Pretzel Logic (song)
"Pretzel Logic" | ||||
---|---|---|---|---|
Single by Steely Dan | ||||
from the album Pretzel Logic | ||||
B-side | "Through with Buzz" | |||
Released | October 1974[1] | |||
Recorded | October 1973 to January 1974 | |||
Genre | Blues rock | |||
Length | 3:59 (Single version) 4:28 (Album version) | |||
Label | ABC / Probe[2] | |||
Songwriter(s) | Walter Becker, Donald Fagen | |||
Producer(s) | Gary Katz[3] | |||
Steely Dan singles chronology | ||||
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Official audio | ||||
"Pretzel Logic" on YouTube |
"Pretzel Logic" is a song written by Walter Becker and Donald Fagen, released as a single by Steely Dan from their album Pretzel Logic, originally in 1974 by ABC Records.[4] It reached number 57 in the Billboard charts.[5]
Background
Steely Dan FAQ author Anthony Robustelli describes "Pretzel Logic" as a
Composition
Pretzel Logic is a modified version of a 12-bar blues, a form which contains a turnaround in the last (typically four) bars. This turnaround consists of two sets of dominant 11th chords resolving to the V, and then again, down whole step, to the IV. Although the V chord commonly goes down to the IV like this in blues music, they are both major seventh chords, which are relatively uncommon in the blues vernacular. Furthermore, Fagen and Becker employ their not-quite-yet signature 'Mu Major' voicing, which includes the 9th scale degree. Steely Dan would go on to use this chord to further define their sound in albums like 'The Royal Scam' and Aja. The turnaround concludes with a walk-up from the flat sixth to flat seventh, before finally resolving to I at the top of the form.[citation needed]
Personnel
- Donald Fagen – lead and backing vocals, Wurlitzer electronic piano
- Walter Becker – lead guitar
- Dean Parks – rhythm guitar
- Plas Johnson – saxophone
- Ollie Mitchell – trumpet
- Lew McCreary – trombone
- Michael Omartian – acoustic piano
- Wilton Felder – bass guitar
- Jim Gordon – drums
- Tim Schmit – backing vocals
Covers
In 1987, it was covered by Hiram Bullock on his album Give It What You Got.
A live version by INXS was performed during the Moontan Double J Concert At Manly Vale Hotel, October 1980 show. A recording is available on the compilation Stay Young 1979–1982.
The
The song was performed by the Warren Haynes Band, the solo project of The Allman Brothers Band and Gov't Mule leader Warren Haynes, which he started in 2010. A staple of the band's live shows, often running over ten minutes in length and featuring multiple solos from band members, it appears in this form on their 2012 album Live at The Moody Theater.
References
- ISBN 9780862415419.
- ^ Discogs – Pretzel Logic on Probe label
- ^ Discogs – Pretzel Logic 1974 (2C 008-95.942) France
- ^ Discogs – Pretzel Logic / Through With Buzz 1974 ABC-12033 US
- ^ Steely Dan USA chart history, Billboard.com. Retrieved May 28, 2012.
- ^ ISBN 978-1495025129.
- ^ ISBN 978-1468313147.
- ^ a b Aaron, Victor S. (September 11, 2011). "Steely Dan Sunday, "Pretzel Logic" (1974)". Something Else!. Retrieved 2017-05-18.
- ^ a b Alvarez, Bobby (April 2, 1974). "Today's Youth Must Replace Routine with Initiative". The Brownsville Herald. p. 9 – via newspapers.com.
- ^ "Top Single Picks" (PDF). Billboard. September 14, 1974. p. 63. Retrieved 2020-07-21.
- ^ "CashBox Record Reviews" (PDF). Cash Box. September 14, 1974. p. 16. Retrieved 2021-12-11.
- ^ "Hits of the Week" (PDF). Record World. September 21, 1974. p. 1. Retrieved 2023-03-15.
- ^ a b c Scoppa, Bud (May 23, 1974). "Pretzel Logic". Rolling Stone. Retrieved 2017-05-14.
- ^ Rivadavia, Eduardo (February 20, 2016). "The Story of Steely Dan's 'Pretzel Logic'". Ultimate Classic Rock. Retrieved 2017-05-14.