Can't Buy A Thrill

Off to a great start, and then, I don’t know, a bit meh again

If you're going to enjoy one Steely Dan album then it's going to be this one. Has some iconic tracks, a cool vibe, underscored by the majestic Do It Again opening up. Dirty Work follows it with a different sound but it's just as good, Reelin' In The Years is a proper groove, and those three tracks alone get you to a high 3. The rest of the album is fine but unspectacular and maybe doesn't elevate to a 4. The weird thing about Steely Dan, though, is if you didn't know it was them and you weren't really a fan, you'd say someone else performed all of those songs.

Lovely bit of yacht rock! Do It Again is just brilliant, love that song. A couple of other really solid tracks (Midnite Cruiser, Reelin' In the Years, and Change of the Guard). Suffers a bit from a few tracks that slightly overstay their welcome (despite not being that long), and is a bit too middle of the road to get a top tier score, but an enjoyable listen nonetheless.

3/5 interesting but not memorable

The song writing, the production, the musicianship and performances - all excellent, as you would expect from the Dan. However, while objectively very good musically, not sure how likely I would be to revisit much of this. Nice enough as background music.

It was good. Three recognized songs

Just so you know, Donald Faison and Donald Fagen are two different people. This is a silly album and I can't help but think that these guys were always smirking about inside jokes when performing. 'Steely Dan,' the name of a dildo in Naked Lunch is even a joke. Steely Dan, the band, not the plastic penis, fit into that 70's, Dirk Diggler, Boogie Nights category along with ELO, Jackson Browne Supertramp and others. Each of those bands have some excellent stuff, but most is not immediately apparent and substantial time needs to be spent wading through some serious garbage to get to it. Dirty Work perfect example... the silly falsetto singing is overshadowed by the tender organ and soft horns but the product is pure-gold kitsch. That track was worth the work, I cold listen to that 10 times a day. The rest of the album is good and I'm sure with a few additional listens, I'd grow to like it more, but right now, my time is being consumed with reruns of SCRUBS. and... well... I'm no Superman.

I knew the name Steely Dan, but couldn't have told you any of their songs. I knew "Do It Again," "Dirty Work," and "Reelin' in the Years," but didn't know who sang them (or that they were all the same band). I'm happy to have the connection made. But an even stronger connection to the name Steely Dan has now been made, as I have discovered that there was no band member named Dan who was made of steel. Instead, Steely Dan named themselves after a steam-powered dildo in the novel "Naked Lunch." It's too bad I will now associate these songs with industrial-era sex toys, because the first few tracks on "Can't Buy a Thrill" provide some jammin' classic 70s rock. However, by the time "Only a Fool Would Say That" rolled around the softer side came out and certainly once I got to "Brooklyn" I was sure of it - this was one of the first entries in the yacht rock genre. (If any doubt remained, at the end of the album Amazon auto-played Captain & Tennille's "Love Will Keep Us Together.") Yacht rock is not necessarily a bad thing - there is some very listenable yacht rock. But much of the album doesn't have the same appeal for me as those classic singles. At least "Can't Buy a Thrill" came before Steely Dan worked in more jazz and synthesizer. Maybe I'm just not a yacht kind of guy at heart? Or I prefer my dildos battery-powered?

pretty chill feels like it would be more fun to listen to live at a bar 3.5

Mellow rock with elements of jazz, latin, and psychedelic mixed in. Despite the light-hearted sound of the tracks, the lyrics all tell fairly sad stories. You can check out 'Dirty Work', 'Midnite Cruiser' and even 'Reelin' In The Years' to hear what I'm talking about. In and amongst the well-known classic rock hits on this album, I think I enjoyed the track "Change of the Guard" the most.

Some of the best songs in Steely Dan's catalogue, but also some pretty weak ones. This album is frustratingly inconsistent. Still overall enjoyable though.

This is one band I always miss the bus on...

3.4/5 so I will give it the 3 Easy listening no one offended. 70s soft rock or AOR. "reeling in the years" and "do it again" the highlights Glad I heard it but just don't feel after this solid days listening that I will return to it or seek out more Steely Dan. Can't empathise with anything in the lyrics. The cover is an abomination. 1/5

My Dad’s a huge eagles fan and has played them to death. This album sounds too much like them for me to really enjoy or get into. Can see why it’s on the list and I didn’t not enjoy it, but not an album I’d come back to.

Some good tracks on here but most of it is a bit generic

It's always amazed me that a band named after a dildo could be this milquetoast. I mean, it's good, intelligent pop-rock, but with very little of the jazzy weirdness that made Aja/Gaucho era Dan so great.

Very original albu.m

Gentle blues rock, somewhat of it’s time, but a fun listen

7/10

It's fine for what it is

Ah, Steely Dan. The "middle of the road/classic rock" band. I've never bothered to listen to their albums in full until today. Album opener 'Do It Again' and 'Reelin' In The Years' are the radio staples I know of off this album and are lifelong ear worms of mine. My attention was held listening to the other songs I was unfamiliar with but they weren't as memorable. You can't fault Steely Dans' musicianship, the band allow room for each musician to be a part of the group without over powering each other - this was an era where bands made a name for being flashy and extravagant in their playing, for Steely Dan to show restraint and still be a successful band of the time is a credit to the group. It's hard to pick their influences, I like that. I wish I could hear 'Reelin' In The Years' without the fadeout during the guitar lead solo, the band sound like they could take off with a lengthy jam if they wanted to. An enjoyable album to listen to from start to finish.

Gets a stronger rating for Do It Again, Dirty Work and Reelin' in the Years which are all classics. The rest was fairly forgettable.

youtu.be/9Me-PbVJ-_A

That's one ugly cover. Anyway, polished to the point where you can't embrace it, Can't Buy A Thrill sounds exactly like what it is: a Steely Dan album. A album where the overriding commandment is "Make it smooth," that mantra unfortunately makes the album impossible to love unironically. A lot of the instrumentation has dated despicably, reminding one oddly of Kokomo. But the issue isn't one of age; I suspect many found this grim listening at the time. Rather, what we have is a clearly talented group of musicians making music as a demonstration of their cleverness, instead of in any way engaging the human heart. That said, the odd track has charms; Midnite Cruiser is a perfectly fine bit of 70s classic rock, and Brooklyn is a warm country-twinged number that, shock horror, connects to the listener. Indeed, the album does become more gripping towards the end, when they resist the impulse to dull jazzy noodling, but even that appeal has limitations. A three-starrer, and that's thanks to my generous nature, and the album better be bloody grateful.

Very up and down

It's nice, it's smooth, but generally not my thing. It's good to hear this as "Steely Dan" though since I could not have told you what they sounded like. I can see why people would really like them and I can respect it.

I had heard "Dirty Work" before. Everything else is new to me.

Light and easy with some good songs and no really bad ones.

Kann man mal hören. Nichts besonderes.

Favorite song: Midnite Cruiser. According to Spotify, the top 2 most listened songs are Do It Again and Reelin' in The Years, two songs I really didn't feel anything about. Bottomline: This is music. It isn't bad. That's all.

Liked it :) good Songs and sound

Yawn - didn't do it for me at all.

I found there to be a few engaging tracks but as a whole it felt unexciting and easily blended into background noise. If it was already on, I wouldn't turn it off but I'm not going to go out of my way for it.

This is a strange one. It feels a lot like something I should like but I... don't? There's a lot component parts that I enjoy from a rock 'n roll album here but for some reason it's not doing it for me.

starts with some bongos - strong, you love to see it exciting to see this in the rotation cos I love Gaucho and Pretzel Logic, but I don't know this album at all that said, I ended up last night in a pub in West Green listening to a jazz 3-piece and now I'm feeling very recptive to this sort of vibe Brooklyn Owes A Charmer is a standout track for me - feeling cheerful but also a lil bit melancholy on a rainy morning also, that cover! there's a chunky dude with a tiny naked woman on his back! there's a mouth with a giant gummy worm. It's right on the boundary between 60s pyschadelics and 80s horrible colours and framing, and I love it https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jazz_(design) I think overall this is unlikely to become my favourite Steely Dan record - I just put Gaucho on and I'm straightaway like 'yes this is the smooth vibe for me'

A pleasant, enjoyable, non too thrilling listen which loses a lot of its energy towards the end of the record. The only track I could pick out of a line up would be Fire In The Hole, purely because that piano riff deserves so much better.

Not sure whether to rate this a 3 or a 4, don't think there's any proper big bangers on here but it's very easy to listen to and I've enjoyed the background noise. I apparently accidentally left this on repeat all afternoon, and have been listening to it for 3+hours. Would have given it a 4 for the very enjoyable piano riffs in Fire in the Hole but it's not quite grabbing me enough.

3.5

Hippy Jack Johnson

Steely Dan isn't an artist I would normally listen too but since it was recommended, I gave it a listen.

Very nice fusion of styles, some funky jams. Liked it

7/10

ok

Best Steely Dan album we’ve had thus far

A good album but quite steady and one paced

Pretty chill.

Reelin in the years and Do it again. Classics. Yacht rock.

Yes! 70s soft rock 👍

I knew about two songs of the album that play on the classic radio stations every now and then. And while I do like them I would probably not look for them very often. It's a nice and chill sound for a summer evening with some whine and cheese. Similar to the Eagles or Steve Miller band I'd say. - Not my usual cup of tea

So... I found it moderately pleasant, but not very interesting. A couple of stand-out lyrics, and good musicianship (and backing vocals) but weedy lead vocals and an empty kind of over-production. Not my thing, I guess.

non affatto male! si fa ascoltare facile

Like this well better than I thought I was gonna. Had no idea what to expect, recognised a few tracks. All pretty chill and feel good. Easy a 3.

“Do it again” is a classic track. The rest is sounds like any middle of the road pop from the 70s. Mostly likely used this album as a template.

я такую дрянь не слушаю принципиально, мусор ...

This starts off with two very good tracks, but most of the rest feels pretty hollow in spite of them being the best musicians we have heard so far. It was never a band that I could get into, I recognize they are very talented and in the hall of fame and all that, it's just nothing I would choose to listen to generally. The last track on this album is not good at all. This band is important to a lot of people, but it's not for me.

Dertien in een dozijn rock. Er staat geen slecht nummer op, maar er waren ook maar weinig uitblinkers. Wel nog een poging waard.

// Favs: – Score: Light 3

Liked it, very 70s vibe, fun and easy to listen to. Would listen again. The style of the songs were different, expected more like Do it again, but changed right after.

We enjoyed it well enough. A good album for a sunny May evening.

Would probably be more enjoyable sitting on a patio in the hot sun with some scotch and a cigar. Otherwise, I can't think of when I would ever want to hear this whole album again.

An alright album a few ok songs but others quite forgettable overall above average 3/5

Ok lounge BG music with some nice jazzy songs.

Dan-Fan here, and Can't Buy a Thrill is definitely in their top 5 best, but for me, I'm more likely to put on Aja, Royal Scam, Countdown to Ecstasy, or even Gaucho, or one of their Greatest Hits (Citizen Steely Dan) before I play this one. Nothing specific I don't like - in fact, I do like it, just not the one I love most of the time. It was good to give it a re-listen here, inclined to rate between 3-4 stars and wish I could go 3.5..

Chill hippie album. Best songs: Reelin in the years and fire in the hole. Rating 3/5

lame nothing remarkable

The instrumentals were 10/10, but most of the song lyrically weren't for me. I liked Dirty Work, Reelin' in the Years, and Fire in the Hole!

Overly long intros and solos- sounds like the kind of thing I’d enjoy in snippets while driving around on GTA with a beautiful sunset but a full albums not for me thanks. Pretty catchy choruses, if quite repetitive. All of it Sounds a little bit like that song from that MasterCard advert with the guy on the water slide Like dire straits but better. Enjoyed it more than expected overall. Seems to switch between California style sound to like British “proggy” sound

I'll be honest I've heard this record before - my Dad is a big Steely Fan and I remember him playing this a lot when I was younger. Midnite Cruiser and Only a fool would say that were my personal highlights.

First song was good, others didn't stand out

Some classics on there

Alright. Not overly memorable.

6

Viel besser als das erste. Mache ich gern mal im Garten an. 3.5

More of the same. Immer noch sehr gefällig und schlau. 3,3.

Do it again was the best song on the album + most familiar. Dirty Work is what Tony sings in that scene of the Sopranos. Reeling in the Years also very popular for classic rock. Whole album is soft rock. 7/10.

Ok

www.dadrock.com Are you a dad? Do you know a dad? Then you'll have heard all these songs before and probably have jammed out to them while working on your car or driving your boat around or something.

Rock suave, melódico, interesante. Alegre.

It's fine.

A couple bangers (like A Fool), but the rest of the album isn't worth a second listen

Fun album that I enjoyed listening to though can't say I'm running to listen anytime soon

classic

Not my kind of music but competent

Great album, classic songs!

Great album. Fun songs. Enjoyed it.

Lidt hillbilly, men fin nok

Middle of the road, but fine

"Dirty Work" -- kept thinking about when you pick up a dog's poop on a walk and they give you that look of "that's right, wench. Pick it up". Girl. I feed you. You should be so lucky that I am not making you do this. "Reelin' In The Years" -- I forgot that this was a song! It is a good song, but I wish it had come earlier in the album. The songs were a slower pace that made me zone out a little. Not a bad thing, but not great if I want to actively listen to music. Overall, it was good. Very much so a good "background music" album (to me).

Every Old White person music Bible. This is the quintessential white person album

On some level, starting this album with "Do It Again" feels like a bait and switch; nothing after can stand against it. But it's a decent album, like most Steely Dan albums

'Midnite Cruiser' was EXCELLENT, and I've long been a fan of 'Do It Again'. A great album, although I find 'Reelin' in the Years' to be one of the weaker tracks. 3.5 Stars

Very solid pop record, plenty of radio staples included. Never takes off as a project or reaches the level of excellence as a collection of songs. Interesting playing in places, and good lyrical gestures at Vietnam.

i liked it, then i didnt like it... so idk what that was about. cool easy listening music though

This felt like lounge music, poor lounge music. Just no bite or interest in any of their tunes, even with the well known pair of songs on here or wasn't elevated to anything beyond "meh". Sparing it from one star because at least it wasn't turgid.

This is a band that are are great at what they do.

Meh

Fuck hvor jeg hader slide-guitar. Der er simpelthen ikke et nummer i musikhistorien, der er blevet bedre af at få mast en slide-guitar ind. Hader egentlig også soft rock. Og alligevel er der faktisk meget her jeg godt kan lide. de første 2 numre er ret fede, og det er i det hele taget meget lækkert. Men på den sidste halvdel går der lidt for meget yahoo i den. Det sidste nummer lyder nærmest som noget shubidua kunne have lavet, og der er altså ikke noget der trækker op

i didn’t like

i have listened to three Steely Dan albums and Do It Again is finally a song of theirs that i really like. took long enough! rest is not really great and has a lot of the elements i don't like about this band, but it deserves some credit as the best album i've heard from them. deserves to be one of the 1001? this and Aja do but the others don't

Maybe I’d enjoy this more another time but wasn’t feeling it

4/10 - better than the Countdown album by Steely Dan but still another generic 60s/70s album. Honestly why is this list so saturated with these albums, even crazier is that Steely Dan has 4 albums on this list!

started off strong, but i got bored of his voice very quickly

initial reaction to the album (before listening) is that i don't want to listen to it. let's hope i'm wrong. couple of other initial impressions - reminds me of euphoria (dirty work blew up on the internet after euphoria season 2) - on the surface, the whole album feels like a Tommy Bahama golf resort country club... is this what they call Yacht Rock? a closer listen to the lyrics reveals a more cynical take on the world we live in, which is refreshing and a nice contrast to the easy breezy riffs and rhythms first track- impressive guitar break,reminds me of something i'd hear on catalina island. on that little resorty beach with the brunch buffet second track - dirty work - this is a good song third track- didn't despise, but didn't feel this one. wanted to change the albums a couple of times during. this album is a bit theatrical for me. fourth track- midnight cruiser- i like this one actually, the guitar breaks are redeeming and i like the lyric "i am another gentleman loser" six track - i like the lyrics here. supposedly this is Jimmy Page's favorite guitar solo of all time ?! and it's about an ex apparaently, but i could also see it relating to just growing up. seven track - i like the opening of this song but the rest is meh. the piano break is a highlight break final track- sexy little riff at the end of this one- really nice Overall, i'm not mad about this album. would i listen to it again? not my first choice but i also wouldn't be mad if i had to.

Partially known. The hits are the hits.

Ehh was kinda of bored. Definitely a soft rock or road trip album your dad would play. Probably would never listen to it again, but it was fine. Very summery too. Wouldn’t recommend overall, unless that was your vibe or you’re my dad.

Not for me

Uu groovy pt2

meh

I don't understand Steely Dan. There are some clever lyrics, but this isn't something I need to hear again.

I don't mind this album but the sound leaves some to be desired. I liked the guitar on songs like reeling in the years, and I appreciate the drums a lot but the vocals leave a lot to be desired. It has a little bit of swing to it on alot of these songs as well which I just dont like. A lot of early rock sounds are just very under developed in my opinion as the time period only allowed for so much pushing of the boundaries.

Meh...

I just don't get Steely Dan. So bland, so lounge, so jazz light so lacking joy / energy/ so clinical.

Is it catchy pop or annoying bland rock? Do It Again falls in the former, Dirty Work and Reelin' in the Years leans that way, the rest is the latter. Actually, Reelin in the Years is too annoying a pretentious earworm to be on the positive side. What does that make the album overall? Is it ok to cheekily sing along to some Steely Dan songs? It's Steely Dan after all, they are soft rock 70s nastiness supermarket music, but there's a couple of catchy tunes on an album of 10 songs. Argh, so much time wasted mulling over Steely Dan. Nope, it's pish. Final decision.

Not for me, would not listen again. I can appreciate what some might feel for the album/band, but that appreciation did not grow on me. Pretty bland sonically and lyrically. "Feel good" music I suppose. Getting through it was like watching paint dry, thankfully the album was only 10 tracks. Dirty Work is the stand out song on the album.

This was okay

Forgettable.

I had prepared to rip this apart. I didn’t hate this as much as I expected. However, I dislike Steely Dan’s whole deal. The narrative voice is one of an asshole. Always singing with praise or malice for a brother, and criticizing a woman. Music for bros. Also, that album cover is atrocious. Not a deal breaker normally, but one more reason these guys annoy me.

Reminds me of Trump’s Oval Office - lots of shiny things that look impressive but serve no purpose. What few musical ideas that exist are covered up in layer upon layer of instrumentation. No but Add Donald Fagen’s annoying voice and you get musical braggadocio that I now believe punk was rebelling against Steely Dan, not prog rock.

Fuck no.

Basically I just enjoyed "Do it again". I don't see why anyone would find listening to this album a valuable way of spending their time. This can be said of any other shit prominently labelled as "soft rock"...

Bit dull

I saw steely Dan was next and dreaded having to listen. I have no idea why some people love this band. Dirty Work was ok and reminds me of being a kid listening to the radio in the back seat of the Oldsmobile. I thought I would be ok with Reeling in the years but ended up skipping half way through. The riff in the beginning is pretty decent. Maybe I’ll dine it another shot in 20 more years. Pass

not that bad , i already had a song added too

Safe and clean soft rock.

For a band named after a sex toy, how is the music so flaccid?

Klingt für mich altbacken, wenn auch musikalisch interessant.

This was a lot better than the other Steely Dan album I had to listen to. I still didn’t like it though. This gets 2 stars instead of 1 star. I knew Reelin’ in the Years, and I had heard Do It Again before.

"Easy" listening dad rock. Cool instrumentation. Strained vocals on occasion. "Dirty work" is a good time.

I'm really searching for something nice to say about Steely Dan. The only thing I can think of is that I disliked this album less than Pretzel Logic and that the first 2 tracks are decently good pop songs. Otherwise, listening to this felt like sitting in a dentist's chair.

What’s worse than being up all night with the stomach flu? Finally giving up on sleep at 3 AM, checking my random album pick, and seeing it’s Steely Dan. This album is better than Countdown to Ecstasy, and has some classic tracks like Reelin’ In The Years. Steely Dan are undeniably skilled musicians, but there’s no depth beneath the polished harmonies and cheesy yacht rock vibes. It’s perfectly forgettable.

Not my bag.

Bit too soft, not quite jazzy enough yet. Passable.

I can see why this must be a classic but to me, this album is one from an era and culture that I just don’t know I can relate to. I’ll still give it a shot - it’s a vibe but not one that I’m overly opinionated about.

I don't get it, not my go to 70s album. But I'll give it another go.

Sorry... fell asleep. What happened?

A couple of good songs, the rest can be left in the seventies.

So this one's a tough review for me. It's all "likeable," and some of the tracks are obvious classics. I like the sound when there's some guitar licks roughening it up, but it's usually so slick that I lose attention. I had a could listens while I was doing other things, and went back looking for songs I thought I heard and couldn't find them With the exception of a few that are already in my musical-historical-cultural consciousness, nothing made impression. Except for "Turn that Heartbeat Over Again" song. That song just sucks. Highs: the singles everyone over 30 knows: "Reelin' in the Years" and probably "Do It Again." Lows: Turn that heartbeat and Brooklyn and the rest that I can't remember. This is one that as I'm listening and writing these notes, I dislike it more. It's so close to music I like, but the FM radio somebody-else-put-this-on-for-your-pleasure feeling of it is too much. 2.5 but rounding down.

Not quite

🫤 meh

I am sure one day I will grow to love Steely Dan, but today wasn't that day.

Decent Sunday album. It faded towards the end though… 2.5

Not terrible, but pretty close - towards the bottom of the two stars. Tom.

Ok but by the end I was ready to listen to something else. A bit repetitive.

There are some classic songs on here but listening to this actually sounds like the 60s giving way to the 70s and I really don’t enjoy much of 70s music.

Smooth, but other than Do It Again I dont think I'll be hearing back from this album

I honestly dont understand why anyone would choose to listen to this. It does nothing and goes nowhere.

the only listenable Steely Dan album and it’s entirely because of how badly it’s biting Santana on the decent tracks

it wasn't as bad as aja. still boring but kinda better, i liked dirty work

Eminently forgettable. Not bad but not really sure why it's been chosen for this list.

As soon as I started listening to this album I realised they are a name that is very familiar but I don't recall ever listening to them before, so wondered where this would lead... and it's seventies rock-pop I suppose, inoffensive but unremarkable, sure I missed something?

Quite long songs, great vibe, need to listen to it more to really judge.

I’ve never been a big Steely Dan lover. This album is definitely the best I’ve heard from them, but I just kind of feel nothing while listening to it. It’s easy to groove to, and there are certainly some cool moments, but I really don’t feel the need to return to any of these songs. Like it all seems good on paper, and I can tell that some real thought went into making these songs, but they’re just not really that exciting to listen to. This is music for people who think jazz chords = good music and don’t give it a second thought.

It's OK I suppose. Quite dated. Only 1 song I recognise.

Made me feel weird

Not my jam

Yeah don't know. It's okay. Could have done without

Njet

Música de tienda en general, pero tiene 2-3 canciones bastante buenas

I hated this.

Not my kind of music. It wasn’t bad but it felt dated. I’d rather listen to something else

2/5 - soft rock with some nice jazz parts underneath - a little dull

Tää oli aika hissimusiikkia. Tiesin ainoastaan ekan biisin ”Do It Again” entuudestaan.

VERY formulaic pop rock almost fell asleep they think they ate with this cover? its ugly as shit

i mean. it was fine i guess

A couple of standout tracks but otherwise Meh

Mm no me gusto tanto, de hecho me aburrió. 6/10 quizas? Después de este me puse a escuchar "Aja" de este mismo artista también, y me parece superador

Meh

Two famous songs plus a lot of elevator music. Boomers love this sh*t.

War groovy, ist aber auch dahingeplätschert. Weiß nicht, ob ich zu unkonzentriert war.

Oh, I beg to differ. Ask our ladies of the night.

Not bad. The Dan spent 100 hours on the drum sound and ended up not bad. Should have spent a fraction of that time on the cover. It looks like a Pickwick lp in the Woolies bargain bin.

Plate

Look, I don't hate it. But I don't love it. I do feel like if you handed me a joint, put me on a beach with a cover band doing Steely Dan, I'd be vibing. It's inoffensive and chill. "Reelin in the Years" feels kind of like a Bowie song. It's one of my favs from this album, along with "Dirty Work". Will I ever listen to it again? Nope. Except for "Reelin in the Years" and "Dirty Work".

Third Steely Dan album I've heard on this list so far and nothing's changed. Steely Dan should be right up my alley. The genre/timeframe is usually one of my favorites. There's also undoubtedly a lot of hits on this album. But I just can't get into it. It may be something with the vocals but it all sounds so sterile. I feel like I'm eating inside an Arby's. 4.75/10 (2.375/5)

Impressive that they can make such cheesy music with a straight face.

Debut album. Soft Rock. Super safe, middle of the road Rock. It's all very nice and well played but I can't get a thrill out of it. Reelin' In The Years is a good track. The rest of the album is...umm..nice, and that's all.

2 out of 5 Some good well known tunes. Decent yacht rock.

I hear the sophisticated arrangement , blending of genres and catchy hooks and feel nothing. It's so anodyne, calculated and inoffensive. A light salad of a record. Have tried to listen to this a number of times, when it comes up in album of the year things, and kind of like the softer rock of the time, but this always makes me feel the same, like I'm stuck in neutral. Which all in all is for the best as wouldn’t want to follow a band with such a limp name anyway. It does what it does well but I get nothing, a flaccid soft rocking 2 Star and by the end it's nearer to a 1.

Catchy songs with clean harmonies. Songs just don’t with me.

2,5

There’s something so funny about skilled musicians working as hired guns and then deciding “Hey! We have something to say!” and then their original work sounds like skilled musicians working as hired guns but with a less exciting vocalist. Anyway I think I’ve heard enough Steely Dan now.

Proggy as ever, but served with a bigger slice of 70s pop cheese than my previous Steely Dan offering on this list - and all the better for it. Much more palatable than Aja, but in the grand scheme of things still not anything here to set the world on fire.

It was ok

nothing special just like every other album

Yeah I'm still not a fan of Steely Dan. And not of this record either - it's just too plain. There's nothing in this that excites me. I was hoping this would be a little better than the last record of theirs I got but it's pretty much the same. And that's disappointing. 2.5/5.

A perfectly serviceable collection for those in the mood for light rock, soft jazz, or adult contemporary. Just not my jam.

Steely Dan’s debut might be praised for its slick musicianship, but to me it mostly sounds like boring pop/soft/jazz rock without much bite. The songs drift along smoothly, and apart from the occasional guitar solo there isn’t much that really grabs my attention. It feels polished, yes, but also lifeless — and for all its reputation, I can’t help but find it underwhelming.

Its fine. Its easy listening. Dad rock.

This was a struggle to get through. Bland soft rock.

Not a fan, or steely dan

Extremely mid. None of the songs stood out to me.

24/1089 Love the feeling of pressing play on one of these albums and immediately hearing some music you’ve heard before that you never knew the title/artist of, this album is no different i guess Do It Again is a solid and stylish start to the album, with a nice progression and vibey sound instantly not a huge fan of the organ(?) on Dirty Work. While Do It Again managed to feel pretty timeless, Dirty Work felt very dated to me after a solid start this project lost me for a bit, Reelin’ In The Years brought me back a bit though, it’s a fun song and the combination of vocals and instrumentation clicks for me. Not a fan of the piano in Fire In The Hole. I do like the vocals on this chorus a lot the rest of the album didn’t really do it for me, felt quite same-y and when that same-y isn’t a style i love it just doesn’t resonate 2 stars or 40/100 Do It Again and Reelin’ In The Years saved it from being a 1 star

Dirty Work rules, all downhill from there for the Dan. I tried the rest, needs more dark sarcasm. Aja SUCKS. Just getting that out now. You're all wrong.

Immediate props to any band that names themselves after a dildo from a William Burroughs novel. That said, 70s classic album rock is just not my bag, and here's where I double down. These guys can write a hook, sure, but something about that white guy with a big hairy beard in cut-off jean shorts and a stripey tank top at the lake groovin' to some soft rock blasting out of the Chevy LUV pickup truck on 8-track just grates on me. It's weird, because I really like Man Man, and the influence of Steely Dan on those guys is clearly evident. Nothin' I can do but ¯\_(ツ)_/¯. Nevertheless, if I gotta hear some dusty 70s pop/rock, I reckon there could be worse things than listening to the slightly-weirder-than-the-status-quo dildo band. At least it's not The Eagles or Fuckwood Mac. But I'm not letting these fellas off the hook so easy - there were so many more appealing options available in '72, and had I not been but a twinkle in my parents' eye at that point, I would have likely been listening to a bunch of other, better, weirder stuff. Aesthetically, this is absolutely a one-star experience for me, but again, because of the Burroughs dildo reference, I'll give these fellas extra credit. Finally, the kerning and baseline on the goddamn Mistral typeface for the album title on the cover art is way, way off, and I can't unsee that shit. Fucking ugh. Zero stars for that shit.

Esta bien, lo intentare escuchar alguna vez mas

It couldn't reach the heights that Pretzel Logic hit, with the listen going by very uneventfully with not a single song standing out enough to even be mentioned as a great one. This one will be an easy 2/5, which won't be listened to again.

This music sounds like it was created with AI. No feeling. Mechanical. Ugh

Overrated

Sorry, it's just not for me. If I was in a place this was playing, I would politely ask if the person would change the music.

Reeling in the years is a tune, the rest of it was fairly nondescript

Competent but sooo very tame. 1 really solid song right at the start.

Do it Again continues to serve as a vibey tune for anyone firmly in their 30s and beyond. The rest makes me think about people with old money who have no taste putting this on at dinner parties a bit too much to give a better review.

Looking at the track list, I think this is my favorite Steely Dan album. And Dirty Work is definitely my favorite Steely Dan song. Reelin' In the Years suuuuuucks. This is the worst Steely Dan song. This album is all over the place. I am neither reelin' in the years nor gathering up the time. I don't understand how this got so popular. One great song, one good song and total garbage other than that.

Yacht rock. There are one or two reasonable tracks but overall the album would not be one which I would gravitate to, but too smooth and over produced.

Okay album not great not terrible.

So, this doesn't suck as badly as the other Dan albums this list has strong-armed me into listening to. That doesn't say too much though. Sure it's more straight forward, missing some of the experimental bullshit they'll attempt later, but it's so god-awful milquetoast. Soft, safe, "rock"; why bother?

A couple of good songs (notably Dirty Work) cannot rescue this album from being easy listening rock sludge.

meh

I’m starting to realize that I know way more Steely Dan songs than I realized. And they are good songs, but I associated them as being other artists. Like “Do it again” I write off as being a Santana follow up to “Black magic woman”. And I know dirty work but never realized it was Steely Dan. Looking back, stylistically I should have picked that up. Skipping reeling in the years. I think I thought this was Thin Lizzy for years because of the “boys are back in town” guitar solos. This album is almost over. I’m kind of indifferent to it. It’s not bad. It’s just sounds like a backing track for a 70s montage.

So is this what the "olds" call yacht rock? I like it on a boat. I don't like it not on a boat.

The couple of listenable songs on the album have been played to death. Hopefully there’s just one Steely Dan album on the list.

I can only hope there's not another Steely Dan album on the list. There are hits here, but the whole thing sounds horribly dated. Great if you want rock-disco. Horrible if you don't. My rating: 2/5

Some really good tracks here. I can see myself giving it another listen. I enjoyed more than the last Steely Dan album

Catchy tunes that might be a little too syrupy sweet for my ears

I respect it but not for me

Excessively beige, to the point where the second half just blew straight past me. Two stars.

This is a bit too dad rock for me, but it's not thaaaat bad. I just wouldn't listen to it.

I don't like this because I don't like the instruments and the melody that is being used. I would not recommend this album to someone else because I don't think they would like it. I give this 2 stars.

can't borrow a feeling

So Steely Dan, early 70s soft rock. A couple of genuine classics here with Reelin in the years, and Do it again which have aged beautifully and I still hear them all the time. The rest of the album sounds like background piano bar music to me. I won’t be looking for this again soon though. 3 stars for writing a couple of bangers though

Inoffensive

I always want to like Steely Dan, but never do. I can see how they influenced the greatest musical act of all time (Ween) - so they at least got that going for them. Dirty Work is a dirty one for sure.

The singles are still fun (especially Dirty Work) but something overall in the album just didn’t click for me today, like it felt too restrained or the vocals felt flat. Fading out the end of a song is also a pet peeve of mine and they do it on almost every track. Kings was a great new discovery, though.

“Dad Rock” is a big umbrella when you think about it. Not all dads are the same, nor do they have the same sensibilities. My dad graduated in ‘79, his favorites were KISS, Boston, .38 Special, Rush. He smoked weed, he couldn’t afford cocaine. He played football and the drums, he has diabetes and Velcro shoes. This makes a Steely Dan Dad not. Steely Dan makes me ill at ease. I don’t like that kind of Dad rock because I don’t like that kind of dad. He cares too much about what kind of beer he drinks, he’s pretentious and mind numbingly middle class at the same time. He likes The Eagles and he raised Wilco sons. Danheads will tell you this is not Dad rock. They’ll say it’s jazz, it’s intellectual, but all I feel is a dryness that I just don’t want with my music.

Briefly nodded with familiarity, then fell asleep.

I'm old enough to appreciate Yacht Rock, so I kinda secretly wanted to like this, but this is real wallpaper. Like they were famous perfectionists apparently so why be so bland. Reeling in the years gets me nodding along with that groove and maybe lyrics that are trying to say something. But otherwise this was meh mcmehface

It is good genre music but it doesn't transcend that for me.

steely dan king of the fade out. i think this genre (low energy "rock" music) just really isn't for me.

I've only been vaguely aware of Steely Dan but have always been amused by the anecdote that the band is named after the steam-powered dildo in Naked Lunch. "Do It Again" is pretty good, but the rest of this album is mostly forgettable. This type of soft rock isn't my thing.

Likte da ikkje

Steely Dan do excellent things in snippets. But you have to wad through some pretty mudance and ordinary stuff to get there.

It's funny I was just talking last week to a friend about how, outside a handful of songs, I've never been able to get into Steely Dan despite trying many times. I can tell the compositions and production are masterful, but it sounds like dad rock made by jazz professors to me--but like not as cool as that sounds. But I probably dig this album more than like Aja or something, because it has more obvious radio-friendly tracks.

TIL the song "Dirty Work" was performed by Steely Dan, and I think it says something that I was never curious to learn more about it despite being fed a steady diet from FM rock radio while growing up. "Do It Again" evokes some nostalgia for whittling away hours in video game arcades. The rest of this album is just an occasionally depressing document of the soft middle of the '70s: The hippie idealism of the '60s has been dead and buried, everyone's numbed on quaaludes and TV dinners, and punk rock can't arrive soon enough.

After this record was done, Spotify gave me Peace Frog by the Doors. yep, seems about right.

I was almost enjoying this until 'Reeling in the years', which I like almost as much as Talking Heads (see prev). Again, I understand this isn't technically bad, it's just so not for me in a really profound way I don't fully understand.

2/5. You know when a movie comes out and you watch and maybe even enjoy it, but it was 100% made to win an Oscar? That's what this album feels like. Like, to be fair, it is enjoyable and the hits are great of course, but it kind of keeps the same energy throughout, chill soft rock with a similar sounding chorus for each song. It's fine but it's not classic worthy. Steely Dan just does not do it for me most of the time. Best Song: Do It Again, Reelin' In The Years, Brooklyn (Owes the Charmer Under Me)

Just the other day I saw a listing for a Steely Dan cover band. I said to myself “really? They have enough songs that people care about to warrant a cover band. ?” So, as it turns out, I have a lot of these songs before. They’re ok. Not great, not terrible.

Unique and fun listening during highschool days, but I pretty much only listened since everybody else was doing it. Stopped listening to them when I got older.

I did my taxes while listening to this album. It was an appropriate level of exciting for that chore.

Not a fan

2.5 - It was fine.

I miss the "thrill" in this album. However, I have to admit that I have owned it for a long time, but it is gathering dust somewhere. Sure, there are the two 'classics' on the album, but that's about it. 2-3 stars, so 2

I hate to say it again, but the first song was great, and the rest was not so great

why are there so many steely dan albums in this list? god why gotta give it to them though, theyre very consistent

Tajunta ei laajentunut eikä pää räjähtänyt 2/5

Nice melodic music and voice. Good solid album of soft tunes. Not my taste particularly, but easy to listen to. Would play it again if I had the vinyl record.

they're very skilled musicians, i'm sure, but this was kind of bland and pretentious. 5/10

So smooth and beyond the earworm of Dirty Work a meh record.

Unfortunately this is a band that has dated… sure, there are some great tracks here but….

Well, this was an album. I still think “Dirty Work” is a hilarious song for a grumpy mild life crisis dad pulling the garbage down to the curb.

Pop music for people who want to flirt with rock, or rock music for people scared of rock. Technically proficient, but no edge, no passion, and no interest.

Dull and forgettable but not bad.

Didn't really like it, a bit mid.

Super

2,5

I just don't get Steely Dan. So bland, so lounge, so jazz light so lacking joy / energy/ so clinical.

I know it deserves higher but man I just really don’t like Steely Dan.

The hits are great but the rest tastes like dry toast.

Second album de Steely Dan généré par la liste, le premier étant Aja (plus récent) que j'avais plutôt apprécié. Celui ci est plus pop/rock, avec quelques chorus intéressants mais sans plus. Je lui préfères donc Aja, bien plus jazzy. =>2/5

After 3 (?) albums, even enjoying Steely Dan, I got annoyed by this album.

Listened Before: N I'm not sure how to categorize this album. It's like... an attempt at rock that came across as easy listening? I don't know. I do know that the 3 hits on this album are VERY VERY VERY overplayed. I think I'll pass on this one forever. Added to Library? N Songs added to playlist: Dirty Work

Plane 70's rock. Nothing special.

Some great pop choruses, but really put off by all that ugly sounding electric piano/organ, all those noodly guitar solos and quite basic lyrics that just don't connect for me. Brooklyn (Owes the Charmer Under Me) seems to be the most toned down and subtle song, and is definitely the highlight for me. Very glad to be introduced to it. Just wish it would stop at 3.39 before that brief solo comes in. In fact, just recut this album with all those show-off solos removed and I'd happily add on another star or two.

This band needed an editor.

Another bland album from Steely Dan. Very clean, too much so for me.

Ah, the 70s. I was 4 when this was released, 'Do It Again' and 'Reelin' In The Years' were played on the radio a lot but I never really liked them. I preferred 'Seasons in the Sun' and 'Billy Don't be a Hero'! Planet Rock play these tracks now to give their listeners a quiet moment. In the palette of rock music Steely Dan are magnolia.

A nothingy listen for me. Didn’t leave much of an impression on me at all. Fine but not much more.

Didn’t grab me to be honest….

Jfc this is tepid. Sure, there's talent but it's wasted on rock that's as far from hard that you can't even talk about Mohs, let alone quantify this album using it. The best bits are the noodly showboating lead guitars. The worst bits are the entire rest of it.

It's alright

Bisschen old school

Wack but not as wack as aja

Ok

Turns out I knew several of the songs before I played this album. The best thing about this is the band's name. The worst thing is the horrible sleeve art. The music itself sits somewhere in between. Early 1970s AOR soft rock, with jazz and latin poking through. For me, this is an example where high skill level in songwriting, musicianship and production don't result in a great album.

1. do it again - 3 2. uuork - 1.5 3. kingz - 1 4. cruizer - 1 5. fool - 1.5 6. yearz - 3 7. fire - 1 8. brooklyn - 1 9. guard - 1 10. heart - 1.5

First listen Saved 3/10 Top track: Dirty Work

okay as background music. Doesn't excite me

Bland and boring. Shame. They obviously can play and "Ricki dont loose that number" (not on this album) is one of my favourite songs.

Dad rock at its best/worst

Easy listening rock music which was enjoyable as it was inoffensive. I always thought 'Reelin in the Years' was some old shite like Dr Hook. I was surprised/ not surprised to find out that was the worst song on the album. I want to give it a 3, but I would have to hand in my cool badge.

This is a band that I do not I totally get. I like some of their songs but never understood those who worship them so. It is like R&B for really white people. I mean lily white people…..no pigment at all. That being said, it is an impressive debut and I knew a few songs. It feels like two different albums depending on which singer is taking the lead. I prefer Fagan led songs over Becker. Fagans voice sounds much more contemporary to me. Beckers songs sound like they were released in 1972. I really like the song Reeling in the Years. Overall, a good-ish album.

Why we gotta have organs in 1972? Has it’s moments but earnest lyrics over background Muzak…meh This is the blueprint for every rights-free corporate vid track of the 80’s-90’s. Maybe thats really a compliment? Tracks 7-10 are simply musical theatre

Steely Dan is boring - the proto-elevator music. It doesn’t suck and it isn’t good. Band name has an interesting backstory.

Booo, boring 👎

ugh

Full on dad rock. Listenable for around half the album, then blends in to one tame, amorphous entity.

Honestly not as good as I expected, started off strong but became more boring as the album went on, good songs all around but no songs that are absolutely amazing 2.5/5

Not great. 2

Technically very well put together but it doesn't speak to me I'm afraid.

My second Steely Dan album in a week... not best pleased!! I liked this better than Pretzel Logic - less rocky but more cheesy. Unfortunately the last few songs pushed it down to another 2 stars 👎

It’s ok.

i simply can't believe there are already 3 steely dan albums on this list

Lead off song hits like a 70s cop show sound track, but drags long a bit long. “Reelin” is quite the downer heard through my 50-something ears. But those 2 singles from this are burned in my brain from radio overplay in my youth, and honestly didn’t remember that those songs were Steely Dan. Not memorable then, not memorable now. Pretty boring boring hippy dippy stuff to my ear.

i dont wanna listen to Steely Dan, no mooooore.

I kept picturing Will Ferrell hanging out in the background with the cowbell.

I hated everything about this album. Songs aren’t horrible but they are nothing I ever want to hear again.

boring.

It’s my second time listening to this and I still can’t remember anything after a couple of hours. I thinks I’m just not interested in this kind of music.

this took a while to get through. Do it again is a masterpiece and the rest of it is yacht rock at its finest. It is a shame that i do not like yacht rock

Couple of hits, but meh.