Katy Lied [Remaster] by Steely Dan (CD, May-1999, MCA Records USA)

Not my favorite Steely Dan; but that is just a visceral feeling, good for nothing other than to say many of their other albums get me deeper in the groove. Anything Fagan & co. do is technically superlative. Glad I have this one as another to complete my collection of all their works.
If you get lucky enough to have the chance to see them, DON'T MISS IT! I've seen some great shows in my time, but like masterful dance partners they hold you in step every beat and leave you feeling that your appreciation is as skillful as their art.

Katy lied, number 4 on Steely Dan's 9 (at least that is the count as of Everything Must Go, released in 2003) album journey of perfection.

Once again, Donald, Walter and the gang have matured ever so slightly, honing and perfecting the already perfect.

This album sort of gets lost in the album collection, but has some of their best work. In my still ever so humble opinion, this would be SD's 3rd best of their 9 perfect albums.

It begins with BLACK FRIDAY, a tune that got significant airplay with its catchy pop sound; this is about as pop as SD gets, so don't expect James Taylor or Elton John. BAD SNEAKERS is almost a ballad, at least the SD version of a ballad, with its slow driving guitar and keys and heavy jazz percussion; the lyrics are great, pure SD insanity and cynicism. ROSE DARLING is a twisted love song, a temptation to cheat; played as a cool jazz diddy with quick-time drum work and mainly keys. DADDY DON'T LIVE IN THAT NEW YORK CITY NO MORE is one of my SD favs, another socially biting commentary about the effects of the bottle or other vices; this is pure jazz funk and Walter impresses on the guitar. DR WU, the song from which the album draws it's name is a tune Donald Fagen wrote about the doctor that helped him kick his drug habit, is a straight forward blues tune that relies heavily on keys, another one of my SD favorites. EVERYONE'S GONE TO THE MOVIES comes at you musically in the vein of 'Only A Fool Would Say That' & 'Turn that Heartbeat Over Again' from "Can't Buy A Thrill" or 'Razor Boy' from "Countdown to Ecstasy". It's just a funky blues/jazz rhapsody that I can't really explain. To borrow a term from the 70's, it's just a groovy little song. YOUR GOLD TEETH II, a follow up to 'YGT' from "Countdown to Ecstasy" is another personal SD fav, a sarcastic, writhing, jazzy little rip on the gamblers and (again in my ever so humble opinion, better than the first, YGT). CHAIN LIGHTNING is a trip. The song is jazz played so slow it's almost painful; I can feel myself getting claustrophobic, constricted, waiting for the song to take off, it is a great song. ANY WORLD (THAT I'M WELCOME TO) is fodder for the SD gods to spew about the state of the world today and the fact that they could, of course easily settle anywhere else, as long as they are useful. Thanks for the offer boys, but I'd prefer you stay here and keep playin'. THROW BACK THE LITTLE ONES, honestly, I have no clue where they were going with this one, but the instrumentals are great, heavily keys and guitar with a funky backbeat from Donald on the lower register of the ivories.

So, there you have it. Another perfect album. Another SD gem. And to finish out my review I will offer the same advice as I do with anything regarding SD; if you are going to be a Steely Dan fan, it's all in or all out (no fence-sitting), so the rule of thumb is: IF IT'S STEELY DAN, BUY IT. PERIOD.