald Fagen have been making jazz inflected rock music since the early Seventies and this sold out crowd of two nights (with three more remaining in June) smiled in delight as they highlighted the albums Aja and Gaucho to near perfection. And unlike their previous tours which found them in cavernous sheds (i.
e. Jones Beach Amphitheater, or PNC Arts Center) or even at the antiquated Roseland (SRO), the sound tonight was clean and uncluttered. Becker commented if he had his druthers, all their remaining shows on tour would be at the Beacon and they would simply buss in the patrons from the other cities!
The two founding members of Steely Dan are indeed known for their droll sense of humour (see: the derivations of the title of their Band!)
The hour and forty five minute show opened with Time out of Mind . This tune gave singer songwriter and master of ceremonies Donald Fagen an opportunity to get up off his piano stool to play the clavinet when he wasn t singing lead.
Fagen s singing is distinctive and singular as it is idiosyncratic. It is made even more compelling when watching his contorted face make the high notes and this image is highlighted by his trademark red framed eyeglasses: Son you better be ready for love / On this glory day / This is your chance to believe / What I ve got to say
The next song, Godwhacker from their most recent album, Everything Must Go
was not met with the same enthusiasm but the crowd was polite and hungry for more of the back catalog. Eight of the shows sixteen songs came from either Aja or Gaucho, and if I had a small bone to pick, it would be a desire to hear more from their earlier offerings, especially Countdown to Ecstasy.
Nonetheless, a band as prolific and successful as Steely Dan shouldn t have to answer to such misgivings. Regardless of their set list, inevitably there will always be At Least half a dozen songs we would have liked to have heard, so we venture out satisfied hearing Walter Becker sing Haitian Divorce in a funky, reggae-like cadence somewhat devoid of any emotion.
Steely Dan has always prided themselves on their ability to surround themselves with virtuoso, technically proficient, musicians.
From Larry Carlton to the Brecker Brothers to Michael McDonald and Jeff Skunk Baxter, their ability was legendary! Tonight s band was no different, joining Walter on guitar and given the title of Musical Director was Jon Herrington, but the real powerhouse of the evening was Keith Carlock, the drummer. Playing what seemed, to this concert goer at least, to be a tiny drum set of only four tops and four cymbals, Carlock blew the roof off during the intro to the song Aja from the album of the same name.
He not only kept tempo and cadence, he added muscle and backbone to a great evening s worth of songs. The set list varied only slightly from the two nights, but Bodhisttava was the same strong encore at each evenings performance.
Becker and Fagen truly seemed to enjoy themselves up on the stage.
A promising sign for their fans who hope to see much more of them on tour. After a twenty year hiatus from touring these guys have a lot to make up for, and when they do, they ll continue to sold out audiences who can t get enough of this forty year partnership otherwise known as Le Dan Steely.
SET LIST
Time Out of Mind
Godwhacker
Bad Sneakers
Two Against Nature
Hey 19
Haitian Divorce
Peg
Babylon Sisters
I Got the News
Dirty Work
Josie
Aja
Pretzel Logic (Everything Must Go-5/22)
Kid Charlemagne
ENCORE
Black Cow
Bodhisattva
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