I’ve often mentioned that 1977 was a transitional year for rock and roll, and Steely Dan is certainly the band most responsible for the sudden shift of styles – which is unusual because “Aja” is hardly a ‘rock and roll’ album at all and by 1977, Steely Dan was hardly a band.

From a production standpoint, “Aja” comes as close to perfection as anything I’ve ever heard, from any genre. The attention to detail is so glaringly obvious that its sheen is the dominating factor. From here, there was just nowhere else to go; “Aja” hit a stop sign at the end of the road, and there was nothing to do but turn left or right. Those who turned right pursued a mechanical style of ‘rock’ music that would soon be dubbed ‘yacht rock’, while those who turned left tried to tear the whole thing down and start again from the beginning.

​Unless you are unbearably cynical, “Aja” an album that is impossible to hate. The title track exudes an exoticism that is thoroughly unique, with an arrangement that shifts styles in a self-consciously clever manner that defies categorization. It is jazz, easy listening, progressive rock and roll and poetry all tied up into an undefinably unique style all its own. “Black Cow” and “Peg” could be labelled as pop songs but for the perfection (when discussing “Aja”, it’s hard to avoid repeating that word) of their production. “Home At Last” is a lyrical masterpiece that boils Homer’s “Iliad” down to a few stanzas allegedly in the form of a R&B/Jazz-based pop song. Despite the gloss that coats every track, “Deacon Blues” is surely the most personal and moving song ever written by Becker and Fagen, where the emotional honesty of the lyrics somehow breaks through the polish.

In all, “Aja” is a miracle of sorts, which might explain why time has proven it to be impossible to replicate, and the end of an era.

Feature Tracks:

Black Cow

Aja

Deacon Blues

Peg

Home at Last

I Got the News

Josie

September 1977 - Billboard Charted #3