Steely Dan’s third album, Pretzel Logic, will return to vinyl for the first time in over 35 years on July 28 via Geffen/UMe.
Originally released in 1974, the best-selling album marked the band’s first to break Billboard’s Top 10, on the strength of their most successful hit, “Rikki Don’t Lose That Number,” plus such favorites as “Any Major Dude Will Tell You,” “East St. Louis Toodle-Oo,” and “Barrytown.”
Pretzel Logic marks the latest release in Geffen/UMe’s extensive reissue program of Steely Dan’s ABC and MCA Records catalog, which returns the band’s first seven records to vinyl – most of which haven’t been available since their original release.
Overseen by founding member Donald Fagen, the series launched in November 2022 with the group’s legendary debut, Can’t Buy A Thrill, followed most recently by 1973’s Countdown To Ecstasy in May 2023.
The album was remastered by Bernie Grundman from the original analog tapes and pressed on 180-gram black vinyl at 33 1/3 RPM. Additionally, Pretzel Logic will be released as a limited edition premium 45 RPM version on Ultra High-Quality Vinyl (UHQR) from Analogue Productions, the audiophile in-house reissue label of Acoustic Sounds. Analogue Productions is also releasing this series of titles on Super Audio CD (SACD).
Additional titles will roll out over the next year, including 1975’s Katy Lied (featuring “Black Friday,” “Bad Sneakers” and “Doctor Wu,” as well as the addition of Michael McDonald on vocals); 1976’s The Royal Scam (“Kid Charlemagne,” “The Fez”); 1977’s platinum-selling Aja (with the hits “Deacon Blues,” Peg” and “Josie”); as well as Steely Dan’s final album for MCA, and last for 20 years, 1980’s Gaucho (featuring “Hey Nineteen” and “Time Out Of Mind,” with Mark Knopfler on guitar).
All albums are being mastered by Bernie Grundman from the original analog tapes except for Aja, which will be mastered from an analog, non-EQ’d, tape copy, and Gaucho, which will be sourced from a 1980 analog tape copy originally EQ’d by Bob Ludwig. (There’s no evidence the original tapes containing the flat mixes of Aja and Gaucho were delivered to the record label and it’s presumed the tapes no longer exist.) Lacquers for UMe’s standard 33 1/3 RPM 180-gram version will be cut by Alex Abrash at his renowned AA Mastering studio from high-resolution digital files of Grundman’s new masters and pressed at Precision. They will be housed in reproductions of the original artwork.
The 45 RPM UHQR versions will be pressed at Analogue Productions’ Quality Record Pressings on 200-gram Clarity Vinyl, packaged in a deluxe box, and will include a booklet detailing the entire process of making a UHQR along with a certificate of inspection. Each UHQR is pressed, using hand-selected vinyl, with attention paid to every single detail of every single record. All of the innovations introduced by QRP that have been generating such incredible critical acclaim are applied to each UHQR. The 200-gram records feature the same flat profile that helped to make the original UHQR so desirable.
Commercially, Pretzel Logic marked Steely Dan’s first Top 10 album on the Billboard 200. Single “Rikki Don’t Lose That Number,” meanwhile, became the biggest hit of their career, landing at No. 4 on the Billboard Hot 100.
The Steely Dan vinyl reissue program follows 2021’s release of Steely Dan’s Northeast Corridor: Steely Dan Live! and a live version of Donald Fagen’s acclaimed solo album, The Nightfly Live, which were both released via UMe on 180-gram vinyl, CD, and digital.
The first live Steely Dan album in more than 25 years, Northeast Corridor: Steely Dan Live! was recorded across tour dates at New York City’s Beacon Theatre, The Met Philadelphia, and more, and showcases selections from Steely Dan’s catalog. Fagen’s The Nightfly Live was performed live by The Steely Dan Band.
Pretzel Logic Track List (33 RPM Vinyl)
Side A
1. Rikki Don’t Lose That Number
2. Night by Night
3. Any Major Dude Will Tell You
4. Barrytown
5. East St. Louis Toodle-Oo
Side B
1. Parker’s Band
2. Through with Buzz
3. Pretzel Logic
4. With a Gun
5. Charlie Freak
6. Monkey in Your Soul
