"Razor Boy" as written by Walter Carl Becker and Donald Jay Fagen....
I hear you are singing a song of the past
I see no tears
I know that you know it may be the last
For many years
You'd gamble or give anything
To be in with the better half
But how many friends must I have
To begin with to make you laugh
Will you still have a song to sing
When the razor boy comes
And take your fancy things away
Will you still be singing it
On that cold and windy day
You know that the coming is so close at hand
You feel all right
I guess only women in cages can stand
This kind of night
I guess only women in cages
Can play down
The things they lose
You think no tomorrow will come
When you lay down
You can't refuse
Will you still have a song to sing
When the razor boy comes
And take your fancy things away
Will you still be singing it
On that cold and windy day
I see no tears
I know that you know it may be the last
For many years
You'd gamble or give anything
To be in with the better half
But how many friends must I have
To begin with to make you laugh
Will you still have a song to sing
When the razor boy comes
And take your fancy things away
Will you still be singing it
On that cold and windy day
You know that the coming is so close at hand
You feel all right
I guess only women in cages can stand
This kind of night
I guess only women in cages
Can play down
The things they lose
You think no tomorrow will come
When you lay down
You can't refuse
Will you still have a song to sing
When the razor boy comes
And take your fancy things away
Will you still be singing it
On that cold and windy day
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Our Hero is in love with a woman who is in an abusive relationship. The lady is attracted to this unsavory fellow because he is higher up in the social hierarchy -- more "popular" -- than Our Hero ('You'd gamble or give anything/To be in with the better half/ But how many friends must I have/ To Begin with to make you laugh' )
I think the lady's "fancy things" that the Razor boy is taking away are her dreams and hopes and pretty fantasies, as the abusive partner slashes away at them like a razor while all Our Hapless Hero can do is look on and watch this woman destroy herself with this relationship.
The 'Razor Boy' symbolizes that 'something' whether it be a loss of a job, bankruptcy, illness, death, natural disaster...etc. He represents the unexpected turn of events in life that can 'cut' us down to where we're at our most vulnerable.
The lines referring to 'women in cages' could refer to those in abusive relationships as mentioned in some of the other comments I've read. But less specifically, I think 'women in cages' could also refer to anyone who's spent any length of time trying to work through a personal struggle or hardship - anyone who's never known the pleasure of owning 'fancy things'.
To me, 'Razor Boy' is song about having to face humility. It poses the questions:
Would you be able to carry on if your life were to be turned completely upside down? and Could you go from having it all one day, to losing everything the next?
eerily enough this tune was released almost exactly 10 years before the movie, yet describes that scene almost prophetically.
Really read deep in between those lines - paired with the Latin vibes its almost scary.
Also the second verse up there should be 'You'd gamble or give anything/To be in with the better half/ But how many friends must I have/ To Begin with to make you laugh'
I love the imagery of "women in cages" as if he's referring to her as a "kept woman."
Note the use of acoustic upright bass on this track. Solid.
Whatever it is, this is CTE's best song. :>)
that's the great thing about steely dan: all their lyrics are so great and cryptic that we could debate what this song is about all day.
Also, the lyrics are wrong. It's "To be in with the better half, not begin with the better hand.