1972Released
4:35

Did You Know?

Interesting facts and trivia about Reelin' In The Years. By Songfacts®.

This song is about recalling times with a girlfriend and a romantic breakup. It's one of the most popular Steely Dan songs, but also one of their least favorite. In Rolling Stone, September 17, 2009, Donald Fagan said, "It's dumb but effective." Walter Becker added, "It's no fun."

Steely Dan are known for their meticulous sound - every note must be perfect. This song is sometimes criticized for bringing on overly polished mainstream '70s music.

Elliot Randall, who was not a member of Steely Dan, stopped by on an invite from Skunk Baxter while they were recording this and ended up playing the guitar solo. This was one of the first of many times Walter Becker and Donald Fagen would use studio musicians, and by their fourth album, nearly every player was a studio musician. Randall also played on their albums Katy Lied and The Royal Scam.

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Song Analysis

Key, BPM (tempo) and time signature of Reelin' In The Years.
DKey
MajorMode
4/4Time Signature
135BPM

Album

The album Reelin' In The Years is released on.

Released By

The record label that has released Reelin' In The Years.
Geffen*
© 1998 MCA Records Inc.
℗ 1972 UMG Recordings, Inc.

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