Everything Else

has anyone done a deep dive into the music theory behind Becker‘s compositions? (From what I understand, at the risk of oversimplifying, he and Fagen understood music theory quite well, but didn’t necessarily think about it in the songwriting process). So much of Becker’s stuff has a unique and distinct harmonic language. There are relationships between chords that I don’t hear anywhere else, save a handful of Steely Dan songs. As a keyboard player, I find most SD/Fagen songs have some linear chord logic I can intuitively follow (if not fully

comprehend). Becker’s stuff is a different animal. Maybe it’s just a guitar vs. piano thing, but at any rate, I’d be interested in some analysis of, say, Surf And/Or Die, if such a thing exists.