Steely Dan 101: The Royal Scam

 "No band has taught me more emphatically the importance of humor and sarcasm in music..." So says Neil Carson, resident expert on all things Dan and leader of a 12-piece band formed especially for the performance of Steely Dan's classic fifth album, The Royal Scam.  Released in 1976, The Royal Scam documents Steely Dan in transformation: from an elegant, but somewhat unpolished, radio-friendly rock band on their debut album Can't Buy a Thrill to a studio-exclusive, jazz- and funk-flavored compositional vehicle that came into full bloom on 1977's Aja. Featuring a laundry list of the finest session musicians in the industry--from audacious hero guitarist Larry Carlton on "Kid Charlemagne" to the Purdie-Shuffle's namesake drummer Bernard Purdie on "The Fez"--Steely Dan's Donald Fagen and Walter Becker surrounded themselves with the best, and got the best results.  Dripping in sarcasm packaged into the nastiest funk, saxophonist and vocalist Neil Carson's Day-Glo Freaks pays loving tribute to this seminal album with meticulously-crafted arrangements loyal to the record, loads of history taken from liner notes and interviews with Becker and Fagen over the years, and simply the best musicians Chicago has to offer.

• https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0VnoHc2ru70