1. When Fagen Wrote About His Later Career With Brutal Honesty
Steely Dan drew a small amount of controversy when they were announced as part of the 2015 Coachella lineup. The festivals younger, hipper target demographic generally regards the Dan as boring dad rock, but it didnt stop Fagen from having fun with his position as the cranky old guy. Fagen wrote about the experience of performing at Coachella, and his later career generally, in a series of installments for Rolling Stone. Among the big reveals from the diary, Fagen writes of performing with fellow token old-guy band AC/DC, a band whose name hes heard over the years but whose music he's unfamiliar with. He also writes of performing at a private party for the fiftieth birthday of a prominent film actor who in the last few years has become a colossal movie star, protecting the stars anonymity by resorting to initials: R.D. Jr. Much of this kind of material also finds its way into Fagens 2013 memoir, Eminent Hipsters. In a discussion of his later career, Fagen sums up the essence of cold Steely Dan humor, as well as the bands no-fucks-to-give ethos, with a bitter reflection: Tonight the crowd looked so geriatric I was tempted to start calling out bingo numbers So this, now, is what I do: assisted living. Are you a fan of Steely Dan? Share your appreciation below in the comments thread.
Kyle Schmidlin is a writer and musician living in Austin, TX. He manages the news blog at thirdrailnews.wordpress.com. Follow him at facebook.com/kyleschmidlin or twitter.com/kyleschmidlin1.
