Aja

Not really a Steely Dan 'guy,' but this record is so easy and good to listen to.

My ears naked lunch’d but gently, oh so gently. Thumbs up - Don’t judge me.

Well made, pleasant to listen to.

Jazzy

John Mulaney said I had to like this or else

dan really did it on this one :^)

top track black cow really vibes jazz. every track was about 6 mins and u could tell. but I liked the music lol

jazzy i like

Me likey

This album is a straight vibe. Great intersection between rock, jazz, and new age sounds. Album is a collection of art. Stand-outs: Deacon Blues

So great

A very tight set of songs. Reminds me of Weather Report, but slightly more accessible. My former boss is a huge fan, and while it's not totally for me, I see the appeal. Favorite tracks: "Deacon Blues", "Peg"

This is on-paper not up my alley, but I cannot help but be charmed every time I hear it.

7/10 - I thought it would be more 70s rock but pleasantly surprised it is more soul/funky

Me gustó bastante. Es un jazz-blues, con toques de rock. Muy lindo de escuchar.

Bättre än jag väntade mig. Jag är inte förtjust i Steely Dan. Jag har alltid tyckt att de är för invecklade och tråkiga. Detta album var dock bättre än vad jag väntade mig, framför allt Josie, Deacon Blues och Peg. Den sistnämnda lärde jag mig var samplad av De La Soul i Eye Know. Detta hade jag ingen aning om förrän jag lyssnade på det här albumet. Helt ok i det hela. Steely Dan kommer aldrig att vara mina favoriter men detta album var en trevlig överraskning.

Expectation: -> Reelin' In The Years and Do It Again are nostalgic Steely Dan songs that I quite enjoy. After listening: -> I think it's the nostalgia that I like most. This album doesn't have that for me. Some decent songs, nice sax play. This is pretty easy listening. Track ranking: Home Aja Peg Josie Deacon News Cow

9. jul 2026. 15.46h its okej, fanki ali nije bas moj cup of tea best: peg worst: deacon blues

The first thing that popped into my head was, "Well, that's stereotypical 'Adult Contemporary' right there." Very much a casual background listen.

I remember the album cover as a kid and always in a record store. Not my kind of groove back then but they were on top of the world in 1977. Too jazzy for my liking, but I appreciate a lot of their sound and definitely their musical chops & the strong cast of studio studs that play on their albums. You'd have to be living under a rock to not have heard "Black Cow", "Deacon Blues", "Peg" or "Josie" on the radio back then or today. Impressive listener counts from start to finish with only "I Got The News" being under 25M. That's solid, they have an audience. "Peg" is easily the highlight, it's more inline with their 70's rock groove than the others which lean towards their jazzy roots. 3 stars for me. It's not over the top with great songs but the musicianship is top notch. I can see where it gathers votes to sneak into the Top 1001, just wouldn't make my personal list.

Not 3 days after my last Steely Dan album, I'm given yet another of their albums (hopefully the last one.) I don't absolutely hate this band, but it's definitely not something I would seek out. I suspect a lot of people my age have good memories of this music because it sounds like it would be a hit with most people's parents. Well my mom liked Motown and my dad liked hard rock, so the Dan never really fit anywhere. All that aside, this one is the best of the 3 Steely Dan albums this list has given me. Every song is memorable and immaculately produced. I would have liked if it had a little more of a distinct edge but the whole album has been produced to be as prim and polished as ever, like someone buffed out every wrinkle and crease on its face. It's the equivalent of a waxed tiled floor; the pattern is nice to look at and you might find something fun, but you wouldn't dare put anything else on it lest you ruin the perfect sheen. Quite a bit of this thing also reminds me of some irresponsible playboy with thinning, slicked back hair wearing a Hawaiian shirt over dress pants driving an obnoxiously loud convertible. It's got the perfect corporate-sounding sleazy vibe to me, which might actually be something they're going for(!) There's even a song with some groove to it in "Peg," another new facet to Steely Dan's repertoire. I would honestly add that one to a playlist, it's very good. Everything else is unfortunately in that mid-tempo haze that makes the songs drift about listlessly for their entire duration. The title track is a pretty brisk 8 minutes, but more than one song whose samey riffing makes 5 minutes feel like 7. If there were half-star ratings I would have given this an extra half point, but the energy from the 2 songs I enjoyed isn't enough to push this into 4-star territory unfortunately. Beautiful sounding album overall - if only it had more songs. Key Tracks: Black Cow, Aja, Peg

I think this is a little too pretentious for me to be honest. I really like the drumming and I was aware of the band before because of it, but the guitar and other solos are really not that interesting or cool, and most of the guitar work in general does bore me a little. The songs as a whole are quite nice and smooth, but lacking in anything that really makes me feel anything, and other than the drumming at certain points there isn't enough impressive musicianship to make up for that. It just feels like people act like the melodies and harmony throughout is innovative because it uses jazz stuff, but in reality a lot of it is just going up and down those scales and not doing too much with it, although a lot of the bass lines are pretty cool. I'm also pretty conflicted on the vocals: I don't really like the lead singers voice, but sometimes the production and use of other backing vocals does make up for it.

I like one song (Home At Last), love the quality of the engineering, but got far too lost in all the schmalz

6/10 The kind of classic rock that I appreciate, but doesn't massively stand out Highlight: Deacon Blues

70

7 songs A gay little jazz rock album. Superb choice for Club Penguin Pizza Parlor background music.

Goofy dad rock, occasionally clever but way too soft

I like this album better than the last Steely Dan. Not a huge fan of yacht rock.

Listen to this has made me realize I enjoy listening to the nostalgic hits off 'Can't Buy a Thrill" but that I don't actually like Steely Dan. It's not a bad album and I can see how it was doing something interesting at the time it came out. But it is just not for me.

Kuunteli mielellään. ⭐️⭐️⭐️

ok

Oddly enough, I first heard Steely Dan through a sample of the song "Peg" from this album on De La Soul's first album, which made me interested in the band. Overall, the same dynamics from the first album can be heard hear, easy listening R&B oriented songs that can be either enjoyed on that level or can be enjoyed for the complex dynamics buried within them. The primary difference is that this might be a little slicker in burying that. I particularly like the uptemp songs, "Peg" and "Josie" along with the more offbeat "I Got the News" and "Deacon". It's a good record, but some of the longer songs keep it from getting four stars despite the fact that everything here is listenable.

Competent stuff. Just not very exciting

Another one that is just fine. A few good songs in there like Deacon Blues and Peg.

Solid background

2.5 actually. a bit more my vibe. I dont love the songs nor do i hate them its a bit bland/boring for me. idrk how to explain it but ig there aint enough going on

3/5

Definitely, "Aja" is the best song here, "Deacon Blues" was good too.

3.4

não me pega. divertido

Good

GOOD ALBUM

Yet another mediocre entry on the list. It was fine.

An interesting album that tries to split the difference between jazzy prog rock and the kind of cheesy 80's yacht rock that Patrick Bateman probably listens to (which is impressive given this came out in the 70s, ahead of it's time I guess). Unfortunately, it leans more towards the latter. I quite like a couple of tracks where the jazzy prog side shines through a bit more like Aja and I Got The News, but otherwise though it is clear there is talent behind this, it is kinda boring.

I'm gonna give this album a listen tomorrow after Louis's concert but I will not make any promises because tomorrow is gonna be a really a busy day so let's see. Update: I did listen to it after Louis's concert (😭😭😭🙌) and I think it deserves a solid 3 stars. It gave me Mario Kart vibes for some reason LOL. And the song I liked the most was: Home At Last.

Siento que el album tiene una esencia tipo, canciones largas con mucha instrumental (a veces), y eso igual es bueno, ya que tiene variedad de instrumentos y en general, se disfruta mucho esos momentos donde suenan pianos u otros instrumentos que comúnmente no hay en algunos apartados de la musica. Puedo destacar que me ha gustado mucho mas la mitad para el final del album que el inicio, ya que al comienzo lo senti un poco flojo, pero despues iba mejorando en varios apartados. Puedo decir igual que no tenia ni idea de este grupo, tampoco de alguna canción. Fue un buen album, pero no uno muy bueno a mi gusto, se acerca a las 4 estrellas.

Good one.

A good album, I liked Deacon Blues and Josie the most.

OK

The only song that stood out to me was Deacon Blues, especially the line "Drink Scotch whiskey all night long and die behind the wheel".

I know a few Steely Dan songs that I like, but this album had none, and, for me, it's generally just unbothering background music. The "Drink Scotch whiskey all night long. And die behind the wheel." was a funny gem though.

People like this?

This music would be a lot of fun in the right setting. I’d love to sit in a small jazz club and listen to stuff like this. For everyday listening, not so much my thing. I almost gave it 4/5 but it wasn’t quite there.

Steely Dan always make great music, so I really like this album too. Three stars...

Black cow - 3 Aja - 3 Deacon blues - 3 Peg - 3 Home at last - 3 I got the news - 3 Josie - 3

3,5/5

Very slick. I like the jazz rock feeling present here. Nothing in particular grabbed me but the compositions are nicely done.

Fått litt mer sansen for dette på mine eldre dager.

I feel in the middle

solid

Classique 3.5/5

Queria dar 3.5 Achei gostosinho de ouvir

3/5. pretty good. might listen again. some songs a bit too trumpetry and waily

very nice

So this morning I had a weird inclination to listen to Steely Dan. Specifically the song Do It Again off of Can't Buy A Thrill which I did positively rate a few weeks ago and do remember fondly. Keep in mind I usually don't rate as soon as I wake up, but anyway I press shuffle on my largest playlist and the song it plays is exactly Do It Again! Then I go to rate my last album, and the new one for today is more Steely Dan! Guess I was fated to enjoy some Steely freakin' Dan today. Anyway, this album is jazzy, it's nice, it's well put together, definitely feels more magnum opus-y and an amalgam of their ideas of what they did before. That being said, I didn't enjoy it as much as Thrill. This is missing some of that fun factor for me which they had on their debut, this feels a bit more clinical. The tracks are also way longer a bit needlessly, and the album kind of blends together but not in a good way. Maybe I'm missing something and will probably revisit on that basis, but this is where I'm at right now.

Dun album. Very calming and lively. The ending of Aja was one of my favorite moments. 6.5/10

I could hear the mix of jazz and pop better this time. I have to intently focus to get anything out of it yet despite that I can barely remember any specific parts. A lot of the time I can’t tell if I’m enjoying it or not. Rating: 3.3

Groovy, smooth jazzy, and mellow.

It's Steely Dan.

It was the best of times, it was the deacon blues of times.

I knew of Steely Dan but never really listened. Quite funky! It's not the best I've heard but not bad at all. Some tracks are a little bit too much elevator music for my tastes. As soon as the opening track "Black cow" starts playing I realize where Chris Sawyer got the musical inspiration when selecting music for the tycoon-games, most prominently Transport Tycoon - trivia for the nerds I guess. No real outstanding track but also none that stands out in a negative way makes this a solid 3,5 for my tastes, rounding down to 3 because I know there'll be a lot of more albums actually worth a 4 in this list.

The songs are really creative and I overall like it. The vocals are pretty dull.

there's something just a tiny bit boring and yacht-rocky and golden oldie about the vocal delivery, but a lot of the instrumentation is pretty sick actually. very busy and fun sound. favorite song is either I Got The News or of course Peg. very strong 3

I legit had no idea of what Steely Dan actually were like, I just assumed something like the Eagles. This album is very much not like that. Man I love this style of 70's bass and drums mixing - so warm, tight, and clean! The arrangements, timbre, production, and song structure were interesting, but I cannot for the life of me recall a single melody. This might need a few revisits later.

6/10

Have I listened to this album before? No How familiar am I with this album? Unfamiliar How do I feel about this artist? Steely Dan is fine but kind of boring Pre-Listen Thoughts: I don’t think I’m gonna fall in love with this but I don’t think I’m gonna hate it either Favorite track(s): Post-Listen Thoughts: This album went by really fast and I don’t know if that’s a compliment or an insult. It just faded into the background so easily and nothing stood out, but it wasn’t unpleasant, it was just Steely Dan.

surprisingly short album, perfect length of songs in my opinion for this album head bopping!

It was fine, not sure it belongs on a greatest of all time list though

5 - AVERAGE

I just... it just makes me mad.

Groovy, fun music. Sounds like Stevie Wonder.

I had a buddy a long time ago who was super into Steely Dan. He’d go on and on about how these guys wrote music. Apparently, the Steely Dan guys were meticulous craftsmen when it can to songwriting and studio production…which I find kinda funny considering they named themselves after a popular dildo at the time. Anyway, my friend wasn’t wrong about the studio production. Aja sounds great. The musicianship is tight and professional. My problem is that, attention to detail aside, Steely Dan does not write songs that excite me in any way. Every song on this record is a finely and meticulously crafted song that I’ll forget about the second the next one starts. And finally, the record will end, and I’ll move onto something less refined that actually inspires something in me, and I’ll forget about the genius of Steely Dan all over again. I’m happy that Steely Dan gives us something that music nerds can obsess about, but I can’t do it. 6/10

This was alright, quite enjoyed it

I'm glad we got a good album today but it does annoy me that Steely Dan is the type of band you KNOW is in the list a disproportionate amount of times. After listening: it's not even that good of an album. It doesn't pain my ears but neither does it excite them.

Good

Grooving bass lines and great lyrics.

Acceptabel, maar gewoon erg bland.

80% Sure ive listened to this already but I will give it another go

Fine not as good as earlier works

Not as good as Can't Buy a Thrill imo

A little boring

Fundamentally, I shouldn’t like this. But there’s something about this Steely Dan that just sort of works. Admittedly, it works best in snippets and small doses. Preferably as a sample on some one else’s record … but I still works.

I liked the sounds of this band's groove du-wops more for some reason than others from this era.

Uma mistura de rock com elementos do jazz, um excelente a ser apreciado com calma, ocasional.

STEELY DAN

Molto bello, però per me non raggiunge can’t buy a thrill

This might be the most decent album of all time. Not great, not bad, just decent.

3.5/5

Ok

groovy, dark, white boy soulish and smooth

Aight

Produced quite well, but the combination of his voice and the slow jazz-rock really made this record forgettable.

Yllätys minulle. Steely Dan vain nimenä tuttu mutta musatyyliään en tuntenut lainkaan. Musana kaukana siitä, mistä pidän. Kuitenkin, jos herrat Becker ja Fagen olivat kuuluisia perfektionismistaan niin totisesti se levyltä kuuluu. Hurjaa virtuositeettia, jota on mukava kuunnella. Ehkä koko albumi tätä kuitenkin vähän liikaa… Hyvä ja ennen muuta taitava levy. 3/5

3 puntos. Melodías que no se te quedan en la cabeza. Es para escuchar una vez y punto.

Very slick and well-produced. I enjoy the jazz elements, but the album’s still a little boring. It’s not commercial slop, but it’s lacking the edge of their first couple albums.

Standouts Black Cow Deacon Blues

This was a good album, I really liked the jazz and funk theme throughout. However there were some places in which it was lacking, like the second track I felt wasn’t the strongest. Favourite - peg

uhhhh its good but it so dad rock, like uhhhhh

its okay, not sure when i would listen to it or if i would listen to it again but i like some songs.

Chill, para poner de fondo

Ideal for those who wish Joni Mitchell's jazz period albums like "Don Juan's Restless Daughter" and "Mingus" sounded a bit more like George Benson or Boz Scaggs. Jazz Rock polished to the point of smooth sterility, it's an audiophile wet dream. Magnificent playing from the very best session players, lush harmonies, but we're a very long way away from "Ricky Don't Lose That Number" or "Reelin' in the Years" and not necessarily the better for it.

I liked it more than I thought I would but no where near as much as John Mulaney apparently does.

Classic 70s radio music. Interesting mix of pop and jazz

sounds cool and well made, but I'd probably have to listen to it more carefully to understand it better. Unfortunately, after one hearing, i wouldn't be able to differentiate between this and similar bands of that time

Steely Dan is not a band I’ve listened to much before, and so it was a treat to listening to this very prog rock album, which features literary references, a plethora of instrumentations, and long, meandering tracks. It grew on me more while listening, but I couldn’t shake the feeling that it was highly polished lounge music. The lyricism is very good, and the innovative harmonies and vocals are interesting and well done, but I didn’t fall in love with any tracks besides “Deacon Blues”. 3 stars for me.

Funky groove but overall listening experience was relatively average. This aside, the record has clearly had influence on future sonic works. 6/10

Can’t Buy a Thrill is definitely Steely Dan’s peak. This was alright, quite a switch up from that album, much more bluesy and jazzy

Favorite: Aja

Prob not the best steely dan songs I've heard, but the style is the same.

Third Steely Dan, and an album which has long been overdue. Shortly after I listened to "Countdown To Ecstasy" I downloaded a bunch of albums onto my phone from the artists of this list whose work I liked and wanted to explore more of. Needless to say, this album was among the 20 or so I downloaded and never got around to hearing. It's been a looong time since the last Steely Dan. About 390 albums - the longest gap to date. I know this is the most acclaimed release from the band, so it seems right to be jumping back in with this album. Here's hoping it's good. Yeah. This is fine, but kind of a bummer. It's unfortunate that my Steely Dan journey began with their debut album as the group have largely been unable to live up to my expectations since. "Can't Buy a Thrill" has an astute musical sense which none of their later albums are able to capture. "The Nightfly" came relatively close, however. I kind of regret undercutting that album by saying it should have been removed from the list - maybe it's due for a relisten. Anyways, this album is duuullll. There's a deafening emptiness hanging over much of this music which can adequately be attributed to how homogenised and one-note the instrumentals are. Admittedly, I admire how well-paired and cohesive the instruments on this album are, but such an approach is diametrically opposed to what I value in music. I like big instrumentals with distinctive, moving parts that work together to form a greater whole while also being dissonant in a way. By comparison, this music is pedestrian to me with how well everything flows together. It's for this reason that I don't see why Wikipedia describes this album is a go-to for audiophiles who want to test their gear. What you hear is what you get with this album, and there isn't much that a good audio setup is capable of animating or fleshing out. Hey, there's "Peg". I, of course, know of this song because of how extensively it was sampled on "Eye Know" by De La Soul - one of the few hip-hop songs I like. The strange feeling of being presented with songs that I'm vaguely familiar with is always enjoyable, particularly in the case of sampling. The first 45 seconds of this song honestly had me on edge. It made me stop what I was doing and stand to attention, trying to pin where I'd heard the funky bass and plucky acoustic guitar before. Even the similar, albeit unsampled "I know they're gonna love it" vocal section managed to slip by me before I was bowled over by that signature sax. It's probably sacreligious to compare a hip-hop track to a boomer rock song, but I honestly can't listen to Peg without wanting to put on Eye Know. The latter song is considerably more fleshed out and has a much fuller sound. By comparison, this tune is competent on the whole, but the dynamism just isn't there. The funky backing instrumental is stretched way too thin for my liking. The other instruments occasionally and intermittently jilt the piece, but never in a way which builds towards something satisfying. That isn't to say the song is bad, however. The sampled components of this song are fundamentally good. I just know where they were put to better use. I don't need to check the book for this album. Like I said earlier, I know that this album is widely considered to be the band's career highlight, so I like to think this album is in here on good authority. I cosign this inclusion.

Album 161. Aja — Steely Dan (1977) Probably the most smooth and jazzy Steely Dan album. I like it, but it's so tiresome... 3/5 Liked: — Black Cow — Deacon Blues — Peg — Josie

Ok

If I hadn’t been on a run I think I may have fallen asleep. How can a band with a name like steely dan be so mellow? In the end I didn’t hate it but it wasn’t for me.

Entiendo porque trasciende, es algo diferente, casi que tiene un sonido único. Al no ser mi tipo no me deja ninguna canción especifica en mi cabeza pero siento que funciona muy bien como álbum. 1.Aja 2.Peg

Está bien, los 70 fueron una década extraña en música…

No real opinion on Steely Dan’s jazz rock thing. Josie only thing here that’s kinda bad but didn’t love anything either. Peg’s the best

There is plenty to value here. Its got obvious songwriting skill, good playing and seems bright and well done. I really tried to engage with it emotionally but couldnt.

Oh lol MFDoom samples that opening track “Black Cow” Great bass lines across this thang, particularly on Home at Last and Peg Probably closer to a 4

FUN

Decent. Not my jam ngl

Le blues n'est pas mon style mais c'était franchement pas mal

LOVED IT

7/10

Hey I actually knew this one already!

3.75 - Funny enough, I got sent a video yesterday that was a piano cord lesson and the last cord was the first cord in the song 'Peg' and it said "YOU JUST GOT PEGGED" And that happened to be today, when I listened to this album. Not my fav steely Dan but absolutely some hits. Fav Songs: Deacon Blues // Peg

There’s one word I can use – smooth. This opening track is just so pleasing to listen to, great little synth solo too. The title track is just an explosion of musicianship. Everyone gets a chance to shine here and there’s great use of dynamics. Though there is great musicianship (I have read that they employed the talents of a bunch of session musicians) I feel a bit let down with some of the songs. Sure they’re polished and sound aesthetically pleasing, but I don’t FEEL much at all from them. It’s kind of hard to explain, I’m torn. I began to feel this as one song bled into the next with not much really grabbing me. It’s a shame as I’d heard about this album from an old band mate a while back so expected something else. There are some more popular SD tracks that I really like, particularly Reelin in the Years which I think is fantastic. Perhaps I’d have liked more in that vein.

I honestly didn't give this a full enough listen, but I absorbed a lot of Steely Dan as a child so I get it. Solid album.

I didn't hate this as much as I thought I would. Actually quite interesting and a few tracks I recognised. One or two I found a little too clever for their own good but not objectionable

I liked can’t buy a thrill more

This is good, I did not know steely Dan sounded like this

No suelo escuchar jazz, me costó un poco osea si me concentraba por ahí vibraba bastante con la canción pero me costo

Honestly a little boring. Have always heard great things about this album but it feel flat for me. Not bad per say, just not memorable.

Me gustó la mezcla de rock y jazz.

The second Steely Dan album in two weeks? God mocks me.

The Yacht Rock Era has given Steely Dan new life post-2000, and I'm glad for them. They're obviously masterful musicians who are the kings of this kind of smooth, jazzy rock. It's something I respect more than I actually enjoy. There's nothing disagreeable on this album; I appreciate their skill and what they pull of in these songs. But I wouldn't cue up Aja on my own volition. "Peg" is fun, but I prefer De La Soul's "Eye Know." Sorry, Jeremy.

Quality production, and the title track has some cool solo parts. Overall, it’s hard to find anything to fault with this album—maybe it’s worth another listen sometime, but for now, a 3.

Good but not enough to push to 4

pink panther tip toe

This was alright, I'm not a huge fan of Steely Dan, I think I enjoyed another album of theirs more than this one, but overall an OK 3 star album

I like the idea of this album more than the actual album. The hits are strong, but the rest of the album did not hold my interest. 3 stars.

This was good, though many of the songs blended together a little too much. I appreciate this but probably wouldn't revisit super often.

I want to like this so much more than I do, but there's a feeling I get with the sound/production value, something to do with soft rock stations and growing up... I don't know. It's like an objectively good album but I guess it's just not for me

okay flute!

cool but nit for me too happy ahhh

7/10

I could listen to it in the background but wouldn’t willingly go out of my way for this. This is better than some of the pretty shirty 2s I’ve heard so I guess it’s in the middle.

Not bad music but some of the tracks were super long and i wish they would have been a little bit shorter

Hmmmm. Fun, smooth, good, but not great. I'd say this is record is super dependent on set & setting. A sunny sunday with a drink in my hand? 6/5 project. And when Aja is at it's best ("Peg" is so obviously it's best), it can teleport you to that sunny day, no matter where you stand. There is a creeping sense of unease this album can instill if you catch it on a bad day. I get how you can hear a facade put up by Steely Dan with their conspicuously easy instrumental deliveries and ultra-shiny lyrics about drinking scotch whiskey. Perhaps a microcosm of my entire listening relationship with Steely Dan, I'll take the hits from this and leave the rest. 3/5

Plutôt bon album. L'ambiance était soigné avec une patte très particulière comme toujours avec Steely Dan. Néanmoins, même si certains éléments ont su sortir de l'ordinaire comme les bass lines de presque tous les morceaux qui happent l'auditoire de manière très efficace, j'ai trouvé l'album assez moyen passé les trois premiers sons, avec une certaine répétitivité dans les sonorités, ce qui est assez dommage connaissant la diversité qu'a pu nous offrir Donald Fagen par la suite. En résumé je trouve l'album assez surcoté pour ce qu'il propose même si ça reste de bonne qualité

I should have been high when listening to this.

Jesus, my second Steely Dan album in a week. This one starts off with a sample I remember from a hiphop track, kind of funky. The guy's voice is slightly less annoying in this track than in the last album I pulled, Countdown to Ecstasy. Later on I hear the sample of De La Soul's Eye Know. Definitely this album is better than Countdown. This is about as good as Can't Buy a Thrill, though it's different, funkier. 3/5

Nothing is really bad or anything per se, but this whole record feels a bit too clean and rigidly structured. It doesn’t feel alive to me. Also I hate the fusion rock saxophone production on here.

Heard it so much I can’t objectively rate it…

Steely Dan is a the safest music I’ve ever heard.

This is one of those albums that I've seen everywhere and I know it's a total classic but I don't think I've ever heard it. I was never really in to Steely Dan but I don't think I have any real negative thoughts towards them either. I appreciate their jazzier vibes and their musicianship is always amazing. Looking forward to listening to this one. Ok so this album is incredibly well played and orchestrated. Really really good musicianship here. There is definitely nothing you can fault in that department. But I feel like the whole album is just lacking something. I can't really say what. It's a bit too shiny and polished maybe? It's all very bright and new sounding. And there's nothing that really grabs you and pulls you in. I feel like this could be playing in the background and you might pick up a bit here and there but it wouldn't really make you listen. I get why it's a classic but there are much better albums out there. This one kind of needs to pick a lane. 3.5/5 but rounding down because it isn't quite there to round up.

Not my thing. If I am going to listen to that type of music I would much rather prefer Frank Zappa

This is a kind of soft-rock that I think is now pejoratively termed "yacht rock". My Dad loves Steely Dan; all I could think about while listening to it was "oh, where have I heard that before?"

Peg is an undeniable banger.

Was fine I guess but not memorable

Yeah, what should I think of this? Nice music, sure, but it doesn't do much for me.

Listened to this on the plane to Ireland. Yet again reinforces that my brain likes jazzy tunes. I guess i wouldnt call this album suuuuper memorable but I saved one song.

Good listen! Very chill sound.

bacano, no me gustan los temas así tan largos y tiene un par pero el estilo fue cool, depronto muy tranquilo pra mi gusto

It was so vibey, but when focusing on it I could not grasp any substance. Yet it was, so vibey. Like a lackluster meal but it's drenched in heavenly sauce. The sauce on this album was so good.

Ive been forced to listen to this album for the last 9 years and my parents liked this album, so suffice it to say, ive been conditioned to enjoy Aja. It actually is good, more catchy innuendo songs. Deacon Blues probably the best song off this.

I always find myself saying, “I didn’t know this was steely Dan, maybe I do like them.” And then I hear the rest of the album and realize I don’t really like them that much.

Good for a lark, but not something I come back to a lot. I was just talking to a friend about Steely Dan last week and told them they're the kind of band I like on a play list, but not the kind of band who's records I would collect. Also, they're insufferable, pretentious dorks (trust me - takes one to know one), which makes them hard to like.

JAaaz?

Liked but all Steely Dan songs sound the same to me.

Smooooth. Steely Dan makes a jazzy argument for sax in music.

"Deacon Blues" and "Peg" are the standouts for me and perhaps it's because they're the two I know best. I like Steely Dan but I have to be in the right mood or frame of mind for Steely Dan because otherwise it's too much. Like I prefer to hear Steely Dan mixed in on a classic rock radio station because I know after one of their songs is over then I'll hear Hotel California or some Led Zeppelin. Nothing but Steely Dan is honestly a bit much.

I think it is a 3

Got some nostalgia going on here. Dad fixed up a 1937 Chevy in the early 80s and put an 8 track in it. Aja was in heavy rotation in that car. Here for it, remembering good times going to "rod runs" with my dad.

Short and sweet! 3.5

This album sounded a lot better than it actually was… Urgh i wish i liked this. I liked all of the ingredients, which is why i’m a bit disappointed by the final product. That being said, i still like a lot of this album and it’s generally pleasant

This was a nice smooth listen but nothing sensational. That being said I feel like this is an album that will grow on me with more listens and then I will appreciate it more.

Very bluesy and they really liked to jam. It was good- easy to work to while I listened. Not a lot caught my attention. I didn't recognize any of the songs, though I had heard of Steely Dan before. Glad I am now familiar with their sound.

not really my vibe but I appreciated peg, home at last and josie. there are some cool basslines on this album

Latter half of Black Cow was really good. I like quite a bit of it, but will likely never rate something like this a 5

My brother like Peg and the song after peg!

Groovy!

Saxamaphone.

This was fun! I enjoyed it!

Glad to finally have listened to Aja, I liked it quite a bit. Jazzy, great players and a horn section, good stuff. The songs are good, I enjoyed the music but I couldn't get over the lyrics. Laughably cliche, and distractingly bad.

All I can think of when I hear Steely Dan's Aja is the hundreds of tons of drugs that must have been consumed by all of the boomers in the mid to late 1970s while they listened to Steely Dan playing on the hi-fi in the background of a key party (if they ever actually happened) while they openly wore velour and huge bell bottoms and leisure suits that they just picked up at Sears. Clearly these guys were talented, I just don't like their music very much. Peg is not bad.

Surprisingly eclectic, I think I heard some reggae, all most jazz bud mostly soft rock. Nice music to have on the background I wouldn't mind listening to more by the band. 3,4/5.

Nice ans smooth classi rock Talented musicians

Nice sounds but everything is too similar and too caged in its genre. Can't see anything revolutionary in this. Nonetheless nice vibes.

Yea

This feels VERY produced for jazz, but it's enjoyable.

Fun album to listen to, but not my jam. I liked the production quality of this album.

jazzy-funky. sterile in a good way, and that's all there is to say about it. you can safely play it in the background for evening listening at home

liked this more than i thought i would, groovy pre PSA elevator music core (with compliments)

bonne musique d'ambiance

Great album. Good flow throughout.

Background music

Solid album with lots of hits!

Vibey and cool - not what I imagined having heard the name Steely Dan many times but not listened to the music befofe.

had it on in the background while i worked and it was very unobtrusive. 3 stars

C'est beige. Pas mauvais, juste beige.

It was a great album. Got me back into jazz second song too long didnt listen completely loll. But its nice i would def listen again.

3 1/2

better than expected

3.5/5

✅️

this album is just ok

Surprisingly groovy

Their minor 5th orchestration is annoying, but compared to what passes as music these days they are ok

Prima

Infectiously fun vibes, albeit this falls off a bit towards the end. I know "Peg" from somewhere, but I can't place it.

It‘s ok, not great, not bad, just okay.

My first thought of Aja is a drag queen not steely dan. I didn't actually mind this, though.

I wanted to appreciate this album (which I'd checked out previously without "getting it") - I gave it a couple of listens, but still felt most of it is too cool to engage me. I far prefer the energy and warmth (together with interesting chords, rhythms etc) of The Royal Scam. The title track is "well made" but doesn't really attract me to play it again. Same for most of the other tracks. One stand-out, I like Peg from start to finish (faster tempo, nice funky riffs and hooks) - was chuffed to realise this was the song heavily sampled for Eye Know - interesting guitar solo, slapping bass - I'll listen to that song again, but without the rest of the album. Since each song in isolation is at least moderately interesting - I give the album as a whole a 3 rather than a 2.

Nice chill vibes, something to play in the background

Goeie lobbyvibe

- 0 nummers toegevoegd aan MMMM - 0 nummers al toegevoegd aan MMMM

Okay

It's not my usual kind of vibe, but it's still good and I actually went back afterwards to listen to it again. Great find!

Didnt leave mutch of an impression to me. Not overtly bad or horrible to listen to but wont be listening to this album any time soon.

I dont have too much to say. Steely Dan is okay. Some songs have some swangin', but they are kinda samey

This was a nice album that somehow didn't really leave an impression on me, but in a weirdly good way. It was all genuinely nice to listen to, the grooves were great. But simultaneously nothing really stuck to me. Even in writing this review I struggle to say what exactly was good. Exactly the type of album I'd put on if I had a record player, because I feel like you can't go wrong with this. 7.5/10

On a donc aujourd'hui du jazz rock. Un mélange qui devrait en principe me parler, mais j'ai trouvé que j'avais surtout affaire à une version édulcorée de chaque genre, même si c'est bien interprété et que ça sera faux de dire que c'est un mauvais album. Mais pas rapport à ce que peuvent produire des artistes comme Cynic ou certains albums d'Allan Holdsworth, ça me semble un petit peu faible.

It was my style of music but surprisingly it was a little hard to listen to the album bc it got a little boring at times I was confused what the goal was supposed to be

As far as production goes, impeccable. The songs are all good, but I personally feel no motivation coming back to this album, except maybe for one or two songs. In the end, I feel the album has more going on in its backbone than in the final product.

Yessss. What a wonderful and fun album. Brilliant cooking music or just something easy to listen to on the go. It’s a short album so it’s digestible and offers uplifting but interesting jazz. Would listen to again.

this was a vibe while cooking some tacos

(71/100)

There are better Styx records

to paraphrase Lux Interior, Dad music for Dad people.

I liked it but I wasn't blown away. The hits are elsewhere.

Pleasant.

not something i'd typically listen to but i really enjoyed

Opet background music. Zvuk mi jeste primamljiv ali nekako ne privlaci mi paznju mnogo. Peg i Home at last najbolje sa albuma def

Groovy, not necessarily a stand out but enjoyed my listen!

Genre: Jazz-Rock Steely Dan has been a group with surprising longevity. Fagen was the architect of a very clean, very meticulously produced, sophisticated studio sound, and would continue in this vein through Aja and beyond. Aja is good, enjoyable even, but I almost feel like I'm meant to study this as a music lesson rather than a rock album. It's good, sometimes very good, but I personally don't see myself revisiting this very often. Good record. Best enjoyed while feeling like a douchebag (endearingly). 3/5

Didn’t enjoy as much as Pretzel Logic. The only one I recognised was because it was sampled by De La Soul!

1st listen: nothing wrong but nothing inspiring.

Favourite Tracks: Black Cow Deacon Blues Peg Home at Last

ik ben erg fan van t album, t lied aja zelf vind ik 50/50 wel. Instrumenten zijn echt gaaf maar ik ben weer van de old school manier van zingen in rock liedjes (door mannen) trekt me niet zo aan. maar good album!

Nice for background, calming. Wouldn't play it for myself tho.

It was fine

Short and classic. Peg is great!

Polished yacht rock. I would have hated this back in the day, but 40 year old me gets it. 3/5

6/10

This is perfectly acceptable chill music. It would be a great song on the radio but like … you know… it’s fine 3/5

Solid jazz vibes

The Yacht Rock Era has given Steely Dan new life post-2000, and I'm glad for them. They're obviously masterful musicians who are the kings of this kind of smooth, jazzy rock. It's something I respect more than I actually enjoy. There's nothing disagreeable on this album; I appreciate their skill and what they pull of in these songs. But I wouldn't cue up Aja on my own volition. "Peg" is fun, but I prefer De La Soul's "Eye Know." Sorry, Jeremy.

Don’t love his voice, but great instrumental work

I prefer the Dan’s earlier sound: jazz-inflected rock, blues, and soul (as opposed to this rock-inflected jazz and schmaltz). “Peg” is a great tune, though.

It's actually better than the Young Gods album. "Aja" has some ordinary '70s rock tunes. There's nothing to write home about. I believe this is the 2nd Steely Dan album I've listened to. I wonder when I'll get an album that's 4 stars and up. 3 stars for "Aja".

V/rv

Great line-up, ambition and artistry, certainly well done, but the music doesn't speak to me.

Not bad, not something I would put on myself - maybe it requires more familiarity to really get into?

Very enjoyable listen.

Lots of fun but a little too lounge jazz for me

It was fine; very focused on the intricate instrumentals; would be good as background music at a dinner party

One of the finer examples of musical & studio prowess sucking the life out of a work of art. Is it good? Technically yes, of course it is. Is it boring? Definitely yes, it sure is.

I liked Peg thanks to De La Soul, the rest is just kinda mid and not particularly exciting. 6/10 Favourite track: Peg

It's definitely a good-sounding album, but man is it easy listening and not very interesting at all. I think the word is "inoffensive." Very easy listening. Fine for background music but I have no idea why this album would be in the National Recording Registry for being "culturally, historically, or artistically significant."

Smooth.

Almost designed to be uninvolving.

Good musician, not my kind of music

Cheesy but great

I can't help but think of Steve Albini's 2023 twitter post while listening to this album. If punk truly is a rebellion to what this album represents, I think I understand why I am not crazy about this.

Very middle of the road/beige for me - suspect I’m missing something

i guess punk happened because of this. and thats good. some good points but mostly boring. Largely overrated. 3/5

Henry loves these guys. I’ve heard a lot of their songs via his playlist and do like some of them. Nick asked me specifically to look for this album as his one choice when I asked him what I could look for for him while album hunting. I hear the yacht rock perfection here, but I’m not sure ‘yacht rock’ and ‘perfection’ belong in the same sentence. I just don’t get it, I guess, but, like a fading Kegel squeeze, these songs just can’t hold me for long

I am Steely Dan neutral. I have no strong Steely Dan opinions.

later

Yacht rock

I qualify this review by saying that I've drunk quite a lot of wine, hence my focus is somewhat lacking! This had a lot more funk and groove than I was expecting which certainly wasn't unpleasant but at the same time the album didn't really grab me beyond that fact. For the most part, it just happened while I was listening. The only thing I really noted is that _Peg_ is sampled by **De La Soul** on their song _Eye Know_. I strongly doubt that I'll listen to this again, not because I disliked it as such, but because I don't remember any other bit of it.

Steely Danin biiseissä on semmoinen siisti äänimaailma aina. Chilleintä rokkia mitä on. Ja tosi funkkia. On nää Steely Danin levyt kyllä aina tosi kovia. Parhaat: Home At Last, I Got The News

Bit of a mixed bag. Some really good stuff.

Smooth as shit off a ducks ass

Who spells Aja like that

Super Meh. 2.5 stars

Harmless, but lacking in oomph. Good lift music.

Imagine, IMAGINE, being so into Steely Dan that you can muster four separate opinions about four separate albums. Baffling.

Hmmm....human music.

Would never really put this on just apropos of nothing, and these boys took 'emselves too seriously and it sounds like maybe were very undude with their studio musicians, but there's some songcraft here and if you can't see or appreciate it that's a you problem.

These dues have such serious music chops. Jazz rock fusion makes for some buttery soft yacht rock. Deacon Blues is such a jam. Peg is such a good fuckin song. Really this whole album is me going, “dang that’s a good song.” A generation of ska was made by marching band kids getting together and wanting to go nuts. This band feels like a bunch of jazz musicians getting together and doing rock n roll. I feel like a can diagram of steely Dan fans and Dave Matthew’s band fans is a circle. This is very good music that makes me feel nothing beyond, “wow this is very good music.” Which is good.

Great production and musicianship. I just wish it had more soul. Peg is a bop, though.

Not bad, not great. I’m not big into Steely Dan, but liked the 70s rock/funk feel. Favorite Song(s): Peg

6/10… yacht pop / elevator music

Not really my thing although quite relaxing to listen to. It did spur me on to look into more of Steely Dan's music (I have never really listened to them before). I love: Do it Again (different album). It does sound like Pharrell W. spent a long time listening to Reelin' in the Years.

Smooth, well produced jazz-rock that lacks the vigor and passion of either genre. We do get some quality instrumental playing, but the music has a smoothness and polish to it that makes it more palatable to the average listener. Lyrics are unimportant and take a back seat to the actual music, which is competently performed but lacks emotion.

Cool funky 70s rock

3.5 stars

A jazz-rock album which fuses cool jazz, blues, and pop into a masterpiece of an album. The production and mixing are amazing; filling soft melodies with jazzy solos and rich background instrumentals which flow seamlessly with each track.

Steely Dan is so hard to put in a genre box. Is it jazz, is it rock, is it pop? It's a bit of all of those things.