Based on the reaction to the recently released Yacht Rock: A Dockumentary from both Steely Dan fan pages and Donald Fagen himself, calling Steely Dan pioneers of the genre is somewhat of a tender issue. But what about Fagen’s solo work?
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In 1982, his song “I.G.Y. (What a Beautiful World”) became a hit, as Fagen ventured out from the Steely Dan umbrella for the first time. It’s a song that certainly shares the blend of musical complexity and smoothness that many insist are the defining characteristics for yacht rock, even if some of its author’s ironic prickliness sneaks into the lyrics.
An Initial (and Initial-Filled) Solo Debut
Maybe all those years requiring umpteen takes of their tracks to be played and replayed by guest musicians finally started to wear on Donald Fagen and Walter Becker, the stalwarts of Steely Dan. Following their hit 1980 album Gaucho, the pair decided to give the Dan a break and work on their own projects.
For Fagen, that meant a solo album, The Nightfly, released in 1982. Without Becker, Fagen found himself writing in a much more confessional manner. His concept for the record largely came from youthful experiences and remembrances.
And while Fagen could still be caustic at times with his lyrics, he also wrote with a sense of hopefulness you wouldn’t have normally associated with Steely Dan. While looking back to the ’50s and rhapsodizing about both scientific advances and charismatic DJs, Fagen’s lyrics betrayed hope and wonder amidst the usual irony.
The title of “I.G.Y. (What a Beautiful World)” refers to the International Geophysical Year, a time period in 1957 and 1958 when countries from around the world came together and exchanged the latest scientific advances. It was a time when most people had a positive view of technology and how it might improve human life.
Even as it was a solo record, Fagen hadn’t abandoned the methods he and Becker had utilized in Steely Dan. He brought in the best of the best session players to realize the songs on The Nightfly. Among the aces used on the mellow but funky “I.G.Y” were folks like Hugh McCracken, Jeff Porcaro, and Randy Brecker, all of whom had made major contributions to Dan records.
Behind the Lyrics of “I.G.Y. (What a Beautiful World)”
Fagen paints an optimistic picture throughout much of “I.G.Y.” We can tell this dream’s in sight, he claims early on in the song. What’s left unsaid is many of the wonders mentioned never came to fruition, such as an undersea train that only takes 90 minutes from New York to Paris.
Throughout the song, jaundiced notions clear out some space among the halcyon expectations: The fix is in / You’ll be a witness to that game of chance in the sky, Fagen sings. And for all the heady inventions peppering the narrative, the ultimate benefit is somewhat anticlimactic: There’ll be spandex jackets, one for everyone.
Some of the sci-fi notions end up sounding a bit ominous: Just a machine to make big decisions / Programmed by fellows with compassion and vision. When Fagen makes his final pronouncement, it seems less like a gleaming future, and more like promises that can’t ever be kept: We’ll be clean when their work is done / We’ll be eternally free, yes, and eternally young.
That Utopian vibe carries into the chorus: What a beautiful world this will be / What a glorious time to be free. “I.G.Y.” might commemorate a time when anything seemed possible. But Donald Fagen renders it with just enough lyrical sourness to make the future seem like the same-old, same-old.
Photo by BSR Agency/Gentle Look via Getty Images
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