Reelin' In the Years

"Reelin' In the Years"
"Reelin' In the Years"
Single by Steely Dan
from the album Can't Buy a Thrill
B-side	"Only a Fool Would Say That"
Released	March 1973[citation needed]
Recorded	August 1972
Studio	The Village Recorder, Santa Monica, California
Genre	Jazz rock
Length	4:37
Label	ABC
Songwriter(s)	Walter Becker, Donald Fagen
Producer(s)	Gary Katz
Steely Dan singles chronology
Music video
	"Reelin' In the Years" on YouTube

"Reelin' In the Years" (sometimes "Reeling In the Years") is a song by jazz rock band Steely Dan, released as the second single from their 1972 album, Can't Buy a Thrill. It reached No. 11 in the Billboard Hot 100 chart.^[1]

Writing and performance[]

The song was written by Donald Fagen and Walter Becker and features Fagen on vocals. In 2009, Rolling Stone described the track as "a prime early example of what would become the Dan’s trademark vibe, marrying a sardonic kiss-off to an ex to a bouncy shuffle groove, and adding on some white-hot guitar dazzlement courtesy of Elliott Randall to bring the whole thing home." In the same interview, Fagen said "It’s dumb but effective," and Becker said "It’s no fun."^[2]

Guitar solo[]

The guitar solo on the original recorded version, by session player Elliott Randall, was recorded in one take.^[3] It has reportedly been rated by Led Zeppelin guitarist Jimmy Page as his favorite solo of all time,^[4]^[5] and he scored it 12/10.^[6] In 2016 the solo was ranked the 40th best guitar solo of all time by the readers of Guitar World magazine.^[7]

The four-channel quadraphonic mix of the recording has extra lead guitar fills not heard in the more common two-channel stereo version.^{[citation needed]}

Reception[]

On its release in 1973, Billboard said: "Easy sounding guitar solos lead into an easy sounding piano break which supports the voices extolling about culling life's experiences from tears to time."^[8]

The song was a No. 11 hit on the Billboard Singles Chart in May 1973. In March 2005, Q magazine placed the recording at No. 95 in its list of the 100 Greatest Guitar Tracks.

Chart performance[]

Weekly singles charts[]

Chart (1973)	Peak position
Australia KMR	62
Canada RPM^[9]	15
U.S. Billboard Hot 100	11
U.S. Cashbox Top 100 ^[10]	7
US Record World ^[11]	6

Year-end charts[]

Chart (1973)	Rank
Canada ^[12]	90
U.S. Billboard Hot 100 ^[13]	68
U.S. Cash Box Top 100^[14]	87

Personnel[]

Donald Fagen – piano, lead and backing vocals
Elliott Randall – lead guitar
Denny Dias – rhythm guitar
Jeff Baxter – rhythm guitar
Walter Becker – bass guitar, backing vocals
Jim Hodder – drums, backing vocals
Victor Feldman – percussion

The live version on Alive in America (1995) includes a saxophone section and additional backing vocals.^{[citation needed]}

Popular culture[]

Donny and Marie Osmond covered "Reelin' In the Years" for their variety show on January 13, 1978.^[15] This rendition of the song was more ebullient than the original, and included the introduction of the show's guests, Ruth Buzzi, Buddy Hackett and Suzanne Somers. The performance also featured a chorus line of ice-skating dancers.
In 1993, the song was featured in The Wonder Years episode "Unpacking".^[16]
The song is featured in Rob Zombie's 2005 movie, The Devil's Rejects.
It was also used as the theme music for the television series Rob Brydon's Annually Retentive, which aired on BBC Three in the UK between July 2006 and June 2007.
The song is also used as the theme for the RTÉ television series Reeling In the Years, an Irish documentary series, covering one year per episode.

References[]

^ Steely Dan USA chart history, Billboard.com. Retrieved May 28, 2012.
^ "Steely Dan: 10 Essential Songs". RollingStone.com. Retrieved 2018-10-18.
^ Damian Fanelli (April 23, 2021). "How Elliott Randall Nailed Steely Dan's "Reelin' in the Years" Recording in One Continuous Take". Guitarplayer.com. Retrieved 2021-06-10.
^ Steven Wheeler (1995-06-11). "The Led Zeppelin In-Frequently Murmured Trivia List v1.1". Led-Zeppelin.org. Archived from the original on 2012-02-16.
^ "Classic Rock Magazine Interview – 1999". Elliott Randall. 2014-06-20. Retrieved 2016-10-08.
^ "Jimmy Page Grades other Guitarists out of 10". YouTube. Retrieved 2021-06-10.
^ "The 100 Best Guitar Solos of All Time - Page 4". Guitar.about.com. Retrieved 2016-10-08.
^ "Radio Action & Pick Singles" (PDF). Billboard. March 3, 1973. p. 102. Retrieved 2020-07-29.
^ "Item Display - RPM Top Singles - Volume 19, No. 18, June 16 1973 - Library and Archives Canada". Collectionscanada.gc.ca. Retrieved 2016-10-08.
^ "Cash Box Top 100 5/26/73". Cashboxmagazine.com. Retrieved 2016-06-25.
^ Whitburn, Joel (2015). The Comparison Book Billboard/Cash Box/Record World 1954-1982. Sheridan Books. ISBN 978-0-89820-213-7.
^ "Item Display - RPM Annual - Volume 20, No. 20, December 29 1973 - Library and Archives Canada". Collectionscanada.gc.ca. Retrieved 2017-07-14.
^ "Top 100 Hits of 1973/Top 100 Songs of 1973". Musicoutfitters.com. Retrieved 2016-10-08.
^ "Cash Box YE Pop Singles - 1973". Cashboxmagazine.com. Retrieved 2016-06-25.
^ [1]
^ "S6E14: Unpacking - The Wonder Years Soundtrack". Tunefind. Retrieved 16 February 2020.

External links[]

[1] Steely Dan USA chart history, Billboard.com. Retrieved May 28, 2012.

[2] "Steely Dan: 10 Essential Songs". RollingStone.com. Retrieved 2018-10-18.

[3] Damian Fanelli (April 23, 2021). "How Elliott Randall Nailed Steely Dan's "Reelin' in the Years" Recording in One Continuous Take". Guitarplayer.com. Retrieved 2021-06-10.

[4] Steven Wheeler (1995-06-11). "The Led Zeppelin In-Frequently Murmured Trivia List v1.1". Led-Zeppelin.org. Archived from the original on 2012-02-16.

[5] "Classic Rock Magazine Interview – 1999". Elliott Randall. 2014-06-20. Retrieved 2016-10-08.

[6] "Jimmy Page Grades other Guitarists out of 10". YouTube. Retrieved 2021-06-10.

[7] "The 100 Best Guitar Solos of All Time - Page 4". Guitar.about.com. Retrieved 2016-10-08.

[bb-8] "Radio Action & Pick Singles" (PDF). Billboard. March 3, 1973. p. 102. Retrieved 2020-07-29.

[9] "Item Display - RPM Top Singles - Volume 19, No. 18, June 16 1973 - Library and Archives Canada". Collectionscanada.gc.ca. Retrieved 2016-10-08.

[10] "Cash Box Top 100 5/26/73". Cashboxmagazine.com. Retrieved 2016-06-25.

[Whitburn-11] Whitburn, Joel (2015). The Comparison Book Billboard/Cash Box/Record World 1954-1982. Sheridan Books. ISBN 978-0-89820-213-7.

[12] "Item Display - RPM Annual - Volume 20, No. 20, December 29 1973 - Library and Archives Canada". Collectionscanada.gc.ca. Retrieved 2017-07-14.

[13] "Top 100 Hits of 1973/Top 100 Songs of 1973". Musicoutfitters.com. Retrieved 2016-10-08.

[14] "Cash Box YE Pop Singles - 1973". Cashboxmagazine.com. Retrieved 2016-06-25.

[15] [1]

[16] "S6E14: Unpacking - The Wonder Years Soundtrack". Tunefind. Retrieved 16 February 2020.

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hide v t Steely Dan
Donald Fagen Walter Becker Jeff "Skunk" Baxter Denny Dias Jim Hodder David Palmer Royce Jones Michael McDonald Jeff Porcaro
Studio albums	Can't Buy a Thrill (1972) Countdown to Ecstasy (1973) Pretzel Logic (1974) Katy Lied (1975) The Royal Scam (1976) Aja (1977) Gaucho (1980) Two Against Nature (2000) Everything Must Go (2003)
Live albums	Alive in America (1995) Plush TV Jazz-Rock Party (2000) Marian McPartland's Piano Jazz with Steely Dan (2005)
Singles	"Dallas" "Do It Again" "Reelin' In the Years" "Show Biz Kids" "My Old School" "Rikki Don't Lose That Number" "Pretzel Logic" "Bad Sneakers" "Kid Charlemagne" "Peg" "Deacon Blues" "FM (No Static at All)" "Josie" "Hey Nineteen" "Cousin Dupree" "Janie Runaway"
Album tracks	"Aja" "Any Major Dude Will Tell You" "Dirty Work"
Compilations	Greatest Hits (1978) Steely Dan (1978) Gold (1982/91) A Decade of Steely Dan (1985) Reelin' In the Years (1987) Do It Again (1987) Citizen Steely Dan (1993) Then and Now (1993) Showbiz Kids (2000) The Definitive Collection (2006)
Related articles	Discography Gary Katz Roger Nichols
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