Fine Music from Donald Fagen

Tradition has it that Solomon penned the erotic Song of Songs when he was young, the prudential Book of Proverbs at midlife, and the bleak realism of Ecclesiastes in his final years.

Donald Fagen would no doubt scoff at any comparisons between himself and the great king of ancient Israel. But the co-founder of the Grammy-award winning group Steely Dan could hardly deny the parallel to his own trilogy, a recently-completed set of autobiographical albums.

In his own words, Fagen’s first solo record, The Nightfly “is sort of looking from the standpoint of youth.” Released in 1982, its best-known track, “I.G.Y” exudes the naive confidence of those years that emerged just after World War II and the Korean War. A young man looks to the future and imagines

A just machine to make big decisions,
Programmed by fellows with compassion and vision.

Fagen’s 1993 album, Kamakiriad, relates the journey of an aging man who experiences rebirth when the dealership drops off a nifty new car. In the first track, “Trans-Island Skyway” we hear the driver bragging about his sophisticated ride:

It’s a steam-power 10.
The frame is out of Glasgow.
The tech is Balinese.

But for all of its gadgets and power, the Kamakiri can’t speed past life’s final destiny. In the last track of the album, our traveler through life thinks about a favorite music club and waxes philosophical:

If it feels right, just drive for the light.
That’s the groove-essential facts
Someday we’ll all meet at the end of the street,
At the teahouse on the tracks

This year, that’s thirteen years after the last album, Fagen released Morph the Cat, yet another collection of musical gems polished to a high gloss (the sort of music you hardly ever hear on the radio anymore).

With the artist nearing the end of his sixth decade, one would expect something a little different. And although the grooves are as deep, the lyrics as wry, and the sounds are silky as ever, what Fagen delivers is truly something new. This time around, Donald’s talking, again in his own words, “a lot about death.”

And what’s he got to say? Nothing you don’t already know, at least for now. But what a way to say it. I’ll blab some more about it soon. Maybe even next time.