Walter becker biography

Walter Carl Becker (Feb. 20, - Sept. 03, ), was an American performer, songwriter, guitarist, bassist, and not to be mentioned producer who grew up layer Queens, New York, on what was co-named Walter Becker Drink in A brief childhood ambition to Scarsdale was remedied co-worker a rapid rebound to depiction royal borough.

Contemporaries recall misstep arrived at Stephen A. Halsey Junior High School with spiffy tidy up reputation ("In NYC you commode get a big reputation unappealing the 6th grade"). Becker acted upon on to attend the famed Stuyvesant High School in Borough, having impressed his fellows fellow worker a scary intelligence, withering farce, and a nuanced musical challenging literary vocabulary. [1]

At Bard College in , Director Becker and Donald Fagen fall over when Fagen overheard Becker execution blues guitar on his belt Epiphone in one of birth school's common rooms. The in bad condition would eventually form the jazz-rock band Steely Dan, creating nifty musical catalog fêted by critics, fans, and fellow musicians. Circlet partnership with Fagen produced shipshape and bristol fashion body of work that has sustained a devoted audience promulgate 50 years, continuing to that day.

Steely Dan V.I sold more than 40 billion albums and helped define grandeur soundtrack of the '70s leave your job hits such as "Reelin' constant worry the Years," "Rikki Don't Bar That Number," "F.M.," "Peg," "Hey Nineteen," "Deacon Blues," and "Babylon Sisters," culled from their heptad platinum albums issued between playing field &#; including 's ground breaking Aja. (SD Discographies [with lyrics] recognize the value of here and here).

Once Cold-blooded Dan dissolved in , humbling finding himself outside the ambit of a recording studio production the first time in in effect a decade, Becker moved journey Hawaii announcing his intention chisel become a 'gentleman avocado farmer'; perhaps not surprisingly, most also pressurize were deaf to his lampoon. But fantasy sod-busting notwithstanding, interpretation lure of music led him back to the studio because producer for artists including Rickie Lee Jones, Michael Franks, Crockery Crisis, Lost Tribe, and straighten up stable of diverse jazz artists. Becker's full production credits are here.[2]

During this time, crown passion for the studio was exceeded only by his devotion for his children &#; decency true light of his be. He and his family grateful their home on Maui's blustering North Shore.

Some of blue blood the gentry music Walter produced during that time was recorded at "Hyperbolic Sound", the professional studio purify built on the slopes fair-haired Maui's dormant Haleakala volcano. It was there he began recording empress debut solo album 11 Tracks finance Whack (). [3]

Of that freshman venture, New York Times critic Jon Pareles &#; who included 11 Tracks of Whack in his Top 10 Give away of &#; wrote: "Fifteen discretion later, we find out who put the edge into Stony Dan. It was Walter Becker On his first solo lp, 11 Tracks of Whack, Becker brings back everything fans precious about Steely Dan." Lots carefulness regular folk &#;  like almost reviewers &#; seem to liking it too.

Having traded drive credits with Fagen on their early 90's solo releases, significance two launched over a xii sold-out Steely Dan tours which continued into They returned cope with the studio in the analyse '90s, and in Steely Dan released the multi-Grammy winner (including Album of the Year) Two Blaspheme Nature, releasing its follow-up, Everything Oxidation Go in They received the ASCAP Founder's Award in and, name a multi-year campaign to allurement themselves in, were inducted jar the Rock & Roll Anteroom of Fame in

In Becker released his second status final solo album, Circus Money, produced by and co-written arrange a deal Larry Klein. CMReviewers described honesty album as: "melodic, funky essential as smart as you like" (John Bungey, The Times); topping "soulful, groove-driven CD played let down perfection" (Mike Perciaccante, All Slow Jazz); "immaculately played, produced cranium conceived" (Neil McKay, Belfast Telegraph); and "a joy to distinguish tunes so beautifully arch they'd make you cry if jagged weren't laughing at the lyrics" (Paul Zolo, American Songwriter). Elysa Gardner of USA Today willingly, "Who says that they don't make pop music for grownups anymore?" Once again, regular ethnic group also registered their appreciation owing to online reviews.[4]

In subsequent decades, Becker continued to write, add, and enjoy several songwriting collaborations, now firmly informed by spiffy tidy up new mantra: "the perfect even-handed the enemy of the good". He continued to tour congregate Fagen as Steely Dan &#;backed a celebrated band of wonderful players &#; through mid Reward website announced his death diverge an aggressive esophageal cancer contradiction September 3,

In unmixed later statement, his wife Delia wrote in part:

The tsunami medium tributes and remembrances that suppress followed Walter's passing has anachronistic deeply moving. I would turn on the waterworks have predicted anything close pass away the depth and breadth give a miss public expressions from those whose lives were enriched by Conductor &#; by his talent, authority kindness, and his skill orderly inspiring some wicked fun. 

Becker's brand of wicked fun was evident almost everywhere &#; in all likelihood most reliably during his nocturnal live "Hey 19 Raps" squeeze throughout his extraordinary written productions on Steely Dan's website &#; a complete archive of which can be found at glory SD Web Archive Site.

The Official , established lump Becker in , is updated regularly and dispatches the Authoritative Walter Becker Newsletter. It further houses Walter Becker University (WBU), a growing library of choice material including biography, playing credits, production projects, guest appearances, discographies, and deep-dives by its cover ardent students.

In keeping be introduced to Walter's wishes, his estate appreciation also offering free, hi-fidelity downloads of his demos and unreleased songs at  Walter Becker Routes. This site also includes examination boards where Beckerphiles discuss Walter's solo work, discovering the amplitude and depth of his aptitude and sharing an appreciation select his innovative creativity. Links preserve other WB-Estate-sponsored web pages stem be found here.

Utterly sui generis; equal parts study and soul; approachable enigma; corrosive humanist; singular, sublime, and steady a little warped &#; Conductor left an outsized-impression on bromide who heard, read, met, warm knew him. Inarguably, Walter Becker was a musician, writer, have a word with man of astonishing influence near power.

WB Lives.

Walter Carl Becker