Pretzel Logic

Great musicians

Meh. Had heard a few of these before but never listened to the whole album. Steely Dan brings the funk on a couple but the rest were a little uninspired.

It's not Aja. Enjoyable, easy listening, smooth yacht rock. Nothing too innovative to my ears.

Solid album, super clean production and great compositions.

Had it on in the background. Some good songs, no standouts.

It was ok - not my taste in rock (classic or modern). I was born after this album came out and I find it really tough to rate/critique an album if you weren't around when it was released.

Yeah was good. Listened ages ago now so can’t remember much but is steely Dan so ye

I recognized a couple of them liked a few and didn’t like a few

me gustó bastante el primer tema y después como que bajó igual tranqui 6/10

Expecting something more rocky, but in no way disappointed by what was far folkier in nature. I really need more than 5 stars to work with.

One of the most unique bands of the Era. They brought a Jazz Rock style to popular music. Donald Fagan and Walter Becker are amazing song writers and performers. Rikki Don't Lose that Number was a top 10 song in the USA. Standouts: Rikki Don't Lose That Number Others: Pretzel Logic

I've known "of" these guys forever, but ouside of their singles, I don't know their music at all. I think they get a bad name for being the band the boomer dads listen to in sock and sandals. Either that really short-changes them or I'm a lot more boomer dad than I realize. I thought this one was really interesting. I wish I had more time to sit with the album. I'm really torn on a ranking. I thought the song I know the best (Rikki) is the worst of the bunch. Does that mean I'd grow bored with with rest of the record if I came to know it better? I loved their interpretation of E. St. Louis. I picked up an Ellington's Hits album 20 years ago and this sond was the one I had on repeat at the time. It was funny that I recognized it within the first 2 notes on of SD's recording. I really want to come back to this. Hard to rate it above a 3 for now, but that could change if get to know it better. 1 = bad 2 = average 3 = good 4 = great 5 = outstanding

Outside of "Rikki Don't Lose That Number" and "Any Major Dude" I'm least convinced of this album's place on the list, of the four Steely Dan albums on it. But I suppose those songs almost make it worth it.

Rikki don’t lose that number 👍

One of the more varied and experimental Steely Dan efforts, with each track having its own distinct feel. There were no songs that stood out and wowed me, but taken as a whole this was a pleasant listen I could see myself returning to for some easy listening.

good

This album got really good in the middle. I’m not the biggest Steely Dan fan. I’ve never played this album before, though I did know the two singles. Night by Nigh and Pretzel Logic were my favorite tracks. The ones I did not like I was fairly bored by and wishing the song would end. Over all I’m glad I spun it, if only to find the Pretzel Logic song. Given that, I doubt I would play this again. I saved 6 songs to my library.

Well, at least I can say now that I've given Steely Dan's catalogue the ol college try. They're fine. They have some good songs, but overall this album just sort of droned on in the background while I did other things. I'll confess that I don't get what it is about this band that fascinates people so much, but at the same time I could see why people enjoy it overall 3/5

Not my thing, but quite unique. I can tell why Steely Dan is a classic. Bonus points for my favorite song of theirs being here: Monkey In Your Soul.

Everything is well-written, but nothing really stands out. Worth a listen.

Not my fave SD album but not bad - 3.5 stars

It's great musically and very clever lyrically. But not quite all the way there for me - I think it lacked an emotional core for me to truly connect?

Really enjoyed. Added to Library

It was alright it wasn't horrible it reminded me of the music Dad listened to

Steely Dan diverts from their usual formula and shows us they can write short pop songs. I like the calm aesthetic that feels like I'm in some wacky 70s TV show, whose genre is not really defined. "Night by Night" is like an episode of Columbo. It's not very consistent, with each song tackling a new idea, and beyond the first few tracks, none of them really execute their idea well or feels complete besides the title track, but I didn't find any of them bad. I like Steely Dan's unusual instrumental and jazzy aesthetic, so the diversity of the tracks and shortness of each track is enough for me to revisit, even if I would never listen to most of them on their own. I'd say I enjoyed the whole album.

Really enjoyed this.

An interesting blend of genres and an enjoyable album 3/5

I really shouldn't like this, but it's infectious.

I appreciate this. I wouldn't listen to this.

This was a fun Little Rock album. It capitalized Little Rock and I kind of like that. Smooth rock perfect for a bar or cookout.

Another from Steely Dan, this time with less tracks I know. "Rikki" seems familiar, I've probably heard that on some classic rock radio. This album makes them sound Midwestern, I don't know if that's accurate but that's the vibe I get. Overall, I'd say this is low-risk low-reward kind of music. Mostly run of the mill, so it's decent but nothing really wowed me. Favorite Tracks: Rikki Don't Lose That Number, Barrytown. Album art: I was about to say it's a man selling hot dogs but his sign says pretzels and the album is called Pretzel Logic. Very wintry, very industrial. Again, my feeling is Chicago. 3/5

Yacht rock

6/10

Interesting, easy to listen to album, but I haven't felt like it's extraordinary.

Steely Dan on ollu ainakin viimeisen vuoden joku skenejuttu, joten odotin pahinta. mut täähän oli kunnolla groovaavaa bluesia! aloitusraita levyn paras. sopivan lyhyt levy. hupiukkomusaa. pretzel!

Gives me film noir on the beach vibes. Veryyyy 70s sounding, kinda like the beatles. Very clean sounding too. Love it. Slows down quite a bit and gets a little dry for me by track 6. Favourite from this album is "Rikki Don't Lose That Number".

65/100: Having never really listened to Steely Dan before, I had really high expectations for this album. For the most part, I was pretty let down. Most of the songs on this album were pretty boring, although a few did stand out—but I was expecting an album full of songs like this from Steely Dan based on the few songs of his that I have listened to. “Rikki Don’t Lose That Number,” “Night By Night,” “East St. Louis Toodle-Oo,” and “Pretzel Logic” were all pretty good, if not at least interesting listens. The rest of the songs felt either pretty straightforward or too dissonant to really be enjoyable. I’m holding out hope and assuming that this isn’t Steely Dan’s best album in this project and my expectations from them will eventually be met.

Quite liked this. Nice harmonies, VERY 1974 sounding. I’d definitely listen again.

A good fun listen, quirky in the middle.

Quiet fun, bit soft and sweet, bit CSNY

Coffee shop vibe Night by night is a bop Love/hate the cover art

slightly showing its age in the lyrics and chord progressions, but still a great pick me up listen fav song: ricky (all time banger) least fav: east st louis (sounds like the family guy theme song halfway through)

Some good songs and overall sound to album was good.

je m'attendais à mieux

très bon kiff

Lekker plaatje hor! Funky!

Some good vocal harmonising and guitar, but nothing really stood out to me. Doesn't recapture the magic of Can't Buy A Thrill

Musically this album is great, but it just has too much dad rock vibes it makes it feel like a guilty pleasure to enjoy.

I know Steely Dan because he played with Mark Knopfler.

so so to be honest, isnt my type but 6/10

Best Song: Barry Town. Feels like the kind of song that plays at the beginning of a movie as the main character parades down the main street of their town, greeting neighbours, before anything bad happens. It feels like a song where nothing bad CAN happen. Worst Song: East St. Louis Toodle-Oo. My favourite part of this album is the vocals riding along with the instrumentals, not the instrumentals masquerading as vocals. Wah wah. Overall: I really like the vocals here. It feels like what bands like Def Leppard aspire to be. Still, the guitar wankery gets a bit obnoxious at times, even in an album this short. I'd prefer they focus more on the buttery hooks and less on the (probably technically very sophisticated) musicianship.

Not a bad album, but any huge enjoyment for me lays tensed up deep down somewhere.

I liked the first few songs a lot but then the quality dropped off pretty sharply. Weird thing is the songs sound pretty much the same so it’s pretty clear I don’t know what the hell I'm talking about. 3.5 stars

junk drawer goofy rock Frank Zappa

It was fine, lots of variety, but sort of early prog rock wasn't my jam

Bit fed of saying albums are just 'fine', but here's another one 😅

Steely Dan goes pop. I can't say I've ever been a massive Steely Dan fan, but I preferred "Aja" to this. Still, the harmonies are great, the musicianship tight. Favorite tracks: "Night by Night", "With a Gun"

Rikki Don't Lose That Number is a great song, and it's joined by some other original songs (my favourite being East St. Louis Toodle-Oo, with its original and very creative sound). But the passage of time is hard to ignore, and generally speaking Steely Dan is best experienced these days through albums such as "The Very Best of Steely Dan".

It was good, not groundbreaking by any means

Another short album, pleasant to listen to with highlights being the opening track and the one with dude in the title!

Pretty good but not in my top few Steely Dan albums. I thought this one was a bit too scattered by be great although it definitely had nice moments and great playing.

It was good - no tracks I knew but that didn’t matter too much.

I guess I can see why others might like this but it barely registered with me. There's a couple interesting songs but nothing great. I now know who sings "Rikki(?) Don't lose that Number. I never liked that song and I still don't. Honestly it's not so bad to get through but I just have to shrug. A respectful 3 that could've easily been a 2.

So smooth listening I'm surprised I even remember listening to it.

Some good ol' fashioned jazzy Steely Dan.

I’d never really listened to Steely Dan. I gotta say this was pretty good. There are some really catchy jazz infused rock pieces here. There’s probably more Steely Dan albums on here and frankly I look forward to listening

I thought I would like it more.

Good stuff, wasn’t a big fan of the guys voice but it was good

Not as into this as their more experimental stuff like Aja but it's still catchy and pleasant.

Rock. Cosas interesantes.

Not really my kind of music. Easy going and pleasant, just doesn't excite me.

Quite cinematic and rich album- defs a studio band sound. I’ve heard their stuff when I was young and it sounds a bit basic but overall pretty good

I can't say I'm a huge Steely Dan fan or anything, but I get the appeal. However, wouldn't re-listen to most of the tracks, personally. Fave track: either title track or With a Gun.

Good Album

I'm not a danfan, gotta say it. I'll always bop along to Reelin' in the Years and I love Dirty Work, but songs like Rikki Don't Lose That Number feel so trite and cheesy to me. It actually sounds like an 80's one hit wonder, which is weird because this is from 1974, so maybe Steely Dan are visionaries and that's why people are nuts about them. But I'm not. They're okay and I'm okay saying that. I guess what I'm really saying is Can't Buy A Thrill is their best album to me. This one is okay, it's better than Countdown To Ecstasy. I'd sure love a hot pretzel for 15 cents, hot damn, that's a hell of a deal! And that’s something we can all agree on.

So I get another Steely Dan record just two days later. Seriously why are there FOUR Steely Dan albums on this list? This is pure boomer dad rock material. It's not bad, it's not great. It's just fine.

Album cover ko štand za jest u GTA IV, čak su i NPC-a pogodili LMAOOOOOO. Bez zajebancije solidan album, vrijedi poslušat, no mislim da se neću vraćati.

Bueno

Steely Dan. Just a bit too smooth, a bit too clever clogs for me. I just need a little bit more of an edge to really appeal to me. There are a few slightly rockier numbers on this album that work a bit better for me (Night by Night, for example). I don't mind smart rock and roll, but I just need a bit more rock. I own this record, but almost never play it, and have considered giving it to my son (who likes prog and jazz. he was a very excited to find a copy of Countdown to Ecstasy in. record store bargain bin recently). Actually, I'm listening to Night by Night again, and it's pretty good... I'll bump my rating up a bit I think...

suitable odd

De los inicios del rock un tanto psicodélico de los 70. Ritmos e instrumentos típicos de la época. Sin terminar de enganchar. Estilo suave y fácil de escuchar

That’s some fine steel guitar on East St. Louis Toodle-Oo, my favorite tune from the album. This was my first exposure to Steely Dan and I found it to be much jazzier than I expected, not sure why. Clearly pretty technical music though, very well done even to a layman. Decent, short album.

I had fun listening to this, nothing too sticking though.

I don't know much about Steely Dan, unfortunately. I downloaded Aja on my computer many years ago, but I have not heard it in a long time. Aside from that, I have not heard a Steely Dan project before. I dig the tunes here for the most part, they're nice. I'm not blown away or anything, but it is performed well.

Certainly more palatable than the other Steely Dan one we had. Yeah, it was fine.

The Dan are an oddity. I shouldn’t like them, but I kind of do! Good album; not my favourite though

Steely Dan - always good - but still working towards their best.

I've heard a variety of Steely Dan's singles over the years, including "Rikki Don't Lose That Number" from Pretzel Logic. This is the third Steely Dan album I've reviewed for this 1001 list. There is some interesting funk and grooves to some of the music ("Parker's Band"), but Steely Dan still hasn't truly captured my attention. Listening to this album was enjoyable, but I doubt the album will get a second listen from me.

foot tapping all the way through 3.5

Best band named after a pneumatic dildo.

Nothing special, nothing terrible. I’d consider this typical of Steely Dan. Rare moments of interesting instrumentation surrounded by atrociously mid tracks and moments. 5/10.

Popular with both of my parents, I remember listening to this album a lot as a small child.

This album was an easy listen, nothing to complain about

Love Pretzels! Leider bewerte ich Steely Dan Alben bislang zu niedrig. Kann nur jetzt keine Konzession machen, war „Aja“ einfach laid back und „Can‘t buy a thrill“ so ist dies eher last day‘s pretzel. 2.8

I prefer 'Can't Buy a Thrill', but this is still a very good album, doesn't sound dated at all.

Nice easy listening, brings me back to a 8 year old!

A decent Steely Dan album. Rikki is a standout definitely

Instrumentally very interesting and appealing but the lyrics are not something that are for me

Fikk ikke hørt gjennom

Solid

Lovely nostalgic listen. 3*

Groovy.

Enjoyed this jazz/rock mashup and will hunt out some more material

Yacht Rock’s numero uno

Albumet höll en variation från början till slutet. Genom att variera stil och instrumentalval behålls intresset. Musiken var väldigt välskriven och ren. Jag fick känslan av att varje not var genomtänkt. Samtidigt höll sig musiken oftast inom sina ramar. Musiken gjorde inget fel vilket kan vara ett problem. Det gör inte musiken men det begränsar originaliteten. Sångarens röst är värd att nämna. Personligheten i den passade perfekt till musiken. Att han inte träffade varje not gav en starkare känslomässig laddning.

Some great songs, some good songs and some terrible songs. Patchy

The band are amazingly talented, majority of the songs are great... but having a chump that sounds like Randy Newman on vocals automatically means they can't get over 3*.

Great talented band but with music I admire but can't love

More classic Steely Dan.

Leuk maar ik zie er niet zo veel in

Couple of bangers and I do find them interesting as a band but the album is a little uninspiring overall

This was supposed to be the ecstasy after the countdown... :-/ The move to shorter, more focused songs without the flab was nice, and I liked the earthy, old-timey vibes of East St Louis Toodle-Oo, With a Gun, Charlie Freak etc. But the more traditional song-writing does mean this album doesn't stand out from the pack as much as the previous one did, for better or worse. I'll give it 3 stars anyway because I do like the album title.

Легонько залетело и забылось

Some nice melodies and a bit more funk/soul compared to their debut.

Good 70s classic rock style

I always thought Steely Dan had a style all their own. Sometimes I liked it, sometimes I didn't. Ditto for this album. Kudos to them for bringing their own brand of funk or jazz (or whatever) to rock. Surprised Rikki Don't Lose That Number (a good one) was the only one I recognized. Some songs grew on me (Night by Night, Pretzel Logic) and some didn't (Barrytown, East St Louis). Respectable, but there's plenty of other albums I'll turn to from this era when I need it.

Pretzel Logic is full of funky and enjoyable sounds, but it's lack of edge or meaning harms the overall experience. Every track on here sounds the absolute same, the guitars, the drums, and the vocal patterns. If it was any other group of 4 white guys in their garage making the same happy pop rock, it would not have been as well received as it was.

First time really giving Steely Dan a serious look. Some of it is a little bit "adult contemporary, easy listening" for my taste, but much more of it than I expected is pretty good. Monkey in your soul and with a gun were highlights for sure.

Levystä tuli hyvä fiilis ja jaksoi alusta loppuun asti pitää tunnelman yllä. Kiva pläjäys.

its kinda like a better version of Boston 2.5

“Pretzel Logic” by Steely Dan (1974) The chorus of the opening track is one of the most irritating earworms in the history of recorded music. It got waaaay too much airplay, even on FM. So I won’t annoy you by mentioning its title. Apart from that, this album is good. After all, it’s Steely Dan, albeit with a more ‘pop’ sound than their better albums (especially the earlier “Countdown to Ecstasy” and the later “Aja”). Cool jazz and funk grooves populate this music—well composed, arranged, and delivered with elan. “East St. Louis Toodle-Oo” is a nice homage to Duke Ellington, but it’s apparent Steely Dan never spent much time in East St. Louis in the 70s. By then it was way past time to retire “Toodle-Oo”. Nice guitar riffs and solos are contributed by Jeff Baxter, who was soon to take off for The Doobie Brothers, where he was undoubtedly more appreciated. Listening to this record is a nice blast from the past. But it doesn’t inspire. Sadly, after hearing the last song, the album started over and now I’m stuck again with that damn earworm! 3/5

It was ok.

Pretty easy going 70s rock with some funky grooves. Will listen again.

Classic Steely Dan sound, but not quite as compelling as Countdown to Ecstasy. Harmonies and musicianship are still there and catchy.

It was fine.

Some good vocal harmonising and guitar, but nothing really stood out to me. Doesn't recapture the magic of Can't Buy A Thrill

Not my favourite Steely Dan album, Aja is pretty hard to beat. Nevertheless, this is pretty good, the final two tracks in particular.

Liked a few songs

Li ho trovati interessanti e molto bravi tecnicamente, puliti. Night by night l'ho anche aggiunta ai miei pezzi preferiti su Spotify perché adoro riff e soli di chitarra. Ho trovato molto interessanti anche altri pezzi, ma nel complesso direi che quest'album è discreto. Darei un 3.5 ma non 4.

This was a blast from the past! I remember 'Rikki don't lose that number' and 'With A Gun'. Enjoyed the bluesy numbers esp the title track & East St Louis Toodl-Oo

Some definite bangers and I enjoyed listening to something I’d not heard before.

Good mix of rock, blues and jazz few songs missed the mark on the album but overall decent

This was my favorite of the first three albums. Especially cause it was a normal length! I really enjoyed the first track and the couple that followed. After that the tracks lost a flow for me. None of the tracks lead into each other to make a cohesive album.

pretty good! feels a lil less jazzy than the other dan ive heard, more rockin

first off, great album cover. jazzy rock fusion sounds like dad music

I liked a few of the songs, but haven't really ever been able to connect with Steely Dan.

Bangers from this album were Parker’s band and barrytown. Any major dude will tell you this album is good!

Always a good listen but lacks the fire power if some of their other albums. Night by night, east St. Louis

3.5

Good

Not my favourite Steely Dan album, I prefer some of their other albums better, but what is here is still generally pretty good.

Anche se i pezzi sono ben scritti e piacevoli, c'è qualcosa che non mi convince. L'interpretazione vocale non mi piace ed anche quella dei musicisti la trovo un pò sterile.

some neat parts - but a lot of that bleed together boring 70s sound too

Ok album - liked the classic early 70’s sound, nice guitar moments. Moments where I thought some songs of the songs sounded the same. All together I enjoyed the album. 3/5

Steely Dan made more accomplished albums than Pretzel Logic, but they never made a better one.

I thought this was good fun and nice to listen to

3.5/5 Didn't know the artist or any song, but there were some pretty nice songs. Especially for studying

sounds like chicago in the 70s

Not a big Steely Dan fan but some pretty cool tunes here.

It was ok, still a bit too virtuosic and drawn out for a 30 minute album. Some nice hooks here that I wish were focused on more

Lovely stuff

Pretty fun

Nice west coast rock to listen to on a sunny day.

Was cool, although maybe a bit too easy listening. 7/10

Decent stuff

I enjoyed this album. More of a blend of rock with other than the standard rock band instrumentation. Wondering about the development of and relationship to prog rock.

Cool cool

it was pretty good, but i felt like it wasn't too special. i really liked the music but i thought the lyrics were lacking at times

Was alright

"You'll be riding by, bareback on your armadillo You'll be grooving high or relaxing at Camarillo Suddenly the music hits you It's a bird in flight that just can't quit you" (Parker's Band) "I have never met Napoleon But I plan to find the time" (Pretzel logic)

5

Cool pop record with jazzy vibes

God. These guys are the definition of eclectic... They just throw EVERYTHING in this album. Enjoyable hair rock. Lots of ballads. The kind of album that would annoy Melissa.

Rikki is of course the best song on this album, years later when I was listening to Horace Silver’s 1965 Songs for my father I realized that they cribbed the opening riffs from it. Major disappointment. Any major dude is also good, but the rest of the album doesn’t quite live up to those two songs

Solid but not my fav SD album.

folksy, upbeat. ok to listen while working.

Not bad! They could work a bit more with the piano and focus more on their instrumental side in general. They do have some catchy songs in there though. I'll give this three stars because it's not really up my alley, but I'm willing to listen to more of their songs in the future.

Average. I like the hits but don't see this as my kind of band to dig into.

Good Album. Reminds me of my uncle.

Enjoyable and easy to listen to. Pretty close to 4, but I probably won’t really return to it.

There’s some really experimental tracks on this one all with a vastly different feel of American culture. Was an interesting listen but not hugely my cup of tea

It’s steely Dan. The epitome of mediocrity.

After Rikki Don't Lose That Number, the first song that I recognized and was singing along with was Only A Fool Would Say That, which is actually because Spotify kept autoplaying other Dan songs from better albums. Frankly, Pretzel Logic made me a bit disappointed, and Fagen's voice was kinda weird on some of the songs. I did like and will be replaying some tracks, like With a Gun and Any Major Dude, but others I'll take a full pass on. Because of that, it's only a 3/5 from me.

Nice easy listening.

Está agradable, aunque ninguna de las canciones me pareció particularmente extraordinaria. Lo usaría de música de fondo para leer o algo así.

false

No estoy seguro qué pensar. No conocía más que "Rikki Don't Lose the Number" (en Universal Stereo) y me parecía aburrida, pero sí hubo cosas del disco que me agradaron. El bajo me recuerda a RUSH de repente.

3.5

Surprisingly short but good nonetheless

Rikki don’t lose that number was most memorable

Some classic songs - nice arrangements and grooves.

A fun romp through songs that seem to not take themselves too seriously. Lighthearted with flicks and picks of the guitar greeted shortly thereafter by soothing sax notes. This is a fun album, full of enjoyable pieces without any overshadowing, overpowering singles to outshine the rest of the songs

Pretzel, nunca comi.

Certainly not a band I have ever listened to and was quite pleasantly surprised by this offering. Elements of Jazz, Blues, Funk and Rock are scattered all over, mixed and merged, you can hear where later bands, Scissor Sisters for example, have taken inspiration especially with chord progressions, song structure and harmonies. The album is quite 'quirky' in a way, remeniscent of 10cc, with the mixing of genres and time signatures and with clever, idiosyncratic lyrics. I will probably have to go back and listen to it again, the initial listen seemed to just wash over me with no real discernable outstanding tracks ( possibly meaning they were all good ) but that could be down to them being unfamiliar to me

Steely!

Good, chill album.

there may better steely dan albums to put on this list. Does have Rikki don't lose that number.

nice, smooth, easy listen.

Steely'd my dan heart

Steely Dan has always been pretty so-so in my book. Their sound never particularly appealed to me, but I never felt compelled to change the station when one of their songs came on. More like, I had to ride it out in favor of a better one. I'm tempted to give this 2 stars, but the truth is, it's an OK album. Weak 3, but still 3.

3.5 solid steely dan, band is a vibe

Erstmal nicht, was ich bei Rock erwartet hatte. Eher funky... Der Name ist großartig! Die Musik hat mir gut gefallen. Besonders das Piano gibt dem ganzen das gewisse Extra. Erinnert mich an Kansas. Der Gesang fügt sich gut ein. Hat mich nicht dazu gebracht es in meinen Fundus mit aufzunehmen, aber sehr solide!

Some good tunes

I'm relatively ignorant of Steely Dan but my friends love 'em. This is unquestionably good, but feels too much like "old people rock" for me.

This album didn't grab me like their other ones. Best track: Pretzel Logic

Kind of elevator/hold music vibes?? Dated but in a more funky way than album 1 at least! Jazzy Rock vibes in the first few songs This is fully dad music but not even in a bad way? Not super keen on the vocals/lyrics Faves - Rikki Don't Lose That Number, Night by Night, Barrytown, Easy St Louis Toodle-oo No songs saved or added to playlists Overall - fun! I like the mixing of genres and there's some really cool sounding bits. Not my usual listen or the kind of music I would usually seek out myself but it was pretty refreshing! Would I check out their other music - maybe but probably not Rating 3/5

Surprisingly alright,

Meh.

I usually like my music to have some level of grit (there's exceptions to this rule, see Fleetwood Mac), and you are not going to find that with the music of Steely Dan. The edges have been smoothed over completely by the glossy, pristine production. Don't get me wrong, these guys are very talented. They incorporate jazz into their sound and know their stuff, but I didn't need to hear their overly polished take on Duke Ellington oldie "East St. Louis Toodle-Oo". "Rikki Don't Lose That Number" is an enjoyable bit of soft rock cheese, but this record as a whole doesn't speak to me. Whilst I could stomach this style of music if it was quietly playing as I sipped a cocktail in the sun, this ultimately sounds like music that your dad would use to test his new hi-fi.

2/5 Immediately, I don't really know who Steely Dan is and I could not pick a Steely Dan song out of a line-up- so this is something new. This is not resonating with me at all though, maybe I just don't get it. I'm more of a lyrical listener and I feel like this is music for people who listen more to the instruments. Not really feeling like there is anything here for me

Generic sounding music from that era

Jazz infused rock -- on paper this should be an album that I really like but... I've never really been a fan of Rikki Don't Lose That Number... I honestly find it kind of irritating. And I found other things on here that kinda bothered me, like the use of jingle bells in Charlie Freak. The song is in a minor key, so it has a dark tone to it... and jingle bells are the opposite of dark... it just comes off weird. There were some cool moments. The title track is probably the one that has the most traction with me. Monkey in Your Soul has a lot of components that I like -- Fender Rhodes piano, horns, nice guitar work... but am I likely to listen to it again after today? Probably not. And that goes for pretty much the rest of the album. There are Steely Dan tunes that I like, but none of them are on here -- perhaps this is just a stepping stone in the bands evolution moving toward better things to come.

There is room for all kinds of music. The list probably doesn't require this much Steely Dan. This is like music from a slightly altered reality from ours. It's the feeling I got from Bazooka Joe comics. It's packaged with gum, it's colourful, it must be fun, but why isn't it? I want to like it for being annoying. Charlie Freak is sonically cool. "Any Major Dude" would probably be great in the context of The Flight of the Concords. Here it's like an ironic t-shirt.

There are a couple of good songs on here. Is it an album I needed to hear before I die? No.

4/10. Casi ni le di importancia, álbum muy fru

Rikki Don’t Lose That Number is kind of catchy but not great. The rest is pretty forgettable, the few interesting or fun moments (largely coming from occasional colorful instrumentation, like on Through With Buzz, or it leaning harder into that jazz-rock influence on some of the later songs like the titular track) far outweighed by generic and mediocre psuedo-"jazzy" rock that was a bit hard to get through with how boring it could be. I was surprised by the quality of East St. Louis Toodle-Oo only to realize it’s a cover of a much greater artist’s work. Almost a 1-star for me, but had a couple mildly redeeming sections. Some people also just don’t need to be singers, and this Dan guy might fit that bill. Rating: ~3.0-3.5/10 ____ Album 5 / 1001+

Nowhere near their best

tiene algo que me gusta pero no me termina de convencer

Gentle enough, nothing exceptional

I’ve heard the name Steely Dan, but they aren’t a group that I’ve been drawn to. I’m still not drawn to their music.

A little too mellow for my taste, but the guitar is good, of course.

It’s fine but not for me. TOP: Pretzel Logic, Parker’s Band

so thoroughly boring. not even interesting enough to merit a 1, which means there’s at least *something* going on. and what a blah ending! gonna be a nope from me dog

Boring. The very embodiment of bog standard American rock. It might hit differently if you are crossing the Badlands in an RV… but I am not.

2.3/5 Nothing too amazing on this album but also nothing too bad. Easy listening.

It's good, but nothing too special. 2/5

Okay

Through With Buzz

A classic band I've never listened to before. It definitely sounded to me like 70s rock, understated, but with its own style (I particularly enjoyed the horns).

I don’t like Steely Dan. This was boring. I didn’t know any songs. Early 70’s rock is one of my least favorite genres.

If the whole album packed the nostalgic punch of the opening track, I could see this maybe being thr first Steely Dan album to rise to 4 stars. But, the rest of thebalbum is largely less memorable and more self-indulgent. That, plus the fact that this is our 3rd Steely Dan album and I know we aren't getting through this without at least one or two more means this gets a 2.

Ear gouging music.

Un rock simple, se disfruta, pero no tiene algo en particular que en este momento pueda destacar Pude entender que este álbum es una especie de comeback de un álbum que no fue para nada disfrutado También entiendo que tienes hits más sonidos así que veremos que viene adelante

In comparison to the last two Steely Dan albums this was disappointing. Not bad but pretty lackluster nonetheless

Det er kort, og ok. Derfor nok bare ligegyldigt, men heldigvis kort...

Som alle de andre Stealy Dan albums: alt for pænt og kedeligt

Didn't really engage me

I gave this album the ol East St. Louis Toodle-Oo

2/5 Naja.

This was alright.

I don't like Steely Dan, there I said it. Part of it is their name, too clever by half. Who the f*** has actually read Naked Lunch? However, the main reason I don't like them is because their music is boring. This album is only 34 minutes long, but it seemed like 3 hours. Except for maybe Peg, which is not on this album, I'd rather listen to almost anything else but Steely Dan. Obviously they are talented guys. I just wish they would have used their powers for good.

nie mogłam się zmusić żeby przesłuchać ten album a jak już to zrobiłam to akurat w dzień migreny, więc będę bardzo surowa!!!!! wokal nieprzyjemny, w barrytown i charlie freak robi dziwne akrobacje głosowe. muzyka typu prank, instrumenty to: - pianino zabawkowe z kiosku -dzwonki sań mikołaja -kazoo zamiast saksofonu -klaskanie

5/10

Meh - dad rock, to my ears. It's almost offensively inoffensive. Not my taste.

I disliked this album from track 1, It's not that I don't like Steely Dan, it's more that I really hate Ricki don't lose that number. I saw the track list, and that song earwormed it's way right into my brain before I listened to it. The rest of the album was alright.

I think Claude could write this in 2030. Very apple-cheeked.

No Guitar Hero tunes on thus one

i only remember the hits

While the name resonates with me I genuinely think this is the first time I have listened to a Steely Dan record, perhaps even any song? It's pretty dated sounding, I am sure (just becuase I know the name well) it had some profound influence on something, just not on me.

such annoying vocals. The instrumental track was great.

I had trouble forming an opinion on this, so I looked back at my reviews of previous Steely Dan albums, and they were no help, I described them both as "bland". And it's a bland triple-bill from Steely Dan with this too. It's a bit Simon and Garfunkel, slightly funkier, but my overwhleming impression is no impression. The best things I can say about this album are that it didn't actually offend me and it was short.

Want it to be over. I can't put my finger on it but there is something just unsettling and awful about it all. Starting to remind me of Frank Zappa and maybe I don't like Frank Zappa now. Little bits of funk, country come through but it's like it's taking the piss. I know it's an acquired taste but I can't contemplate how people like this.

I have never heard a Steely Dan song that I enjoy. In that regard, this album did not disappoint. I do not understand working that hard to sound so bland.

This album was okay, but it felt unremarkable to me. You can definitely tell it's a 70s piece because of the groovy elements mixed in with the rock music, but there's also some blues mixed in as well. There were a couple of standout tunes to me: "Barrytown" and "Charlie Freak". These songs were perfectly melodic and the storytelling was amazing. Not to say the other songs weren't melodic or told stories, but these two had the best combination of both. The last song, "Monkey In Your Soul", did not feel like a closer to me, more just another filler song. Overall, I see a couple of shining moments in an otherwise sort of bland album.

Album sounds like something my dad would make me listen to as a joke and we're both just mutually suffering to this.

I do love ‘Rikki I don’t lose that number’ but I don’t really care for the rest. It’s accomplished but not my thing.

Not my bag, but it's well done.

I feel like I could become a Steely Dan guy, but I'm not there yet. I kind of like their attitude and writing, but they're a little too smooth for me. This is probably their most average release. A few good hits at the start, then nice enough but a bit slight throughout the rest

I feel like Albini because there's something deep inside that renders me incapable of liking Steely Dan. They just sound so *uncool*. They're undoubtedly competent musicians, but this style of anodyne jazz-funk-pop does nothing to my ears or my body or my soul.

Vous pouvez ben me convaincre que c'est bon mais vous me convaincrez jamais que c'est écoutable. 2.49 étoiles

Ummm This just reminds me of the boys (they were always boys) who could play their instruments really well, keep a beat and not have a single memorable track. Geeks.

Pretty short album, its fine, but nothing catchy really.

Tired of all the Steely Dan.

Fire up the steam powered dildo and prepare to set sail for another helping of baffling 70s yacht rock. This one opens with Rikki Don’t Lose That Number, which puzzled me at the time - why didn’t Rikki just call directory enquiries or look up the number in the phone book? It’s only now that I realise that she was trying to ghost this dork by pretending to write his number down on the back of a napkin or something. The rest of the album is mostly easy listening, smooth jazz/rock which is ok, but the lyrics are just bizarre in places. Does he mean Barry in Wales? Is he going to meet Napoleon in a secure hospital? What has he got against Buzz Aldrin? I genuinely don’t want to look up the stories behind any of these for fear of spoiling them.

The definition of boring middle of the road dad rock.

I didn't dislike it, but nothing stood out to me. Kinda blah.

I gave it an extra point because the production is excellent, and the musicians played amazing, but god what a bloody boring album!

Mildly better than one before.

It sounded very old. I liked it okay

I don’t hate the Dan as much as I did in the 90s, but I’ll never be a fan of this era.

Kinda boring

ah, a banda dos audiófilos™. Tenho nada a dizer sobre esse álbum.

Kind of a mash up of different moods and styles. A lot of the songs didn’t really appeal to me.

I wasn’t super into it.

Donc, l'album du jour, encore du Steely Dan. Le premier que j'avais entendu était plus ou moins sympathique, mais alors celui-ci est tout sauf mémorable. On va être honnête : je comprends pas trop ce qu'il faut dans la liste. Il n'est pas vraiment mauvais, mais c'est pas non plus particulièrement mémorable. Au moins, il était pas trop long.

Some pretty fun tracks but kind of ultimately feels like a mess. I followed up with a couple tracks off Can't Buy a Thrill and liked that more. Maybe this just isn't the Dan for me.

Loved the music but the songs, not for me. They lack any gravitas or conviction

Apple Music said it was rock but wasn’t rock at all

Didn’t recognise any of the songs and found the album pretty boring to be honest, wouldn’t listen again!

Not bad just a bit bland

The apple notes indicate that this is meritocracy, but I would characterize it as mediocracy. I liked the tendency towards original songs and a common band vision. I may not like the vision, and thus the album, but it offered something to like. This might land well with some listeners, but so does the nameless bar band that fills the background. At least some of those bands hope to be found, to put in the work to polish themselves(or be polished) into something that endures.

no niby spoko, ale jest to dla mnie jeden z tych albumów, który brzmi jak tysiąc innych (nawet jak przesłuchałem go milion razy). i to te piosenki, które są dziwnie radosne, a nie jak w soundtracku "Inside Llewyn Davis", gdzie smutek i tak się nawet chce w tym smutku być. no ja nie wiem.

Nothing memorable. That's almost a one. But it wasn't bad, tho'

was okay

Not sure about this one. There were maybe three good songs here. The rest was some of the lamest rock music I've ever heard. That said, somehow I still didn't hate it. It was a level of fine that allowed me to keep listening without getting too turned off (or maybe I've just reached the adult contemporary rock stage of life). I think the key to that was its brevity. The album is about 34 minutes long and most of the songs are under 3 minutes long. If it had kept going much more, I think I would've gotten to the point of strong dislike. Still, I didn't think much of this was very good. A lot of it was bordering the bad side of OK. The few good tracks didn't do much to improve the whole for me. I managed the listen this time, but I doubt I'll be listening to it again. Overall: 2.2/5

Another day another Steely Dan album that does absolutely nothing for me. Maybe one day when I'm a dad in my fifties I will finally get it. Key tracks: Rikki Don't Lose That Number

Estos discos setenteros se me están haciendo bien difíciles

It was a very weird album, not terribly enjoyable or bad, just meh

Easy listening but not something I would go back to.

Aja is amazing! This album was meh, had some moments but I couldn’t get into it.

Boring.

Made 35 minutes look like 135.

Won’t be listening to this again

Sort it out Dan

This album doesn’t really do it for me. It’s very of the time but doesn’t hold up very well. Good lyrics though.

great vocals, and proficient at other stuff but all the elements just seem janky together

I really really tried but simply cannot like this band

I don't even know how they made this so cheesy and boring when the underlying music is so good

2 steely dan albums in 3 days. This is a lot better than Aja. Got songs rather than noodly jazz. But won’t be listening again

Nieuw. Niet mijn stijl maar interessant

This is my second Steely Dan album. And again, it's exhausting. All technique and no soul. It's like being at the guitar shop and hearing some guy shred to impress other shoppers. If that guy recorded all his noodlings, paid top dollar for a tight mix and put out an album, it might as well be a Steely Dan. The album musically sounds like the art-cover & name: Generic.

Ir was alright. Not particularly my jam. I found myself skipping Charlie Freak. Best song was the opener. Would not add to my personal collection 2/5

Steely Dan is one of those bands that I appreciate for their talent, but it's just not my kind of music. I think the songs on this album are clearly very good from an instrumentation perspective, but they just don't seem to flow. Not an album I'd seek out to listen to again, and not one I'd put on my top album list.

Became a dad last year so thought I would like this more.

You can’t make me like Steely Dan. No matter how many of their albums you shove in my face.

Mood, ale nedostatecne stimulující pro muj mozek

Some great cuts. Excellent execution as always. Doesn't grab me

Somewhere between Alan partridge and Saxondale is a Steve Coogan character that loves Steely Dan. Impressive instrumentals by obviously talented musicians- but it just wasn’t special enough for me to want to listen to again. Great guitar work, some outstanding riffs. Also, great keys. Cool hand drums. Great horns. All great musicians playing as a cohesive unit but the songs are just so meh. Donald Fegans singing goes well when the songs are funky and guitar led but I hate the combo of piano and his voice it’s just so wet . I only listened to the end for this review - must be a glutton for punishment as I listened again .

didn’t mind the instrumentals, but the vocals were dire

pretty good album just not my vibe