JAZZ-ROCK
THE CROSSROADS
Steely Dan’s Mu Chord
This month John Wheatcroft shows us how Donald Fagen and Walter Becker dressed their harmony to the ‘nines’, as he explores their trademark chord voicings.
ABILITY RATING
Info https://bit.ly/4ekuh7c
Key Various
Tempo 120bpm
Moderate ✪ ✪ ✪ ✪ ✪
Will improve your…
✓ Application of chord voicings
✓ Harmonic awareness
✓ Fretboard fluency
If any band encapsulates the spirt of these Crossroads articles, then it’s the legendary American group Steely Dan. Effortlessly blending rock, pop, blues, jazz, country, folk and almost any other imaginable popular musical idiom, the compositional style of keyboard player and vocalist Donald Fagin, alongside his writing partner and guitarist Walter Becker had it all. Combine the pair’s considerable creative talents with an almost unfathomable A-list of the best of the best session musicians, literally queuing up to play on their recordings, with phenomenal production and you can see why their music has stood the test of time. And with over 40 million albums sold and an induction into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame we see two further indications of their significance and popularity.
TECHNIQUE FOCUS
Posture And Strap Height
It’s a great idea to continually keep a check on your posture, and this is particularly important when approaching any techniques that require dextrous finger positioning coupled with extreme stretches. Generally speaking, it’s best to adopt a fretting-hand positioning that will allow you to keep your wrist straight and the hand slightly cupped, adjusting the angle that the fingers address the neck by turning at the elbow, rather than from the wrist. You might find that much of the material presented here feels much easier with your guitar held higher, rather than lower. The location of the strap button can also play a part here. Check out old photos of Allan Holdsworth playing a Strat and you’ll see that he repositioned his strap button on the neck heel, rather than on the usual upper horn. Also, make sure you’re fully warmed up and pay attention to any unexpected aches and pains. Also consider using a mirror, or perhaps film yourself playing, to make note of any acute angles or other signs of tension that you might not be aware of.