Steely Dan - Katy Lied

Early Steely Dan rocker

Early Steely Dan rocker that sold on a solid delivery and tight harmonics. Very popular and a good listen time and again. November 5, 2008

SHM-CD Nice Upgrade

This is the 2nd SHM-CD version of Steely Dan I bought. I am comparing this to the recent 1999 remastered editions.

The SHM-CD's are issued by Universal Music, it says in the liner notes that these are the 1999 remasterd editions by Roger Nichols. but Theses SHM-CD's sound alot brighter and a little cleaner due to the material. Incomparing the Aja CD, I own the MFSL Gold editon and the SHM-CD, the MFSL sounds alot warmer, but they both have to be turned up alot to hear it. This seems to be the case with alot of 1970's CD's that have been remastered the levels are still a bit low.

Do yourself a favor and buy these editons (SHM-CD) of AJA and Katy Lied. I know the rest of there tittles are availble as well (Japan Only)I've seen them on e-bay as a box set for 200.00 +, but I have seen AJA, Katy Lied and Gaucho by them selves for about 28.00 EA... July 26, 2008

Sardonic & Stylish

Katy Lied exemplifies the Steely Dan mantra- acerbic (Black Friday), maybe even creepy (Everyone's Gone To The Movies) lyrics that confound even the staunchest Dan fan (Rose Darling) combined with lush (Bad Sneakers), beautiful (Doctor Wu), thoughtful (Your Gold Teeth II) music. This makes Steely Dan an acquired taste, but it's this dichotomy that makes Becker and Fagen the underrated geniuses they are.

Although neither Walter nor Donald liked the sound of the album, this ranks as perhaps their best album. July 8, 2008

A glittering gem with shadows around it

If you appreciate the precision, beauty, incisiveness, and atmosphere Steely Dan conjures, this is for you. Albums don't get any finer than this.

A skilled actor knows that tears withheld are far more poignant than buckets cried, and this work shows the same beautiful, painful restraint. Each track can stand alone in this dark short-story collection, but when this CD is viewed as a whole, you're immersed in Steely Dan's parallel world of the singular loner. The instrumentals are perfect, and Fagen's voice is at its alternately cool and urgent best. As intimate and bittersweet as this music is, we're not left to appreciate just the vignettes and melodies because the craftsmanship is there too, once you manage to think past the tales and reflect on what lays behind them.

New SD fans will find this CD delivers swift understanding of SD's realm, while old time fans will count this as the heart of their collection.

Sometimes you listen to a work and understand that it represents the artist's efforts to connect to the audience. This isn't like that. This is inner thoughts simply put out there, and is why it's Steely Dan at their purest, just being without regard to marketability or hit potential. Making this work was probably an act of faith, knowing that people who needed to get it would. June 23, 2008

Their Best

Steely Dan never made a bad album/CD, period. This is their best. If just for the bass riff in Gold Teeth, you need this CD. The level of muscianship has never been surpassed. The level of sophistication and insight is in a class by itself. The unbelievable quest for perfection that these two guys were on is unique in the pop music world, and I feel that the pinacle was Katy Lied. You can never get tired of this CD, it is timeless and absolutely amazing. April 22, 2008

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