The Royal Scam

Originally released in May 1976, The Royal Scam was an album by rock group Steely Dan. The album went gold and peaked at #25 on the charts. The album featured the only Steely Dan song to be written with help from an outside source (i.e., not written solely by Donald Fagen and Walter Becker), "The Fez", written with help from Paul Griffin. The Royal Scam is the most guitar-friendly of Steely Dan's albums, featuring extended solos by Becker, Larry Carlton and former band member Denny Dias.

Related Topics:
May - 1976 - Steely Dan - Gold - Donald Fagen - Walter Becker - Paul Griffin - Guitar - Larry Carlton - Denny Dias

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With irony-leaden verses about drug dealers, safe sex, and hardships faced by immigrants, The Royal Scam is arguably Steely Dan at their most cynical. The album cover, which shows a well-dressed, possibly homeless man sleeping underneath (or perhaps dreaming of) mutating skyscrapers, is a satirical take on the American Dream (although Fagen and Becker claim to have hated the cover design when it was released). The mood of the album stands in contrast with the band's mellower and hugely successful follow-up, Aja.

Related Topics:
Irony - Drug dealers - Safe sex - Immigrants - Cynical - Homeless - Skyscrapers - Satirical - American Dream - Aja

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