The Nightfly
Encyclopedia
The Nightfly is the first solo album
by Steely Dan
co-founder Donald Fagen
, released in 1982
. It was one of the first fully digital recording
s of popular music. Although The Nightfly includes a number of production staff and musicians who had played on Steely Dan records, it is notably Fagen's first release without longtime collaborator Walter Becker
.
Unlike the majority of Fagen's work before this point, The Nightfly is almost blatantly autobiographical. Many of the songs relate to the cautiously optimistic mood of his suburban childhood in the late 1950s and early 1960s, and include such lyrical topics as late night jazz deejay
s, bomb shelters, and tropical vacations.
The Nightfly was certified Platinum
in both the US and UK, and produced two popular hits with "I.G.Y. (What a Beautiful World)
" and "New Frontier". It also received several 1983 Grammy Award
nominations. This relatively low-key but long-lived popularity led the Wall Street Journal in 2007 to dub the album, "one of pop music's sneakiest masterpieces."
. It was Donald Fagen's debut solo album, and also the first music project of his adult life not to include longtime musical compadre and co-conspirator, Walter Becker.
, and at Village Recorders in Los Angeles
. Production was done by Gary Katz
and the album was engineered by Roger Nichols; both men had worked on every single Steely Dan record up to that point. Many of the musicians had also played on Steely Dan records, including Jeff Porcaro
, Rick Derringer
and Larry Carlton
. Similar to the Aja
and Gaucho albums, a large number of studio musicians were employed, with the liner notes crediting 31 musicians as having played on the record.
). Before him lies a turntable (16 inch '50s model, with a Para-Flux A-16 tonearm), an ashtray, and a pack of Chesterfield King
cigarettes. Visible on the table with the record player, is the cover of the 1958 jazz album Sonny Rollins and the Contemporary Leaders
(also credited in the liner notes). On the wall behind Fagen is a large clock, indicating that the time is 4:09.
Gale Sasson and Vern Yenor are credited with the cover's set design. George Delmerico acted as art director, and the picture was taken by noted art photographer James Hamilton
. The Wall Street Journal writes, "The cover adds another layer of autobiography. On the front, we see Mr. Fagen as a crew-cut deejay on the graveyard shift. On the back is his audience, a single lighted window in a row of tract homes -- or maybe the artist as a young man, drinking in inspiration."
, The Village Voice
and Uncut all gave the album high marks. Jason Akeny of AllMusic rated The Nightfly at 4 and 1/2 out of a possible 5 stars, calling it "lush and shimmering, produced with cinematic flair by Gary Katz; romanticized but never sentimental... crafted with impeccable style and sophistication."
In February 2010, Vatican City
's L'Osservatore Romano
appointed The Nightfly to its official Top 10 Albums list. EQ Magazine rated The Nightfly as among the Top 10 Best Recorded Albums of All Time, alongside The Beatles
's Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band
and The Beach Boys
' Pet Sounds
.
, and the #24 position on the US Billboard R&B charts. In the UK, the album was certified Platinum in 2004, despite only reaching #44 on the charts following its release. It has also gone Platinum in America.
magazine, said The Nightfly "is always a good reference for checking out monitoring systems and shows what good results could be obtained from those early digital recording systems in the right hands." But the music isn't limited to recording studio tests, Clive Young of Pro Sound News called Fagen's I.G.Y. the "Freebird
" of Pro Audio, citing that almost every live sound engineer uses the song to test the front of house system's sound response.
covered "I.G.Y." in 1992, while Mel Tormé
included "The Goodbye Look" on his 1988 album Mel Tormé and the Marty Paich Dektette – Reunion, as well as recording "Walk Between the Raindrops" on another album. Tormé also reportedly covered "Maxine" at some of his live shows in the 1980s.
in 2002, on DualDisc
in 2004, on MVI
in 2007 and on hybrid multichannel SACD
in 2011.
The DualDisc has the CD version of the album on the first side, and the DVD-Audio
version on the opposite side. This edition is rare—it was among a group of 15 DualDisc releases that were test-marketed in just two cities, Boston and Seattle, and was never reissued after the very limited test market run.
Singles
Album
An album is a collection of recordings, released as a single package on gramophone record, cassette, compact disc, or via digital distribution. The word derives from the Latin word for list .Vinyl LP records have two sides, each comprising one half of the album...
by Steely Dan
Steely Dan
Steely Dan is an American rock band; its core members are Donald Fagen and Walter Becker. The band's popularity peaked in the late 1970s, with the release of seven albums blending elements of jazz, rock, funk, R&B, and pop...
co-founder Donald Fagen
Donald Fagen
Donald Jay Fagen is an American musician and songwriter, best known as the co-founder, lead singer, and the principal songwriter of the rock band Steely Dan ....
, released in 1982
1982 in music
This is a list of notable events in music from 1982. 1982 was a big year in music with Madonna making her debut as well as the year that Michael Jackson released Thriller which became the world's best selling album and it still holds that title today....
. It was one of the first fully digital recording
Digital recording
In digital recording, digital audio and digital video is directly recorded to a storage device as a stream of discrete numbers, representing the changes in air pressure for audio and chroma and luminance values for video through time, thus making an abstract template for the original sound or...
s of popular music. Although The Nightfly includes a number of production staff and musicians who had played on Steely Dan records, it is notably Fagen's first release without longtime collaborator Walter Becker
Walter Becker
Walter Carl Becker is an American musician, songwriter and record producer. He is best known as the co-founder, guitarist, bassist and a co-writer of Steely Dan.-Career:...
.
Unlike the majority of Fagen's work before this point, The Nightfly is almost blatantly autobiographical. Many of the songs relate to the cautiously optimistic mood of his suburban childhood in the late 1950s and early 1960s, and include such lyrical topics as late night jazz deejay
Deejay
A deejay is a reggae or dancehall musician who sings and toasts to an instrumental riddim .Deejays are not to be confused with disc jockeys from other music genres like hip-hop, where they select and play music. Dancehall/reggae DJs who select riddims to play are called selectors...
s, bomb shelters, and tropical vacations.
The Nightfly was certified Platinum
Platinum
Platinum is a chemical element with the chemical symbol Pt and an atomic number of 78. Its name is derived from the Spanish term platina del Pinto, which is literally translated into "little silver of the Pinto River." It is a dense, malleable, ductile, precious, gray-white transition metal...
in both the US and UK, and produced two popular hits with "I.G.Y. (What a Beautiful World)
I.G.Y. (What a Beautiful World)
"I.G.Y. " is a song written and performed by American songwriter, singer and musician Donald Fagen. It was the first track of his 1982 debut solo album The Nightfly, and was released as a single, charting on the Billboard Hot 100, Mainstream Rock and Adult Contemporary charts.- Background :Fagen,...
" and "New Frontier". It also received several 1983 Grammy Award
Grammy Award
A Grammy Award — or Grammy — is an accolade by the National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences of the United States to recognize outstanding achievement in the music industry...
nominations. This relatively low-key but long-lived popularity led the Wall Street Journal in 2007 to dub the album, "one of pop music's sneakiest masterpieces."
Background
The Nightfly was recorded shortly after Steely Dan's final album before their extended hiatus, 1980's GauchoGaucho (album)
Gaucho is the seventh studio album by the American Jazz rock band Steely Dan, released in 1980. The sessions for Gaucho represented the peak of Steely Dan's recording studio perfectionism and obsessive recording techniques...
. It was Donald Fagen's debut solo album, and also the first music project of his adult life not to include longtime musical compadre and co-conspirator, Walter Becker.
Composition
A message in the liner notes of The Nightfly reads: "Note: The songs on this album represent certain fantasies that might have been entertained by a young man growing up in the remote suburbs of a northeastern city during the late fifties and early sixties, i.e., one of my general height, weight and build. - D.F."Recording sessions
The Nightfly was recorded in 1982 at Soundworks Digital Audio/Video Recording Studios and Automated Sound in New York CityNew York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
, and at Village Recorders in Los Angeles
Los Ángeles
Los Ángeles is the capital of the province of Biobío, in the commune of the same name, in Region VIII , in the center-south of Chile. It is located between the Laja and Biobío rivers. The population is 123,445 inhabitants...
. Production was done by Gary Katz
Gary Katz
Gary Katz is an American music producer, best known for his work with Steely Dan.-Steely Dan:Katz is most famous for his work as a producer on every Steely Dan album recorded during the first run of their career, from Can't Buy A Thrill in 1972 to Gaucho in 1980, as well as the Donald Fagen solo...
and the album was engineered by Roger Nichols; both men had worked on every single Steely Dan record up to that point. Many of the musicians had also played on Steely Dan records, including Jeff Porcaro
Jeff Porcaro
Jeffrey Thomas "Jeff" Porcaro was an American session drummer and a founding member of the Grammy Award winning band Toto. Porcaro was one of the most recorded drummers in history, working on hundreds of albums and thousands of sessions...
, Rick Derringer
Rick Derringer
Rick Derringer is an American guitarist, vocalist, and entertainer.-1960s:When he was seventeen years old, his band The McCoys recorded "Hang on Sloopy" in the summer of 1965, which became the number one song in America before "Yesterday" by The Beatles knocked it out of the top spot. The song was...
and Larry Carlton
Larry Carlton
Larry Carlton is an American jazz, smooth jazz, jazz fusion, pop, and rock guitarist and singer. He has divided his recording time between solo recordings and session appearances with various well-known bands...
. Similar to the Aja
Aja (album)
-Charts:AlbumPop Singles-Awards:Grammy Awards-External links:**, courtesy of The Museum of Classic Chicago Television...
and Gaucho albums, a large number of studio musicians were employed, with the liner notes crediting 31 musicians as having played on the record.
Artwork
The album's cover artwork features a photo of Donald Fagen as a deejay wearing a collared shirt and tie, speaking into a microphone (an RCA 44DXRibbon microphone
A ribbon microphone is a type of dynamic microphone that uses a thin aluminum, duraluminum or nanofilm ribbon placed between the poles of a magnet to generate voltages by electromagnetic induction...
). Before him lies a turntable (16 inch '50s model, with a Para-Flux A-16 tonearm), an ashtray, and a pack of Chesterfield King
Chesterfield (cigarette)
Chesterfield is a brand of cigarette made by Altria. It was one of the most recognized brands of the early 20th century, but sales have declined steadily over the years. It was named for Chesterfield County, Virginia. Chesterfield is still being made today; it is still popular in Europe, but has...
cigarettes. Visible on the table with the record player, is the cover of the 1958 jazz album Sonny Rollins and the Contemporary Leaders
Sonny Rollins and the Contemporary Leaders
Sonny Rollins and the Contemporary Leaders is an album by jazz saxophonist Sonny Rollins, recorded for the Contemporary label, featuring performances by Rollins with Hampton Hawes, Barney Kessel, Leroy Vinnegar, and Shelly Manne with Victor Feldman added on one track...
(also credited in the liner notes). On the wall behind Fagen is a large clock, indicating that the time is 4:09.
Gale Sasson and Vern Yenor are credited with the cover's set design. George Delmerico acted as art director, and the picture was taken by noted art photographer James Hamilton
James Hamilton (Photographer)
James Hamilton is an American photographer, best known for his documentation of the New York City film, art and music scene of the 1970s and 1980s.-Life:...
. The Wall Street Journal writes, "The cover adds another layer of autobiography. On the front, we see Mr. Fagen as a crew-cut deejay on the graveyard shift. On the back is his audience, a single lighted window in a row of tract homes -- or maybe the artist as a young man, drinking in inspiration."
Reception
Reviews
The Nightfly was met with almost universally positive reviews. Rolling StoneRolling Stone
Rolling Stone is a US-based magazine devoted to music, liberal politics, and popular culture that is published every two weeks. Rolling Stone was founded in San Francisco in 1967 by Jann Wenner and music critic Ralph J...
, The Village Voice
The Village Voice
The Village Voice is a free weekly newspaper and news and features website in New York City that features investigative articles, analysis of current affairs and culture, arts and music coverage, and events listings for New York City...
and Uncut all gave the album high marks. Jason Akeny of AllMusic rated The Nightfly at 4 and 1/2 out of a possible 5 stars, calling it "lush and shimmering, produced with cinematic flair by Gary Katz; romanticized but never sentimental... crafted with impeccable style and sophistication."
In February 2010, Vatican City
Vatican City
Vatican City , or Vatican City State, in Italian officially Stato della Città del Vaticano , which translates literally as State of the City of the Vatican, is a landlocked sovereign city-state whose territory consists of a walled enclave within the city of Rome, Italy. It has an area of...
's L'Osservatore Romano
L'Osservatore Romano
L'Osservatore Romano is the "semi-official" newspaper of the Holy See. It covers all the Pope's public activities, publishes editorials by important churchmen, and runs official documents after being released...
appointed The Nightfly to its official Top 10 Albums list. EQ Magazine rated The Nightfly as among the Top 10 Best Recorded Albums of All Time, alongside The Beatles
The Beatles
The Beatles were an English rock band, active throughout the 1960s and one of the most commercially successful and critically acclaimed acts in the history of popular music. Formed in Liverpool, by 1962 the group consisted of John Lennon , Paul McCartney , George Harrison and Ringo Starr...
's Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band
Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band
Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band is the eighth studio album by the English rock band The Beatles, released on 1 June 1967 on the Parlophone label and produced by George Martin...
and The Beach Boys
The Beach Boys
The Beach Boys are an American rock band, formed in 1961 in Hawthorne, California. The group was initially composed of brothers Brian, Dennis and Carl Wilson, their cousin Mike Love, and friend Al Jardine. Managed by the Wilsons' father Murry, The Beach Boys signed to Capitol Records in 1962...
' Pet Sounds
Pet Sounds
Pet Sounds is the eleventh studio album by the American rock band The Beach Boys, released May 16, 1966, on Capitol Records. It has since been recognized as one of the most influential records in the history of popular music and one of the best albums of the 1960s, including songs such as "Wouldn't...
.
Sales charts
The Nightfly reached the #11 position on the US Billboard ChartsBillboard charts
The Billboard charts tabulate the relative weekly popularity of songs or albums in the United States. The results are published in Billboard magazine...
, and the #24 position on the US Billboard R&B charts. In the UK, the album was certified Platinum in 2004, despite only reaching #44 on the charts following its release. It has also gone Platinum in America.
Legacy in the digital music community
Paul White, editor-in-chief of Sound On SoundSound on Sound
Sound on Sound is an independently-owned monthly music technology magazine published by SOS Publications Group, based in Cambridge, UK. The magazine includes product tests of electronic musical performance and recording devices, and interviews with industry professionals...
magazine, said The Nightfly "is always a good reference for checking out monitoring systems and shows what good results could be obtained from those early digital recording systems in the right hands." But the music isn't limited to recording studio tests, Clive Young of Pro Sound News called Fagen's I.G.Y. the "Freebird
Freebird
Freebird may refer to:* Free Bird - The rock anthem by American band Lynyrd Skynyrd* Freebird - The 2008 film by Jon Ivay* Freebird Airlines - The Turkish airline...
" of Pro Audio, citing that almost every live sound engineer uses the song to test the front of house system's sound response.
Notable cover versions
A number of prominent artists have covered songs from The Nightfly. Howard JonesHoward Jones
Howard Jones is the name of:*Howard Jones , American football coach*Howard Jones , American metalcore singer*Howard M...
covered "I.G.Y." in 1992, while Mel Tormé
Mel Tormé
Melvin Howard Tormé , nicknamed The Velvet Fog, was an American musician, known for his jazz singing. He was also a jazz composer and arranger, a drummer, an actor in radio, film, and television, and the author of five books...
included "The Goodbye Look" on his 1988 album Mel Tormé and the Marty Paich Dektette – Reunion, as well as recording "Walk Between the Raindrops" on another album. Tormé also reportedly covered "Maxine" at some of his live shows in the 1980s.
Track listing (Original LP Release)
All songs by Donald Fagen, except where noted- "I.G.Y.I.G.Y. (What a Beautiful World)"I.G.Y. " is a song written and performed by American songwriter, singer and musician Donald Fagen. It was the first track of his 1982 debut solo album The Nightfly, and was released as a single, charting on the Billboard Hot 100, Mainstream Rock and Adult Contemporary charts.- Background :Fagen,...
" – 6:03 - "Green Flower Street" – 3:42
- "Ruby BabyRuby Baby"Ruby Baby" is a song written by Jerry Leiber and Mike Stoller. It was originally recorded by The Drifters and was a major R&B hit for them in 1956...
" (Jerry Leiber, Mike Stoller), Arranged by Donald Fagen – 5:39 - "Maxine" – 3:49
- "New Frontier" – 6:21
- "The Nightfly" – 5:47
- "The Goodbye Look" – 4:50
- "Walk Between Raindrops" – 2:38
Personnel
- Donald FagenDonald FagenDonald Jay Fagen is an American musician and songwriter, best known as the co-founder, lead singer, and the principal songwriter of the rock band Steely Dan ....
- organOrgan (music)The organ , is a keyboard instrument of one or more divisions, each played with its own keyboard operated either with the hands or with the feet. The organ is a relatively old musical instrument in the Western musical tradition, dating from the time of Ctesibius of Alexandria who is credited with...
, synthesizerSynthesizerA synthesizer is an electronic instrument capable of producing sounds by generating electrical signals of different frequencies. These electrical signals are played through a loudspeaker or set of headphones...
, harmonicaHarmonicaThe harmonica, also called harp, French harp, blues harp, and mouth organ, is a free reed wind instrument used primarily in blues and American folk music, jazz, country, and rock and roll. It is played by blowing air into it or drawing air out by placing lips over individual holes or multiple holes...
, horn, keyboardsKeyboard instrumentA keyboard instrument is a musical instrument which is played using a musical keyboard. The most common of these is the piano. Other widely used keyboard instruments include organs of various types as well as other mechanical, electromechanical and electronic instruments...
, electric pianoElectric pianoAn electric piano is an electric musical instrument.Electric pianos produce sounds mechanically and the sounds are turned into electrical signals by pickups. Unlike a synthesizer, the electric piano is not an electronic instrument, but electro-mechanical. The earliest electric pianos were invented...
, vocalsSingingSinging is the act of producing musical sounds with the voice, and augments regular speech by the use of both tonality and rhythm. One who sings is called a singer or vocalist. Singers perform music known as songs that can be sung either with or without accompaniment by musical instruments...
, background vocals, synthesizer harp - Dave BargeronDave BargeronDavid 'Dave' W Bargeron is an American trombonist and tuba player from Athol, Massachusetts, most famous for playing with the jazz-rock group Blood, Sweat, and Tears. He joined the group in 1970, after Jerry Hyman departed, and first appeared on the album Blood, Sweat & Tears 4...
- tromboneTromboneThe trombone is a musical instrument in the brass family. Like all brass instruments, sound is produced when the player’s vibrating lips cause the air column inside the instrument to vibrate...
, euphoniumEuphoniumThe euphonium is a conical-bore, tenor-voiced brass instrument. It derives its name from the Greek word euphonos, meaning "well-sounding" or "sweet-voiced"...
, horn, background vocals - Michael BreckerMichael BreckerMichael Leonard Brecker was an American jazz saxophonist and composer. Acknowledged as "a quiet, gentle musician widely regarded as the most influential tenor saxophonist since John Coltrane," he has been awarded 15 Grammy Awards as both performer and composer and was inducted into Down Beat Jazz...
- tenor saxophoneTenor saxophoneThe tenor saxophone is a medium-sized member of the saxophone family, a group of instruments invented by Adolphe Sax in the 1840s. The tenor, with the alto, are the two most common types of saxophones. The tenor is pitched in the key of B, and written as a transposing instrument in the treble... - Randy BreckerRandy BreckerRandal "Randy" Brecker is an American trumpeter and flugelhornist. He is a highly sought after performer in the genres of jazz, rock, and R&B, and has performed or recorded with Stanley Turrentine, Billy Cobham, Bruce Springsteen, Lou Reed, Sandip Burman, Charles Mingus, Blood, Sweat & Tears,...
- trumpetTrumpetThe trumpet is the musical instrument with the highest register in the brass family. Trumpets are among the oldest musical instruments, dating back to at least 1500 BCE. They are played by blowing air through closed lips, producing a "buzzing" sound which starts a standing wave vibration in the air...
, flugelhornFlugelhornThe flugelhorn is a brass instrument resembling a trumpet but with a wider, conical bore. Some consider it to be a member of the saxhorn family developed by Adolphe Sax ; however, other historians assert that it derives from the valve bugle designed by Michael Saurle , Munich 1832 , thus... - Larry CarltonLarry CarltonLarry Carlton is an American jazz, smooth jazz, jazz fusion, pop, and rock guitarist and singer. He has divided his recording time between solo recordings and session appearances with various well-known bands...
- guitarGuitarThe guitar is a plucked string instrument, usually played with fingers or a pick. The guitar consists of a body with a rigid neck to which the strings, generally six in number, are attached. Guitars are traditionally constructed of various woods and strung with animal gut or, more recently, with... - Ronnie CuberRonnie CuberRonnie Cuber is a jazz saxophonist. He has also played in Latin, pop, rock and blues sessions. In addition to his primary instrument, baritone sax, he has also played tenor sax, soprano sax and flute, the latter on an album by Eddie Palmieri. As a leader, Cuber is known for hard bop and Latin jazz...
- horn, baritone saxophoneBaritone saxophoneThe baritone saxophone, often called "bari sax" , is one of the largest and lowest pitched members of the saxophone family. It was invented by Adolphe Sax. The baritone is distinguished from smaller sizes of saxophone by the extra loop near its mouthpiece... - Rick DerringerRick DerringerRick Derringer is an American guitarist, vocalist, and entertainer.-1960s:When he was seventeen years old, his band The McCoys recorded "Hang on Sloopy" in the summer of 1965, which became the number one song in America before "Yesterday" by The Beatles knocked it out of the top spot. The song was...
- guitar - Frank "Harmonica Frank" Floyd - background vocals
- James GadsonJames GadsonJames Gadson is an American drummer and session musician. Beginning his career in the late 1960s, Gadson has since become one of the most-recorded drummers in the history of R&B music....
- drumsDrum kitA drum kit is a collection of drums, cymbals and often other percussion instruments, such as cowbells, wood blocks, triangles, chimes, or tambourines, arranged for convenient playing by a single person .... - Ed GreeneEd Greene (musician)Ed Greene is an American drummer and session musician.An early recording in 1971 has him as a member of the Donald Byrd Group, together with Thurman Green Harold Land Bobby Hutcherson Joe Sample and Wilton Felder , among others....
- drums - Gordon Grody - vocals, background vocals
- Anthony Jackson - bassBass guitarThe bass guitar is a stringed instrument played primarily with the fingers or thumb , or by using a pick....
- Steve JordanSteve Jordan (musician)Steve Jordan is an American multi-instrumentalist, composer, musical director and Grammy Award-winning artist, who has made a name for himself as a producer from the Bronx in New York City. A graduate of the Fiorello H...
- drums - Steve KhanSteve KhanSteve Khan is an American jazz guitarist.Born in Los Angeles, California, Khan is known for his work with artists such as Steely Dan, Billy Joel, Michael Franks, Hubert Laws, Billy Cobham, Jack DeJohnette, James Brown, Maynard Ferguson, and Weather Report...
- acoustic guitarSteel-string acoustic guitarA steel-string acoustic guitar is a modern form of guitar descended from the classical guitar, but strung with steel strings for a brighter, louder sound... - Abraham LaborielAbraham LaborielAbraham Laboriel, Sr. is a Mexican bassist of Garifuna descent who has played on over 4,000 recordings and soundtracks. Guitar Player Magazine described him as "the most widely used session bassist of our time". Laboriel is the father of drummer Abe Laboriel Jr. and of producer, songwriter, and...
- bass - Daniel Lazerus - background vocals
- Will LeeWill Lee (bassist)Will Lee aka William Franklin Lee IV is an American musician and bassist, best known for his work on the CBS television program The Late Show with David Letterman as part of the CBS Orchestra....
- bass - Hugh McCrackenHugh McCrackenHugh McCracken is a rhythm guitar player and session musician, arranger and producer based in New York.Especially in demand in the 60s, 70s and 80s, he appears on many recordings by Steely Dan, as well as albums by Donald Fagen, Jimmy Rushing, Billy Joel, Roland Kirk, Roberta Flack, B. B...
- guitar, harmonica - Leslie Miller - vocals, background vocals
- Marcus MillerMarcus MillerMarcus Miller is an American jazz composer, producer, and multi-instrumentalist. Miller is best known as a bassist, working with trumpeter Miles Davis, singer Luther Vandross, and saxophonist David Sanborn, as well as maintaining a prolific solo career...
- bass - Rob MounseyRob MounseyRob Mounsey is an award-winning composer, music producer, and musician. He was born in Berea, Ohio and grew up in Seattle, Washington and several Ohio towns. At the age of 17, he was awarded a BMI Student Composer's Award in New York. He attended Berklee College of Music in Boston from 1971 to 1975...
- synthesizer, horn, keyboards - Roger Nichols - percussionPercussion instrumentA percussion instrument is any object which produces a sound when hit with an implement or when it is shaken, rubbed, scraped, or otherwise acted upon in a way that sets the object into vibration...
, special effects - Michael OmartianMichael OmartianMichael Omartian is an Armenian-American singer-songwriter, keyboardist, and music producer. He has been a participant in over 350,000,000 albums and CD’s sold worldwide, as a producer, arranger, artist or musician, during a career that has spanned over 38 years...
- piano, keyboards, electric piano - Dean ParksDean ParksDean Parks is an American session guitarist and record producer from Ft. Worth, TX.-Albums:Dean was member of The North Texas State One O'clock Lab Band before moving to Los Angeles to work with Sonny and Cher in 1970. Dean is best-known through his many contributions to albums by Steely Dan...
- guitar - Greg PhillinganesGreg PhillinganesGreg Phillinganes is an active session keyboardist in Los Angeles, California. He is a graduate of Cass Technical High School, Detroit Michigan....
- synthesizer, piano, keyboards, electric piano, clavinetClavinetA Clavinet is an electrically amplified keyboard instrument manufactured by the Hohner company. It is essentially an electronically amplified clavichord, analogous to an electric guitar. Its distinctive bright staccato sound has appeared particularly in funk, disco, rock, and reggae songs.Various...
, synthesizer bass - Jeff PorcaroJeff PorcaroJeffrey Thomas "Jeff" Porcaro was an American session drummer and a founding member of the Grammy Award winning band Toto. Porcaro was one of the most recorded drummers in history, working on hundreds of albums and thousands of sessions...
- drums - Chuck RaineyChuck RaineyChuck Rainey, is an American bass guitar session musician, known for playing with many well-known American musicians and acts, including Donald Byrd, Steely Dan, Quincy Jones, and Aretha Franklin.-Biography:Rainey's youthful pursuits included violin, piano and trumpet...
- bass - Zachary Sanders - vocals, background vocals
- Valerie SimpsonAshford & SimpsonNickolas Ashford , and Valerie Simpson , were a husband and wife songwriting/production team and recording artists....
- vocals, background vocals - David Tofani - horn, alto saxophoneAlto saxophoneThe alto saxophone is a member of the saxophone family of woodwind instruments invented by Belgian instrument designer Adolphe Sax in 1841. It is smaller than the tenor but larger than the soprano, and is the type most used in classical compositions...
- Starz Vanderlocket - percussion, background vocals
- Paul ShafferPaul ShafferPaul Allen Wood Shaffer, CM is a Canadian musician, actor, voice actor, author, comedian, and composer who has been David Letterman's sidekick since 1982.-Early years:...
- organ
Production
- Producer: Gary KatzGary KatzGary Katz is an American music producer, best known for his work with Steely Dan.-Steely Dan:Katz is most famous for his work as a producer on every Steely Dan album recorded during the first run of their career, from Can't Buy A Thrill in 1972 to Gaucho in 1980, as well as the Donald Fagen solo...
- Engineers: Daniel Lazerus, Roger Nichols, Elliot ScheinerElliot ScheinerElliot Scheiner is a record producer and record engineer. Scheiner has received 23 Grammy Award nominations, 6 of which he won, and he has been awarded four Emmy nominations, one Emmy award for his work with the Eagles on their farewell tour broadcast, three TEC Awards nominations, a TEC Hall of...
- Assistant engineers: Robin Lane, Mike Morongell, Cheryl Smith, Wayne Yurgelun
- Mixing: Elliot ScheinerElliot ScheinerElliot Scheiner is a record producer and record engineer. Scheiner has received 23 Grammy Award nominations, 6 of which he won, and he has been awarded four Emmy nominations, one Emmy award for his work with the Eagles on their farewell tour broadcast, three TEC Awards nominations, a TEC Hall of...
- Mastering: Bob LudwigBob LudwigBob Ludwig is an American mastering engineer.He is a well known and respected figure within the music industry. His name is credited on the covers of albums released across the world, and he has won numerous awards....
- Digital editing assistant: Mike Morongell, Wayne Yurgelun
- Project assistant: Ginger Dettman, Steve Pokorny, Steve Woolard
- Tracking: Elliot ScheinerElliot ScheinerElliot Scheiner is a record producer and record engineer. Scheiner has received 23 Grammy Award nominations, 6 of which he won, and he has been awarded four Emmy nominations, one Emmy award for his work with the Eagles on their farewell tour broadcast, three TEC Awards nominations, a TEC Hall of...
- Authoring: David Dieckmann, George Lydecker
- Sequencing: Roger Nichols
- Overdub engineer: Daniel Lazerus
- Horn arrangements: Donald Fagen, Rob Mounsey
- Arranger: Donald Fagen
- Design: Greg Allen
- Art direction: Greg Allen, George Delmerico
- Liner notes: Donald Fagen
- Editorial supervision: Cory Frye
- Photography: James Hamilton
- Screen design: Andrew Thomas
Reissues
The Nightfly was reissued on various disc formats four times in recent years: on DVD-AudioDVD-Audio
DVD-Audio is a digital format for delivering high-fidelity audio content on a DVD. DVD-Audio is not intended to be a video delivery format and is not the same as video DVDs containing concert films or music videos....
in 2002, on DualDisc
DualDisc
DualDisc was a type of double-sided optical disc product developed by a group of record companies including EMI Music, Universal Music Group, Sony/BMG Music Entertainment, Warner Music Group, and 5.1 Entertainment Group and later under the aegis of the Recording Industry Association of America...
in 2004, on MVI
MVI
MVI stands for Musical Video Interactive, a DVD-based means of packing audio, video and interactive visual content onto one disk...
in 2007 and on hybrid multichannel SACD
Super Audio CD
Super Audio CD is a high-resolution, read-only optical disc for audio storage. Sony and Philips Electronics jointly developed the technology, and publicized it in 1999. It is designated as the Scarlet Book standard. Sony and Philips previously collaborated to define the Compact Disc standard...
in 2011.
The DualDisc has the CD version of the album on the first side, and the DVD-Audio
DVD-Audio
DVD-Audio is a digital format for delivering high-fidelity audio content on a DVD. DVD-Audio is not intended to be a video delivery format and is not the same as video DVDs containing concert films or music videos....
version on the opposite side. This edition is rare—it was among a group of 15 DualDisc releases that were test-marketed in just two cities, Boston and Seattle, and was never reissued after the very limited test market run.
Charts
Album| Year | Chart | Position |
|---|---|---|
| 1982 | Black Albums | 24 |
| 1982 | Pop Albums | 11 |
Singles
| Year | Single | Chart | Position |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1982 | "I.G.Y." | Adult Contemporary | 8 |
| 1982 | "I.G.Y." | Black Singles | 54 |
| 1982 | "I.G.Y." | Mainstream Rock | 17 |
| 1982 | "I.G.Y." | Pop Singles | 26 |
| 1983 | "New Frontier" | Adult Contemporary | 34 |
| 1983 | "New Frontier" | Pop Singles | 70 |