SteelyDanZoo

I had just turned 19, home for the holidays from the military, when during a New Years Eve dinner with friends, something "Steely Dan" played through the speakers. I was confused, and no it was not the beer. I thought the band was "Steeleye Span", British folk/rock band I heard a number of times over the years but never really liked. What I heard now, I liked!
On some empty tapes I recorded what I managed to find over the following days, before returning north to the "barracks". As spring arrived up in our winter paradise, tracks from Aja and and Gaucho was played troughout our little "dorm".

Little did I know at that time the band "Steely Dan" was just about to break up, or that it would have a profound impact on my musical taste over the next three decades. The tape with Aja and Gaucho followed me to France, returned to Sweden and University and while there, found some brethren that was just as fashinated with this band's music. In the days of vinyl and mail order, we tried to get our hands on as many albums as we could. But, it was already in the mid- to late 80ies, and they were harder to come by (in Sweden). Everyone listed to EuroPop or HardRock.

Somehow, Steely Dan still followed me. Only to be challenged once in a drunken while by the loud music from Rufus & Chaka Khan.

During a layover at Schipol, (Amsterdam) in 1991, I pick up a portable Sony CD-player. I was suddenly on a quest to "replace" all my vinyls with CDs - it was the new medium and you just "gotta have it"!

During trips to Paris, walking the mega stores and some of the smaller 2nd hand outlets (not yet common in Stockholm), I managed to compile a decent collection. I again stumbled over "Steely Dan"; now on CD format it was so "easy" to drag along on long business trips. The CDs became more and more numerous and eventually I traveled "home" and with the help of my dad, built a very tall stylish CD rack in black laquer. It did not take long until it got filled.

About the same time, I left Sweden and moved to Dallas, TX. One day in the late summer of 1994 I saw an ad for "Steely Dan playing at the Coca-Cola Starplex" in the local paper. What? The band that broke up more than 10 years earlier was playing together again? Some quick research and no, it was no (Royal) scam. The band was to play at the Starplex on September 2nd, a Friday. My friends in Texas did not even know what "SD" was and showed little interest for a drive to south of downtown (back then a seedy area) for a concert with some "unknowns". Hence, I decided to go by myself ($25)!

It was a great moment! I finally got to see the band that had shaped my musical life/taste over the past decade and a half - live! I so much liked what I saw, I deciced to drive down for the Saturday night show as well, now buying a ticket cheap from a scalper outside the arena ($15).

During both these show, Walter Becker sort of spent most of the time in the background and let Georg Wadenius, a fellow Swede, lead the guitar work throughout most of the shows. I remember Wadenius from my younger days but was likely too young to appreciate him or his musical style back then. These two night though, he was a star - a guitar guru!

During intermission I walk up to the beer tent at "the top of the hill". Behind me is a kid, likely not old enough to buy beer, since he told me he wasn't even born when SD released their first record, and he had never heard of them before. But, he liked what he saw/heard. And me, never in a million years did I think that'd I be standing here, listening to a band that in my view was dead, only available on CD/vinyl.

These two concerts likely will go to my book as two of the best live performances I've ever seen.

Work came in between and I sort of lost track of Steely Dan's whereabouts (remember, this was really before the era of the internet). I travelled extensively in the US/Canada and simply did not have time to follow a band that just did an "encore".

A move to Seattle, a marriage, and a few years later, Steely Dan plays at the Gorge, in George, WA. Again, an amazing performance by the band. Donald Fagen shows a not little bit of arrogance to the audience, but some excentricity is allowed/expected from someone that makes heavenly music. The show is a great mix of old and new, and some really spiced up live acts.

The Gorge is likely one of the most beautiful settings for ANY outdoor music venue. The backdrop with the majestic Columbia River and the sunset is truly amazing. I do not think an artist has played "outdoors" until he has played "the Gorge". About three hours east of Seattle, it is still a venue that is easy to access thanks in large to the I-90 freeway that essentially goes "door-to-door".


Then, this past Friday, I was given tickets to Steely Dan at the "White River Amphitheatre". A gift from the dogs in the family (yes, really).

Wife and I start driving south mid-afternoon, only to get stuck in rush hour traffic south on I-405. It takes almost 90 minutes to travel 20 miles and finally get onto SR-167 heading south towards Auburn. Amy, Eric, and their friends are doing the same route but on the west side of the lake. They stop for Taco del Mar along the way and eventually decide to drive all the way to the venue. We've heard horror stories bout traffic around the venue, so wife and I gamble on the Red Robin shuttle from the SuperMall. Grab a quick pizza before entering the shuttle. It is a fun crowd, with a fun bus driver. A real" big mama" that is a pro at shuttling concert goers by keeping the mood up on the bus despite the horrid traffic situation. Get a call and Amy+friends are just passing the casino when we are to leave the parking lot. She tells me that they are not really moving at all. Hah, maybe we'll beat them in the shuttle!

White River Amphitheatre is a beautiful arena in the middle of the Muckleshoot Indian Reservation. But, one has to ask who the h-ck would consider placing a concert arena in the middle of nowhere with NO significant access roads? We had heard about the traffic situation (and hence the gamble on the shuttle), but it is possibly even worse than what one coould imagine. The drive is not far, possibly 35 miles, but it takes MUCH longer than the 150 mile drive to the Gorge. Just does no make sense!


Upon arriving, Michael McDonald has already opened (on time?) and is hacking away at his piano. He's got a great band. Some good old Doobie Brother's tunes as we enter the arena, just to order Chai Tea.

Any Steely Dan concert will draw an odd crowd. There's everything from old grannies, to punk not even out of high-school. But they all share a fascination for the music from some very skilled - and excentric - guys. Looking over the crowd, one sees both long pony tails - and a few mullets - in the marijuana haze over the seating area on green slope.

The concert is good, not great, but it is mainly due to Donald Fagen deciding on NO encores. When he is done playing, he is done. No matter what the audience wants. It really feels a bit cheap, but on the other hand, if that makes for good song writing, all power to him.

As far as I could tell, there were very few songs (if any) of the new material played this night. Suits me fine, but one would guess they'd push a bit for their new albums. On the other hand, they sell themselves, and in some ways the older music has more of a "bite".

All in all though, it was a great evening and even the ride home was fairly effortless. Shuttle took us to the car and we really could snooze our way through traffic!

Thanks to Dogs (and wife) for getting me such a nice present!