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- Just How Tacky?In Everything ElseMarch 12, 2024My sincere thanks to all who made this happen. My Walter garment has arrived in perfect health all the way from HI to ME. I now have new and magical gig attire I'll wear with pride...and not without a bit of smugness.82
- Down From SufferationIn Rarities & Unreleased·September 3, 2024Down From Sufferation © 2018: Walter C. Becker it didn't have to be that way that's just the way it had to be could have come for anyone just so happens it was me it didn't have to happen so but that's the way it tend it go never have to fall so far never have to fall so low it coulda happened any time it coulda happened any night another place another name up until the phone call came82327
- Maybe my favorite auction itemIn Everything Else·September 23, 2019https://www.julienslive.com/m/lot-details/index/catalog/312/lot/122409?url=%2Fm%2Fview-auctions%2Fcatalog%2Fid%2F312%3Fpage%3D22%26sale-reg%3D312 Julien's description: An historically significant system consisting of a 32-track recording deck (serial number 134), a 4-track mastering deck (serial number 546) and a separate controller (serial number 101). In addition to the factory labels the pieces are affixed with labels and inventory/serial number from Amigo Studios and University of Miami. The 3M Digital Mastering System was released in 1978 and is regarded as the first digital multi-track recording system, thus heralding the start of the audio digital age. This unit is one of the first four put in circulation, and was used on Donald Fagen’s The Nightfly (1982), considered the second popular album recorded in digital. Steely Dan notably embraced this technology early on, and they continued to use this 3M system, in addition to other digital systems, well into the 90s. The unit is accompanied by the original instructions binder and a box of spare parts. Each deck, 44 by 37 1/4 by 22 1/2 inches Of course, those who've stuck around the Steely Dan webosphere remember the saga of the 3M machines and the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. Here's a reminder: http://sdarchive.com/halloffame1.html The machines were mentioned again here: http://sdarchive.com/halloffame2.html Where it was reported that "The 3M machines are en route to Mr Wenner's hunting lodge in Colorado" where it was "believed that the machines may actually fire up under the reduced atmospheric pressure at Jann's high altitude mountain aerie." It appears the shipment was refused, but Walter was still wielding the mighty 3M machines as a bargaining chip, or tax shelter, the next go-round: http://sdarchive.com/hof99.html "If we win," wrote Walter, "we graciously accept, agree to do whatever they want us to do at the awards ceremony, and attempt to claim the tax writeoff on the 3M machines no matter what. This way we come off looking like grateful recipients but we head into the fiscal year with an aggressive balls-up stance on the federal taxes." Steely Dan got in, of course, but it looks like Walter kept those 3M machines stashed away. The only other reference I see to them is from the "Expressions to Avoid During a Recording Session" here: http://sdarchive.com/expressions.html Where number 58 is listed as, "How 'bout we get rid of these 3M machines and get ourselves a frozen yogurt machine." In reality, these are historic pieces of recording gear, but I have such fond memories of following along with the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame saga on the original steelydan.com that it felt like a visit from an old friend. And in a way I guess it was, that old friend being Walter's wonderful humor. Thanks Walter and webdrone for all the fun we had together.67336
- They Say God Protects The Innocent ...In Everything Else·March 2, 2022... but She could use a lot of help right now WBM policy says “No Politics”. Luckily this post is not about the P-word It is about addressing the unimaginable suffering of an obscene and growing humanitarian crisis. It’s already unthinkably horrible. It’s going to get a lot worse. While there are many “Ways To Help” lists are out there, we’ve selected a basic collection from The Washington Post, which has removed its paywall so that anyone can view it. How To Help The People of Ukraine Edit: For those who wish to do a deep dive into charitable organizations and initiatives before giving, I highly recommend Charity Navigator, the data-driven nonprofit evaluator I personally use for my annual planned charitable donations. They even facilitate donations across multiple organizations with a single checkout via the "Giving Basket" interface. Their page for the Ukraine humanitarian crisis is here. Слава Україні Віруй та молися81321
- Lies I can believe?In Everything Else·March 20, 2019Firstly thank you so much I came across this site only the other day and over the moon with the winderful music on it, particularly Our Lawn, which is fantasitic, every last word! I came across the above track on face book youtube once as an outtake from 11 Tracks and wondered if you were consdering producing this for the site, as the quality of the material here is so good. Just a thought and thanks again Mark R314212
- Walter's StudioIn Everything ElseJuly 11, 2019I can give my personal feelings on this, for anyone who feels inclined ot listen to my ramblings: Walter Becker was important. He made a lasting contribution to popular music and to popular culture. It is not only interesting, but academically and historically important that we seek to preserve anything which lends insight to the way creative people consume and create art. If we have access to a list of the music Walter owned, the books he read, the ideas he jotted down, we have a more complete, and hopefully more true, idea of what went into the creation of his art. The academic issue is best addressed by institutions. Whether a museum or a library or a university would want to house the Walter Becker Archive is an interesting question, but one i want to shelve for just a moment. Another question is public access. It would be an undertaking to house and provide access to the public of the thousands of cds, books, pieces of ephemera, notebooks, printed lists, hand-written lyrics, scores, DATs, cassette tapes, multi-tracks, etc. in Walter's collection. But I don't think it would be too much of a stretch to believe that we can at least provide access to some of the information online. Maybe we can't set up a cd lending library where we physically send Walter's own copy of that one Art Tatum album to Bob in Peoria, but we could curate a list on some page on the web with a list of the cds Walter owned, and maybe links to places where an interested party could listen to or purchase these albums. So maybe we have a Spotify or iTunes playlist of Walter's library, or even smaller lists comprised of the songs that were in Walter's playlists on his iPod, or whatnot. Or a Youtube playlist with links to a publicly available version of the songs in the library. The books could work in a similar way, with a list of the books Walter had in his library and web-links to where those books are readable or purchasable online. One idea I've toyed with is the creation of something like a Beckerpedia, a wiki for Walter. Something where the work could be crowdsourced to the kinds of people that care about legacy. The Hey 19 database is a good example of something like this. That was (and remains) a massive undertaking, but it comprises just a small sliver of who Walter was and why his legacy is so remarkable and important. Those are massive amounts of data for just one section of one song for 20 or 30 dates a tour for one decade. That's so fractional to Walter's legacy. Image we decided to document every cd he owned, ever book he read, every extant recording of every concert he played, every piece he wrote for steelydan.com, every album he produced, every song he wrote or co-wrote, ever cover version of those songs...the impact of this man was enormous. Quantifying and cataloging proves the point. And to return to the original idea, I do think that his collection belongs to a museum. I think the Rock Hall places primacy of importance on the visual. You can see a stage costume or a played instrument. I don't think they would appreciate 38 boxes of cds and a truck of books. And that's before we ask if Walter would have wanted his collection housed in a place that didn't even want those 3M machines. Maybe a smaller museum, either in a location that was important to Walter (Manhattan, Queens, LA, Maui?), or one that specializes in pop culture or rock and roll music specifically. Or we start the Walter Becker Museum and Concert Venue with a generous grant from whoever is giving out generous grants these days. Hell, you can visit the Towing and Recovery Museum in my hometown of Chattanooga, the Uncle Remus Museum in Eatonton, Georgia, or the Salt and Pepper Shaker Museum in Gatlinburg, Tennessee...and those are just the ones I can think of that are both ridiculous and within a few hours of my house. Why not a Walter Becker Museum? I'm only half-joking.73
- Just How Tacky?In Everything ElseMarch 16, 2024Goods received in good order in Vancouver BC this afternoon, for which many thanks. The sweater will be worn around the house come wintertime, & the "Think Fast" tour hat may never leave my (bald) head. Thanks very much for both, and for the spirit of generosity in which they among others were given. Thanks again.73
- Taking StockIn Everything Else·February 20, 2025Taking Stock of the online record. In the 19th(!) year since launching walterbecker.com and the first issue of the Walter Becker Newsletter, and in the 7th year of WBMedia, it’s a good time to take stock of the footprints Walter, his Estate, and his fans are leaving in the online sand — and in the historical record. … Because biographies may be cobbled, articles written, interviews given, YT/TT Hot Takes dropped — but whatever mess these “content items” might make of the actual reality of Walter Becker’s time in this world, there will always be an extraordinary body of first-person and real-time material available — at least, available — to countervail the smudges of time and the compressions and de-pixilations of invested or disinterested voices. We can be proud of what we're leaving behind. On the record. To start, there’s the impossible lunacy of classic sd.com’s 17-year run, overflowing with W’s writing in many forms, while also serving as D&W’s personal internet playpen — aka “...this stream-of-consciousness coloring book you call a website" . Topical threads, storied gags, press releases, touring info and pics, reader email (with responses) … all unfolding in real time, with just hours between each harebrained idea and its appearance online. The whole beautiful, searchable mess is preserved at sdarchive.com for future curiosos, and for your browsing enjoyment at any time. Then there’s walterbecker.com, launched by Walter in 2006. Although his input was cut too short, his inimitable voice still fills several dozen pages of "contests, promotions, treasure hunts and etceteras”. Notably, the site also hosts Walter Becker University, a comprehensive compendium of Becker’s discography*, complete writing, playing, recording, guesting, and producing credits, plus an official bio — including footnotes from Walter’s previously unpublished writings and recollections. And slideshows! * But isn’t WB’s discography easily found on any number of mega-database websites? Well, it depends: Since Water’s death, some of these databases — inexplicably, maddeningly, criminally — now credit him only with his two solo releases (along with a slagheap of pre-Dan Demos with “Becker” among the “artists” names!). In other words, the entire Steely Dan catalog, which was once -- obviously -- included in “Walter Becker’s discography”, no longer appears under his artist listing on some of these sites. That’s a big big hunk of a man's life’s work, folks — wiped from the spreadsheet...and from the record. So much for idiot keyword/AI tech. And all the more reason to take nothing for granted. To be mindful of the record we must take pains to leave in the spaces that we can control. And our buttons fairly pop over the Estate’s Walter Becker Media site: honoring Walter’s wishes; launched under less-than-ideal conditions; requiring sustained — if not always regular — care and feeding; all while providing scads of background information and context for a significant volume of unreleased audio, written, photographic, and esoteric media — while also inviting comment and exchange on the first W-affiliated discussion board. The community dialogs have enriched the site and enlarged the record immeasurably. Links to all these sites, and a few other “affiliated” online locations, can always be found at this WeBWorldDynasty directory. As we make plans to keep all of them online “in perpetuity” — whatever the hell “perpetuity" might mean in this medium and age — we hope you’ll visit often to bookmark, share, enjoy, and learn. That’s why they’re here.73278
- Feb 14In Rarities & Unreleased·February 9, 2019Some of you may know (or suspect) that WB could be quite the romantic. Some will believe it when you hear it. And ... ?731209
- Paging Audrey (Demo)In Rarities & Unreleased·May 22, 2018If you’re anything like us, you enjoy demos in part because they provide a glimpse of a now-familiar song “in the wild”: hair mussed, buttons missing, mismatched socks. Just the bones the creature will need. The hair, the socks don’t count at all; presentational concerns are still miles away. So what’s a song minus the presentational concerns? Typically, they’ll be called demos. If the writer has written a successful demo for a particular song — knows what must be included, and knows what must be cut, some writers — Walter among them — believe that they’ve acquired both a map to ad guardian for the soul of their song, Walter spoke many times in interviews about both the found and the lost of life with your song. You find your song when you decide that *this* demo, as you've crafted it, has the essentials you need to always recognize if you are to remember its soul, and what of yours you gave it. Walter once described good demo like a fire pot. It will carry what’s alive and crucial in your song wherever you may need to go. Unfortunately, he also said, it’s all to easy — frighteningly easy — to leave the fire pot behind, or let it’s heat go out; to cover up the essence of your song with things — instruments; arrangements; obsessions over bob essentials, infatuations with process and tools, too much self-consciousness about your own performances — until soon you can’t remember why you even wrote this song in the first place. And unless you scrape all the obscuring stuff off, toss it out and go back to I, finishing this song will become nothing but a soulless slog. :::: The 4 note refrain of “Paging Audrey…” had been around for at least 10 years. During that time, several women, most pets, one car, and even pasta, for a while, were paged. Ha ha, then, woah! one day, there was a song….with a tale more personal and absorbent of sorrow than i’ve ever seen him tell. I find Walter’s singing here to be frankly devastating; so open, no ego, utterly unconcerned with public presentation, but palpably attuned to the emotion —the demo’s and his own —as it moved and rolled in every moment, I almost feel I’m eavesdropping into a very private moment; the first communion, at last, between a soulful singer and the essential soul of his partner, the song. PAGING AUDREY Walter Becker / Larry Klein © Zeon Music © Strange Cargo/Downtown Music 2008 In the littlest hours ‘tween the dusk and dawn While the nightlight glows with the music on You could climb so high in the dreamtime sky And go anywhere In that sometime place ever lost somehow In the here and gone or the there and now Did it all go bust — crumble down in dust Or just slip away Paging Audrey Any random star Lost and lonely Somewhere very far Paging Audrey Come in from the cold In that far-off room drenched in desert sun Evil words were spoke — dirty deeds were done Could we sail back there snatch them from the air I dare anyone Can we stand right here, call them back and say Those were never meant to be heard that way Let the heavens crack — let the day go black I’d give anything Paging Audrey Somewhere very near Safe and silent There you are my dear Paging Audrey Anybody home In a distant room certain things were said As the loved one lies on the love-torn bed And the night rolls on and by light of dawn You’re not anywhere Paging Audrey This is who we are Do remember On any random star Paging Audrey Come in strong and pure1191084
- Merry ChristmasIn Everything Else·December 26, 2019Michael Omartian, pianist on the original Steely Dan song Charlie Freak from Pretzel Logic, presented here with a holiday twist.6580
- Walter Becker – Jazzy, Bluesy, Rock Rhythm Section GeniusIn Everything Else·January 7, 2022https://thewillow.blog/2022/01/07/walter-becker-jazzy-bluesy-rock-rhythm-section-genius/65116
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