Can't Buy A Thrill

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Editorial reviews

Amazon.co.uk Review
Songwriters Walter Becker and Donald Fagen launched Steely Dan with a seductive, poker-faced 1972 debut as smoothly accessible in its music as it was elusive in its thematic concerns. The opening "Do It Again" snagged swift commercial success as one of the most mysterious pop hits in history, a sultry rock cha-cha that chronicled a series of harrowing catastrophes far removed from the reheated love songs and pro forma counter-cultural rebellion of the day. Though the core band boasted two formidable guitarists, Jeff Baxter and Denny Dias, it was the bloom of Fagen's keyboards and his reedy, smart-ass vocals that carried iThrill/i light years beyond modal, blues-based rock. That said, an enduring highlight remains the furious six-string fantasia of "Reelin' in the Years", spiked by Elliot Randall's downright historic solos, at once dour and giddy in its indictment of a poser, while "Dirty Work" (featuring short-lived, nominal lead singer David Palmer) offers a decidedly adult vignette of adultery. There isn't a weak track here, astonishing, considering how much growth future Dan albums would display. i--Sam Sutherland /i

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Customer reviews

review by: date: 2008-11-09 rating:
You can buy a thrill here on Amazon
I agree with those who put forward this work as the best of all Becker and Fagen's output in that marvellous run of albums that started here. There is a charm and innocence about this that would be lost in subsequent recordings where the sardonic lip curl and density of production would dominate proceedings. There is a real High School feel to 'Can't Buy a Thrill' that really draws you in to a world of growing up, of first experience and innocence just lost; of an America 'before the fall' and the smart-ass cynicism of later Dan albums that effectively chronicle and reflect the corporatisation of the 1970's music business. I never tire of listening to this and it's been with me for most of my adult life, always sounding fresh and surrendering new discoveries every time I dig it out. Its simplicity gives it the edge over the other albums where they sometimes attempted to turn too many tricks. I particularly like the vocals of David Palmer that balance and leaven Fagen's hipster drawl, and I miss his contribution on other Dan recordings. The highlight for me, among a whole album of highlights, is the enigmatic 'Brooklyn' sung by Palmer with it's distant echoes of the Gatsby generation ghosting around it. The cover gives the clue that this is their most imaginative, colourful and cinematic work that gives the listener free rein to spin dreams out of the rich world conjured here for the first time by those masters of sophisticated rock, Becker and Fagen and their inspired cast of musicians.

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review by: SMc date: 2008-10-10 rating:
"Can't (or won't!) buy a better Steely Dan album !"
I can fully support the majority of positive comments in the more illustrious and learned reviews here. What I will add to this is that in my humble opinion, this was the first and best of the Steely Dan canon of work. There is not a bad or weak song on the album. I even think "Only A Fool Would Say That" is a great track. br / br /Steely Dan (that is Becker Fagen) were renowned later for their meticulous approach to the body of work constructed, but for all the brilliance of tracks like "Peg", "Deacon Blue" et al, "Can't Buy A Thrill" was the definitive Steely Dan album. br / br /Discuss ?

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review by: davethorn13 date: 2008-03-19 rating:
First thrill
Steely Dan's first album, like many first albums, suggests that they haven't settled on their approach. Yet this is to its advantage. While they seem to make only great albums, this is more the work of a rock band, rather than the usual Becker/Fagen dominated jazz-inflected musings. Sure, they wrote all the material here, but the other band members are allowed a more prominent role. The lead vocals of David Palmer, for instance, highlight that Donald Fagen's voice, while distinct, is probably Steely Dan's weakest link. Nevertheless, this is a minor gripe. From first track to last, this is solid-groove rock music, sophisticated, lyrically and musically imaginative, with the odd daring arrangement. All of the players get to express themselves and the harmonies are superb. br / br /The lyrics, without being belligerent, pull no punches. 'Do It Again' dives straight into murder. That there are two big hits is a bonus, but 'Can't Buy A Thrill' doesn't depend on these tracks. This is the best Steely Dan album to start with and is arguably their best.

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review by: date: 2008-01-05 rating:
STUPENDOUS ALBUM!
Walter Becker Donald Fagen, chief members songwriters of Steely Dan, apparently do not rate this, the group's 1972 debut, very highly, dismissing it as purely 'formative.' br /As a mere listener, however, I discern much more: 'if you listen, you can hear it' - depth, range, variety, style, structure, poetry, and, above all, that elusive element which gradually diminished as their career flourished - melody, here at a consistently high level throughout the 10 tracks. br /Consistency is equally evident in the lyrics, the theme of REPETITION being echoed again again - 'you go back, Jack, do it again', 'you have sent the maid home early, like a thousand times before', 'ring out the past - his name lives on', 'for one more time let your madness run with mine', 'you've been telling me you're a genius since you were seventeen', etc etc. br /DO IT AGAIN, the album's opening most enduring track, is a particularly hypnotic infectious slice of urban frenzy, with a monotonous undertone - an anthem of our times, if ever there was one. The protagonist (actually YOU, suggesting WE) commits a crime ('you go gunning for the man who stole your water'), gets caught ('they catch you at the border'), is let off ('the hangman isn't hanging') promptly goes out and 'does it again.' Sound familiar? Subsequent verses tell of lies, gambling, betrayal grudging acknowledgment - a pattern of (mis)behaviour that serves to create a vicious circle (the infernal 'wheel turning round round'). br /Other tracks offer similar scenarios, where past experiences present predicaments meet head-on in ways the listener cannot fail to recognise feel challenged by: br /DIRTY WORK - 'I'm a fool to do your dirty work.' Moral: don't let people use you. br /KINGS - 'And though we sang his fame, we still went hungry, just the same.' Lesson: don't follow false idols. br /MIDNITE CRUISER - Missing the 'fun' days? Then, re-create them. br /ONLY A FOOL WOULD SAY THAT - 'A world where all is free?' Forget it, it 'just couldn't be.' br /REELING IN THE YEARS - 'Stowing away the time?' Better to live for now - 'no time is better than'(it). br /FIRE IN THE HOLE - 'And nothing left to burn.' Time to re-fuel. br /BROOKLYN - A less mature ( coherent) vision - it was written some years earlier - this is supposedly aimed at neighbours who the singer feels do not conform to his pattern of behaviour or ideology, but it's all rather cryptic, in truth. br /CHANGE OF THE GUARD - 'If you wanna get through the years, it's high time you played your card' - seize the chance, while it's here. br /TURN THAT HEARTBEAT OVER AGAIN - Another fairly inscrutable lyric - perhaps a warning to keep promises. br /The overall impression is of a world that is continually turning, but where nothing really changes - everything just repeats itself, resulting in stalemate. But the music is anything but stale. It's fresh, inspired, inventive - , as noted, richly melodic satisfying. All in all, a stupendous album whose message is as real relevant today as ever. br / br /Just a brief mention for David Palmer, lead vocalist on DIRTY WORK BROOKLYN. His contribution is often neglected, sometimes derided, but I think he does a great job on both tracks, providing a pleasant contrast to Donald Fagen's raspier delivery.


review by: carole_bristol date: 2007-04-03 rating:
One of the true classic "must have" albums
If this album just contained "Reelin' in the years" and "Do it again" plus dross it would still be worth buying, but it doesn't. It is 100% brilliant. Every track is a gem, there is always something new to hear and enjoy. br / br /One of the great debut albums and a collection that stands the test of time. br / br /Whenever I hear the intro to "Reelin'" I just smile. Sheer heaven.

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