STEELY DAN – COUNTDOWN TO ECSTASY LP – Nr MINT UK DONALD FAGEN

Steely Dan – Countdown To Ecstasy
(ABC Records  ABCL5034)
Matrix No’s: A2/B2 – UK Pressing

Vinyl in Nr MINT condition
(there are some surface marks visible on the vinyl when held up to the light but they don’t affect the sound quality)

Sleeve in Excellent condition
– some wear to edges/corners, a little ringwear near top & back has small tear near bottom from opening edge

Steely Dan is an American rock band founded by core members Walter Becker (guitars, bass, backing vocals) and Donald Fagen (keyboards, lead vocals) in 1972. Blending elements of jazz, traditional pop, R&B, and sophisticated studio production with cryptic and ironic lyrics, the band enjoyed critical and commercial success starting from the early 1970s until breaking up in 1981. Throughout their career, the duo recorded with a revolving cast of session musicians, and in 1974 retired from live performances to become a studio-only band. Rolling Stone has called them “the perfect musical antiheroes for the Seventies”.

After the group disbanded in 1981, Becker and Fagen were less active throughout most of the next decade, though a cult following remained devoted to the group. Since reuniting in 1993 Steely Dan has released two albums of new material, the first of which, Two Against Nature, earned a Grammy Award for Album of the Year. They have sold more than 40 million albums worldwide and were inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in March 2001. Becker died on September 3, 2017, leaving Fagen as the only official member.

VH1 listed Steely Dan as one of the 100 greatest musical artists of all time.

Countdown to Ecstasy is the second studio album by the American rock band Steely Dan, released in July 1973 by ABC Records. It was recorded at Caribou Ranch in Nederland, Colorado and at The Village Recorder in West Los Angeles, California. After the departure of vocalist David Palmer, the group recorded the album with Donald Fagen singing lead on all the songs.

Although it was a critical success, the album failed to generate a hit single, and consequently charted at only number 35 on the Billboard 200. It was eventually certified gold by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA), having shipped 500,000 copies in the United States. Well-received upon its release, Countdown to Ecstasy received perfect scores from music critics in retrospective reviews.

Track listing

All songs written by Walter Becker and Donald Fagen.

Side one

1. “Bodhisattva” – 5:18
2. “Razor Boy” – 3:11
3. “The Boston Rag” – 5:40
4. “Your Gold Teeth” – 7:02

Side two

5. “Show Biz Kids” – 5:26
6. “My Old School” – 5:48
7. “Pearl of the Quarter” – 3:50
8. “King of the World” – 5:04

Personnel