Aja Steely Dan

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CD - Remastered

  • Release Date: 11/23/1999
  • Original Release: 1977
  • Sales Rank: 664
  • Label: MCA
  • UPC: 008811205621

Listener Rating: (8 ratings)

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CD - Remastered$50.99

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  • Overview
  • Tracks
  • Editorial Reviews
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  • Details & Credits
Track List
Click on LISTEN or link to hear an audio clip.
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Aja

1LISTENBlack Cow 5:10
2LISTENAja 8:00
3LISTENDeacon Blues 7:36
4LISTENPeg 4:00
5LISTENHome at Last 5:35
6LISTENI Got the News 5:07
7LISTENJosie 4:30

About this Artist

Editorial Reviews

By this late stage, Steely Dan was less a band than an all-star aggregation of studio musicians assembled to perform the works of Donald Fagen and Walter Becker. On AJA, the two leaders assembled one of their finest units and made them sound like a road-tested, hard-bop quintet (and in fact, the band included legendary jazz saxophonist Wayne Shorter). Though the lyrics on "Aja" and "Black Cow" were typically oblique, the Steely Dan sound touched a pop nerve, as proved by the staying power of the latter song's billowy bass line, sampled in the late '90s for hits by Tatyana Ali and Lord Tariq and Peter Gunz. And when Fagen and Becker turned wistful on "Deacon Blues" -- particularly the verse, "They call Alabama the Crimson Tide/Call me Deacon Blues" -- they created an enduring hit. "Peg," "I Got the News," and "Josie" also found their way onto certain radio formats, but, sadly, this recording marked the end of a glorious era for Steely Dan: The duo released one more album before moving on to solo projects and, ultimately, the obligatory reunion efforts. Martin Johnson, Barnes & Noble



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Customer Reviews

This disk is excellent for long-time and very dedicated Steely Dan fans.by Anonymous

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April 06, 2009: There is no question that this disk will evoke many fond memories of Steely Dan's earlier hits. The sound quality for the vocals and musical accompanyment was excellent and the recording was true to the material and performances of Steely Dan of yesteryear.

While playing the album, I realized that I no longer had the patience nor the inclination to listen to several of his longer arrangements such as "Black Cow". I proably would have enjoyed shorter and more up-beat hits such as "Ricky Don't Lose that Number". There is no question that music such as Steely Dan's Aja remains true to its time and place; however, our tastes in music, for example, may change as swiftly as the constantly moving beat of our own lives over time.

The best Steely Dan albumby Anonymous

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September 09, 2004: 'Aja' is about as sophisticated and professional that rock music got during the 1970's, and the high point of Steely Dan's recorded works. I remember first hearing the 'Aja' hits "Peg" and "Josie" when there were first on FM rock radio in the late '70s and how different they sounded from anything else at the time (and to this day). It's always been hard to describe Steely Dan music, but their influence has loomed large on 'lite jazz' music (i.e. much of what appeared on the GRP label, jazzers who have a leaning for pop styles), and any rock acts that wanted to reach for more highly developed musical pastures and professional studio craft (i.e. Billy Joel, Doobie Brothers, Eagles), just as the Beatles did in the late '60s when (just like Steely Dan later) ceased touring to concentrate on studio recording. Similar to how after hearing Edward Van Halen and Randy Rhoads (the late guitarist on the first two solo Ozzy Osbourne albums), that the hard rock and metal guitarist had to re-evaluate his thinking on the genre, after hearing 'Aja', anyone who was a studio musician had a new benchmark to reference (not that previous SD albums weren't amazingly brilliant, 'The Royal Scam' in particular). The title track has arguably the finest Steve Gadd drumming ever; plus the song itself is just about perfection in every way imaginable.


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