Steely Dan is an American jazz rock band based around musicians and songwriters Walter Becker and Donald Fagen.
The group's history is divided into three stages. In its first stage, the group was a conventional rock band that toured and recorded from 1972 to 1974; in its second stage (1975–80) the group became a purely studio-based act, albeit still using the name Steely Dan, but now based solely around the songwriting team of Becker and Fagen, and using hired session players on their recordings. The group's third stage was Becker and Fagen's surprise return to recording and performing during the 1990s, with the band reconstituted as a large jazz-rock ensemble that tours regularly and has released several acclaimed live and studio albums.
The band's heyday was in the 1970s, when they released a half dozen consummate albums, which skillfully blended jazz, rock and roll, funk, rhythm and blues, pop and everything in between. Their music, which may at first appear 'smooth' and ' easy listening', is characterized by complex jazz-influenced structures and harmonies, witty and literate lyrics and adroit musicianship. Steely Dan's albums are found by fans to be satisfying on many levels.
Their enigmatic, sardonically humorous and topical lyrics add enormously to the appeal of the songs. Although Becker and Fagen might have at first owed a certain lyrical debt to Bob Dylan, they rapidly developed their own distinctive style and have since become one of the most accomplished and respected songwriting teams of their age.
Musically, their sound is full of energy, though not an energy of aggression or speed. This comes partly from the tightness of the musicians and partly from Becker and Fagen's deep grounding in and love for jazz and rhythm & blues. Their major musical focus has always been to create a precise mood or 'feel' that underscores the lyrics.
