Kid Charlemagne
| Kid Charlemagne | |
|---|---|
| Steely Dan | |
| publication | May 1976 |
| length | 4:38 |
| Genre (s) | Funk , jazz , rock |
| Author (s) | Walter Becker , Donald Fagen |
| Label | ABC Records |
| album | The Royal Scam |
Kid Charlemagne is a song by Steely Dan that was released as a single from their album The Royal Scam in 1976 . It is a mixture of funk rhythm, jazz harmonies and rock .
content
The text outlines the rise and fall of a drug dealer in the psychedelic scene on the west coast of the United States in the 1960s. The authors Walter Becker and Donald Fagen said in an interview in 2000 that the text was inspired by the LSD chemist Owsley Stanley in San Francisco . The lyrics also use other images from this period.
Excerpts from the lyrics:
“There was kerosene added to the stuff on the hill,
but yours was kitchen-clean.
Everyone stopped to admire your Technicolor motorhome.
...
Every A-frame had your number on the wall ... "
The first two lines refer to Owsley's drug being famous for its purity, and the last line is a reference to the psychedelic RV, or Bus Further , used by The Merry Pranksters who received LSD from Owsley.
A-frame houses were popular in the 1960s because of the availability of inexpensive kits that could be assembled in a matter of days.
Guitar solo
The guitar solo of fusion guitar-player Larry Carlton is ranked 80 in the list of 100 greatest guitar songs of the Rolling Stone magazine. The reason was:
“In the late seventies Steely Dan recorded by recording after recording with a rotating crew of musicians in monster sessions, resulting in long, breathtaking guitar solos. Larry Carlton's multilayered, cosmic jazz lead guitar in this solo could be the best of them all: It's so complex that it's a song in itself. "
According to Becker and Fagen, the guitar solo was completely improvised.
occupation
- Donald Fagen - vocals, keyboards
- Larry Carlton - lead guitar
- Walter Becker - rhythm guitar
- Don Grolnick - Fender Rhodes electric piano
- Chuck Rainey - bass
- Bernard Purdie - drums
- Paul Griffin - Hohner Clavinet
- Donald Fagen , Michael McDonald , Venetta Fields, Clydie King, Sherlie Matthews - backing vocals
Web links
- The Story of the Lyrics of Steely Dan's “Kid Charlemagne” on yachtrock.com (English)
Individual evidence
- ↑ a b steelydan.com: Complete transcript of Donald Fagen and Walter Becker in a BBC-Online Chat, March 4, 2000 ( Memento of the original of April 13, 2009 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked . Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.
- ↑ metrolyrics.com: Kid Charlemagne Lyrics
- ^ Rollingstone.com: Owsley Stanley: The King of LSD
- ↑ 'Kid Charlemagne': A Close Reading Of Steely Dan's Ode To Haight Street's LSD King ( Memento from March 17, 2016 in the Internet Archive )
- ↑ a b 80 "Kid Charlemagne" ( Memento from May 30, 2008 in the Internet Archive )
- ↑ stereogum.com: Rolling Stone's 100 Greatest Guitar Songs Of All Time
