Am I the only one here who sees this song as an ironic (Steely Dan ironic ... who'd 'a thunk it?) comment on cynicism itself?
This is my favorite 'Dan song (I love the remake by Ivy too), and maybe I have been taken in by the irrepressibly upbeat melody. Despite the exhausted working man counterpoint in the lyrics, I always kind of put some mental quotation marks around "fool", with the idea that we should all be such "fools."
As for the idea that Lennon or Dylan are being called out for hypocrisy of some sort, that just seems way more overt than the Becker and Fagen I have experienced. They might allude to the contradictions in a situation and let listeners draw their own conclusions, but directly going after individuals is not their MO.
Check out the article I have on my journal; it concerns interesting tidbits about Steely Dan and even mentions some band references found within S.D.'s lyrics. It's really a good read. As for the artist, I've never liked S.D.'s music, and now that a someone (ie. author of article) lumps it in with a couple of other bands), I understand why.
Check out the article I have on my journal; it concerns interesting tidbits about Steely Dan and even mentions some band references found within S.D.'s lyrics. It's really a good read. As for the artist, I've never liked S.D.'s music, and now that a someone (ie. author of article) lumps it in with a couple of other bands), I understand why.
In case I accidentally (or intentionally:) delete my journal entry, here is a link to the article. Just change the (dot) to an actual dot;) http://www (dot) smellslikepop (dot) com/2011/09/five-unusually-disconcerting-things-about-steely-dan/
In case I accidentally (or intentionally:) delete my journal entry, here is a link to the article. Just change the (dot) to an actual dot;) http://www (dot) smellslikepop (dot) com/2011/09/five-unusually-disconcerting-things-about-steely-dan/
Am I the only one here who sees this song as an ironic (Steely Dan ironic ... who'd 'a thunk it?) comment on cynicism itself?
This is my favorite 'Dan song (I love the remake by Ivy too), and maybe I have been taken in by the irrepressibly upbeat melody. Despite the exhausted working man counterpoint in the lyrics, I always kind of put some mental quotation marks around "fool", with the idea that we should all be such "fools."
As for the idea that Lennon or Dylan are being called out for hypocrisy of some sort, that just seems way more overt than the Becker and Fagen I have experienced. They might allude to the contradictions in a situation and let listeners draw their own conclusions, but directly going after individuals is not their MO.
Check out the article I have on my journal; it concerns interesting tidbits about Steely Dan and even mentions some band references found within S.D.'s lyrics. It's really a good read. As for the artist, I've never liked S.D.'s music, and now that a someone (ie. author of article) lumps it in with a couple of other bands), I understand why.
Check out the article I have on my journal; it concerns interesting tidbits about Steely Dan and even mentions some band references found within S.D.'s lyrics. It's really a good read. As for the artist, I've never liked S.D.'s music, and now that a someone (ie. author of article) lumps it in with a couple of other bands), I understand why.
In case I accidentally (or intentionally:) delete my journal entry, here is a link to the article. Just change the (dot) to an actual dot;) http://www (dot) smellslikepop (dot) com/2011/09/five-unusually-disconcerting-things-about-steely-dan/
In case I accidentally (or intentionally:) delete my journal entry, here is a link to the article. Just change the (dot) to an actual dot;) http://www (dot) smellslikepop (dot) com/2011/09/five-unusually-disconcerting-things-about-steely-dan/