Pretzel Logic is the third Steely Dan album, originally released in 1974. The album's opening song, "Rikki Don't Lose That Number", became the band's biggest hit, reaching #4 on the charts soon after the release of the album. The album itself went gold, and then platinum, reaching #8 on the charts. The album was also highly regarded critically, appearing near the top of several end-of-year polls including the number one slot on Album of the Year and the number two spot on both Robert Christgau and the Village Voice end-of-year lists.

Overview

Steely Dan was still considered a true “group” at the time this, their third album, was released (in addition to core members Walter Becker and Donald Fagen, guitarists Jeff “Skunk” Baxter and Denny Dias as well as multi-instrumentalist Victor Feldman had appeared on both previous Steely Dan releases along with a host of session aces; all five appeared on the inside cover of the album). The tour supporting this album would be the last time any version of Steely Dan appeared live until decades later, as Becker and Fagen's disillusionment with live performance during the tour would lead both to an end to such performance and a disbanding of the Steely Dan lineup. Much of this disillusionment was due to audiences' lack of reception of more complex material. This would lead Becker and Fagen to move to being a studio duo with varied backing on following albums, still under the name Steely Dan.

Something of a compromise between the tight pop of the band's 1972 debut Can't Buy a Thrill and the extended instrumental explorations of 1973’s Countdown to Ecstasy, Pretzel Logic was unlike anything else on the radio in 1974.

One of the standout tracks, "Parker's Band," was a tribute to legendary jazz saxophonist Charlie Parker.

Initial versions of the Remastered CD issue contained an abridged version of "Rikki Don't Lose That Number". This has been corrected on subsequent pressings. The album was originally released in 2 channel Stereo and also in a special 4-channel Quadrophonic mix. There are some significant musical differences between the two mixes. This was the last of three Steely Dan albums to be issued in both 2 and 4 channel formats.

Track listing

Original album version

1. "Rikki Don't Lose That Number" – 4:30
2. "Night By Night" – 3:36
3. "Any Major Dude Will Tell You" – 3:05
4. "Barrytown" – 3:17
5. "East St. Louis Toodle-Oo" (Duke Ellington, Bubber Miley) – 2:45Side 2
6. "Parker's Band" – 2:36
7. "Through With Buzz" – 1:30
8. "Pretzel Logic" – 4:28
9. "With A Gun" – 2:15
10. "Charlie Freak" – 2:41
11. "Monkey In Your Soul" – 2:31

Cassette version

1. "Rikki Don't Lose That Number"
2. "Through With Buzz"
3. "Monkey In Your Soul"
4. "Any Major Dude Will Tell You"
5. "Parker's Band"
6. "Charlie Freak"Side 2
7. "Barrytown"
8. "East St. Louis Toodle-Oo"
9. "With A Gun"
10. "Night By Night"
11. "Pretzel Logic"

Personnel

• Donald Fagen - keyboards, vocals
• Michael Omartian - keyboards
• David Paich - keyboards
• Walter Becker - bass, guitar, vocals
• Timothy B. Schmit - bass, vocals
• Wilton Felder - bass
• Chuck Rainey - bass
• Denny Dias - guitar
• Jeff Baxter - guitar
• Ben Benay - guitar
• Dean Parks - guitar
• Plas Johnson - saxophone
• Jerome Richardson - saxophone
• Ernie Watts - saxophone
• Lew McCreary - horn
• Ollie Mitchell - trumpet
• Jim Hodder - drums
• Jim Gordon - drums
• Jeff Porcaro - drums

Production

• Producer: Gary Katz
• Engineer: Roger Nichols
• Consultant: Daniel Levitin
• Orchestration: Jimmie Haskell
• Design: David Larkham
• Art direction: Ed Caraeff
• Photography: Ed Caraeff
• Cover photo: Raenne Rubenstein

Charts

Pop Singles

External links

• Complete lyrics
• Joel Vance's review of Pretzel Logic
• Pretzel Logic - A Steely Dan Revue