1973 - The Eagles - Desperado - side two

it came to music, my friend Cathy was responsible for developing a couple of interesting (and very accurate) theories. The first was that an artist or band’s second album was more important then their first. Her reasoning was that the musician/band had a lifetime to prepare for their first album but only a limited amount of time in which to prepare the second and that demonstration of grace under pressure told the tale. The other theory she came up with was that the second side of an album was more telling (and therefore more important) than the first... That out of necessity, the first side began with the hit single (so that even an AM radio programmer could find it!) and everything that followed on that side in terms of pace, flow, tempo & feel was determined by the choice of that first song. But the second side... that was up to the artist/band... and it would be their creativity that determined what went where and how it was all arranged. Because of this, she always liked to listen to new albums “side two first”! But that’s another story! At any rate, I’m not sure if both of her theories apply here but if you judge the first of them by Desperado, she was spot on!

original magazine ad

Promotion was strong for this album (Asylum had already seen three big singles from the 1st album establish the band's track record and must have felt there was no reason this LP couldn't also be a monster) and for their part, the band was happy to tour heavily in support of it.

promo ad for Don Kirshner's Rock Concert

Side two begins to really gather momentum right out of the gate, opening with “Certain Kind Of Fool”.

Lyrically, the story picks up with the aftermath of the character’s decision to ignore the warning at the end of side one. He has chosen a life of crime as a shortcut to wealth and fame. In the second verse we see the character discovering the allure of firearms and working out the learning curve with his newest “tool of the trade”. From verse #2:

“He saw it in a window the mark of a new kind of man
He kinda liked the feeling, so shiny and smooth in his hand
He took it to the country and practiced for days without rest
And then one day he felt it, he knew he could stand with the best
They got respect, he wants the same
And it's a certain kind of fool who likes to hear the sound of his own name”

The final (short) verse gives us insight into the pitfalls of infamy and illustrates how the character’s transition to the dark side is complete. From verse #3:

“A poster on a storefront, the picture of a wanted man
He had a reputation spreading like fire throughout the land
It wasn't for the money, at least it didn't start that way
It wasn't for the runnin', but now he's runnin' every day”

Instrumentally, the tune features an interesting and sonically unique solo by Glen Frey. The texture of his guitar here is thin and highly distorted and works perfectly in context with the song. Frey’s guitar is also used to punctuate the verses, and fits in perfectly played against the clean acoustic rhythm guitar and mandolin lines offered up by Bernie Leadon. Bassist Randy Meisner’s lead vocal, both plaintive and accusing, also shines here. He seems, at times to almost plead with the song’s character not to stay on the path chosen. Also noteworthy is the interplay between Meisner’s bass and Henley’s drums. The two of them worked so well together that it’s hard to imagine why Meisner would choose to leave the band soon after making this album.

“Fool” ends cold but almost before the reverb has time to decay, we are off and running again with an up tempo, instrumental version of  “Doolin’ Dalton”- the tune that opened side one.

Performed entirely on a single acoustic six string and a five string banjo (both played by Leadon) and panned hard right and left, this :47 second opus acts as a link between “Fool”and “Outlaw Man”.

David Blue Vs. The Eagles?

Written by David Blue, (also under contract to Asylum Records at the time), “Outlaw Man” was adapted for Desperado through minor changes in lyric and a major re-arrangement. By comparison, Blue’s version is mundane and lifeless. It plods it’s way through the chord changes and lyrics and without any real spark. Blue’s vocal lacks conviction, (although he does manage to whine even while singing through his nose!). Additionally, the backing track is pedestrian and the solo work is dreadful!

The Eagles version, on the other hand, is vibrant and alive with a backing track that thunders along like a horse at full gallop (due to a completely different ‘feel’ than Blue’s version) and an electric guitar part that virtually drips with impending doom. Glen Frey’s lead vocal is menacing and his Rhodes piano pad adds the ideal target for Leadon’s ‘angry’ (and heavily distorted) counter point guitar. Leadon’s solo is also outstanding, composed of a clean, crisp lead line that soars above the backing track before coming back down to point the vocals toward the rousing double time race through the bridge and into the outro and fade. Henley’s drum work here is stellar and Meisner’s bass lines (especially in the double time bridge) are arguably his best work on the album.

Lyrically, despite only minor changes/additions the two versions are also worlds apart.

From Blue’s verse #2:
“Left my Marita, was down in Santa Fe
Headed for San Francisco in a '56 Chevrolet”

From The Eagle’s verse #2:
“First left my woman, it was down in Santa Fe
Headed for Oklahoma, I was ridin' night and day”

But Blue’s worst crime was to treat the song’s final lines as another verse (delivered in the same near mono-tone as the rest of his vocal!), while The Eagles turn it into a bridge, played out in double time to bring the tune to a roaring finish. They even added an additional pair of lines to flesh out their bridge instead of including a final chorus (as Blue does)

From The Eagles Bridge:
“Some men call me Abel, some men call me Cain,
Some men call me sinner, Lord, some men call me saint
Some say there's a Jesus, others say there ain't
When you got no life to lose then there's nothin' left to gain”

From Blue’s final verse/chorus:
“Some people call me Abel, some people call me Cain
Some people call me sinner, Lord, some people call me saint

Woman, don't try to love me don't try to understand
A life upon the road is the life of an outlaw man”

As “Outlaw Man” fades away we change the pace with “Saturday Night”, a wistful ballad that looks back longingly at the character’s innocent past, now lost and gone except in memory.

Instrumentally, the song plays out in 3/4 waltz time with a sleepy, almost lazy feel. The rhythm track is carried by a pair of six string acoustics and Meisner’s tastefully understated bass line (there is no drum part), with a beautiful mandolin line filling in all the details. Vocally, the song features a wonderful lead vocal from Henley and a thick, broad range of plush backgrounds performed by everyone. All of the vocals are dripping wet with a deep, fat “big room” reverb and the harmony vocals intertwine perfectly with the lead, creating a richly textured vocal layer.

The bridge is stunning with large open spaces in the vocal leaving room for the backing track to show through and there is even a slight retard leading into the solo before the final chorus. The solo itself is a tight, clean eight bars played on mandolin by ‘utility man’ Bernie Leadon. The final chorus ends with another retard leaving us sadder but wiser for the tale.

Lyrically “Saturday Night” is rich in imagery and strong in metaphor. The lyric tells a tale of regret as the character looks at all he has lost in pursuit of fortune and fame. From verse #2:

“The years brought the railroad, it ran by my door
Now there's boards on the windows and dust on the floor
And she passes the time at another man's side
And I pass the time with my pride" 

The bridge is elegant, helping to weave a complex and vivid image through the four simple lines. From the bridge:

“What a tangled web we weave
Go 'round with circumstance
Someone show me how to tell
The dancer from the dance”

The Chorus is interesting, containing different lyrics within the body of each chorus.

From chorus #1:
“Whatever happened to Saturday night?
Finding a sweetheart and holding her tight?
She said,’Tell me, oh, tell me, was I all right?’
Whatever happened to Saturday night?”

From chorus #2:
“What ever happened to Saturday night?
Choosin' a friend and loosin' a fight
She said,’Tell me, oh, tell me, are you alright?’
Whatever happened to Saturday night?” 

As “Saturday Night” ends and the last notes fade away, the first chords of “Bitter Creek” ring out like a bell, signaling the opening of the final act.

The instrumentation here is sparse but the overall sound remains rich in texture. There is nothing ‘missing’ from the mix and nothing else needs to be there. The rhythm section is composed of a pair of acoustic six strings panned hard left and right with a third acoustic, (panned center), comping detail figures and solo work. There is no drum set present, only percussion (mostly shakers and congas), The bass sounds like a Mexican Guitarrón to me, (Meisner is known to have played one on “New Kid In Town), but my kid brother (a fine bass player in his own right ) assures me that it is instead an Earnie Ball acoustic bass. The vocal work here is flawless with a lead vocal by Bernie Leadon and back up chorus featuring everyone. The vocal chorus is used throughout both to fatten Leadon’s lines and also to answer them.

Lyrically the song deals with the character’s plan to pull one last bank job for a score big enough to retire on. (Probably a reference to the Historic attempt by the Dalton gang to simultaneously rob two banks in Coffeyville Ks.) From the bridge:

“We're gonna hit the road for one last time
We can walk right in and steal 'em blind
All that money, no more runnin'
I can't wait to see the old man's face when I win the race”

Structure is fairly straight forward with two verses followed by a bridge. There is no solo, although one of the guitars does play extended figures at two points in the tune. There is also no real chorus to speak of although there is a single line at the end of each verse to act as a hook.

From verse #1:
"Oh, son, don't wade to deep in Bitter Creek,"
       
From verse #2:
“You know there ain't no cause to weep at Bitter Creek”

Each of these lines is also “answered” by the vocal chorus.

The song ends with a 2nd extended guitar figure in a long slow fade and brings us to the album’s closer, a two parter simply called “Desperado (reprise)”. Made up of a pair of post scripts, (Doolin Dalton - reprise and Desperado - reprise) this final chapter is rich in production and plush in instrumentation. Beginning simply with Henley’s acapella vocal, the first half of the song (Doolin Dalton - reprise) quickly unfolds to include acoustic & electric guitars, banjo, bass, drums and plenty of vocals. Henley’s drums are particularly strong here as are Meisner’s bass line and Frey’s acoustic rhythm guitar and the vocals are once again flawless. But it is Leadon’s Banjo and mandolin parts that really provide the sparkle. The final chorus also includes another string chart from Jim Ed Norman to finish things off with a massive flourish and a long fade.

Lyrically, the two halves of the tune serve to wrap up the story and give us an ending with the first half giving us the outcome of the final bank job and the ensuing gun battle. From the chorus:

“Go down, Bill Doolin, don't you wonder why
Sooner or later we all have to die
Sooner or later, that's a stone-cold fact,
Four men ride out and only three ride back”

And the second half (Desperado - reprise) supplying the moral of the story. From the verse:

“The queen of diamonds let you down,
She was just an empty fable
The queen of hearts you say you never met
Your twisted fate has found you out
And it finally turned the tables
Stole your dreams and paid you with regret”
                                       
Desperado - reprise finishes with one last challenge/answer vocal section:

“Desperado
(Is there gonna be anything left, is there gonna be anything?)
You sealed your fate up a long time ago
(Ain't it hard when you're all alone in the center ring?)
Now there's no time left to borrow
(Is there gonna be anything left?)
Only stardust
(Maybe tomorrow)
Maybe tomorrow”                   

Overall, the album is short, coming in at 35 minutes and change but it is so tightly packed with color & texture that I think the time would have seemed to fly by even if the LP had been an hour long!

Side note: shortly before flying to England to make Desperado, Don Henley, Glenn Frey, Randy Meisner & Bernie Leadon (along with partners-in-crime J. D. Souther and Jackson Browne) spent a day at the Paramount Movie Ranch in order to shoot the cover photos for the soon to be recorded LP.  They brought veteran rock photographer Henry Diltz along to document the event and from the looks of things, everyone involved “got a little out of control”!

Gunfight at the Paramount Movie Ranch! (outtakes from the cover photo session)

The Bootleg Blues

was in the mid seventies that I first became aware of a monthly record swap meet being held in the parking lot behind the Capitol Records building in Hollywood. One Saturday each month, just after dark, a hundred or so sellers along with thousands of music lovers would gather in the shadow of the Capitol Records Tower to buy, sell and trade anything and everything that had to do with popular music. And best of all, it was a party that went on all night!

You could find posters  photographs, rare used records, memorabilia and of course bootlegs... lots and lots of bootlegs! A few of the more adventurous dealers even brought small gas powered generators or strung a power cord from an RV giving them the advantage of lights & sound but most of the stalls were relatively dark, so the smart buyers always brought a flashlight.

Capitol Records building - "The Tower"

The scene was amazing, (and more than a little surreal!) Picture that famous cylindrical edifice, looming over a darkened parking lot filled with seller’s tables and populated with buyers. Small, isolated pools of light randomly scattered about and everywhere you looked, tiny flashlight beams flitting around then coming to rest as people milled around, quizzing the dealers while perusing their current stock.

The selection and variety were almost endless and there were many times I spent the night working my way from stall to stall, combing through the bins, flashlight in hand, searching for treasure. I rarely missed a weekend and often stumbled in my front door with the sun already up, exhausted but satisfied after having found a handful of records I had never seen or heard before.

Rewind a decade or so to the mid ‘60s when a plethora of rock record stores first started popping up. Driven by the rapid growth in the music business, these small independent retail shops preceded the big chains (like Licorice Pizza, Music Plus, The Warehouse & Tower Records) by almost a full decade. Most common among these was the “Psychedelic” or “Head” Shop - funky little joints selling psychedelic paraphernalia, (stuff like water pipes, bongs, cigarette papers and roach clips), along with incense, posters, lava lamps, black lights and of course, rock records. These shops were a part of the emerging counter-culture and as such they were eclectic and totally ‘underground’. But for me, the biggest difference between head shops and the record counter at the local Sears or J. C. Penny department store was the fact that the head shops played music... rock music, ALL DAY LONG!

The Auditory Odyssey

My favorite of these was “The Auditory Odyssey”. Located in the middle of the San Fernando Valley, on a main drag, just a half a block south of a major intersection, The Odyssey was a home away from home where I could hang out for hours on end, soaking up the latest release from a favorite artist or hearing someone new for the very first time.

It was in The Odyssey that I first heard iconic albums by artists/groups like Joni Mitchell & James Taylor, Cream & The Band, Humble Pie & Grand Funk Railroad, The Association & The Grass Roots. Even bands like Blood, Sweat & Tears and Chicago first came to my attention there. And it was at The Odyssey where I first learned about bootlegs.

Not to be confused with “pirate LPs”, (counterfeit copies of existing records, manufactured by somebody other than the official record label and made to look like the original release), bootlegs are recordings of material that is not available and has never been released by the record company. Live concert performances, FM radio broadcasts, unreleased songs, rehearsals and alternate takes/mixes are all good examples of things that could be (and are) bootlegged.

The first bootleg I ever encountered was by my beloved Beatles. (There had been one rock bootleg available before this - A Bob Dylan record called “Great White Wonder" or “GWW” - but not being a Dylan fan, its release had not had any effect on me.) It was the Summer of 1969 and I was standing in the Odyssey, hanging out and "rapping" with one of the clerks. As the album on the turntable ended he replaced it with something unique and utterly new to me.

“What is that”, I asked, reaching across the counter for the cover.

“It’s the new Beatles Bootleg called Get Back”, he replied with a smile.

“What’s a bootleg?”, I asked, “I’ve never heard this song before”. (a non sequitur, I know!)

“You haven’t heard it because Capitol hasn’t released it yet”, he said.

The cover was plain white cardboard with a printed sheet of medium blue paper, done in monochrome black ink and glued to the front. The cover sheet had a photo of The Beatles (performing on the Apple rooftop) along with the title - “Get Back” and a list of all the song titles and timings. The cover also listed the record as ‘LE101' from ‘Lemon Records’ and even had a tiny lemon logo! The back of the cover was blank. I scanned the list and none of the titles were familiar to me.

“Is this for sale?”, I asked not wanting to leave the store without it!

“Yeah”, he said, “we have plenty.”

 I continued to listen to the record with one ear as we talked about the album and after a while he said, “come on into the back, I wanna show you something.”

We went into the shop’s back room where Ed, the owner and a couple of girls were busily gluing cover sheets onto covers. There were boxes and stacks of copies of “Get Back” everywhere!

“You guys made this?”, I asked. Ed smiled and the girls both giggled.

For the next hour or so I helped glue covers on albums, count them out in 25's & 50's and box them up for delivery and sale.

As I was getting ready to go, Ed said, “Do you think you can sell some? I’ll front you a box.”

“Sure”, I said. (I knew lots of Beatles fans and I was sure selling them would be no problem.)

“Cool”, he said and handed me a box of 25. “Keep one for yourself and pay me for the other 24 copies. Wholesale on them is two-fifty each so you’ll owe me $60 for the box”.

In the decades since, bootlegs have remained an important aspect of my music collection. Throughout the ‘70s and even until today, I have continued to seek out and acquire any title by an artist or group that I liked. Early acquisitions included live albums from folks like Elton John, Jethro Tull, CSN, James Taylor, ELP and of course The Beatles. All of these were available LONG before these artist’s labels released live material so they all really helped to fill the gap.

Sonically, you can’t really compare a bootleg to a commercial release. Doing so is kind of like comparing an amateur home video to a major studio’s feature film! The quality of the sound in most bootleg “masters” was usually less than stellar to begin with and unlike today, there was no access (outside of a recording studio) to mastering equipment and the powerful tools used to ‘sweeten’ the sound.

But while the sonic quality was rarely exceptional and often disappointing, the material was always unique. And while the sound remained raw, over time the quality of the printed covers improved steadily and dramatically until by the late ‘70s bootlegs often had a full color printed cover featuring interesting and unique graphics and design.

A selection of bootleg covers

Some bootleggers also attempted to improve the appearance of the records themselves by having their product pressed on colored vinyl while other bootleg labels (“Pig Records” TMOQ - “trade mark of quality” for example) evolved and even became known for the relative quality and consistency of their product.

"Generic"  Ralph Crumb TMOQ cover

Now and then something artistically unique AND sonically excellent did get released as a bootleg, but this was generally the exception and not the rule so ‘buyer beware’ has always been the bootleg lovers mantra.

Traditionally, to manufacture a bootleg, the bootlegger would take his master (preferably a 2 track open reel recording but often a cassette) to some small, local record pressing house and purchase a short run of LPs (typically 500 to 1000 pieces) using a fake band/artist name and a trumped up list of song titles (for the labels). The records would be delivered in plain white cardboard jackets and a printed cover sheet (with more accurate data) or an entirely new printed cover would be created elsewhere. Once he was in possession of all the components it was a simply a matter of combining one with the other and sealing it all in shrink wrap to create a finished salable product.

Over the years, many musicians have had a love/hate relationship with the lowly bootleg. Some artists consider them a scourge on the business in general (and upon their revenue stream in specific) while other artists consider them an interesting curiosity or even a loving tribute.

Paul McCartney for example is rumored to have kept a man on his payroll for many years whose express job it was to search out and acquire Beatles and McCartney boots for Macca’s personal collection. And the Grateful Dead not only condoned the recording of their shows, they offered free ‘patch points’ where fans could plug directly into the mixing board for a stereo line recording of the house mix! Other artists, (Elvis Costello among others), took an entirely different tack, hiring private detectives and seeking prosecution against any bootlegger they could catch!

By the mid ‘70s, the impact of bootlegs on the market was so great that they even got mentioned in the lyrics of songs like “Hi Hi Hi” by Wings; “When I met you at the station, you were standing with a bootleg in your hand”

The Who - "Live At Leeds

They were also used as high concept art for legitimate releases like The Who “Live At Leeds”. The graphics on this project reflected the design of a bootleg of that period in every way from the simple “rubber stamp” cover art to the “hand written” note on the plain record label requesting that the mastering engineer leave the crowd noise in between songs in tact for the final pressing of the record.

The bootleg business shifted a bit in the late ‘70s with the development of home stereo cassette machines and Dolby ‘B’ noise reduction. These technologies fueled the rapid growth of the “tape trading” hobby wherein collectors would maintain a list of all the performances they had available for trade and would then exchange copies of those recordings with other traders in person and/or through the mail thus growing both collections. Over the years, many of these hobbyists have continued to collect and trade, first moving their collections to CDR and then to digital file formats on home computers until today when bootlegs are often traded online by collectors who upload and download files to/from one another.

With the rise of the CD in the early ‘80s, the bootleggers also changed gears and began releasing their product on CD instead of vinyl. The sound quality was often no better then it had been on vinyl (in fact many of the more famous vinyl titles were simply 're-booted' and re-released!) but the packaging was usually nice and the format was convenient! By the late ‘80s many new bootleg labels appeared  by taking advantage of the recordable CDR format and releasing small runs on burnable digital discs, further expanding the size and scope of the business.

By the early ‘90s there were dozens if not hundreds of local area music swap meets taking place during the weekends all over the country. These featured table after table of bootleg videos (on VHS cassette) and audio on CD. The more aggressive sellers would arrive for the day with hundreds of titles displayed on their tables and multiple copies of each title in the boxes below.

Sadly, these days actual boots are as rare as hen’s teeth but file trading and downloading over the internet is bigger than ever. Sites and forums abound where traders can discuss and exchange music by their favorite artists and bands.

Maybe not as exciting as standing in a darkened parking lot, bent over a table, in the middle of the night with a flashlight clenched between your teeth, but ultimately just as satisfying!

1973 - The Eagles - Desperado - side one

college, I had a dear friend named Cathy. She was a big redheaded girl and we only met because I had a crush on her roommate! But long after the crush had worn thin, Cathy and I remained good friends.

The reason for this was music. We were both passionate about music, far beyond just liking to buy records, we both spent countless hours listening to music in great detail then examining artists, bands and albums under the microscope of deep conversation. Kindred spirits (long before I knew the meaning of the phrase) we also shared a more than vaguely similar taste in artists and bands. For example, we were both big fans of the newly emerging genre of  “Country Rock”, so we had lots to talk about.

One Spring evening the three of us were sitting around at Cathy’s place when a neighbor knocked on the door with an offer for us to come downstairs and listen to some records. Now these days, “come over and listen to music”, is more often than not, an invitation to sit in a group and engage in mindless chit-chat while some random selection of mp3's plays in the background! Not so in the early 70's. Back then, there was plenty of great music to really listen to and so conversation was usually limited to the space between sides and the breaks between albums.

Once the three of us - Cathy, the crush (whose name I no longer remember) and I made our way downstairs, there was a half hour or so during which we all got cold soft drinks & snacks, found seats and introduced ourselves to one another. All together there were maybe 8 or 10 people in the living room of this guy’s one-bedroom apartment. I took a few minutes to give our host’s stereo a quick once over before settling in on a big floor cushion near the coffee table. (it was a nice rig, his amp and turntable were about the same quality level as mine although his big floor standing 3-way Pioneers told me I had better speakers!)

It was about an hour (and a couple ‘fatties’) later when our host got up to change records. As he went ‘finger strolling’ through his collection, he pulled an LP out and turning towards us said, “I wanna play something brand new for you”.  My interest was piqued until he continued, “It’s the 2nd album by The Eagles, it’s called ‘Desperado’ and it just came out”. Cathy and I looked at one another as she rolled her eyes. I was also suitably unimpressed although I hadn’t even heard the record yet!

You see, The Eagles had already gotten a bad reputation among “serious” music listeners, especially Country Rock fans. The problem was a lack of what today would be called “street cred”. - The year before they had come out with their self titled 1st album and hit three-peat home runs right out of the box with “Take It Easy”, “Peaceful Easy Feeling” and “Witchy Woman”, all chart-topping smash-hit singles. This had given them a reputation as a hit-single machine, and not as “serious musicians”. This perception was absolutely wrong, the reputation, wholly undeserved, but I didn’t yet know that!

The room went silent as the needle hit vinyl and the haunting opening strains of “Doolin’ Dalton”, rich with acoustic guitar and harmonica filled the room. The lead vocal was wet with a deep reverb and the overall effect really caught me by surprise. This was not at all what I had expected to hear. By the time the rest of the band hit (in the middle of the 1st verse) I was hooked!

All the elements from their hit singles were there - the production quality was stellar, the engineering was immaculate, the backing track was plush and the vocals were heavenly. But the subject matter - the story in the lyric, delivered in a way that their singles never had. It satisfied! From the bridge:

“Well the towns lay out across the dusty plain
Like graveyards filled with tombstones,
Waitin’ for the names
And a man could use his back or use his brains
But some just went stir crazy Lord,
‘cause nothin’ ever changed”

And in that moment, although I didn’t know it, I became an Eagles fan for life!

Released in April of 1973 on Asylum, “Desperado” was the 2nd album by The Eagles and (with just a dash of irony) was recorded at Island Studios in London, England! Ironic because The Eagles soon came to be known as the quintessential Southern California Country-Rock band.

The production team included veteran producer Glyn Johns (who also engineered the recording) and formidable arranger, Jim Ed Norman. The band lineup included all four original members;

1973 lineup - publicity photo & live

Glenn Frey – guitars, keyboards, piano, harmonica, vocals
Don Henley – drums, percussion, vocals
Randy Meisner – bass guitar, acoustic guitar, vocals
Bernie Leadon – guitars, mandolin, banjo, vocals

along with a compositional assist from Jackson Browne & John David Souther.

outtake from cover photo session feat (left to right) Jackson Browne, J D Souther & the Eagles

Truly a concept album, Desperado deals with a fictional band of outlaws and in what is said to be a sort of secondary or sub-concept compares/contrasts their post Civil War live style with that of a modern day touring rock & roll band.  (“A life upon the road is the life of an outlaw man”)

The art direction is by Gary Burden with cover photography & graphics (logo & lettering style) courtesy of the one and only Henry Diltz.

Desperado - cover & back cover detail

outtakes from cover photo session

The album begins with “Doolin’ Dalton”, a sad & mournful tune that not only sets the tone for the story to follow but also reads us the first chapter. From the refrain:

“Go down Bill Dalton it must be God’s will
Two Brothers lying dead in Coffeeville
Two voices call to you from where they stood
Lay down your law books now they’re no damn good”

Of particular note here is the tasteful guitar work (both acoustic and electric) from Bernie Leadon and the beautiful melodic bass lines from Randy Meisner. Lead vocals are by Don Henley with an assist from Glen Frey. Henley takes the verses and the bridge while Frey covers the chorus. For the back up vocals it’s ‘everybody in the pool’ and the vocal blend between them is flawless!  Adding a little sugar to top it all off is Glenn Frey’s harmonica, lending an authentic western flavor to the backing track.                   

As you take a breath and absorb the meaning and the message in the opening track, the band takes off like a rocket with an up-tempo ode to youthful exuberance called “Twenty-One”.

Leadon’s acoustic guitar (panned hard left) shines again here but is eclipsed by his banjo work (panned hard right). The counter point he plays (on dobro) against his own acoustic guitar picking is wonderful and his dobro solo is beautifully understated, adding to instead of detracting from the overall sonic texture. Leadon also turns in a fine lead vocal making this song a nice hat trick. Henley’s drum part is also notable for it’s simplicity and focus. He plays the entire part in an endless stream of perfect 16th notes played with brushes on the snare drum with nary a cymbal to be heard!

Lyrically, the tune tells the story of a cocky young man who is overjoyed at the prospect of finally reaching legal age. His options are many, his problems are few and for the moment, life looks good! From verse #4:

“They say a man should have a stock and trade
But me, I'll find another way
I believe in getting what you can
And there ain't no stoppin' this young man”

Structurally, the song is a collection of 5 verses with no chorus and no bridge. The solo falls between verse #3 & #4 and there is a repeat of the last two lines of verse #5 following that verse. The song ends with a repeated instrumental coda but does not fade. Instead, it segues at full volume into the opening of the third song, “Out Of Control”.

Lyrically, “Out Of Control” tells a tale of wretched excess as the character from “Twenty-One” gets his buddies together and goes out to celebrate his birthday. From verse #2:

“There's a card game in the corner and the barmaid smiled at me
Well, I tipped her a sliver dollar and she brought me a drink for free
All the town-folk call her the cheap one and the gamblers call her Flo
Come on, set 'em up again, I got me a friend and I think I'm gettin' out of control”

Instrumentally, the song begins as Frey’s frantic electric guitar comes crashing in on the ending of “Twenty-One” and it never lets up. It’s also Frey’s lead vocal that tells this story and his bluesy, whiskey-voice has just the right edge for the task. Additionally, Frey is credited with the guitar solo which plays out as a 16 bar pair of electric six strings performed in tight harmony.

Structurally, the song forgoes chorus, relying instead on a two line refrain that ends with the line “And I think I’m getting out of control” to cap each verse. There are three verses and a short (two line/eight bar) bridge with a burning solo (by Frey) to cement the joint between the 2nd verse and the bridge. Filling in any aural holes, there is an amazing slide guitar part (probably Leadon’s) and the rhythm section composed of Henley & Meisner is relentless.

The song doesn’t end... it just sort of disintegrates and then collapses in a drunken heap! This opens the door for what is arguably one of their biggest hits, “Tequila Sunrise”.

Penned by Henley/Frey, “Tequila Sunrise” carries our story forward lyrically by showing us the days that followed the wild birthday celebration featured in “Out Of Control”. Primarily, the lyric deals with the dissatisfaction and disappointment the character feels in leading a ‘normal’ life. From the chorus:

“Every night when the sun goes down
Just another lonely boy in town
And she's out runnin' 'round”

Fast becoming disillusioned, the song’s final lines show us a hero who is now leaning toward the dark side in search of ‘something more’. From the bridge:

“Take another shot of courage
Wonder why the right words never come
You just get numb
It's another tequila sunrise, this old world
still looks the same
Another frame”

Instrumentally, the tune is rich in flavor and vividly detailed with guitars everywhere! There are fat 6 string rhythm pads (from Frey), winding ‘torch & twang’ electric responses, delicate lead figures and an amazing acoustic guitar solo (from Leadon) that imparts the song with it’s deeply rich Mexican flavor. There is also supposed to be a mandolin in there but I’ll be damned if I can pick it out! All this in support of a flawless lead vocal (from Frey) and silky, smooth backgrounds from everyone.

Structurally, the tune is pretty straight forward with a pair of verses separated by a chorus. The 2nd verse is followed by the acoustic guitar solo which takes us into the bridge and the outro.

The side ends with “Desperado”, a stunning ballad featuring a spectular string arrangement by Jim Ed Norman. Lyrically, the song serves up a warning for the character to be careful what he wishes for and contends that love is more important then money or fame. It also warns that the grass is not any greener.

From the 1st chorus:

“Don't you draw the queen of diamonds, boy
She'll beat you if she's able
You know the queen of hearts is always your best bet
Now it seems to me, some fine things
Have been laid upon your table
But you only want the ones that you can't get”

The song’s warning is reinforced in the 2nd verse:

“Desperado, oh, you ain't gettin' no younger
Your pain and your hunger, they're drivin' you home
And freedom, oh freedom well, that's just some people talkin'
Your prison is walking through this world all alone”

...and that message is driven home in the 3rd and final verse:

“Desperado, why don't you come to your senses?
Come down from your fences, open the gate
It may be rainin', but there's a rainbow above you
You better let somebody love you, before it's too late”

Instrumentally, the song is plush with an outstanding piano (from Frey) and the aforementioned string arrangement from Jim Ed Norman. Henley takes the lead vocal here with everyone kicking in ‘oooo’s and ‘ahhhh’s. There were also wonderful parts written and recorded for both bass and drums, but it is the piano and strings that really shine through.

Structurally, the song is again pretty straight forward with three verses separated by two chorus’ (kind of a musical full house!). The only wrinkle is that lyrically, each chorus is unique with no repeated lyrics anywhere.

The tail end of the final verse slides into a majestic retard and the swelling of strings.

...and like that... the side is over!


  

1972 - Steely Dan - Can’t Buy A Thrill - side one

way through the summer of ‘72 found me killing an afternoon while avoiding the sweltering August heat with a couple of high school buddies in the dimly lit, air-conditioned interior of a neighborhood pool hall. We were in the middle of a game of three-way 8-ball, playing for sodas and as I leaned over the table, lining up a shot, a fresh 45 was loading up on the jukebox. I didn’t know it yet but the moment that needle hit vinyl, my life would change.

It started with just the beat. The intro featured a clean, crisp Latin percussion track, rich in conga drums, sparkling with gourds & shakers and all wrapped around a brisk but somehow relaxed tempo that had the drummer pumping out a solid rhythm in straight time. Eight bars in and a silky Rhodes piano joined the fray, accompanied by bass and guitars, all blocking out the changes while leaving plenty of room for a lead vocal. 16 bars later and the band executed a tight ten bar refrain, turning the tune around and setting the listener up for the first verse. And that’s when it happened.
           
His voice stopped me absolutely cold. I stood there leaning over the felt, my stick drawn back from the cue ball, but unable to focus on anything beyond that voice!

“In the morning you go gunnin’ for the man who stole your water.
And you fight till he is done in but they catch you at the border...”

The 1st verse & refrain, were followed by an intricate, meandering guitar solo (played by Denny Dias) on electric sitar and as the solo wound down, I realized that these guys had yet another surprise for me. As the sitar trailed off, the space was filled by an incredibly cheesy yet totally compelling Farfisa organ solo! I was completely hooked and the game of pool was now little more than an inconvenience.
                           
“Are you gonna take the shot or not”, one of my friends asked.

I stood up slowly, turned to my left and with the wave of a hand as I walked toward the jukebox said, “nah, you guys go ahead and finish up without me. I gotta find out who this is.”

I reached the jukebox after stashing the cue stick in a nearby wall rack and leaning in with both hands against the curved glass dome started searching for the “now playing” window.

The rectangular white paper tag read, “Do It Again - Steely Dan”. And as I read it, I thought, “Steely Dan? Who the hell is Steely Dan?” The tune was backed by a number called “Fire In The Hole”, and after  scanning the available song list, I found another single by the same guy... “Reelin’ In The Years” B/W “Only A Fool Would Say That”.

I dug a quarter out of my pocket and dropped it in the slot, punching up all three of the numbers I hadn’t yet heard. I stood there transfixed as the three songs played out over the next ten minutes or so and when all three had finished, I played all four a second time. As the replay ended I turned and headed for the door. I was a man on a mission and I had a record to buy!
           
It was a short drive over to College Records, (my favorite used record store) and striding up to the clerk I blurted out, “Do you have an album by some guy named Steely Dan?” He looked up from the copy of Rolling Stone he was reading and pointing towards the bins said, “I think the record is called “Can’t Buy A Thrill” and it should be over there, in rock under the letter S.”

Leafing through the row of LPs stacked neatly in the bin, I quickly found what I was looking for and in the space of a few heartbeats had the album out of the bin where I could examine it at leisure. 

"Can't Buy A Thrill" - cover

Graphically the cover was odd and cluttered, a mix-mash of photography and graphic art. Against the mottled and stained tan background, the bright yellow logo, outlined in blue dominated the upper left hand corner

and proclaimed STEELY DAN with no uncertainty while the thin red title threaded its way across the cover just above the photo of what appeared to be a row of hookers standing in doorways on some European street. Just below the logo sat a large open mouth filled with white teeth and surrounded by bright red lips. And protruding from that mouth was the longest gummy worm I have ever seen! I flipped the LP over and the back was as plain as the front was busy! The same stained brown background and the same large yellow logo, (this time on the lower right), accompanied a massive block of text that included song titles, recording details and liner notes by Tristan Fabriani (an old pseudonym of Donald Fagen’s). None of it seemed to fit together. None of it seemed to belong, but I was interested in the contents not the container so I headed back to the counter, paid for my selection and headed home to listen to my new treasure.

Arriving home I quickly fired up my trusty Nikko power amp and after slitting the shrink wrap, placed the slab of black vinyl carefully on the platter of my Garrard turntable. As side one began to play I settled in on the couch to soak it all in.

Lemme run down the rest of the side for you...

Do It Again (the opening track) is followed by “Dirty Work”, a bittersweet ballad whose lyric deals with a love affair in which one of the partners is using the other as a place holder for their regular relationship. The song is filled with the kind of beautifully vague imagery that would rapidly become SOP for the Dan. From verse #2:

“Light the candle, put the lock upon the door
You have sent the maid home early like a thousand times before
Like a castle in it’s corner, in a medieval game
I foresee terrible trouble, and I stay here just the same”

Instrumentation includes Rhodes & organ, guitars & bass, drums and a small brass section The lead vocal is by David Palmer and the sax solo is by Jerome Richardson.

Although at first listen the song seems to follow a traditional 4/4 time signature, there are some deceiving wrinkles built into the structure. The intro is 7 bars long with the vocal dropping on what would have been the two beat of bar #8. The verse consists of two halves, the first containing 3 bars of four followed by a bar of six and the second containing 3 bars of four and a bar of five. The chorus, like the intro, is 7 bars of four and the solo is 6 bars of 4 plus a bar of 3. All of this drops us into the outro which is straight bars of four through the fade. So in terms of both length and time, nothing in this song is quite what it seems!

Next up is “Kings”, a tune whose lyric, despite claims (by the band) to the contrary, seems more than vaguely political in nature. Led by a rolling piano and buttressed by clean, jazzy guitars, the tune features Donald Fagen back in the lead vocalist’s chair and a frantic guitar solo by Elliot Randall (who will reappear at the beginning of side B with another blistering solo). Also appearing for the first time on the album we have a section of backup singers that includes Venetta Fields, Clydie King and Shirlie Matthews. (These three girls formed the backbone of L.A. session back up vocalists throughout the 70's 80's 90's and into the 21st century!) The straight ahead drum beat is once again fortified by percussion in the form of a conga part by Jeff “Skunk” Baxter.

The song structure is unique in that the verses are six lines long (instead of the usual four or eight). But the rest of the tune (chorus, intro/outro & solo) stays ‘normal’ (composed of eight bar sections)  right up until the fade which alternates between bars of four and six.

Following the almost frantic “Kings” is a more relaxed tune called “Midnight Cruiser”. At first, the lyric here reads like a conversation with a friend but on further examination seems more like a confession of drug abuse. From verse #1:

“Felonius my old friend, step on in and let me shake your hand
So glad that you're here again,
For one more time let your madness run with mine
The streets still unseen we'll find somehow that no time is better than now”

Along with a backing track of piano, guitar, bass & drums, instrumentation of note includes a guitar solo by Jeff “Skunk” Baxter and a lead vocal by drummer Jim Hodder. Hodder is a fine drummer. His technique is clean and efficient with a delicate touch and a good sense of time. Unfortunately, he would ultimately be replaced (while preparing to record ‘Katy Lied’) when Fagen & Becker would decide to shift the paradigm by disassembling the fixed band in favor of an ever deepening pool of session musicians and other stellar players.

Structurally, the tune is almost “normal” with only a few wrinkles thrown in. The intro is 6 bars of four and the verses are 12 bars of four with an extra ½ measure (2 beats) tagged on at the end. The chorus’ are 8 bars of four and a bar of six and the guitar solo is 20 bars of four with an extra ½ measure (2 beats) tagged on at the end. The outro/fade is a pair of chorus’.
                   
The side wraps up with “Only A Fool Would Say That”. A silky smooth Caribbean flavored number that features the first bridge on a Steely Dan record. Lyrically the song is about the futility of embracing the 60's utopian dream of peace and harmony on earth. From the chorus:

“I heard it was you
Talkin' 'bout a world where all is free
It just couldn't be
And only a fool would say that”

Musically the song bounces along at a brisk tempo backed by jazzy guitars, Rhodes piano, and about a ton of percussion! The bass player here (and on the rest of the album) is Fagen’s partner in crime,  Walter Becker. An outstanding guitarist in his own right, Becker is also a brilliant bass player whose melodic style and classic technique are rooted in his love of American jazz (specifically BeBop). The guitar solo is again from Jeff “Skunk”Baxter who also supplies the Spanish spoken word at the very end of the song.

Structurally the song is the most traditional on the album yet! With 16 bar verses, 8 bar chorus’ and even a good old middle eight! The only wrinkles come with an extra 6 bar refrain that acts as a turn around between the bridge and the tight 8 bar solo and then again between final chorus and cold ending.  ("Solamente un tanto dice ella” - “only a fool would say that”).