Ray Charles: How Donald Fagen found inspiration in the R&B progenitor
It is often said that every mainstream artist wishes they had a cult following, and every cult musician yearns for mainstream acclaim. Steely Dan, on the other hand, managed to expertly toe the line between these two very different worlds, amassing an audience for their pop-jazz fusion throughout the 1970s, while also achieving mainstream attention for their top-ten albums Pretzel Logic, Aja, and Gaucho, all of which were endlessly indebted to the extensive influences of Walter Becker and Donald Fagen.
When Becker and Fagen first crossed paths while at college in New York during the late 1960s, their respective musical taste quickly brought them together. Early incarnations of Steely Dan made a name for themselves around campus, performing a wide range of cover versions, ranging from the rebellious rock and roll of The Rolling Stones to the timeless blues tones of figures like Willie Dixon. Even when the pair began writing and recording their own material, this wide breadth of influences continued to permeate throughout much of their discography.
After all, it was the eclectic sound and wide-reaching inspiration of Steely Dan which earned the band such a dedicated cult following. Regardless of your view on the group itself, the fact cannot be disputed that nobody else sounded remotely like them at that period in American music. Primarily, their sound was born from a blending of pop-rock adoration and jazz sensibilities, so it should come as no real surprise that Donald Fagen was an absolute disciple of Ray Charles.
One of the most important artists to ever grace the airwaves, Charles’ pioneering blend of jazz, blues, and gospel was instrumental in the development of soul, R&B, and rock and roll. Entering the music industry during the early 1950s, he boasted an incredible and enduring career thanks to that pioneering quality, and Fagen was a particular fan of his unparalleled discography.
Back in 1982, the Steely Dan musician made an appearance on Capital Radio in London, promoting his debut solo album The Nightfly. During this appearance, he was asked to select some of his all time favourite tracks and, of course, there was heavy representation of Ray Charles. Primarily, Fagen highlighted Charles’ 1961 effort ‘I’ve Got News For You’, from the album Genius + Soul = Jazz, which Charles made with Quincy Jones.
“He’s always been one of my favourites,” Fagen said of the R&B progenitor while introducing the track. “He’s kind of legendary, and the track I selected is basically a blues with a big band arrangement.” Later in the show, Fagen also played Charles’ romantic collaboration with Betty Carter, ‘Ev’ry Time We Say Goodbye’, calling it “a beautiful record.”
The impact of Ray Charles appears to have stayed with Fagen throughout much of his life, beginning during his childhood in the 1950s, and continuing on into his twilight years. Speaking to GQ in 2014, the musician recalled, “Just watching him, the way his body moves – for a kid from New Jersey to see that kind of passion, that was really revelatory for me.”
“At that point I was living in the suburbs,” the Steely Dan songwriter recalled, “and even though I was a jazz fan when I was very young, and used to hearing passionate performances on records, the general tendency of jazz in the fifties was cool, so seeing Ray Charles, who had that much gospel in his style, you could tell he was utterly authentic.”
Seemingly, it was that authenticity and passion in Charles’ performance which Fagen employed throughout his own career as a musician and songwriter. Particularly with Steely Dan, the songwriter always strived for a sense of passion and profound experimentation within his work, perfectly balancing mainstream success with artistic integrity, just as Charles had done all those decades prior.
