Steely Dan tribute has real sax appeal

Apr 7 2009 by Andrew Welsh, Perthshire Advertiser Tuesday

A FEAST of classics by jazz-rock legends Steely Dan are set to be given innovative treatment at an eagerly awaited Perth show next month.

World-renowned Scottish saxophonist Tommy Smith will lead the Scottish National Jazz Orchestra in a one-off tribute to the stylish New York outfit as part of Perth Festival of the Arts.

Three Decades of Steely Dan, which takes place at Perth Theatre on May 29, will see the SNJO play a series of scores by award-winning arranger Fred Sturm.

The musicians will perform under the alias of The Hoops McCann Band, named after a character in Glamour Profession, a track from Steely Dan’s 1980 masterpiece Gaucho.

Smith’s 17-piece line-up boasts trumpets, trombones, woodwind, piano, bass and drums, all topped off with his own exquisite sax playing and solos from 28-year-old classical guitar maestro Graeme Scott.

With eccentric duo Walter Becker and Donald Fagen at its core, Steely Dan reached a peak of popularity in the late 1970s with their creative blend of jazz, rock, funk, R&B, and pop, and attracted a cult following.

Famously, Becker and Fagen used over 40 studio musicians, 11 engineers, and took over a year to record the tracks that resulted in Gaucho — an album that contains only seven songs.

The influential Dan were a purely studio-based act during their glory years before they split in 1981, but resumed playing live concerts in 1993.

Steely Dan released two sets of new material in the early part of this decade, the first of which, Two Against Nature (2000), earned a Grammy Award for album of the year.

In all, they have sold more than 30 million albums worldwide.

Tommy Smith (41), who hails from Edinburgh’s Wester Hailes district, has been an internationally recognised soloist and bandleader since the late-1980s.

Non-jazz acts he has previously collaborated with include Scots pop duo Hue & Cry, Gaelic singer Karen Matheson and accordionist / keyboards player Donald Shaw from Capercaillie.

Tickets for the SNJO performance are available at the theatre and Perth Concert Hall, by calling 01738 621031 and at www.horsecross.co.uk

Briefs are also now on sale from the same outlets for former Orange Juice frontman Edwyn Collins’ festival show at Perth Theatre on May 24, and folk rocker Seth Lakeman’s PCH gig on May 30.