American rock/jazz duo led by Donald Fagen and Walter Becker, known for meticulous studio production, sophisticated arrangements and frequent use of top session musicians.

Formed by Donald Fagen and Walter Becker, Steely Dan became known for studio perfectionism and hiring prominent session musicians. They largely ceased touring in the mid-1970s to focus on studio work and returned to performing in the 1990s. Their 2000 album Two Against Nature won multiple Grammy Awards, including Album of the Year (2001).

DeBaser's reviews consistently praise Steely Dan's meticulous studio craft, genre-blending compositions, and use of top session musicians. Key albums frequently highlighted include Aja, Pretzel Logic and The Royal Scam. The overall impression across reviews is admiration for compositional sophistication and polished production.

For:Fans of 1970s studio-crafted rock, jazz-rock listeners, audiophiles and lovers of literate lyrics.

 On the characteristics of Steely Dan's music, other reviewers have already written excellently: from my side, I can humbly add that in their productions, easy-listening has truly been elevated to an art form.

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 Aja, like few other albums of its period, is a gift of elegance to posterity, a monumental work for its formal completeness and artistic maturity, a chest full of jewels, an inexhaustible source of stimuli and inspiration for future artists.

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 Suffice it to say this album approaches perfection. It makes you realize how useless the "Skip" button on the radio is.

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