I and this guy

Nothing like a little Wednesday Alan Parsons to seriously up the dweeb quotient of your week. Whatever your viewpoint on this kind of AOR slickness, you have to give them credit for keeping some genuine funkiness in what could've been the stiffest of studio products. Props to them also for providing the timeless soundtrack for starting lineup announcements at NBA games. Having enjoyed such an event up close last night (and, wow, the Toronto Raptors need not only good players, but also a name change), I'm also feeling these guys in the sweet spring air as well. Mr. Parsons's Eye in the Sky gently winks in your direction.

The Alan Parsons Project - Step By Step

A touch of Ned

After a weekend of snowboundness, power outages, and hotel hijinks in Western Massachusetts, I'd say a slice of luxuriously decadent pop is called for. If you don't know Ned Doheny, well, why would you? Except that he sits in the same constellation as Steely Dan, Todd Rundgren, and many less celebrated yachtsmen. I'd be shocked if I were told that a bunch of cocaine was not involved in the making of this one.

Ned Doheny - Sing To Me

Soft waves for Japan

Jesus, can beleaguered Japan please get a break! Seriously, I'm talking to you, Jesus. A 7.1 aftershock, really? Surely some other nation can step and take their share of the misery. The world sure is cruel, and that's even before people get involved. Songblague's humble response is to send out some mellow musical waves that will hopefully make their way eastward.

Yoshiaki Masuo - Sailing Wonder

Wear the weary hours down

Steely Dan have always been the elephant in the room around here, responsible for my fondness (obsession) for musics of a smooth and greasy character in recent years. It wasn't always this way. I'd long given them the grapefruit face, holding them with the same contempt I reserve for jam bands and subway preachers. And then suddenly, a switch flipped. There was no blinding light or burning whatever. A friend dropped their catalogue on me all at once, and as I dug in, I found that my ears were tuned directly into it.

In retrospect, it shouldn't be surprising. There's the snarky lyricizing and raised-eyebrow perspective that I reflexively appreciate from my Zappa days. Couple that with the prog-precise musicianship of their many collaborators. And then, what could be the dealbreaker, that fusion-y '70s-ness — exquisite chords, mustaches, cocaine, and perfectionism. Ironic or not, there it is. And even that irony has its layers. You love it or you don't. And I love it. A star in the constellation that stretches across my musical cosmos.

It's a tough choice for which tune to go with. I should devote a week to them, maybe two. But this one is pretty instant in its gratification. And yes ma'am, that is one Michael McDonald on the backing vox.

Steely Dan - Rose Darling