Dear Walter,
I see that Steely Dan is going on tour again. Over the years, Steely Dan has been one of my favorite groups, with truly exceptional songwriting, singing, and playing. If I’m not mistaken, those are your really fine guitar solos on Black Friday, Bad Sneakers, and many other songs – solos full of feel, fire, and inventiveness.
But in recent years, something seems to have gone wrong. I would surmise that when you’re rich and successful, the motivation slips away, and why put in time practicing when you’re loaded and chilling out on a beach somewhere? Besides, if you’re the boss, nobody’s going to say anything for fear of losing their high-paying, high-profile gig.
Update, 4/3/09: Sometime after writing this post, I was listening to Donald Fagen on last.fm, and they also played some of Walter’s own tunes. I’ll have to admit they were better than I expected. While Walter will never be an excellent singer, and I still no longer like his guitar soloing, I thought he sung well enough, and the songs were good. Maybe he cares a little more about quality when he’s making his own albums.
So I’ll point out that the emperor has no clothes. Nowadays instead of solos with fire and conviction, they seem perfunctory and awkward. For me, it was around the time of Alive In America that this became very noticeable, to the point that when a Becker solo would begin, I’d tend to turn the volume down until the vocals resumed. And the many unnecessary fills in certain tunes made me nostalgic for the days when Steely Dan would feature some of the finest guitar talent in the industry. (Green Earrings was an example of this, although I seem to recall that a great Drew Zingg solo rescued the tune). To be sure, your solos and fills are pretty much competent and fit the key, and non-musical fans may not even notice any difference, but that’s what I would expect from a decent club player, not a phenomenal songwriter playing exceptional material in front of thousands.
Some of the studio stuff, such as the solo on Snowbound, from a Fagen solo album, sound like first takes, just full of clams – maybe you were just joking around and warming up, but for whatever reason it was kept in its full cringe-inducing glory. And Two Against Nature, another album full of great material, has a peculiar one-pitch quarter-note soloing scheme that pervades many tunes. Ouch. By contrast, during recent years Donald Fagen is singing and writing better than ever, and continuing to put out excellent albums.
I submit that you simply need to woodshed again, and act hungry even if you’re not. Or just start eating whatever Donald’s eating. Just fumbling around with demo tapes to work up a solo isn’t cutting it anymore. The really expensive rig won’t do it by itself. I know you have it in you – you’ve shown that before. Alternatively, you’re loaded, just hire the best, and let them blaze to glory. You can still play rhythm and unleash your favorite witticisms, and the discriminating fans can begin to enjoy the guitar soloing again.
Having said that, I expect the usual guitar magazine puff piece interviews which will just encourage you, and the sycophants will win the day. Sorry man, but somebody had to do an intervention – nobody else seems to be willing to come forward.
So true. Thanks for having the courage to confront. It sounds like noodling to me when Walter plays live. Hey Nineteen’s opening note takes your breath away. HE must have it in him somewhere.
Jack,
Thanks. Yes, Walter is way past his best years, I’m afraid.
I agree with you that Hey Nineteen’s guitarwork is gorgeous, like spikes of quicksilver. I’m referring to the original Gaucho album version; I’ve not heard this song live.
I hate to say it, but I’m quite sure that it’s not Walter opening that tune with that slinky, extremely compressed tone. I’m not positive, as it’s not publicized clearly, but I’m betting that Mark Knopfler was responsible for that tasty work. Of the bunch of guitarists credited on that album, it sounds the closest to Mark’s style, IMHO. Walter, good and bluesy as he was early on, was never that smooth. Also, as I recall, the fills and soloing on Time Out of Mind were more clearly attributed to Mark, so this may lend some credence to that theory.
Isn’t it frustrating when you suddenly find out that your favorite artist didn’t even play what you thought he/she did?
I would say he is overplaying.And I do agree.I have watched many live things recently and he needs to play rhythm more and stop the fills every 10 seconds.on every song.I do like his style and know he is responsible for the original solos on FM,Josie,Bad Sneakers,etc.
A certain style has taken over much of his soloing live.The same phrases so to speak.At the same time,his new record Circus Money is not good,it is INCREDIBLE.No,really.Great songs,great lyrics,great playing all around with Walter playing all the bass except the title cut,with Keith Carlock on drums and Walters playing is top,top notch.His solos are better than many with some of the flavors being more bluesy than jazzy.His singing is really good and the songs are written with his range in mind.For the life of me I cant understand why he does’nt do one of his songs on tour.
Mark,
I largely agree! I’ve been hearing Walter’s stuff on Last.fm, and it’s really very good, even the singing. So the guy really can produce when he’s up to it!
I wonder if he’s just exhausted on tour, or having too many cocktails. Like many players doing endless road gigs, he’s probably bored, and is noodling. We’ve all done that.
The truth is, I’m spoiled by hearing Wayne Krantz play on Fagen’s stuff. Wayne is of a higher order, with luscious phrasing, phenomenal creativity, a great mostly unadorned sound, and chops to spare. So Walter will always lag that, and that’s not his fault.
But when he’s on in the studio, he’s hot, and his writing continues undiminished.
You are absolutely right. He lacks rhythm, can’t or won’t follow the changes, and has no chops whatsoever. He should be relegated to playing his solos from the albums note for note and remain unplugged otherwise. It really takes away from the live performances.
Aside from some of the early studio cuts, he flat out sucks. It’s embarrasing.
I love Becker and Fagan they are true legends. But.. Most of the good guitar soloing was done by Jeff Baxter, Elliott Randall, Larry Carlton and of course the remarkable Denny Dias. So Walter did not do as much as you think.
Actually, you’re making my point for me. The good soloing was done by others, with a handful of notable exceptions. I actually spent time learning and playing several of Larry’s solos, such as Kid Charlemagne. Dias did more of the bebop-oriented stuff, like Parker’s Band. Jeff was really wild, and extremely eclectic… I never learned any of his, but he had a few really outstanding unconventional solos, not to mention his excellent pedal-steel playing. I’m such a Steely Dan freak that when Jon Herington solos, for instance, his tone seems to indicate that he’s using extremely light gauge strings.
And I want to reiterate that I’ve reconsidered my slagging of Walter… lately I’ve been hearing his recent solo work, and in that setting, I really like the tunes, the solos are good, and I would go so far as to say that with the right tune, his voice really fits.
Playing L.C solo’s is pretty impressive in itself.. My favorite Larry track is the story teller. It is very hard to tell if he is using the 335 or an acoustic.. But with the sax and the guitar it is a true masterpiece.
I will have to eat some humble pie now that I have watched the “Aja”dvd and re-listened to all of Steey Dan stuff. My humble apologies to Walter. He is a very fine guitar player and I would give my left one to be able to a play in a similar style. and tone to him. If he (as it is said) plays the lead work in “Last Mall” , “Hey 19″ and as I have seen plays along side Jon on “Josie” , well he has a great tone. I know he is no “skunk” or Larry, but his work is brilliant. Like he says on the Aja DVD. Someone comes up to him and says “Are you that Steely Dan guy”. He confirms with “Yes” and they say.. Nahh Your not… Walter likes that..
[...] an earlier post, I had taken Walter Becker to task. I had chastised him for a whole variety of things, mostly having to do with guitar solos on [...]
Walter sounds to me like he is interrupting himself. He gets a phrase started, then just balks and drops out of the groove before he gets all the way into it. Cousin Dupree is a great example. It’s simple tune as SD tunes go; uptempo and just calls out for a punchy 16 bar solo especially with the modulation into another key, but Walter lays in a few phrases then just kind of hiccups, then gets back just in time for the modulation back to the home key and the last verse. You only have a few bars in a pop tune. Say what you want about Sting, he had it right when he said “you’ve got to burn from the moment you kick it off.
Are they mistakes? Is he determined to just not sound like anybody else? It’s like musical dyslexia. Odd, interesting, obviously not complete spazz work but still WTF? Unlike other posts I like the fills; but I don’t think you can make a solo by stringing fills together. I respect the hell out of the guy. And his tone is genius. I need the bleak, but amusing SD counterworld for those days when the milk truck eases into my space, but I think sometimes you have to say it, not just hint at it. I don’t know who played on Home at Last, for example, but it’s f**king brilliant; has structure, melodic direction, rhytmic tension and resolution. Where did we misplace all that?
Good points, Josh. Hiccups… that’s a good way to put it.
Not that I’m any luminary or anything, but when I was playing jazz and fusion all the time, I would sometimes think of a complex phrase, jump into it, and 2/3 of the way through I’d hit a snag and stop. This was generally due to either not having my chops in proper shape, or just having an idea that was beyond my current vocabulary. Maybe those phenomena are at work on those Walter solos. It is good to try to outdo yourself, but once in awhile you crash when you do that. To be sure, you crash less when your chops are in top shape.
Interesting that you brought up Home At Last, a great tune. On some songs it’s pretty obvious who is playing, but not sure on that one. I think that actually is Walter! You may have seen that elsewhere in this blog I’ve relented in my fairly snide comments about his stuff, and I’m really enjoying some of his solo album work.
Here is a bit of Steely Dan solo info:
Here At The Western World – Dean Parks
Bad Sneakers – Denny Dias
Aja – 1st -Denny Dias 2nd- Walter Becker 3rd -Denny Dias
Home At Last- Walter Becker
Josie – Walter Becker
Rose Darling – Denny Dias
The Fez – Jay Graydon
Green Earings – 1st-Jay Graydon 2nd(jazzlicks) Denny Dias 3rd-Elliott Randall
Don’t Take Me Alive – Larry Carlton
Gaucho – Walter Becker
FM – Walter Becker
True Companion – Steve Kahn
Haitian Divorce – Dean Parks
Your Gold Teeth 2 – Denny Dias
Hey Nineteen – 2nd- Walter Becker
Negative Girl- Dean Parks
Last Mall – Walter Becker
Things I Miss The Most – Walter Becker
Show Biz Kids – Rick Derringer
Blues Beach – Walter Becker
Reelin In The Years – Elliott Randall
Black Friday – Walter Becker
I Got The News – Walter Becker
Rikki Don’t Lose That Number – Jeff Baxter
Chain Lightning – Rick Derringer
Bodhisattva – Denny Dias
My Old School – Jeff Baxter
Everything You Did – ??????? Carlton????Dean Parks????
Michael,
What a great list, thanks! I had given Walter credit for the excellent Bad Sneakers solo, a favorite of mine. I’d never heard Denny play that bluesy, but I’ll take your word for it.
On their “Alive” album, Drew Zingg just tears up Green Earrings and Third World Man, if memory serves.
Dean Parks on Haitian Divorce has such beautiful feel and lyricism. Apart from being one of the best solos ever, it’s by far my fave talkbox solo.
Everything You Did – sounds very much like vintage Larry, all those bends, definitely humbucking pickups, but I could be wrong. btw, the rhythm playing, with the arpeggiated chords, is gorgeous and so clever. Maybe it’s Dean and Larry! Check out the trivia online relating to SD’s supposed mini-feud with the Eagles. “Turn up the Eagles, the neighbors are listening”