Issue No. 36 of Johnny Be Good features one of 45 songs from the book, Anatomy of a Song: The Oral History of 45 Iconic Hits That Changed Rock, R&B and Pop, by Marc Myers. Read John Pearson's review here. Order from Amazon here. Listen to the book on Libro (9 hours, 34 minutes). Each blog will spotlight a song from the book and a guest blogger’s color commentary. Click here to subscribe. Each issue of Your Weekly Staff Meeting will highlight the latest blog.
“Deacon Blues” & The Prodigal Son
Today’s guest blogger: Skye Matlock
Song: #36 of 45
Title: “Deacon Blues"
Musicians: Steely Dan
Released: September 1977
I APPRECIATED THIS:
Steely Dan writers Donald Fagen and Walter Becker painting the picture of Deacon Blues' birth—walking the reader through each step of creation without saying too much—is what made this chapter so impactful. I thought I knew this song better than the back of my hand before diving into the lyrical choices that were made!
Read more about the song in Marc Myers’ WSJ article, Sept. 10, 2015, “How Steely Dan Created ‘Deacon Blues.’ Donald Fagen and Walter Becker of Steely Dan explain the 1977 hit ‘Deacon Blues.’”
Listen to “Deacon Blues” sung by Steely Dan.
MY FAVORITE NOTES & QUOTES:
In this chapter, the last statement Donald Fagen made is a major reason why I admire Steely Dan as much as I do. He tells Marc Myers, "One thing we did right on 'Deacon Blues' and all of our records: We never tried to accommodate the mass market. We worked for ourselves and still do."
They wrote for the critics, not necessarily for the general masses, and that level of exclusivity adds to their sound.
“Deacon Blues” reminds me a lot of The Parable of the Prodigal Son (Luke 15:11-32). The protagonist in the song dreams of a more glamorous life, despite societal norms and expectations. The prodigal son similarly seeks fulfillment away from his father's house. Both narratives share a theme of finding a form of redemption of acceptance, although the members of Steely Dan may not have had that intention based on the inspiration they shared in Marc Myers' book.
WHERE WERE YOU WHEN YOU FIRST HEARD THIS SONG?
Trying to remember the first time I heard this song is a challenge, as it feels like it has always been imbedded in my DNA! During my freshman year of college, I had made it a point to get as far into Rolling Stone's "500 Greatest Albums of All Time" as I could.
As soon as Steely Dan's “Aja” (ranked 63 by Rolling Stone) was next for me to cross off the list, I equipped my headphones atop my dorm room's twin bed. First came “Black Cow,” then “Aja”—and my jaw was still on the floor by the time I made it to track 3, “Deacon Blues.”
THIS ISSUE'S COMMENTARY BY Skye Matlock
TODAY’S GUEST BLOGGER, Skye Matlock, is a Texas-born-and-raised musician currently residing in New York City! Her passion for the arts led her to pursue a Bachelor of Fine Arts in Fashion Design at Parsons School of Design, where all of her artistic loves were being fed except for one—music.
After a few years of playing with a network of musicians on the internet, Skye married her love of lyrics and bass riffs and now performs her original music across New York in a garage rock trio under her own name. Her music abstractly explores the difficulties of being a Christian in a secular society, a theme that has become a regular part of her day-to-day.
Check out her debut album here!
NEXT UP: Song #37 of 45, “(The Angels Wanna Wear My) Red Shoes," by Elvis Costello
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It all started in 2023, when John Pearson read and reviewed a "fun" book, Anatomy of a Song: The Oral History of 45 Iconic Hits That Changed Rock, R&B and Pop, by Marc Myers. Read John's review here. Order from Amazon here. Listen to the book on Libro (9 hours, 34 minutes).
If you'd enjoy being one of 45 guest bloggers, along with John Ashmen, Dick Nelson, Suzy West, Dave Barton, Patsy Barton, Paul Palmer, Bill Butterworth, Jim West, Melinda Schmidt, Jason Pearson, Gary Rea, Callista Dawson, John Walling, Ed Barrett, Larry Beatty, Skye Matlock, Scott Anderson and others, read more here and contact John Pearson. Click here to subscribe to this blog and enjoy the toe-tapping musicians in each weekly blog post—reminding you of these iconic songs of yesteryear.