Steely Dan - Gaucho (Hybrid SACD)
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Donald Fagen – lead vocals, backing vocals, synthesizer , electric piano , organ [click here to see more vinyl featuring Donald Fagen]
Backing vocals - Michael McDonald , Patti Austin , Valerie Simpson , Frank Floyd , Diva Gray , Gordon Grody , Lani Groves , Lesley Miller, Zachary Sanders , Toni Wine
Steve Gadd – drums , percussion [click here to see more vinyl featuring Steve Gadd]
Victor Feldman – percussion
Walter Becker – bass , guitar guitar solo
Randy Brecker – trumpet , flugelhorn
Wayne Andre – trombone
Tom Scott – alto saxophone, clarinet ; tenor saxophone ; Lyricon , horn arrangement
David Sanborn – alto saxophone
Michael Brecker – tenor saxophone
Dave Tofani – tenor saxophone
Ronnie Cuber – baritone saxophone
Walter Kane – clarinet
George Marge – clarinet
Rob Mounsey – piano , horn arrangement
Don Grolnick – electric piano, Clavinet
Bill Tobin – electric piano
Pat Rebillot – electric piano
Hiram Bullock – guitar
Larry Carlton – lead guitar
Rick Derringer – guitar
Steve Khan – guitar lead guitar
Mark Knopfler – lead guitar
Hugh McCracken – guitars
Chuck Rainey – bass
Anthony Jackson – bass
Rick Marotta – drums
Jeff Porcaro – drums
Bernard Purdie – drums
Errol "Crusher" Bennett – percussion
Ralph MacDonald – percussion
Nicholas Marrero – percussion
Horn arranged by Rob Mounsey
All songs written by Walter Becker and Donald Fagen except "Gaucho" written with Keith Jarrett
Hybrid SACD
Original analog Master tape : NO (tape copy)
Stereo
Studio
Label : Analogue Productions
Original Label : MCA
Recorded 1978–1980 at Sigma Sound Studio (New York City), Soundworks (New York City), Automated Sound (New York City), A&R (New York City), Village Recorders (West Los Angeles), Producer's Workshop (Hollywood)
Engineered by Roger Nichols
Mixed by Elliot Scheiner
Produced by Gary Katz
Mastered by Bernie Grundman
Originally released in November 1980
Reissued in 2023
Tracks:
1. Babylon Sisters
2. Hey Nineteen
3. Glamour Profession
4. Gaucho
5. Time Out Of Mind
6. My Rival
7. Third World Man
Awards:
1982 Grammy Award for Best Non-Classical Engineered Recording
Colin Larkin’s All Time Top 1000 Albums - Ranked 504
Reviews :
“Aja was cool, relaxed, and controlled; it sounded deceptively easy. Its follow-up, Gaucho, while sonically similar, is its polar opposite: a precise and studied record, where all of the seams show. Gaucho essentially replicates the smooth jazz-pop of Aja, but with none of that record's dark, seductive romance or elegant aura. Instead, it's meticulous and exacting; each performance has been rehearsed so many times that it no longer has any emotional resonance. Furthermore, Walter Becker and Donald Fagen's songs are generally labored, only occasionally reaching their past heights, like on the suave "Babylon Sisters," "Time Out of Mind," and "Hey Nineteen." Still, those three songs are barely enough to make the remainder of the album's glossy, meandering fusion worthwhile.” AllMusic Review by Stephen Thomas Erlewine.
Ratings :
AllMusic : 4 / 5 , Discogs : 4.68 / 5