Author: Peter Podbrežnik
Artist: Steely Dan
Label: Island Records
Released: 1973
Running time: 41:04
Rating: 5/5
“Countdown to Ecstasy” was the second album from the songwriting duo Donald Fagen and Walter Becker, who as Steely Dan won over the hearts of some of the most discerning music connoisseurs around. The recipe for their success was an incredible creative chemistry between the two and a knack for dreaming up wildly varied compositions that blended jazz, rock, pop, R&B, blues and soul. Alongside the superb technical polish and complexity of the individual arrangements, they were also careful to keep things melodically accessible, lubricated by a production sophistication that was seriously ahead of its time. On top of both being top-class instrumentalists, Fagen’s vocals had an uncommon level of sensuality and charisma that could stand up to the best singers in prog and classic rock.
After the huge success of the fantastic debut “Can’t Buy a Thrill” (1972), which still enjoys a reputation as one of the best pop rock albums of all time, and after the tour that followed, the two musical perfectionists locked themselves in the studio. Together with favorite collaborators, including drummer Jim Hooder and guitarists Jeff Baxter and Denny Dias (all three part of the elite session players of the day), they started cooking up material for the next record, which got a typically sarcastic title: “Countdown to Ecstasy”.
For a variety of mostly pretty bizarre reasons, “Countdown to Ecstasy” fell well short of the massive commercial success of its predecessor. If you dig into its musical structure, that’s hardly a surprise, since it was stylistically far more experimental, and leaned more toward jazz and blues in particular. The compositions got even more complex, with more fiery jazz harmonies, unusual instrumental intervals and time changes. Unlike the distinctly pop rock predecessor, “Countdown To Ecstasy” is nowhere near as stacked with hits or highly melodic arrangements that lodge in your ears after one listen, but it shines all the brighter in other departments.
Musically speaking, it’s an even stronger and more mature record, with an even bigger emphasis on rich arrangements, multi-part harmonies, unusual rhythmic intervals and jaw-dropping solos. And all of it is wrapped the whole time in ultra-melodic little shirts, waxed with slick production. Most of the instrumental motifs and solos sit closer to prog rock and hard rock than to jazz. Compared to the later, more jazz-leaning albums (like “Aja”, 1977), “Countdown to Ecstasy” could be called their most rock record, or if you like, their heaviest. In that respect, in my opinion, only “The Royal Scam” (1976) comes close.
The lyrics are, as always with Steely Dan, excellent and full of their trademark sarcastic humor. Most of them paint a grotesque picture of the “invisible” American social underclass and poke fun at the indifference of the obscenely rich bourgeoisie (often in a peculiar street slang). The rest could be filed under sci-fi, with a dash of Cold War paranoia satire.
The track list is superb from start to finish and thrillingly varied in style. Any one of the songs could be called a Steely Dan classic. Music gourmets will start drooling already at the opening masterpiece “Bodhisattva”, which, with a slightly tongue-in-cheek ring, you could label Zen boogie-jazz fusion rock. Its lyrics are a sort of satire on the mostly pathetic, trend-chasing Western attempts at quick spiritual salvation through Eastern religions, in this case Zen Buddhism. A scorching opening riff leads us into a playful boogie rhythm, where Dias and Baxter trade vivid guitar duels. Over the bouncy groove run plenty of witty jazz flourishes and Fagen’s charismatic vocal, delivering a slightly scatterbrained, mocking chorus.
The romantic “Razor Boy” is a great pop rocker cocktail. Fagen delivers a tragicomic lyric and an ethereal chorus with a special, magical charm that’s in perfect harmony with the jazzy keyboard arrangements and the rhythmic backing of Caribbean percussion and vibraphone. “Boston Rag” is a visionary melodic rocker from way before AOR was even born, further elevated by excellent jazz rock fusion arrangements on the horns and keys. The anthemic chorus and juicy hard rock riffs are topped off with a great jam, where the two masters of the guitar craft really shine.
“Your Gold Teeth” is another treat, moving along Latin American salsa rhythms and featuring a terrific jazz rock jam. The witty improvisations on bass, guitar and electric piano will have all the technically minded instrumental connoisseurs licking their lips. The lyrics about social scenes from the streets of Chicago add even more to the gangster atmosphere.
Next comes the controversial hit single “Show Biz Kid”, which lyrically is a merciless punch right between the eyes and an uncompromising sneer at American decadence and false morals. All the more ironic, then, that its lyrics, which among other things include the famous four-letter f-word, got the single hardly any airplay on radio stations. The guardians of American public morality, who felt exposed, made sure the single version of the song came out without that “problematic” word. That too partly contributed to the album’s poor sales. Fagen sarcastically describes the grotesque contrasts between rich and poor Americans while female backing harmonies accompany him in the background. Funnily enough, in one verse they even go for a bit of self-satire (“they got the Steely Dan T-shirt”). Its instrumental look is adorned above all by a phenomenal slide guitar solo from Rick Derringer. In the closing section it turns into a jam to die for.
On “My Old School” they hit one of their pop rock peaks. In the lyrics Fagen recalls an incident from his college days. During a visit to the American educational institution, the local sheriff “arranged” for his arrest. His girlfriend, Becker and a few other students were arrested too. The college leadership didn’t even flinch. Allegedly they were even sympathetic to the authorities. The incident angered Fagen so much that he refused to attend the graduation ceremony. A staccato guitar rhythm is built up with interjecting horn charges and excellent multi-voice choruses. And all of it is seasoned with a generous jam.
The only slightly weaker moment in an otherwise flawless record is the ballad “Pearls of the Quarter”, where the jazz rock duo unexpectedly wades into country rock waters. The melancholy acoustic guitar accompaniment creates a dreamy melody. Nothing special by their usual standards, but you have to praise Fagen’s excellent, deeply heartfelt vocal performance. “King of the World” is a great closer, with a post-apocalyptic lyric about nuclear war and the last human being on Earth. Funk rhythmic patterns wander through the melodic rock arrangements, ramping up the dramatic mood. The ever-exciting touches of symphonic prog rock come courtesy of Fagen’s excellent synthesizer solos, which even the late Peter Bardens (ex-Camel) wouldn’t have been ashamed of.
All the Steely Dan albums from the ’70s are more or less excellent. “Countdown to Ecstasy” is no exception. The poor sales largely shaped its lower profile and the way it’s been overlooked next to their commercially more successful records. The reasons for the weak sales are still anyone’s guess today. The pretty ugly cover, with its nondescript, watercolor-style painting, is surely partly to blame, as are “Show Biz Kid” with its “obscene” word and the label’s poor distribution. Fagen met the modest commercial showing by saying the album was made in a rush, in the middle of an intense concert tour, but in the same breath he added that it’s his favorite Steely Dan album. The test of time has proven it’s one of their best albums, one that deserves the title of masterpiece. Put on “Contdown to Ecstasy”, one of Steely Dan’s peaks, and you’ll slip into total musical ecstasy in no time.
Lineup
Donald Fagen – piano, electric piano, synthesizer, vocals
Walter Becker – electric bass guitar, harmonica, vocals
Ray Brown – bass guitar on Razor Boy
Denny Dias – guitar
Jeff “Skunk” Baxter – guitar, pedal steel guitar
Ben Benay – acoustic guitar
Rick Derringer – slide guitar on Show Biz Kids
Jim Hodder – drums, percussion, vocals
Victor Feldman – percussion, marimba
Ernie Watts – saxophone
Johnny Rotella – saxophone
Lanny Morgan – saxophone
Bill Perkins – saxophone
Sherlie Matthews – backing vocals
Myrna Matthews – backing vocals
Patricia Hall – backing vocals
David Palmer – backing vocals
Royce Jones – backing vocals
James Rolleston – backing vocals
Michael Fennelly – backing vocals
Production
Gary Katz
Tracklist
1. Bodhisattva
2. Razor Boy
3. The Boston Rag
4. Your Gold Teeth
5. Show Biz Kids
6. My Old School
7. Pearl of the Quarter
8. King of the World
