Return of the gaucho amigos

She puts on a record, metallic cocaine be-bop. This line, from the harrowing “A.J.'s Annual Party” scene in William S. Burroughs' [Naked Lunch], seems a portent of the distinctive sound and ambience of Steely Dan — a band legendary for its cryptic lyrics, opium den demeanor, and flawless musicianship.

After 19 years wandering as shades in the classic rock radio netherworld, Walter Becker and Donald Fagen have written yet another chapter in one of the most eclectic and eccentric oeuvres in pop music.

Steely Dan is most accurately described as the conspiratorial/collaborative nom de plume for Fagen and Becker. Drawing upon the black-humored Beats (they cribbed their moniker from a dynastic line of dildos in [Naked Lunch]), New Orleans jazz, and cerebral pop stylizations, Steely Dan produced a string of critically and commercially acclaimed albums from 1972 to 1980.

After disappearing from view in the early '80s, Becker and Fagen resurfaced occasionally with solo projects, but it seemed Steely Dan had become extinct. However, their ninth studio album, [Two Against Nature], marked a long-awaited return. Though it stands alone in artistic vision, the record doesn’t stray far from their trademark delivery — filled with sketches of drug-peddling quacks, vicious jail-bait ingénues, and the smoky dungeon underworlds of both coasts.

According to Becker, the songs are largely symbolic. “Generally speaking, and almost without exception, the characters and specific situations in our lyrics are fiction,” he says. “And as such, they are true to our sensibility and our sense of what life is, and the experiences that we've had.”

Steely Dan stopped touring in 1974 and remained off the road until their impromptu 1993 tour. “Initially when we went out in 1993, we had a backlog of songs people wanted to hear,” says Becker. “By 1994, we knew that we would need new songs.”

The loose batch of tunes that became [Two Against Nature] began to take shape in 1996. “We decided at the end of 1995 that we were going to do this,” Becker recalls. “In the summer of ’96, we did some writing and produced a couple of tunes.”

Critics embraced the record and accompanying tour, though some couldn’t resist pun-heavy headlines referencing “Reelin’ in the Years.” Becker acknowledges that their success may be due, in part, to the effort involved. “We approached this record in pretty much the same way we did in the old days… how much time we spent on it, and how serious we were. I think this earned the goodwill of a lot of people.”

As for future Steely Dan projects? “It’s very possible,” says Becker. “We’ve talked about all sorts of things… but we were looking forward to playing these songs live. We have a big summer and fall of that coming up. I don’t think we have any firm plans beyond that.”

Then he adds with a laugh, “We’ve already made our wills, of course.”

[Editor’s note: This event occurred in the year 2000 and is included here for archival purposes.]

Steely Dan performs at Chastain Park Amphitheater on July 17 and 18, 2000. Show time is 8 p.m.