I went down a rabbit hole myself a few weeks ago to figure that one out, after I saw him singing "Do It Again" from the Midnight Special. Fagen is on the record, but apparently he had stage fright so Palmer sang all the leads on their first tour. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zf4WwX0pqIw
Agreed. Great life advice. For whatever reason(s), we humans seem to love complicating things. Yet the brain and heart have limited space. For writing, Y-E-S! I was raised on Steinbeck and Hemingway. My favorite book is John Hersey's A Bell for Adano, so simple, so poetic. Anyways, great post.
This is going to sound cheap, but I would love a heads-up on links (to The Atlantic, for example) for those who must ration subscriptions. I want to use my free articles wisely, and I might read about a certain topic on another platform (where maybe I already subscribe, so it's reading with abandon!) But if it's one of the platforms where I'm not a subscriber, I want the opportunity to weigh whether this one is the one. Steely Dan falls in the neutral zone, but alas, I had already clicked.
Thank you for mentioning this ... I've thought about it a lot. The issue from my end is that it's not always clear which links require a subscription--a lot of places are semi-paywalled but have some free stuff, or it's free if a paying customer shares it, etc. I guess I could mark those links somehow but I'm not always sure which ones they are. I'd be glad to hear any other thoughts. I might also throw this out to the group next week for other ideas.
Maybe just word it in a way that includes the publication or put it in parenthesis at the end of the sentence "yada yada yada this cool link" (The Atlantic). Then, regardless of our subscriptions or available freebies, we'll know we're gonna go there :)
Little Duck’s story is a poignant read. Thank you for drawing my attention there during this Memorial Day weekend. I’ve also put Jim the Boy on my reading list.
Thanks for sharing the Little Duck story. I read Chris Jones’ “The Things That Carried Him” every Memorial Day weekend and I’m going to add this one as well.
I find that I think in compound sentences, and so I write in compound sentences, but I totally get that this is neither appealing or accessible to everyone. I don’t believe I’m showing off, though who knows, maybe I am - I wrote a piece this morning that was more cerebral than my usual fodder. But, I have learned much from you, T, and Joe Posnanski, too, that has certainly made my writing better.
“Dirty Work” remains my favorite Steely Dan song. Not Donald Fagan. David Palmer, right? In 1988, a couple friends and I drove from Philadelphia to San Francisco. A Steely Dan tape was in heavy rotation on that trip. I haven’t listened to much SD since…
My 6-year-old daughter LOVES Steely Dan and has belted out the refrain from "Dirty Work" more than once.
Did I tell you this already? The lead singer on "Dirty Work" lives here in CLT. https://www.facebook.com/david.palmer.14268/
WHAT
I went down a rabbit hole myself a few weeks ago to figure that one out, after I saw him singing "Do It Again" from the Midnight Special. Fagen is on the record, but apparently he had stage fright so Palmer sang all the leads on their first tour. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zf4WwX0pqIw
He also wrote Carole King's "Jazzman"!
Agreed. Great life advice. For whatever reason(s), we humans seem to love complicating things. Yet the brain and heart have limited space. For writing, Y-E-S! I was raised on Steinbeck and Hemingway. My favorite book is John Hersey's A Bell for Adano, so simple, so poetic. Anyways, great post.
This is going to sound cheap, but I would love a heads-up on links (to The Atlantic, for example) for those who must ration subscriptions. I want to use my free articles wisely, and I might read about a certain topic on another platform (where maybe I already subscribe, so it's reading with abandon!) But if it's one of the platforms where I'm not a subscriber, I want the opportunity to weigh whether this one is the one. Steely Dan falls in the neutral zone, but alas, I had already clicked.
Thank you for mentioning this ... I've thought about it a lot. The issue from my end is that it's not always clear which links require a subscription--a lot of places are semi-paywalled but have some free stuff, or it's free if a paying customer shares it, etc. I guess I could mark those links somehow but I'm not always sure which ones they are. I'd be glad to hear any other thoughts. I might also throw this out to the group next week for other ideas.
Maybe just word it in a way that includes the publication or put it in parenthesis at the end of the sentence "yada yada yada this cool link" (The Atlantic). Then, regardless of our subscriptions or available freebies, we'll know we're gonna go there :)
Thank you for sharing the link to the story of Little Duck.
Wonderfully written and an excellent reminder!!!
Little Duck’s story is a poignant read. Thank you for drawing my attention there during this Memorial Day weekend. I’ve also put Jim the Boy on my reading list.
Steely Dan fan here. Tina too.
Thanks for sharing the Little Duck story. I read Chris Jones’ “The Things That Carried Him” every Memorial Day weekend and I’m going to add this one as well.
Chris' story is incredible--if Little Duck is a short story, his story is a novel.
Damn straight: “The simplest possible way with some elements of poetry.” That sums up my goal as a writer better than I’ve ever said it.
The story of how Balto came to have a statue in Central Park...
I find that I think in compound sentences, and so I write in compound sentences, but I totally get that this is neither appealing or accessible to everyone. I don’t believe I’m showing off, though who knows, maybe I am - I wrote a piece this morning that was more cerebral than my usual fodder. But, I have learned much from you, T, and Joe Posnanski, too, that has certainly made my writing better.
“Dirty Work” remains my favorite Steely Dan song. Not Donald Fagan. David Palmer, right? In 1988, a couple friends and I drove from Philadelphia to San Francisco. A Steely Dan tape was in heavy rotation on that trip. I haven’t listened to much SD since…
David Palmer, yep! If you scroll through the comment thread for Jeremy Markovich's comment, you'll discover that Palmer lives in Charlotte now...