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25 of 29 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Confirmation of the Genius of Becker, 19 Jun 2008
It goes without saying, given the fact that Donald Fagen handles vocals for Steely Dan and has released three not-un-Dan-like solo albums, that it is unclear what the contribution is of his Steely Dan writing partner Walter Becker to the authorship of that classic music.
We have for a while had to assume that perhaps what is lacking from the Dan sound on Fagen's solo work is indicative of what Becker's contribution to Dan might be - therefore one posits that Becker brings in a more ballsy rockier musical contribution, some additional lyrical bite, some extra rough edges, some extra harmonic spice....
Added to this, Becker didn't help himself in terms of this conjecture when he released his first solo album '11 Tracks of Whack' a few years back, which, while entertaining and a supreme effort by anyone's standards, occupied a somewhat more pared down and less slick approach to production than anything that would grace a Steely Dan album or anything solo by Fagen.
Now finally with his new album 'Circus Money' we get to hear what Becker brings to Steely Dan making clear his claim to the 50/50 collaboration with Fagen. It is the true confirmation of his genius.
Anyone put off by Walt's un-Dan-like debut should disregard that concern immediately. This music hits all the right buttons for lovers of Steely Dan - and, idiomatic as the vocal melodies and lyrics would have been to Don's delivery, Walt delivers the goods so well vocally that Don is not missed here.
Generally, aside from a couple of tracks (notably 'Somebody's Saturday Night') I think the album requires around three listens to really bed in and to have it's genius felt.
All the tracks are brilliant - there are no duds here - and there is a sunny reggae feel to many of them (remember 'Haitian Divorce'?). The album is tightly played by an elite group of musicians. It has all the great backing vocals, solo breaks, harmonic departures, catchy melodies, well articulated intelligent lyrics, slinky atmospheres, awesome production (care of co-writer Larry Klein - although I'm sure Becker's hands aren't too far from the controls...), awesome audiophile recording and mastering - every great thing that you would expect from a Dan related album.
If you are looking at this, the likelihood is that you are already familiar with some of the music of Steely Dan and Becker and Fagen solo. If you liked that music then I recommend you buy this album without hesitation.
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8 of 11 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
LP of the year so far, 11 Jul 2008
This LP proves (as the previous reviewer says) that WB has an equal claim to the genius that is Steely Dan. In fact it is a better LP than Fagen's 'Morph the Cat'.If you are into bland indie-pop nonsense or read the NME then do not bother with this. It's just very very good songwriting and playing. Was a bit worried before buying that it was going to sound like UB40. Thankfully not. 'Paging Audrey' and 'Downtown Cannon' particularly could hold their own against most SD songs. His voice is much better than on '11 tracks...' is a bit Dylan-like in parts without being too much of a homage.
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7 of 10 people found the following review helpful:
2.0 out of 5 stars
Sadly, A Case of The Emperor's New Clothes , 12 Aug 2008
I'll start by nailing my colours to the mast. I am a fan. I have bought every Steely Dan and related solo release, plus other spin-offs, since Can't Buy A Thrill way back in 1972, when I was still in my old school. They are, or at least once were, the best band in the world. Ever. I've also had the great pleasure of seeing them live. But by a big margin this has to be the least interesting album to emerge from the whole Dan franchise.
I've observed over the years that many Steely Dan fans simply refuse to believe that Don and Walt are capable of serving up anything less than absolute perfection. And for a long while, that may just have been true. But the cracks have started appearing. Sadly, I just don't see where the euphoria for this new album comes from. I sense that it may be 'the Emperor's new clothes' syndrome at work.
I'd been looking forward to this new one for so long, but sadly Circus Money is just so ordinary. Whereas almost every track on Becker's first solo album 11 Tracks of Whack back in 1994 was brimful of originality, this is such a tired affair and most of the songs are so unmemorable. And on top of that, Walt sounds so disinterested. It's a largely one-paced affair, the reggae-lite arrangements are ultimately irritating (I just don't understand the comparisons with Haitian Divorce - that had verve and zip and, boy, it ROCKED) and, by and large, even the lyrics lack the Dan's normal bite. Give me "Surf and/or Die", "Cringemaker" "Hat Too Flat" "Down In the Bottom" and "Lucky Henry" over most of these cuts. I still listen to Tracks of Whack, 14 years on. I doubt that I'll be playing this new one in 14 weeks' time. Shame. Roll on the next Dan album, and hopefully a return to form.
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