AR: Katy Lied

Steely Dan - Katy Lied (1975)

If albums can be "too perfect," then Katy Lied is that. Steely Dan's breezy jazz-pop (now with more jazz!) is in top form here, and it's painfully, silkily (?) cool. All ten of its songs clock in between three and four minutes with one exception at 4:13, giving the impression of a series of well-cut gems laid out on a table. This means no wasted space on the album but also within the tunes: no extended jamming, verses and choruses are all well-slotted, and the fiery solos hit their requisite number of bars and it's off to the next section. The musicianship is amazing, per usual, covering the gamut of that which lies around the studio - guitars, pianos, drums, sure, but vibraphones, maracas, electric organs, too. And gorgeous lead and backing vocals; there's no shortage of interwoven melodic patterns here. And good lord, too-hooky hooks. In short, dudes know what they are doing. Lyrics are snarky, biting, and sardonically funny. Just catch the opening stellar track "Black Friday" (an all-time great fade-in rager of an album opener), its sublime guitar soloing, emphatic full-band chorus, and lines about catching grey men when they dive from the 14th floor*, and you'll quickly get an idea of the excellence on this album**.

* - Come on, man, you know which floor you're really on.

** - Alright, to be fair, "Black Friday" rocks quite significantly harder than the rest of the album, which occasionally touches on blues but is really best conceived of as vocal jazz-pop. You've been warned. One of the most interesting things about Steely Dan is that despite their pervasive catchiness, schmaltz and soft-rock aesthetic, they're, for the most part, a tad too edgy to be played in dentists' offices. Maybe bitter mocking fails to be adequately soothing for drill-based procedures.

So... "too perfect?" SD gets accused of being emotionally detached from their work somehow, as though the art is an intellectual exercise, sort of songcraft for critics and not for the heart. I'd argue that this kind of art is just a different mode of being heart, but that's neither here nor there, and I'm obviously in the SD fan camp. Even I'll admit that yes, Katy Lied has an almost overslick feel, and while those catchy choruses are perfectly executed, their lack of ragged edge does give off an air of heartlessness, and sometimes, schmaltz. I balk at the idea that this music is clinical, though, as it is far too exuberant. I will concede that sometimes when bopping my head along to the chorus of "Everyone's Gone to the Movies," I feel pretty cheesy.

So I'll take the easy way out and state that despite being technically flawless and featuring some music that I hold dear, it lacks a je ne sais quoi in all that cleanliness. So that always leaves me with a nagging feeling that Katy Lied is just not quite as great as my favorite albums, but then I always listen to it and wonder why. I'm sure that makes no sense, and very well, I make no sense; I contain multitudes. The entire album is a highlight, as every second of it drips, though my highlight tracks are the aforementioned exhilarating opener, the laid back lounge number "Bad Sneakers," the blues-inflected "Daddy Don't Live in That New York City No More," and the summer-evening blues workout "Chain Lightning." I'll probably state this every time I review a Steely Dan album, but if you can get past an initial plebeian aversion to slick pop and actually pay attention to what's going on in these expertly crafted pieces, you will fall in love. And if you can't, well, hopefully after the rest of us achieve transcendence, we will still be able to find uses for your services.

Status: Recommended
Nyet's Fave: "Black Friday"