Richard Lewis will not curb his enthusiasm for Steely Dan
“They approach music the way great comics approach their material," the comedian says.
I once heard Steely Dan described as “Curb Your Enthusiasm with saxophone solos.” How fitting, then, that Richard Lewis—one of Larry David’s best friends on the HBO show and in real life—is a longtime Dan devotee.
“Those first seven Steely Dan albums, I loved all of them. Their songs were like these little short stories,” the actor, writer, and retired standup comedian tells me. “Figuring out some of the lyrics was like trying to solve a New York Times crossword puzzle—like, What the fuck are they talking about?”
I mention “Lunch with Gina” from 2003’s Everything Must Go. The song’s narrator goes to absurd lengths to avoid having a meal with a particularly annoying woman. Finally, he submits, and when Gina shows up to the restaurant, he is struck by how attractive she is and momentarily wonders why he’s been giving her the runaround.
“It sounds like a Curb premise,” Lewis says. (Meanwhile, we agree “Hey Nineteen” seems more akin to one of the comedian’s classic “date from hell” routines.) At age 76, Lewis is once again among the show’s cast for its 12th and reportedly final season, which premieres this Sunday, February 4.
During our conversation, which took place in April 2022 but was not published until now, the self-anointed “Prince of Pain” talks about Steely Dan as his constant companion on the road, how “Reelin’ in the Years” became his Letterman entrance song, the seminal influence of Lenny “Lost Wages” Bruce, his anxiety about inviting Donald Fagen to dinner, and so much more.
Like you, Jerry Seinfeld is a well-known Danfan. One would be forgiven for thinking that Larry David must also be a Steely Dan enjoyer, by sheer association alone.
I would be shocked if he didn’t love Steely Dan, primarily for the storytelling. But I’ll tell you this: Larry is the most secretive guy. He doesn’t like to give away what he knows unless he has to. I think he knows far more music than he lets on. I get shocked when he knows some really esoteric track.
Every now and then, while we’re filming Curb, as the cameras are being changed or whatever, and we’re sitting in our chairs, all of a sudden Larry will sing—and sing horribly. It’s a joke that we have together. And every time he sings a song, it ruins it for me. He’ll go, [sings tunelessly] “Are you reelin’ in the years?” And I’ll say, “Stop fucking ruining that song!” He laughs, but it’s true.