Dirty Work: The Oral History of Recording with Steely Dan – Part I
Dirty Work: The Oral History of Recording with Steely Dan – Part I
The original lineup becomes "the expanded band."
What follows is Part I of “Dirty Work,” my oral history of recording with Steely Dan. (Read the introduction here.) Only paid subscribers to Expanding Dan get access to all seven parts.
Part I: From Band to ‘Expanded Band’
Gary Katz (producer): I moved to L.A. in November of 1971 to take a staff producer job at ABC/Dunhill Records. A few months later, I got Donald and Walter out there, and they signed as staff writers for the label. They were writing songs for groups like the Grass Roots and Hamilton, Joe Frank & Reynolds. The head of A&R at ABC/Dunhill, Steve Barri, really liked Donald and Walter, but their music didn’t translate well for the pop bands on the label. I was able to convince Steve that Donald and Walter needed to record their own music. He was extremely supportive and got us a budget. That’s how the first Steely Dan album, Can’t Buy a Thrill, came to be. When “Do It Again” and “Reelin’ in the Years” became hits, it was a surprise.
Donald Fagen (piano, vocals): While working as staff writers at ABC/Dunhill in Los Angeles, Walter and I got to see the players who were in the studios every day, including Jim Gordon, Victor Feldman, "Clean" Dean Parks, and Larry Carlton. While we were thrilled to be working with the original Steely Dan group, we couldn’t ignore guys with that level of skill. Plus, some of our stuff required that kind of technique and experience.