Steely Dan – Tanglewood

[Worf101]

I was lucky enough to score some last minute, indoor tix to see Steely Dan on their current Shuffle Diplomacy Tour at the Pavilion at Tanglewood last night. In case you’re not familiar with the place, Tanglewood is a semi-open air music facility that’s been holding musical events since the 1930’s when the Boston Symphony came west to the Berkshire Mountains and gave concerts in the summer. By semi-open air I mean that there’s a roof over some of the facility but no sides, and, in a quaint, rustic touch, the floors are entirely made of dirt. In addition to this seating, a large lawn area exists where even more folks can catch the show on the cheap.

Many prefer this outdoor seating because you can bring anything out there, and I do mean ANYTHING, tables, chairs, the whole living room if you can tote it in. Another reason the outside’s so popular is because the view from inside… frankly sucks. Tanglewood was meant for the Symphony which is heard, not seen. As a result very little slope was placed on the seating. Short people behind tall folks (or yahoo’s with baseball hats and sunglasses perched on their balding pates) are essentially screwed. Still some view is better than no view which is what they had outside so, inside I went.

The show started at 7:00 sharp with an opening trio doing instrumentals on revolving around a guy playing a Hammond B-3 organ. After their half-hour set the backing band took the stage. S.D. is traveling with an 8 piece band excluding Becker, ***en and the Embassy Brats back-up trio. The backing band opened up with an instrumental number featuring revolving solo’s by all 4 horn players and the keyboardist. When this number was done Becker and ***en took the stage along with the three hot girls and they launched into “Aja” from the same titled album. ***en has not aged gracefully over the years but neither has Becker. The former looks and flinches like a cross between a hump shouldered mad scientist and Aqualung while Becker looks like a pot-bellied Bubba with his guitar perilously perched on his rotund middle. But then and again, these guys were never followed for their looks anyway.

The choice of “Aja” for an opening number surprised me as Aja was/is a VERY demanding tune for drummers not named Steve Gadd. However, Keith Carlock, who’s toured off and on with the band since ’03, was more’n up to the task. Frankly the kid’s a monster on the traps. From “Aja” it was onward and upward from there. Only three songs were not “classic” Dan, i.e. from the first 7 albums, those were “Jamie Runaway” from the “Two Against Nature” LP , “Godwhacker” from “Everything Must Go” and a surprising cover of James Brown’s “Pappa Don’t Take No Mess”. The latter was used as background as the band was introduced.

I’d seen S.D. before back when first emerged from hibernation and began touring again. I found that band rather stilted and the performance flat. There was too much rust on the bones and the band seemed “unsure” of itself and/or unrehearsed. This current band is none of that, they hit hard and stayed hard all night. Other than the James Brown cover the musical highlight for me was the inclusion of “Dirty Work” from S.D.’s first album. Anyone in the know knows that that song was sung by David Palmer who lasted for a hot cup of coffee in the band. With Palmer long gone, the vocals were handled in a revolving fashion by the three black clad backing singers and were masterfully done.

All in all I had a great time. My seats were relatively un-obstructed, the band was fantastic, the show was good and the Cuervo cold. Would’ve loved to had heard several faves and was surprised by their exclusion. “Do it Again”, “Deacon Blues”, “Bad Sneakers”, “Don’t Take Me Alive” and others were all absent. Still I can’t quibble, it was two solid hours of fun and I got my money’s worth.

Worf

[Worf101]

I'm not one to complain but does the obsenity filter have to be so sensitive? I mean the guys name is Donald F A G E N fer Chrisake...

Worf

[Jack in Wilmington]

I was lucky enough to score some last minute, indoor tix to see Steely Dan on their current Shuffle Diplomacy Tour at the Pavilion at Tanglewood last night. In case you’re not familiar with the place, Tanglewood is a semi-open air music facility that’s been holding musical events since the 1930’s when the Boston Symphony came west to the Berkshire Mountains and gave concerts in the summer. By semi-open air I mean that there’s a roof over some of the facility but no sides, and, in a quaint, rustic touch, the floors are entirely made of dirt. In addition to this seating, a large lawn area exists where even more folks can catch the show on the cheap.

Many prefer this outdoor seating because you can bring anything out there, and I do mean ANYTHING, tables, chairs, the whole living room if you can tote it in. Another reason the outside’s so popular is because the view from inside… frankly sucks. Tanglewood was meant for the Symphony which is heard, not seen. As a result very little slope was placed on the seating. Short people behind tall folks (or yahoo’s with baseball hats and sunglasses perched on their balding pates) are essentially screwed. Still some view is better than no view which is what they had outside so, inside I went.

The show started at 7:00 sharp with an opening trio doing instrumentals on revolving around a guy playing a Hammond B-3 organ. After their half-hour set the backing band took the stage. S.D. is traveling with an 8 piece band excluding Becker, ***en and the Embassy Brats back-up trio. The backing band opened up with an instrumental number featuring revolving solo’s by all 4 horn players and the keyboardist. When this number was done Becker and ***en took the stage along with the three hot girls and they launched into “Aja” from the same titled album. ***en has not aged gracefully over the years but neither has Becker. The former looks and flinches like a cross between a hump shouldered mad scientist and Aqualung while Becker looks like a pot-bellied Bubba with his guitar perilously perched on his rotund middle. But then and again, these guys were never followed for their looks anyway.

The choice of “Aja” for an opening number surprised me as Aja was/is a VERY demanding tune for drummers not named Steve Gadd. However, Keith Carlock, who’s toured off and on with the band since ’03, was more’n up to the task. Frankly the kid’s a monster on the traps. From “Aja” it was onward and upward from there. Only three songs were not “classic” Dan, i.e. from the first 7 albums, those were “Jamie Runaway” from the “Two Against Nature” LP , “Godwhacker” from “Everything Must Go” and a surprising cover of James Brown’s “Pappa Don’t Take No Mess”. The latter was used as background as the band was introduced.

I’d seen S.D. before back when first emerged from hibernation and began touring again. I found that band rather stilted and the performance flat. There was too much rust on the bones and the band seemed “unsure” of itself and/or unrehearsed. This current band is none of that, they hit hard and stayed hard all night. Other than the James Brown cover the musical highlight for me was the inclusion of “Dirty Work” from S.D.’s first album. Anyone in the know knows that that song was sung by David Palmer who lasted for a hot cup of coffee in the band. With Palmer long gone, the vocals were handled in a revolving fashion by the three black clad backing singers and were masterfully done.

All in all I had a great time. My seats were relatively un-obstructed, the band was fantastic, the show was good and the Cuervo cold. Would’ve loved to had heard several faves and was surprised by their exclusion. “Do it Again”, “Deacon Blues”, “Bad Sneakers”, “Don’t Take Me Alive” and others were all absent. Still I can’t quibble, it was two solid hours of fun and I got my money’s worth.

Worf

Sounds great Worfster. You're a lucky dog. I saw them back in 1973. They were the opening act for Loggins and Messina and Tracy Nelson and Mother Earth were the second bill. So they've obviously come a long way. Now I would love to see them. SD takes up a good section of my music library now.

[Worf101]

Sounds great Worfster. You're a lucky dog. I saw them back in 1973. They were the opening act for Loggins and Messina and Tracy Nelson and Mother Earth were the second bill. So they've obviously come a long way. Now I would love to see them. SD takes up a good section of my music library now.

They're EARLY into their tour.

Jul 29 Mashantucket, CT MGM Grand at Foxwoods
Jul 30 Atlantic City, NJ Borgata Event Center Now

Aug 01 Portsmouth, VA nTelos Wireless Pavilion Now
Aug 02 Columbia, MD Merriweather Post Pavilion Now
Aug 04 Durham, NC Durham PAC Now
Aug 06 Atlanta GA Chastain Park Now
Aug 07 Atlanta GA Chastain Park Now
Aug 09 Charleston, WV Clay Center Now
Aug 10 Bethlehem, PA Musikfest Now

Aug 12 Highland Park, IL Ravinia Festival | "Aja" Plus Selected Hits Now

Aug 13 Highland Park, IL Ravinia Festival | "By Popular Demand" - Vote! Now

Aug 15 Interlochen, MI Kresge Auditorium Now
Aug 17 Louisville, KY Palace Theater Now
Aug 19 Nashville, TN The Woods At Fontanel Now
Aug 20 Tuscaloosa, AL Tuscaloosa Amp Now
Aug 21 Orange Beach, AL Amp at the Wharf Now
Aug 24 St Louis MO Fox Theatre Now
Aug 25 Kansas City, MO Starlight Theatre Now

Aug 27 Milwaukee, WI Riverside Theater | "Aja" Plus Selected Hits
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Aug 28 Milwaukee, WI Riverside Theater | "By Popular Demand" - Vote! Now

Aug 30 Minneapolis, MN MN State Fair Now
Aug 31 Omaha, NE Orpheum Now

Sep 03 Aspen, CO Jazz Aspen Now
Sep 09 Upper Darby, PA Tower Theatre Now
Sep 10 Upper Darby, PA Tower Theatre Now

Sep 14 New York, NY Beacon Theatre | "Dawn of The Dan" Now

Sep 16 New York, NY Beacon Theatre | "Gaucho" Plus Selected Hits Now

Sep 17 New York, NY Beacon Theatre | "Rarities" Now

Sep 19 New York, NY Beacon Theatre | "Aja" Plus Selected Hits Now

Sep 20 New York, NY Beacon Theatre | "The Royal Scam" + Selected Hits Now

Sep 22 New York, NY Beacon Theatre | "By Popular Demand" - Vote! Now

Sep 23 New York, NY Beacon Theatre | "21st Century Dan" + "The Royal Scam" Now

See Ticketmaster for multi-show Beacon packages

Sep 28 Boston, MA Wang Theatre | "Dawn of The Dan" Now

Sep 30 Boston, MA Wang Theatre | "By Popular Demand" - Vote! Now

Oct 01 Boston, MA Wang Theatre | "The Royal Scam" + Selected Hits Now

Check Telecharge for possible multi-show packages

Oct 13 Las Vegas, NV The Palms Now
Oct 14 San Diego, CA Harrahs Rincon Casino: Open Sky Theat

Hope you find something close.

Worf

[Mr MidFi]

Nice review, Worfster. And thanks for posting that schedule... a wine & cheese picnic at Ravinia Festival on Sat. 8/13 might be just what the doctor ordered. I wonder if tix are still available...

[bobsticks]

Nice write-up Worf. Sad to see that some favorites were omitted from the setlist but that's a pretty broad catalog from which to draw.

The "***en" issue has come up before. :p

[Woochifer]

Thanx for the review Worf. Steely Dan seemed like an enigma because their latter albums were so studio focused (the documentary of the Aja album showed how every note on that album was scrutinized, rehearsed, and crafted to the last detail -- the exact opposite of what happens in a live setting). I'd read that their earlier tours were rather mediocre. Their current tour never interested me, even though they are doing the "whole album live" thing at some venues (Aja would definitely be interesting to hear live in its entirety). Good to hear that the current tour is more akin to a coherent band than before, even if F*gan and Becker are starting to feel their age (F*gan is actually 63 years old, and doesn't exactly come across to me as a fitness freak).

Steve Gadd is indeed a master of the beats. This video shows Gadd demonstrating the technique he used in playing "Aja."

<iframe width="560" height="349" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/Py0FdS-e960" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>

[Worf101]

Being a musician I'm pretty heartless with acts that command $200 and $300 dollar ticket prices and then stink up the joint. I've been lucky I've seen few shows that made my blood boil over the years, primarily because of mediocrity. Nothing worse than bands/musicians either can't play owr WON'T play getting big bucks and hours of my time. This version of Steely Dan was worth every penny. I think the first time I saw them it was more like "I better see them now cause who knows if I'll ever get the chance again!" So with that attitude I forgave a lot. Not this time.

Worf

[Woochifer]

Being a musician I'm pretty heartless with acts that command $200 and $300 dollar ticket prices and then stink up the joint. I've been lucky I've seen few shows that made my blood boil over the years, primarily because of mediocrity. Nothing worse than bands/musicians either can't play owr WON'T play getting big bucks and hours of my time. This version of Steely Dan was worth every penny. I think the first time I saw them it was more like "I better see them now cause who knows if I'll ever get the chance again!" So with that attitude I forgave a lot. Not this time.

Worf

That was the attitude I went in with when I saw Miles Davis in 1990 (he died just over a year later). I'd always heard that you never know what you'll get with him, some nights he'd be a man possessed, others he'd be going through the motions with his back turned to the audience the entire time.

The night I saw Miles, it was a one-off show in Hollywood. He wasn't on tour, but lived in nearby Malibu, so it was more a home gig for him. It was a bit strange, in that the concert went for close to 3 hours and I recall that I counted a total of 12 songs. Not uncommon for jazz gigs to stretch songs for 20+ minutes, but there were times where Miles would start the song and disappear off stage while his band keeps playing.

But, there were moments of brilliance (he got his loudest ovation when he finally removed the mute from his trumpet and let things rip on a solo), and Miles always knew how to surround himself with amazing musicians. Yes, he had his back turned a lot of the time, but he did actually talk quite a bit to the audience that night (and yeah, I did pick up that he wasn't 100%).

Definitely not Miles in his prime (I'm listening to The Cellar Door Sessions right now ... THAT is prime Miles), but it was still Miles.

Another show that I wanted to see while I still could was Bruce Springsteen in 2003. It was his first tour in 15 years with the full E Street Band and as always, they put on an amazing show. Seeing some of his more recent concert videos, and with the untimely deaths of keyboardist Danny Federici and saxophonist Clarence Clemons (the heart and soul of the E Street Band), I'm really glad that I saw that concert when I did. Things weren't quite the same again after that tour.