Reelin' In the Years

For the Irish TV series, see Reeling In the Years.

"Reelin' In the Years"
Single by Steely Dan
from the album Can't Buy a Thrill
B-side"Only a Fool Would Say That"
ReleasedMarch 1973[1]
RecordedAugust 1972
StudioThe Village Recorder, Santa Monica, California
GenreJazz rock[2]
Length4:37
LabelABC
SongwritersWalter Becker, Donald Fagen
ProducerGary Katz
Steely Dan singles chronology
"Do It Again"
(1972) 		"Reelin' In the Years"
(1973) 		"Show Biz Kids"
(1973)
Audio
"Reelin' In the Years" on YouTube

"Reelin' In the Years" (sometimes titled "Reeling In the Years") is a song by American rock band Steely Dan, released as the second single from their 1972 debut album, Can't Buy a Thrill. It peaked at No. 11 on the US Billboard Hot 100 chart and at No. 15 in Canada.

Writing and performance

"Reelin' In the Years" was written by Donald Fagen and Walter Becker and features Fagen on vocals. As usual for their works, Fagen and Becker have been consistently close-mouthed about the song's meaning and how it was written. However, it is usually interpreted as being about a man whose girlfriend has broken up with him for someone else, and expresses his heartbreak by belittling his ex-lover and putting himself on a pedestal.[3] Some suspect the line "The weekend at the college didn't turn out like you planned" may be an autobiographical reference to the drug bust at Bard College which became the subject of a later Steely Dan song, "My Old School".[3] In 2017, Rolling Stone described the track as "a prime early example of what would become the Dan's trademark vibe, marrying a sardonic kiss-off to an ex to a bouncy shuffle groove, and adding on some white-hot guitar dazzlement courtesy of Elliott Randall to bring the whole thing home."[4] In a 2009 interview, Fagen said "It's dumb but effective", and Becker said "It's no fun."[4]

Though Steely Dan had ostensibly recruited vocalist David Palmer so that Fagen would not have to sing lead live, even on Steely Dan's first tour Fagen sang lead on "Reelin' in the Years", with the other five members all singing backup.[3]

Guitar solo

Jeff Baxter was assigned the lead guitar, but after he was unable to nail the part to the band's satisfaction, he asked Elliott Randall to give it a try.[3] Randall's guitar solo was recorded in one take, with no edits or punch ins.[3][5]

Jimmy Page ranked the guitar solo as his favorite solo of all time,[6][7] and he scored it at 12 out of a possible 10.[8][9] In 2016 the solo was ranked the 40th best guitar solo of all time by the readers of Guitar World magazine.[10][11]

The four-channel quadraphonic mix of the recording has extra lead guitar fills not heard in the more common two-channel stereo version.[5]

Reception

On its release in 1973, Billboard said: "Easy sounding guitar solos lead into an easy sounding piano break which supports the voices extolling about culling life's experiences from tears to time."[12] Cash Box called it a "winner highlighted by some expert guitar playing".[13] Record World said that "Another winner from their Can't Buy A Thrill LP should reel in whopping sales."[14] Disc Magazine stated the song "is the most instantly likeable of the package and would make a strong single".[15]

The song peaked at number 11 on the Billboard Hot 100 in May 1973.[16] In March 2005, Q magazine placed the recording at number 95 in its list of the 100 Greatest Guitar Tracks.[17]

Charts

Certifications

Region Certification Certified units/sales
New Zealand (RMNZ)[24] Platinum 30,000‡
United Kingdom (BPI)[25] Silver 200,000‡

‡ Sales+streaming figures based on certification alone.

Personnel

Steely Dan

Additional personnel

References

  1. ^ a b Joel Whitburn's Top Pop Singles 1955–1990 - ISBN 0-89820-089-X
  2. ^ Breithaupt, Don; Breithaupt, Jeff (October 15, 1996). "Play Misty for Me: Jazz Pop". Precious and Few - Pop Music in the Early '70s. St. Martin's Griffin. p. 128. ISBN 031214704X.
  3. ^ a b c d e Robustelli, Anthony (2017). Steely Dan FAQ: All that's Left to Know about this Elusive Band. Milwaukee, WI: Backbeat Books. p. 68. ISBN 9781495025129.
  4. ^ a b Shteamer, Hank (September 3, 2017). "Steely Dan: 10 Essential Songs". RollingStone.com. Retrieved October 18, 2018.
  5. ^ a b Fanelli, Damian (April 23, 2021). "How Elliott Randall Nailed Steely Dan's "Reelin' in the Years" Recording in One Continuous Take". Guitarplayer.com. Retrieved June 10, 2021.
  6. ^ Steven Wheeler (June 11, 1995). "The Led Zeppelin In-Frequently Murmured Trivia List v1.1". Led-Zeppelin.org. Archived from the original on February 16, 2012.
  7. ^ "Classic Rock Magazine Interview – 1999". Elliott Randall. June 20, 2014. Archived from the original on June 19, 2018. Retrieved October 8, 2016.
  8. ^ The classic Steely Dan song Jimmy Page said was better than perfect: “That's gotta be a 12” by Arun Starkey, Sun 26 October 2025
  9. ^ "Jimmy Page Grades other Guitarists out of 10". YouTube. Archived from the original on December 19, 2021. Retrieved June 10, 2021.
  10. ^ "The 100 Best Guitar Solos of All Time - Page 4". Guitar.about.com. Archived from the original on September 29, 2011. Retrieved October 8, 2016.
  11. ^ Scaggs, Austin (September 17, 2009). "Rare Cuts, Big Hits: Steely Dan Dig Deep". RollingStone. No. 1087. p. 24. Archived from the original on May 25, 2022. Retrieved September 28, 2023.
  12. ^ Tiegel, Eliot, ed. (March 3, 1973). "Radio Action & Pick Singles" (PDF). Billboard. Vol. 85, no. 9. p. 102. Retrieved July 29, 2020.
  13. ^ Cash Box Singles Reviews (March 10, 1973). "Picks of the Week" (PDF). Cash Box. Vol. 34, no. 38. p. 20. Retrieved December 11, 2021.
  14. ^ Goodman, Fred, ed. (March 10, 1973). "Hits of the Week" (PDF). Record World. Vol. 28, no. 1342. p. 1. Retrieved March 23, 2023.
  15. ^ Tyler, Andrew (January 20, 1973). "Steely Dan: Can't Buy A Thrill". Disc Magazine – via Rock's Backpages.
  16. ^ Lanzetta, Tony, ed. (May 26, 1973). "Billboard Hot 100" (PDF). Billboard. Vol. 85, no. 21. p. 64.
  17. ^ "100 Greatest Guitar Tracks Ever!". Q magazine. No. 224. March 2005.
  18. ^ "Item Display - RPM Top Singles - Volume 19, No. 18, June 16 1973 - Library and Archives Canada". Collectionscanada.gc.ca. Archived from the original on March 5, 2016. Retrieved October 8, 2016.
  19. ^ "Cash Box Top 100 5/26/73". Cashboxmagazine.com. Archived from the original on October 2, 2012. Retrieved June 25, 2016.
  20. ^ Whitburn, Joel (2015). The Comparison Book Billboard/Cash Box/Record World 1954-1982. Sheridan Books. ISBN 978-0-89820-213-7.
  21. ^ "Item Display - RPM Annual - Volume 20, No. 20, December 29 1973 - Library and Archives Canada". Collectionscanada.gc.ca. Retrieved July 14, 2017.
  22. ^ "Top 100 Hits of 1973/Top 100 Songs of 1973". Musicoutfitters.com. Retrieved October 8, 2016.
  23. ^ "Cash Box YE Pop Singles - 1973". Cashboxmagazine.com. Archived from the original on December 16, 2019. Retrieved June 25, 2016.
  24. ^ "New Zealand single certifications – Steely Dan – Reelin' in the Years". Radioscope. Retrieved June 1, 2025. Type Reelin' in the Years in the "Search:" field and press Enter.
  25. ^ "British single certifications – Steely Dan – Reelin' in the Years". British Phonographic Industry. Retrieved June 7, 2022. Select singles in the Formats field. Type Reelin' in the Years Steely Dan in the "Search:" field.
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