Stephen is the husband to Becky who gave me recommendation #5. I saw both of them in March 2018 when I had My Roadtrip from Chicago to Maryland and Delaware. They actually hosted me while I stayed in Delaware and I even reconnected with them in Sydney, Australia earlier this year. They took a cruise in NZ and OZ over the holidays, and they ended up being in Sydney in early January when I was there. We completed the Harbor Bridge Climb together, and it was fun seeing them halfway across the world. While I know Becky much better than Stephen, I was excited to experience this iconic album (the only other music recommendation on my list) and see the type of music Stephen enjoyed.
Recommendation #26 from Stephen Parlow
Aja by Steely Dan
This jazz album is older than me! Debuting in 1977, it is Steely Dan’s sixth album. Per Wikipedia, “The album peaked at number three on the US charts and number five in the UK. It was the band’s first platinum album and ultimately became their best-selling studio release, eventually selling over 5 million copies. It spawned a number of hit singles, including “Peg”, “Deacon Blues”, and “Josie”. In July 1978, the album won the Grammy Award for Best Engineered Non-Classical Recording. The credits for Aja list nearly 40 musicians, as band leaders Donald Fagen and Walter Becker pushed Steely Dan further into experimenting with different combinations of session players.
In 2003, the album was inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame.”
I actually listened to this 7-song album as I prepared my grad school essays and applications. It is chill, heavily instrumental music, and while I didn’t get into grad school, I’m sure it wasn’t the fault of this music. It’s a little downtempo for my normal listening style, but it helped me better understand this time period in American music history. And I can certainly appreciate the talents of all the musicians that contributed to this album.
Here’s the complete track listing
- Black Cow
- Aja
- Deacon Blues
- Peg
- Home at Last
- I Got the News
- Josie
Like all my recommendations, I’m enjoyed experiencing something that a friend said had impacted their life in some way. And these songs will forever be tied to Stephen in my mind. Check them out on your favorite streaming service, or click the link above to find this album on Amazon.
My favorite song of the album would have to be Josie. It has some nice grooves to it. And so, that’s the music video for this post. I hope you enjoy!