I was once recommended by a friend to have a listen to some Steely Dan. I asked him, "which album should I get first?", expecting him to tell me their best, and those to avoid. His reply was, "any of them". I obviously trusted this friend, as I bought three of their albums in one go: Aja, Pretzel Logic and this. And it is perfectly true, Steely Dan were amazingly consistent with the quality of their music, and you can't really go wrong in buying any of their albums. It's The Royal Scam is quite possibly their finest, despite featuring a decidedly creepy piece of artwork as the front cover, and tracks such as "Kid Charlemagne", "Sign in Stranger" and "Green Earrings" show their musical capabilities and songwriting prowess at their very highest. I doubt that this band ever played out of time with each other, and each track is beautifully polished yet unclinical. Every detail of the band is accentuated, and no instrument is lost within the mix. The attention to small details separates Steely Dan from other Jazz/Rock fusions of the time, and Fagen's insightful and cynical lyrics add icing to the cake. Believe it or not, they're still going... mostly.

This was DMB's first studio album, and it remains as one of their best. With their huge range of musical styles and incredible talent they are one of a kind, and a breath of fresh air from the processed, formulaic pop that plagues 95% of the radio waves today. This album does them great justice, although you'd be forgiven for not getting it on the first few listens. The album opens with "The Best of What's Around", which weaves melodically and vocally to what seems like no purpose. In fact, this becomes your opinion of the album, until the day when it all clicks. Suddenly "Satellite" becomes one of your most played songs, you love the comedic lift of "Ants Marching" and you chill out to the velvet sax solo in "#34". If you don't own a DMB album I'd recommend buying "Before These Crowded Streets" or "Everyday", but don't miss out on this masterpiece.