(I got the) News | Issue 33

The meaning of Steely Dan's "Only a Fool Would Say That"

Aug 07, 2024

I heard it was you / Talking ’bout a world where all is free / It just couldn’t be / And only a fool would say that are the titular lyrics in Steely Dan‘s “Only a Fool Would Say That.” Based on the title alone, one could likely guess that this song is somewhat cutting.
But just who are Steely Dan pointing a finger at? Well, as it turns out, another musical icon: John Lennon.

Steely Dan vs. The Eagles: Rivals Revisited

They are both hyper-proficient soft-rock acts that peaked commercially in the late ’70s. They both fizzled out in the early ’80s, and then reunited in the early ’90s. They are both led by male songwriting duos — in each instance, one guy is named Don and the other guy died in the late 2010s at the age of 67.
They are both famous for writing about “the dark side of L.A.” in a manner that actually glamorizes (to the point of likely driving up the population of) America’s second-largest city. They are both managed by iconic “Satan” Irving Azoff. They both employed the services of Timothy B. Schmit, a man who seems too sweet for either band.
Both bands were skeptical of punk, which is why expressing distaste for the Eagles and Steely Dan remains meaningful for a certain kind of aging Gen Xer fond of posting provocative opinions on social media. They were both sampled by landmark hip-hop albums in 1989 — 3 Feet High And Rising for Steely Dan, and Paul’s Boutique for the Eagles. I could go on.

"Vintage" Walter Becker/Donald Fagen Interviews Still Hold Interest

Kubernik recounts: late one night in the early summer of 1977 Donald Fagen and Walter Becker drove over from their Malibu pads to KPFK (90.7) FM where, with Los Angeles Times music writer/critic Richard Cromelin, I was co-hosting a show and after chatting with us for a few hours they whipped out an acetate of Aja and spun for us “Black Cow” and “Deacon Blues”—along with some vintage jazz selections from the station’s library. We’d actually hosted the world premier of Aja!

Liner Notes for Chad Kassem’s Reissue Series

Not so long ago, Chad Kassem, the boss man at Acoustic Sounds, asked me to come up with some liner notes for his Steely Dan reissue series.
In order to establish the proper frame of mind in which to write these liner notes, I've packed my Castello root briar pipe with a fragrant wad of Balkan Sobranie. I'm not sure what Nat Hentoff or George Avakian used to smoke, but this combination ought to do for now. I already have the beard.
Let's plunge right in, shall we?

💬 The (always excellent) world of Expanding Dan:

What it's like to be axed by Steely Dan

Drummer Chris Parker talks about his pressure-packed "Time Out of Mind" session, missing the cut on 'Gaucho,' and redemption on 'Kamakiriad'

🎧 Gaucho Amigos: A Steely Dan Podcast.

Hosted by Alex Preiss (creator of the popular Good Steely Dan Takes X account) with sincere love and embarrassingly deep knowledge, Gaucho Amigos explores how a couple of funny-looking, misanthropic beatniks became the two most unlikely rock stars of the ‘70s.

Latest episode: Engineer, mixer, and producer Elliot Scheiner, who won Grammys for his work on Aja, Gaucho, and Two Against Nature, joins the podcast to talk all about his experiences working on those classic Steely Dan albums, and more.