Track Listing

1. Black Cow
2. Aja
3. Deacon Blues
4. Peg
5. Home at Last
6. I Got the News
7. Josie

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #131516 in Music
• Released on: 1999-11-23
• Number of discs: 1
• Format: Import

Amazon.co.uk Review
History gives Steely Dan's Walter Becker and Donald Fagen the last, hearty laugh on this, the crown jewel in their remarkable canon of 1970s Mensa-pop. Sneaking onto the charts a half-decade earlier with sinuous, jazz-inflected "rock", the dysfunctional duo's acerbic, anti-heroic visions had been critically lauded for their band identity and killer guitar riffs, then promptly challenged when the two songwriters retired from the road, dissolved any formal band lineup, and used the studio as laboratory. Aja carried the added indignity of its increased focus on sophisticated jazz models and musicianship, which carried the Dan's ambitions even further in terms of suave harmonies, intricate song structures, and brilliant playing. Time has proven them wiser than their rock crit detractors: These seven songs abound in knotty plots, sneaky imagery, and drop-dead brilliant performances from a blue chip studio repertory studded with first-call jazz players epitomised by Wayne Shorter's towering solo on the title song. From the hard-boiled jazz romance of "Deacon Blues" to the twisted Homeric vamp of "Home at Last", the veiled but ominous swing of "Peg" to the sci-fi eroticism of "Josie", Aja is a modern pop classic and the coolest fusion record no one ever thought to lump in that category. --Sam Sutherland

Customer Reviews

Least favourite!
From a band that only seem to release great albums, 'Aja' is well down the list of Steely Dan's best. What I like about their earlier releases is their blend of styles. 'Aja' is dominated by jazz and funk influences, neither of which are my favoured genres, but the music rewards repeated listening and is beautifully constructed. The title track is, for me, the highlight, its innocuous opening soon drifting into subtle, shifting shades of tonal colour and twinkling keyboards, culminating in a striking closing passage. 'Josie' is the obvious hit item, with a great guitar intro and a solid groove. 'Peg' is the other more overtly commercial item, the remaining tracks being more like the title track in approach.' Not the most instant album, and, as usual, lyrically challenging, but great anyway.

Give this to visiting aliens
This is probably the best album ever recorded. Songs, players, arrangements, groove, harmony - I can't think of another album that ticks every box in such abundance. This album should be part of the school curriculum.

Didn't even like Jazz when I first bought this....
....or at least, I didn't realise that I did. Nearly 30 years after first buying this musical work of art rarely a week goes buy when it doesn't get a spin.

This album isn't just good, it's special. No one, from the pop, rock or jazz styles has made anything approaching what Steely Dan achieved on Aja.

Try it, you probably won't regret it.