‘The Caves of Altamira’: the Steely Dan song about “the loss of innocence”
In general, it can take a few listens to truly ‘get’ a song. The magic of a good tune lies in its duality and layers; good lyrics are no use without strong composition and vice versa. The artists who get this bang on the money tend to be the ones who stand the test of time – which is true for rock legends Steely Dan and their song ‘The Caves of Altamira’, warranting being played over and over again to unpick its real genius.
But firstly, what is the Cave of Altamira, you ask? Located in Spain, it is – funnily enough – a cave which contains a plethora of paintings and drawings by Neanderthals, reflecting some of man’s earliest creative desires. It definitely sounds like one to put on your travel bucket list.
As such, it’s no surprise that innovative minds like that of Donald Fagen and Walter Becker of Steely Dan were enamoured by the place. On a more philosophical level, it also gives us some early indications of how modern society has been shaped beyond the times of the Christian Bible. To that end, Becker called the song “a story about the loss of innocence” in a 2000 interview, given the lyric “Before the fall when they wrote it on the wall/ When there wasn’t even any Hollywood/ They heard the call” presumably referring to The Fall of Adam and Eve in the Bible, leading to the creation of sinful mankind.
It’s a jarringly deep lyricism to a song that is inherently upbeat, soulful, jazz, and rock-infused. In turn, it also encompasses a narrative about a child who loses their innocence at the discovery of art and creativity, explained by Fagen when he said the piece was “a pretty straightforward story about a guy who visits the caves of Altamira which have famous drawings by prehistoric men or women as the case may be, and he registers his astonishment.”
‘Straightforward’, he claims, but there’s a lot to be unpacked within that. It fits the bill of Steely Dan’s infamously confusing lyrical style, often revolving around puzzling images, specific characters, or personae. If nothing else, they’re a great band for turning your casual listening habits into full-on literary analyses, exemplified by how such grand and metaphorical images can be boiled down to a one-liner about the loss of innocence. In that sense, ‘The Caves of Altamira’ is opening its listener up to a whole new fascinating world of musical dissection, both sonically and lyrically.
Maybe it’s a challenge to us all to open our ears and minds a bit more to the possibilities of the music we love – Steely Dan show that rock music isn’t all screeching guitars and bursting eardrums but can, in fact, act as a springboard for debate on literature, history, philosophy, and religion, all against a backdrop of smooth beats and funky sounds.
Then again, none of this may be true; the band insist that ‘The Caves of Altamira’ is centred on a simple story, and who are we to argue with musical gods? Whatever your opinion, it’s clear that Steely Dan take the skill of song creation and lyrical interpretation to a whole new level, displaying exactly why their music has defined generations and continues to receive its plaudits for the past 50 years and beyond.
