Black Crow/Aja/Deacon Blues/Peg/Home At Last/I Got The News/Josie
Aja is perhaps the most jazz influenced album by the US art-rock group Steely Dan, which may account for it appearing less accessible on first hearing than previous releases. Features the US hits Peg and Deacon Blues. (US:3 UK:5)
“It's a slickly engineered product with crisp, commercial harmony vocals and pop numbers like Peg and Josie rounding it out. The compositions and their delivery are just too perfect not to win me over, particularly in the way they establish a calm, tranquil atmosphere quite at odds with the angry cynicism of earlier albums.”
“While slick perfection was always The Dan's primary stock-in-trade, they never achieved it more fully than on Aja. This is an album of spotless, micromanaged clarity.”
“Steely Dan's jazziest album, with most of the songs breaking the five minute mark. The songs don't grab me as much as the earlier stuff, but the atmosphere created by the killer line-up of musicians makes up for it.”
“A strong album from Steely Dan but also a little inconsistent. The group made a sharp stylistic change with this release, going for more sparse arrangements and more of a languid, jazzy feel. The tone is great and the sound is very stylish but the songwriting is not first rate all the way through.”
“This album should be on the A-List of everyone who appreciates the beauty of music. It is full of complex musical concepts which immediately remind the progressive rock fan some of the common manoeuvres in classic progressive rock albums. Take the title song for example. This piece takes you on an eight minutes ride to diverse musical patterns that vary between rock and jazz moods, amplified by rich orchestration. Other songs such as Deacon Blues and Home At Last constantly prove to be intriguing, while Black Cow is captivating.”
“Steely Dan are the definitive band, when it comes to jazz-rock. All of their trademarks are present in this album, it's a very polished recording. Great jazzy vocal harmonies, instrumental breaks, musicianship, cynical lyrics and some of the best jazz musicians around, It's a priceless investment for any musician who want to expand their language and musical horizons, or any good music lover. If you've never heard of Steely Dan before, this could be a great introduction.
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