Last night, I had the pleasure of seeing Steely Dan at Seattle’s Paramount Theatre and it was nothing short of amazing.  In certain cities, Steely Dan performs “Plus” shows, which means that a specific album (Aja, Gaucho, The Royal Scam) is performed in its entirety…in order (which is the way the album was meant to be heard) as well as other hits from the duo.  I caught The Royal Scam Plus show and could not have been more stoked, given that it is my favorite Steely Dan album.  Walter Becker and Donald Fagen, along with 11 other musicians and vocalists, took to the stage and promptly dived into 40+ minutes of aural ecstasy.  The set list/tracklisting for The Royal Scam is as follows:

  1. Kid Charlemagne
  2. The Caves of Altamira
  3. Don’t Take Me Alive
  4. Sign in Stranger
  5. The Fez
  6. Green Earrings
  7. Haitian Divorce
  8. Everything You Did
  9. The Royal Scam

The songs flowed from one right into the other…no filler, no chit-chat.  Just great music.  After the fifth song, I noticed that one of the background singers walked over to a turntable that was strategically placed on stage.  At first I was perplexed.  (Really, why would Steely Dan need a turntable on stage?  What in the world would they do with this?  I didn’t know what to expect and it made me a bit nervous.)  She then flipped the album that had been sitting on the turntable, and like that, I understood.  This was a fantastic symbolic move, indicating that Side 2 of the album was about to be played.  And without missing a beat, the crowd heard the intro to “Green Earrings”.  Brilliant.  With the album ‘Plus’ set closing out with the title track, Donald Fagen took a moment to greet the audience.  He shared that Seattle’s Paramount Theatre is where the duo played their very first professional gig in 1972, opening for The James Gang.  I was all the more pleased to be able to share in the moment.  After this brief trek down memory lane, fans were then treated to some of Steely Dan’s greatest hits, from “Hey Nineteen” and “Peg” to “Aja” and “My Old School”.  Everyone was out of their seats.  Worth seeing for sure.  The encore for the evening was “Reeling in the Years,” which was probably the most fitting song to close the night.  I’m still on a concert high that will probably last a week.  Check out this 1973 live performance of said song from the tv show Midnight Special.

The fall leg of Steely Dan’s tour extends to the end of November.  Check the band’s website for shows near you.  This is not one to miss.

Other Articles of Interest