No, but seriously, when I learned at the end of January that Donald Fagen had composed the soundtrack to Michael J. Fox's new film Bright Lights, Big City, I could hardly wait to hear the new music. I obtained my copy in mid-March, and that six-week wait was an interminable one. It was worth it. The song took a few plays to find its way into my head, but it's there now all right. Century's End comes out as a single at the end of April, and it'll be interesting to see how a 5 1/2-minute film number fares against the current "sample" of chart pap. We won't, hoever, be treated to the man himself actually appearing on camera to promote the record. A video has been made to support the single, but initial reports indicate that not only is he nowhere to be seen but neither is he overly pleased with the result.

Fagen is credited with having written the whole soundtrack, so I suppose we'll just have to go and see the film when it comes around. I'm certainly looking forward to it, because in the past Fagen has said he wasn't particularly interested in writing film music since he/they would be continually vulnerable to the director's whim.

Returning to the subject of the reunion, apparently the idea has been temporarily shelved after things didn't work out in the studio, and there is no likelihood of them even contemplating resuming recording until the end of the year. About a year ago, Walter Becker spoke to John Stix in a U.S. magazine interview and this is how he viewed the situation then.

Stix: Let's start with the burning question. There's been talk of another Steely Dan album. Is this true?

Becker: Donald and I hve been working on some tunes and if it goes well, we might do another album. If not, we might go our separate ways. It would be great, from our point of view, if we decided we don't want to do it, just to forget about it. We'd like to do this with as little fanfare as possible. I know it's kind of foolish to say so at this point, but I think the less hubbub about it the better.

Later, Stix asked: Let's say your current project with Donald doesn't work, would you do a solo album?

Becker: "It's not impossible. The problem for me is singing. I'm not really a singer. I wouldn't rule anything out."

Becker also admitted that these days music is "a lot less of a compulsion than it was. I think of music now as just a source of enjoyment, a great avenue of creativity to explore."

It's pleasing, though, to hear that he has put all his personal problems behind him and has found contentment living in Hawaii with his partner and adapting to his new(ish) role as a father.

Last modified on Fri Apr 12 10:07:56 1996