Following Walker Becker’s death in 2017, Donald Fagen was forced to carry on the legacy of Steely Dan alone. The frontman contributed lead vocals to many of the duo’s most timeless tracks. On top of being the lead voice of Steely Dan, Fagen also has some keen insights outside of the studio.
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Check out 12 of his best quotes, below.
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1. “When you get a groove going, time flies.”
2. “People are usually afraid to say what’s on their mind.”
3. “I had trouble distinguishing art from life. I don’t now, and I feel much better!”
4. “Anthemic rock music is inherently fascist – anything intended to move huge masses of people is politically offensive to me.”
5. “I took some lessons as a kid but trained myself by ear. I did it the way jazz musicians used to learn years ago, which is to play records and slow them down to figure out the notes. At first I tried to imitate Red Garland, who was my favorite jazz pianist.”
6. “I like it when songs develop in some way. Four minutes usually isn’t enough time for something to develop musically.”
7. “I’ve never been comfortable as a lead performer, and I never wanted to be a singer, particularly.”
8. “My style is a little quirky. I can’t play as fast as most professional jazz players.”
9. “What do you do with what you’re given, and how do you transform it into something worthwhile?”
10. “My writing is really intuitive. As a kid, I went to school in New Jersey and hung out in New York, so the way kids used to talk got into our earlier songs.”
11. “Popularity has everything to do with business and nothing to do with music.”
12. “I have a critical nature, in the sense that when I look at something I often look for the flaws.”
Photo by Mick Hutson/Redferns
