Kid Charlemagne/The Caves Of Altamira/Don't Take Me Alive/Sign In Stranger/The Fez/Green Earrings/Haitian Divorce/Everything You Did/The Royal Scam
The Royal Scam is considered to be the darkest album from the art rock band Steely Dan. However, the music is up to their usual very high standard and features the UK top twenty hit Haitian Divorce. (US:15 UK:11)
“It was the mid-1970s, the dream was over, and the kids were hooked on disco. Even at their heaviest though, the Dan are a refreshing bit of funky noise, bopping along as a remarkable fusion of hard bop jazz with soul and rock. They pull it off with such finesse that it hardly matters what they're really singing about. They write some of the wryest and most literate lyrics, and the instrumental improvisation recalls the best of the jazz greats."
“This is famous for being the dark Steely Dan album, the one where the music is as bleak and cynical as the lyrics.”
“If you do not like Steely Dan because you thought they were just another mindless classic-rock radio staple, pick up this album. It contains hardly any recognizable hits from them and is fresh with shimmering new ideas.”
“Lyrically, it's a cynical, sarcastic, sardonic work, even more so than other Steely Dan records. The characters that populate these nine songs are flawed, often criminal types. The lyrics are well-judged and probably more straightforward than before, but no less impressive.”
“It sees them moving away from pop influenced material into a darker territory, but still with the usual sublime lyrics. They managed to fuse jazz, reggae and disco into a genre beyond categorization.”
“Though it’s fairly dark lyrically, the music itself is nothing but pleasant. The guitar solos are hot, the grooves are all good, and the music stays interesting the whole way through. This is Steely Dan at their absolute best.”
“Steely Dan always delivered a first rate experience. This LP is very good as all their albums are, but it is a bit darker in tone than their other works.”
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