Walter Becker and Donald Fagen, music masterminds

What a treat it was going to be to hear the great Steely Dan again in concert. I saw them two years ago at the Chicago Theater, where they played the album Gaucho straight through. That concert was so good and fresh in my memory, that I couldn’t let them come through Chicago again without making it out to the venue. The choice of Ravinia was a bit puzzling, but hey… beggars can’t be choosers. More on that later.

Ravinia is an outdoor venue with a huge lawn area that sprawls through a park. Unlike other sheds around the country, the lawn area is not up on a hill. Thus, you can’t actually see the band. They have speakers placed throughout the park so you can hear the music.

Jam-Packed Ravinia Festival

The show started at 8:12pm under cloudy skies. Rain was in the forecast, but we were hopeful for a miss. I’d heard that Fagen’s voice was shot, so that was a concern. However, my fears were soon allayed, as Fagen sounded just like his old self. “Your Gold Teeth” started the night off in great fashion. I’d never heard it live and in doing some research, found they hadn’t performed it live EVER before the 2011 tour. It’s an uptempo jazz keyboard track from 1973′s Countdown to Ecstasy, infused with lots of strange drug and cultural references (do you know who Cathy Berberian is?).

minor flooding at Ravinia

From that point on, the concert contained many familiar arrangements of songs that I’ve heard over the years. Yet, they never fail to impress. The band is really tight, with nary a note out of place. See the setlist below for links to some great live footage of Steely Dan, highlighting particular solos for your viewing pleasure.

Heavy rains came down at 9:20, as the band launched into “Dirty Work” from 1972′s debut album, Can’t Buy A Thrill. Since Fagen didn’t sing on the original, he gave way to The Embassy Brats (aka the three background singers). It is slowed down a little and comes across as more soulful than the record. The ladies were great! Some of the less intrepid or less interested ran for the exits, but the vast majority stuck it out through the end.

The place was rocking by 9:30, as we headed down an impressive stretch of crowd-pleasing songs: “Josie”, “Peg” and “My Old School”. “Reeling in the Years” was next and dancing ensued! The band has a new coda to the song, a short, yet impressive bit of a drum solo by the great Keith Carlock.

A single encore song was played (“Kid Charlemagne”) before Fagen and Becker left the stage to the light jazzy strains of “Theme from Last Tango in Paris”. My immediate reaction was one of disappointment. Done already? I checked the clock and it was 10:20pm. The show had gone on for over 2 hours, with no intermission. The time simply flew. That is the hallmark of having a good time!

Without any new material to go on the road with since 2003, the band still manages to sell out venues wherever they go. This is a testament to Dan fans’ love of great material and an even greater presentation of said material. Fagen and Becker tour with a group of all-star musicians, most of whom have been together since the Two Against Nature tour (2000). See the lineup below, with video highlights included.

The Miles High Big Band
featuring The Embassy Brats

Donald Fagen [Vocals, Keyboards]
Walter Becker [Guitar, Storyteller] – tasty guitar solo followed by funny story during “Hey Nineteen”. Click HERE to see it, starting at 2:06.
Jim Beard [Keyboards]
Keith Carlock [Drums] – this guy is awesome and really lives up to the legendary drummers he’s filling in for on these songs. Click HERE and check the 6:55 mark for the tremendous outtro to “Aja”.
Jon Herington [Guitar] – sublime take on “Kid Charlemagne”, making the great Larry Carlton solo all his own. Click HERE and go to 3:55.
Michael Leonhart [Trumpet, Keys] – See the 3:52 mark of “Your Gold Teeth” for a jazzy trumpet solo. Click HERE.
Jim Pugh [Trombone] – nice trombone solo during “Hey Nineteen”. See it HERE starting at the 5:50 mark.
Roger Rosenberg [Baritone Saxophone]
Freddie Washington [Bass]
Walt Weiskopf [Saxophone] – see his outtro solo on “Deacon Blues” HERE, from the 6:14 mark through the end of the song.

The Embassy Brats:
Carolyn Leonhart-Escoffery [B. Vocals]
Cindy Mizelle [B. Vocals]
Catherine Russell [B. Vocals]

A Small Complaint Or Two
The Dan played the night before at Ravinia as well, with a special setlist. They played the 1977 album Aja in it’s entirety, followed by a smattering of hits. The concert I attended was billed as a “By Popular Demand” night, meaning that fans could go to a website and request the setlist. This must be rigged! Did fans really request “Time Out Of Mind” without Michael McDonald there to lend his backing vocal which dominates the middle section? Did they want to hear “Show Biz Kids“? OK, I take that back. People do love to sing along to the F word! But what about “GodWhacker”? Only hardcore fans know this tune from 2003′s Everything Must Go. Great song and all, but if this was truly a request show, it wouldn’t make the cut. Where the heck was “Deacon Blues”, “Do It Again”, “Bad Sneakers”, “FM (No Static At All)”, “Rikki Don’t Lose That Number” and “Pretzel Logic”? All are either huge hits or big FM radio staples.

Also, in the middle of the set, Steely Dan busted into James Brown’s “Papa Don’t Take No Mess”. Great song, great groove… but the Dan used this time to introduce each member of the band, giving them all a short solo. Well, this isn’t a small group of people. The song stretched 11 MINUTES! I understand that these are all crack musicians whom deserve recognition, but c’mon… this could have been done in 2-3 minutes and they could have given us at least 2 more Steely Dan songs!

Here is a performance of “Reeling In The Years” from July 2011, in HD…

Some Dan History
Group leaders, Donald Fagen and Walter Becker, formed Steely Dan in 1972 in an effort to bring their pop-rock-jazz fusion to the masses. Their very first single, “Do It Again”, went right up the charts in November, 1972 – peaking at #6 in the USA. Four months later, “Reeling In The Years” made it to #11. A year later, “Rikki Don’t Lose That Number” would top them both, going to #4 in the country.

With that great start under their belts, the group shook things up. Always perfectionists in the studio, Fagen and Becker were often at odds with other members of the band. By 1975 the group became simply a duo; augmented with top-notch studio musicians. While there were less big hits from 1974-1977, the band’s music progressed, gaining an even bigger following. The writing became more interesting musically and lyrically, as the band brought a sarcastic and often dark wit along with serious rock and jazz chops to many of the songs. In 1981, with their latest (and last for a long time) album having spawned another top-10 hit (“Hey Nineteen”), the duo called it quits and didn’t record again until 2000. Read more Steely Dan history HERE.

Warning to music lovers planning a trip to Ravinia
Ravinia began as a destination for a serious music crowd. Patrons went to hear opera, classical or chamber music. They were aficionados, there to listen and enjoy music. But as the years have passed, the organizers realized they could make a lot more money by bringing in popular acts. They could charge much higher prices for pavilion seats, while keeping lawn seats reasonable. Pavilion seats for Steely Dan were $85. Lawn were only $33 – a bargain!

Now, when attending pop or rock concerts, people with lawn seats can expect to hear plenty of audience chatter. People who are not huge music fans treat the occasion as a time to socialize. This is due partly because it’s a picnic setting, so it’s natural to gather in a circle around the food and talk. But, it’s also partly due to free-flowing alcohol, which the park allows customers to bring in. Most show up well before showtime. By the end of the evening, you could be there drinking for 5 hours straight!

This is why I feel Ravinia was a curious choice for Steely Dan. Above all, they value the quality of music and the quality of sound. So, to have that big sound coming out of what can’t be state of the art speakers in a park full of talking people seems like an anomaly to me.

I’m not complaining, mind you. I’ve been there many times and knew what to expect. This is just a PSA… if you really love the artist or band you are going to see at Ravinia, then you should splurge on Pavilion seats.

Setlist

Intro: Dizzy’s Bidness
Your Gold Teeth
Aja
Black Friday
Hey Nineteen
Time Out of Mind
GodWhacker
Black Cow
Show Biz Kids
Bodhisattva
Dirty Work
Papa Don’t Take No Mess
(James Brown cover – band introductions)
Babylon Sisters
Josie
Peg
My Old School
Reeling in the Years
Encore:
Kid Charlemagne
Outro: Last Tango in Paris Theme