Jump to content

Pretzel Logic

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

This is an old revision of this page, as edited by Vagobot (talk | contribs) at 11:43, 19 September 2012 (r2.7.2) (Robot: Adding sh:Pretzel Logic). The present address (URL) is a permanent link to this revision, which may differ significantly from the current revision.

Untitled
Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
Allmusic[1]
Robert ChristgauA+[2]
Rolling Stone(favorable)[3]

Pretzel Logic is the third studio album by the American jazz-rock band Steely Dan, originally released in 1974. The album's opening song, "Rikki Don't Lose That Number", became the band's biggest hit, reaching #4 on the charts soon after the release of the album.[4] The album itself went gold, and then platinum, reaching #8 on the charts.[5] The album was also highly regarded critically, appearing near the top of several end-of-year polls including the number one slot on NME Album of the Year and the number two spot on the Village Voice end-of-year list compiled by Robert Christgau.[6] In 2003, it was placed at number 385 on Rolling Stone magazine's list of the 500 greatest albums of all time.[7]

Overview

Steely Dan was still considered a true “group” at the time this, their third album, was released; in addition to core members Walter Becker and Donald Fagen, guitarists Jeff “Skunk” Baxter and Denny Dias and drummer Jim Hodder (as well as multi-instrumentalist Victor Feldman) had appeared on both previous Steely Dan releases along with a host of session aces; all five appeared on the inside cover of the album, though Hodder was replaced on drums by Jim Gordon and Jeff Porcaro for the recordings (Hodder did, however, contribute backing vocals to "Parker's Band").

The tour supporting this album would be the last time any version of Steely Dan appeared live until decades later, as Becker and Fagen's disillusionment with live performance during the tour would lead both to an end of such performances and a disbanding of the Steely Dan lineup. Much of this disillusionment was due to audiences' lack of reception of more complex material. This would lead Becker and Fagen to move to being a studio duo with varied backing on following albums, still under the name Steely Dan.

One of the tracks, "Parker's Band," was a tribute to legendary jazz saxophonist Charlie Parker.

Initial versions of the Remastered CD issue contained an abridged version of "Rikki Don't Lose That Number". This has been corrected on subsequent pressings. The album was originally released in 2 channel Stereo and also in a special 4-channel Quadrophonic mix. There are some significant musical differences between the two mixes. This was the last of three Steely Dan albums to be issued in both 2 and 4 channel formats.

Cover

The album cover features a photograph of a New York pretzel seller, taken by the well-known photographer of music and Hollywood celebrities Raeanne Rubenstein.

The location is the west side of Fifth Avenue and 79th Street, just above the 79th Street Transverse (the road through Central Park), at the park entrance called "Miners' Gate".[8]

Track listing

All songs written by Becker and Fagen, except where noted

Original album version

Side 1
  1. "Rikki Don't Lose That Number" – 4:30
  2. "Night by Night" – 3:36
  3. "Any Major Dude Will Tell You" – 3:05
  4. "Barrytown" – 3:17
  5. "East St. Louis Toodle-Oo" (Duke Ellington, Bubber Miley) – 2:45
Side 2
  2. "Parker's Band" – 2:36
  3. "Through with Buzz" – 1:30
  4. "Pretzel Logic" – 4:28
  5. "With a Gun" – 2:15
  6. "Charlie Freak" – 2:41
  7. "Monkey in Your Soul" – 2:31

Personnel

Steely Dan

Production

  • Producer: Gary Katz
  • Engineer: Roger Nichols
  • Consultant: Daniel Levitin
  • Orchestration: Jimmie Haskell
  • Design: David Larkham
  • Art direction: Ed Caraeff
  • Photography: Ed Caraeff
  • Cover photo: Raeanne Rubenstein

Charts

Album[5]

Year Chart Position
1974 Pop Albums 8

Singles[4]

Year Single Label & number Position
1974 "Pretzel Logic" (3:59 edit) (B-side: "Through With Buzz") ABC 12033 57
1974 "Rikki Don't Lose That Number" (B-side: "Any Major Dude Will Tell You") ABC 11439 4

References

  1. ^ Erlewine, Stephen Thomas. Pretzel Logic at AllMusic. Retrieved 27 October 2004.
  2. ^ Christgau, Robert. "Steely Dan > Consumer Guide Reviews". Robert Christgau. Retrieved 5 March 2006.
  3. ^ Scoppa, Bud (May 23, 1974). "Steely Dan Pretzel Logic > Album Review". Rolling Stone. No. 161. Archived from the original on 13 November 2007. Retrieved 22 August 2007. {{cite news}}: Unknown parameter |deadurl= ignored (|url-status= suggested) (help)
  4. ^ a b Pretzel Logic - Steely Dan > Charts & Awards > Billboard Singles at AllMusic. Retrieved 27 October 2004.
  5. ^ a b Pretzel Logic - Steely Dan > Charts & Awards > Billboard Albums at AllMusic. Retrieved 27 October 2004.
  6. ^ "The 1974 Pazz & Jop Critics Poll". The Village Voice. January 20, 1975. Retrieved 6 January 2005.
  7. ^ Levy, Joe (2006) [2005]. "385 | Pretzel Logic - Steely Dan". Rolling Stone's 500 Greatest Albums of All Time (3rd ed.). London: Turnaround. ISBN 1-932958-61-4. OCLC 70672814. {{cite book}}: |access-date= requires |url= (help); External link in |chapterurl= (help); Unknown parameter |chapterurl= ignored (|chapter-url= suggested) (help); Unknown parameter |coauthors= ignored (|author= suggested) (help)
  8. ^ "Pretzel Logic - Steely Dan (1974)" at popspotsnyc.com
Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/enwiki/w/index.php?title=Pretzel_Logic&oldid=513517969"