Steely Dan

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风格: #爵士摇滚　#轻摇滚　#流行摇滚
地区: United States of America 美国

艺人介绍

小简介

■　成立

斯迪利·丹是７０年代最有活力的乐队之一，但它也是一支十分难归类的乐队。１９７２年，制作人加里·卡茨把歌曲作者沃尔特·贝克尔和唐纳德·费根引荐位于美国西海岸的Ｄｕｎｈｉｌｌ公司工作，该公司属于美国广播公司。尽管当时贝克尔和费根已经给电影《说到做到》（１９７１）配乐，但是仍没有人愿意演唱他们的作品。因此卡茨建议他俩找一些小有名气的职业乐手帮忙，由他们自己来推出唱片，贝克尔和费根分别演奏贝司和键盘。这样，乐队便初步成立了。

■　发展

他们的首张专辑《难得刺激》就获得成功，其中选出的两首单曲《再来一次》和《摇摇晃晃过日子》双双成为全美排行榜前２０名歌曲。随后，鼓手吉姆·霍德、吉他手丹尼·迪亚斯以及杰夫·巴克斯特正式长期加入了乐队。但是，在乐队以后所有专辑中，使用乐队以外的乐手一直是一个固定的方式。

■　分手

伍迪同他的“平民百姓大乐队”（Ｔｈｕｎｄｅｒｉｎｇ　Ｈｅｒｄ　Ｂｉｇ　Ｂａｎｄ）录制了费根和贝克尔的５首作品，这５首作品中，费根和贝克尔的爵士乐倾向非常明显。但是他俩这一音乐特征体现得最淋漓致尽的，还是要数他俩合作的最后一张“斯迪利·丹”名义下的专辑《高卓人》。专辑中的一首《嘿，十九岁》是斯迪利·丹自１９７４年的《里基别丢了那个号码》（Ｒｉｋｋｉ　Ｄｏｎ＇ｔ　Ｌｏｓｅ　Ｔｈａｔ　Ｎｕｍｂｅｒ）以来在美国最成功的歌曲，它进入了排行榜的前１０名。１９８１年，贝克尔和费根结束了他俩近１０年的合作关系。

■　重聚

从他们散伙之日起，关于乐队要重组的谣言一直没有停息过。费根１９８２年在Ｗａｒｎｅｒ公司推出的首张个人专辑《夜航》（Ｔｈｅ　Ｎｉｇｈｔｆｌｙ）十分出色，从中选出的单曲《Ｉ．Ｇ．Ｙ．（多美的世界）》（Ｉ．Ｇ．Ｙ．Ｗｈａｔ　ａ　Ｂｅａｕｔｉｆｕｌ　Ｗｏｒｌｄ）也小有成绩。１９８６年，费根和贝克尔出现在罗西·维拉（Ｒｏｓｉｅ　Ｖｅｌａ）的专辑Ｚａｚｕ中，新闻报道宣称他俩在准备重组“斯迪利·丹”乐队。１９９０年，两人再度合作，３年后推出费根的专辑Ｋａｍａｋｉｒｉａｄ。

■乐队风格

斯迪利·丹树立起一种节奏步鲁斯同摇滚音乐紧密相关的独特风格，并且音乐中常体现出源自他们爵士乐背景的一种怪僻的色彩，这一点从乐队的名字中就能看出。贝克尔和费根的歌词是乐队成功的关键，他们创作的歌词常常是愤世嫉俗的，偶尔又模糊难懂，但却始终诙谐有趣。尽管贝克尔和费根所受提爵士乐教育，但斯迪利·丹却是一支十足的摇滚乐队。在乐队的音乐创作中，来自爵士乐的技巧和摇滚乐上的创造力是同样出色的。

Most rock & roll bands are a tightly wound unit that developed their music through years of playing in garages and clubs around their hometown. Steely Dan never subscribed to that aesthetic. As the vehicle for the songwriting of Walter Becker and Donald Fagen, Steely Dan defied all rock & roll conventions. Becker and Fagen never truly enjoyed rock — with their ironic humor and cryptic lyrics, their eclectic body of work shows some debt to Bob Dylan — preferring jazz, traditional pop, blues, and R&B. Steely Dan created a sophisticated, distinctive sound with accessible melodic hooks, complex harmonies and time signatures, and a devotion to the recording studio. With producer Gary Katz, Becker and Fagen gradually changed Steely Dan from a performing band to a studio project, hiring professional musicians to record their compositions. Though the band didnt perform live after 1974, Steely Dans popularity continued to grow throughout the decade, as their albums became critical favorites and their singles became staples of AOR and pop radio stations. Even after the group disbanded in the early 80s, their records retained a cult following, as proven by the massive success of their unlikely return to the stage in the early 90s.

Walter Becker (bass) and Donald Fagen (vocals, keyboards) were the core members of Steely Dan throughout its variety of incarnations. The two met at Bard College in New York in 1967 and began playing in bands together shortly afterward. The duo played in a number of groups — including the Bad Rock Group, which featured future comedic actor Chevy Chase on drums — which ranged from jazz to progressive rock. Eventually, Becker and Fagen began composing songs together, hoping to become professional songwriters in the tradition of the Brill Building. In 1970, the pair joined Jay & the Americans backing band, performing under pseudonyms; Becker chose Gustav Mahler, while Fagen used Tristan Fabriani. They stayed with Jay & the Americans until halfway through 1971, when they recorded the soundtrack for the low-budget film You Gotta Walk It Like You Talk It, which was produced by the Americans Kenny Vance. Following the recording of the soundtrack, Becker and Fagen attempted to start a band with Denny Dias, but the venture was unsuccessful. The pair then moved to New York City with hopes of becoming professional songwriters. Though Barbara Streisand recorded I Mean to Shine, the duo was unsuccessful. During their stint in New York, they did meet producer Gary Katz, who hired them as staff songwriters for ABC/Dunhill in Los Angeles, where he had just become a staff producer. Katz suggested that Becker and Fagen form a band as a way to record their songs, and Steely Dan — who took their name from a dildo in William Burroughs Naked Lunch — was formed shortly afterward.

Recruiting guitarists Denny Dias and Skunk Baxter, drummer Jim Hodder, and keyboardist/vocalist David Palmer, Becker and Fagen officially formed Steely Dan in 1972, releasing their debut, Cant Buy a Thrill, shortly afterward. Palmer and Fagen shared lead vocals on the album, but the records two hit singles — the Top Ten Do It Again and Reeling in the Years — were sung by Fagen. Cant Buy a Thrill was a critical and commercial success, but its supporting tour was a disaster, hampered by an under-rehearsed band and unappreciative audiences. Palmer left the band following the tour. Countdown to Ecstasy, released in 1973, was a critical hit, but it failed to generate a hit single, even though the band supported it with a tour.

Steely Dan replaced Hodder with Jeff Porcaro and added keyboardist/backup vocalist Michael McDonald prior to recording their third album, Pretzel Logic. Released in the spring of 1974, Pretzel Logic returned Steely Dan to the Top Ten on the strength of the single Rikki Dont Lose That Number. After completing the supporting tour for Pretzel Logic, Becker and Fagen decided to retire from live performances and make Steely Dan a studio-based band. For their next album, 1975s Katy Lied, the duo hired a variety of studio musicians — including Dias, Porcaro, guitarist Elliot Randall, saxophonists Phil Woods, bassist Wilton Felder, percussionist Victor Feldman, keyboardist Michael Omartian, and guitarist Larry Carlton — as supporting musicians. Katy Lied was another hit, as was 1976s The Royal Scam, which continued in the vein of its predecessor. On 1977s Aja, Steely Dans sound became more polished and jazzy, as they hired jazz fusion artists like Wayne Shorter, Lee Ritenour, and the Crusaders as support. Aja became their biggest hit, reaching the Top Five within three weeks of release and becoming one of the first albums to be certified platinum. Aja also gained the respect of many jazz musicians, as evidenced by Woody Herman recording an album of Becker/Fagen songs in 1978.

Following the release of Aja, ABC was bought out by MCA Records, resulting in a contractual dispute with the label that delayed until 1980 the release of their follow-up album. During the interim, the group had a hit with the theme song for the film FM in 1978. Steely Dan finally released Gaucho, the follow-up to Aja, in late 1980, and it became another Top Ten hit for the group. During the summer of 1981, Becker and Fagen announced that they were parting ways. The following year, Fagen released his solo debut, The Nightfly, which became a critical and commercial hit.

Fagen didnt record another album until 1993, when he reunited with Becker, who produced Kamakiriad. The album was promoted by the first Steely Dan tour in nearly 20 years, and while the record failed to sell, the concerts were very popular. In 1994, Becker released his solo debut, 11 Tracks of Whack, which was produced by Fagen. The following year, Steely Dan mounted another reunion tour, and in early 2000 the duo issued Two Against Nature, their first new studio album in two decades.

Steely Dan　斯迪利·丹

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Steely Dan 斯迪利·丹

艺人介绍

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最新简评（共52条）

Steely Dan　斯迪利·丹