Steely Dan Album: “Showbiz Kids: The Steely Dan Story 1972-80”

Steely Dan, as most of you probably know, had a BUNCH of hits, and anyone who grew up in the 70's would tell you that. Many folks are familiar with Steely Dan to the point of having most of their popular material memorized. There was a time when Steely Dan was HUGE, and furthermore, they had a pleasant "fit-for-radio" sound that enabled their music to be played all over America, and that smooth sound of theirs never really changed as the years rolled by. Steely Dan also had a certain magic to their music, whether it was in the songwriting or the experimentation featured on most of their albums, that allowed ALL sorts of people to enjoy their music while at the same time expand their taste.

If you like the sound of jazz rock, Steely Dan had it. If you like smooth 70's rock, Steely Dan had it. If you're a serious music fan who likes lots of genre exploring and memorable songwriting, Steely Dan even had that. They were also easy to listen to, because they knew how to write immediately-enjoyable vocal melodies that were never annoyingly written. They had a lot!

Now, a problem with Steely Dan (a problem that's been around for years, might I add) is trying to find the right greatest hits package that features ALL the appropriate songs that people grew up with and loved (and continue to love). Show Biz Kids works *extremely* well not only as a comprehensive greatest hits package, but also to bring back memories for folks that may have forgotten JUST how many classics Steely Dan were responsible for. And by many I mean MANY. Face it, many people out there right now don't remember songs like "night by night", "the boston rag", "the fez", "don't take me alive", and the list goes on, because those songs are no longer heard on the radio. This 33-track collection will help you remember all those classics and make you think "oh YEAH, I used to hear that song all the time!"

I'll be the first to admit I was NOT a fan of Steely Dan when I used to listen to classic rock stations all the time. They'd play the same 5-10 songs over and over such as "rikki don't lose that number", "do it again" and "deacon blues" and I thought that was just overkill. That is why I never bothered exploring the band further because I got the impression I didn't NEED to (and plus I didn't want to listen to those same songs yet AGAIN).

As the years went by, two things happened. One, radio stations cut down on their playlist and in the process they eliminated some very tasty Steely Dan tunes such as "show biz kids", "change of the guard", "doctor wu" and "night by night". You know, tunes that many people knew and loved at one time, but haven't heard in years. The other thing that happened was a change in my taste- I began to find out that Steely Dan's smooth, laidback production was quite charming, and that mixing rock with jazz is a winning combination.

Today, people looking for one Steely Dan compilation probably aren't sure which one to get. Let me remind you, Steely Dan has a ton of Best Of's and Greatest Hits and VERY Best Of's and who knows what else, and that probably ends up confusing and/or irritating music buyers. In my opinion, you should skip EVERY SINGLE ONE of these and go with the more satisfying 2-CD Show Biz Kids collection. This is a great, well-thought out collection of songs. Here, you will find *most* of the best Steely Dan songs. Yes, I have to agree with the reviewers who really wanted songs such as "green earrings" and "king of the world" because those songs WERE popular at one time and should have been on here, but hey, you have nearly 2 and a half hours of music on this collection to look forward to, and besides, I don't think it was possible to squeeze in any more songs (unless the band has a couple short 2-minute songs I don't know about). Each CD comes close to holding as much music as possible, so it wouldn't be right to ask for more.

The sound quality of the music on this collection, particularly the early songs on the Can't Buy a Thrill album, is amazing. Everything is so LOUD now. Songs like "dirty work" never sounded better. This is the one Steely Dan collection that does a magnificent job giving the casual fans just the right amount of juice for their meat, or the right amount of ice cream for their cone, or... you get the idea! This compilation does a wonderful job including most of the highlights from the bands successful career back in the 70's. A better compilation isn't possible, IMO.

If you're a Steely Dan fan you already know you can't go wrong with any of their regular albums such as Pretzel Logic or Aja, but you have to give credit to the people who went through each Steely Dan album and put this excellent list of songs together (in order of release)- they did a really good job with it. I think Steely Dan released what, 7 studio albums in the 70's/early 80's? This compilation features at LEAST three songs from each album. Simply a good deal here. Heck, buy it anyway, even if you own the rest of their albums. Plus, as others have mentioned, you get the other major hit "FM" and the only other way you could get that song would be to dish out lots of money for a box set or dish out money for yet another one of their pointless greatest hits CD's. You and I both know it isn't possible to fit every one of their hits on a single CD.

If I had one complaint it's probably that much of the focus here seems to be on the Aja album. Five of the seven songs from that album have been included here, and that *almost* makes it so you don't have to buy the Aja album. I guess in a way you can say that's a GOOD thing, if you don't want to own Aja. It's your call. I also think this collection may be a little skimpy on the Pretzel Logic album by only including four songs, but it's not the end of the world. These are the smallest complaints I've ever had with anything. This is a must buy!

This 2-disc collection of Walter Becker and Donald Fagen's most casually recognizable tracks from their 1972-80 era is ideal for the musical journeyman/woman who wants all of Steely Dan's memorable charters, but also wants to get to know the enigmatic, sardonic genius of their work. "Show Biz Kids: The Steely Dan Story" contains all of the Dan tracks one is most likely to hear on the radio ('Do It Again,' 'Reeling in the Years,' 'Rikki Don't Lose That Number,' 'Deacon Blues,' 'FM') but also offers a fair look at their first seven albums by providing plenty of samples from each one. These 33 tracks will show the listener what composes the body of Steely Dan; glossy, perfectionist jazz-rock fusion that ironically addresses both pop tones and a moral wasteland; the fallen drug dealer 'Kid Charlemagne,' the withdrawal symptoms of 'Doctor Wu,' and the gun-toting outlaw of 'Don't Take Me Alive' are perfect examples. "Show Biz Kids" will prove one thing: anyone who dismisses Becker and Fagen as light-rock fudge has obviously never listened to an entire Steely Dan song. The listener who "just wants to be friends" will get a treat with 'Here At the Western World,' a non-album track that was previously only available on the box set 'Citizen Steely Dan.' Featuring hilarious liner notes which are actually a letter from a down-and-out former SD "associate" written to engineer Roger Nicholls, "Show Biz Kids" is a strong package for the listener who only needs the hits, and a brief overview. Yet the fact remains that they're still missing some of Steely Dan's most elaborate songs, 'The Royal Scam,' 'Kings,' 'Gaucho,' the list goes on and on.

A very generous 33 track collection compiled by the masters themselves Donald Fagen and Walter Becker. All tracks have been remastered by the original engineer Roger Nichols and sound amazing. This compilation has the two tracks not on any other Steely Dan LP FM (from the fm soundtrack) and Here at the Western World (previously only available on the Greatest Hits and Citizen Steely Dan box set).A difinite must for all Steely Dan Fans!

With Steely Dan returning in a big way during the last decade, it's only logical that a CD retrospective be released from the band. In 2000, the same year that Steely released its comeback effort "Two Against Nature", "Showbiz Kids-The Steely Dan Story" was released. This double-CD is the most definitive Steely Dan retrospective ever released. More comprehensive than the original "Greatest Hits" and not scattered about like the "Decade of.." and "Gold" compilations, "Showbiz Kids" includes enormous chunks of music from each of Steely's seven original studio albums during their heyday between 1972 and 1980.

All of the band's hits are included here featuring the timeless classics "Do It Again" and "Reeling In The Years" plus "My Old School", the top 10 smash "Rikki Don't Lose That Number", "Black Friday", "Peg" and "Hey Nineteen". Important key album tracks such as the title track to 1977's "Aja" (included in its full 8-minute entirety), "Deacon Blues", "Any World That I'm Welcome To" and "The Boston Rag" are featured here as well. Fill this in with the rare hits "Here At The Western World" and the theme from the film "FM", and you've got the best of the best from Steely Dan.

"Showbiz Kids" serves as a perfect introduction to Steely Dan's music. If you don't want to invest in all of their albums, this will probably be all the Steely Dan you'll ever need. However, if this compilation impresses you, I would next recommend buying their albums in chronological order beginning with 1972's excellent "Can't Buy A Thrill" up to the very latest Steely Dan album "Everything Must Go".

This 2 cd set was issued as a compilation of the years 1972-1980. The anthology coincides with the remastering of their individual albums and their reunion studio album. It just so happens that they were elected to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame recently so these two discs provide an excellent overview of a great band. Kudos to Roger Nichols, the remastering is exceptionally good, these cuts never sounded better. The individual instruments can be heard clearly and distinctly. Steely Dan was one of the few bands to mix jazz/fusion with vocals and have the product be both interesting and successful. Songs such as "Do It Again" with Denny Dias' amazing solo, "Reelin In The Years", "Dirty Work", "Rikki Don't Lose That Number" and others are classics. They succeed not just because Walter Becker and Donald Fagan are great songwriters but also because the know how to fully utilize the talents of the guest musicians who appear on their recordings. Elliot Randall's solo on "Reelin In The Years", Rick Derringer's slide guitar playing in "Show Biz Kids" and Steve Gadd's drumming in "Aja" to name a few. I am glad that they included two of my personal favorites "The Boston Rag" and "The Fez" on this anthology. However I was disappointed that they chose not to include "Green Earrings" and "King Of The World". It seems as if I hear something new each time I listen to these recordings. If you want a great overview of an impressive band but can not afford to pick up all the individual albums or if you are converting to compact disc "Showbiz Kids: The Steely Dan Story 1972-1980 is an essential purchase. It's about time Becker and Fagan received some credit for their music by being elected to the Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame.