Morph the Cat
Morph the Cat | ||||
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Studio album by Donald Fagen | ||||
Released | March 7, 2006 | |||
Recorded | 2004-05 | |||
Genre | Jazz-Rock, Jazz-Funk | |||
Length | 52:49 | |||
Label | Reprise | |||
Producer | Donald Fagen | |||
Donald Fagen chronology | ||||
|
Professional ratings | |
---|---|
Aggregate scores | |
Source | Rating |
Metacritic | 83/100 [1] |
Review scores | |
Source | Rating |
Allmusic | [2] |
BBC Music | (positive)[3] |
Entertainment Weekly | B+[4] |
The Guardian | [5] |
Jazz Police | (?)[6] |
Mojo | [7] |
MusicOMH.com | [8] |
Okayplayer | [9] |
PopMatters | [10] |
Q | [11] |
Rolling Stone | [12] |
Slate | (positive)[13] |
Stylus | C+[14] |
Uncut | [15] |
Morph the Cat is the third solo album by Donald Fagen. A rumination on old age and death,[16] the album has the same sharp lyrics, tight playing, and meticulous production for which Fagen is known.[17] Musicians on the album include drummer Keith Carlock, saxophonist Walt Weiskopf, bassist Freddie Washington, and guitarists Frank Vignola, Jon Herington, Wayne Krantz, and Hugh McCracken.
Morph the Cat was released on CD and on a CD/DVD-Audio 2-disc package, with a 5.1 surround sound mix engineered by Elliot Scheiner.[18][19] The surround recording won the Grammy Award for Best Surround Sound Album.[20]
Track listing
All songs written by Donald Fagen except where indicated.
- "Morph the Cat" – 6:49
- "H Gang" – 5:15
- "What I Do" – 6:01
- "Brite Nitegown" – 7:16
- "The Great Pagoda of Funn" – 7:39
- "Security Joan" – 6:09
- "The Night Belongs to Mona" – 4:18
- "Mary Shut the Garden Door" – 6:29
- "Morph the Cat (Reprise)" – 2:53
Bonus tracks, from The Nightfly Trilogy MVI Boxed Set
- "Rhymes" – 4:22 (Al Green and Mabon Hodges)
- "Hank's Pad" (Live) - 4:48 (Henry Mancini and Donald Fagen)
- "Viva Viva Rock 'N' Roll" (Live) - 2:42 (Chuck Berry)
Track Credits
Morph the Cat
- Backing Vocals – Donald Fagen, Jerry Barnes, Michael Harvey
- Bass – Freddie Washington
- Drums – Keith Carlock
- Guitar – Frank Vignola, Hugh McCracken, Wayne Krantz
- Guitar [Solo] – Jon Herington
- Fender Rhodes – Donald Fagen
- Tenor Saxophone [Solo] – Walt Weiskopf
- Trumpet – Marvin Stamm
- Vibraphone – Phonus Quaver
H Gang
- Baritone Saxophone – Roger Rosenberg
- Bass – Freddie Washington
- Drums – Keith Carlock
- Guitar – Hugh McCracken, Wayne Krantz
- Guitar [Solo] – Jon Herington
- Percussion – Gordon Gottlieb
- Piano – Ted Baker
- Fender Rhodes, Backing Vocals – Donald Fagen
- Tenor Saxophone [Solo] – Walt Weiskopf
- Trombone – Mark Patterson
- Trumpet – Marvin Stamm
What I Do
- Backing Vocals – Amy Helm, Carolyn Leonhart, Cindy Mizelle, Donald Fagen
- Bass – Freddie Washington
- Drums – Keith Carlock
- Guitar – Hugh McCracken, Jon Herington, Ken Emerson, Wayne Krantz
- Harmonica [Solo] – Howard Levy
- Wurlitzer Electric Piano – Ted Baker
Brite Nitegown
- Alto Saxophone – Walt Weiskopf
- Baritone Saxophone – Roger Rosenberg
- Drums – Keith Carlock
- Guitar – Jon Herington
- Guitar [Solo] – Wayne Krantz
- Marimba – Phonus Quaver
- Percussion – Bashiri Johnson, Gordon Gottlieb
- Fender Rhodes, Backing Vocals – Donald Fagen
- Tenor Saxophone – Lawrence Feldman
- Trombone – Mark Patterson
- Trumpet – Marvin Stamm
The Great Pagoda of Funn
- Alto Saxophone – Walt Weiskopf
- Backing Vocals – Donald Fagen, Jerry Barnes
- Baritone Saxophone – Roger Rosenberg
- Bass – Freddie Washington
- Drums – Keith Carlock
- Guitar – Jon Herington
- Guitar [Solo] – Wayne Krantz
- Percussion – Joe Pasaro
- Piano – Ted Baker
- Tenor Saxophone – Lawrence Feldman
- Trombone – Mark Patterson
- Trumpet [Solo] – Marvin Stamm
- Vibraphone – Phonus Quaver
Security Joan
- Backing Vocals – Michael Harvey
- Bass – Freddie Washington
- Drums – Keith Carlock
- Guitar – Jon Herington, Wayne Krantz
- Guitar [Solo] – Ken Wessel
- Handclaps – Camille Meza, Candice Predham, Eddie Jackson, Jennifer Battista
- Organ, Piano, Backing Vocals – Donald Fagen
- Percussion – Gordon Gottlieb
- Wurlitzer Electric Piano – Ted Baker
The Night Belongs to Mona
- Acoustic Bass – Harlan Post, Jr.
- Bass – Freddie Washington
- Bass Clarinet – Roger Rosenberg
- Drums – Keith Carlock
- Flute – Lawrence Feldman
- Guitar – Jon Herington, Wayne Krantz
- Harmonica – Howard Levy
- Percussion – Gordon Gottlieb
- Piano, Backing Vocals – Donald Fagen
- Fender Rhodes – Ted Baker
- Tenor Saxophone – Walt Weiskopf
- Trombone – Mark Patterson
- Trumpet – Marvin Stamm
Mary Shut the Garden Door
- Backing Vocals – Carolyn Leonhart
- Bass – Freddie Washington
- Drums – Keith Carlock
- Flute – Illinois Elohainu
- Guitar – Jon Herington, Wayne Krantz
- Melodica [Solo], Backing Vocals – Donald Fagen
- Percussion – Gordon Gottlieb
- Fender Rhodes – Ted Baker
- Vibraphone – Phonus Quaver
Morph the Cat (Reprise)
- Backing Vocals – Jerry Barnes, Michael Harvey
- Bass – Freddie Washington
- Bass [Remedial] – Brian Montgomery
- Drums – Keith Carlock
- Guitar – Hugh McCracken, Wayne Krantz
- Guitar [Chorus Solo] – Jon Herington
- Guitar [Tag Solo] – Frank Vignola
- Fender Rhodes, Backing Vocals – Donald Fagen
- Tenor Saxophone – Walt Weiskopf
- Trumpet – Marvin Stamm
- Vibraphone – Phonus Quaver
-*Harlan Post Jr., Phonus Quaver and Illinois Elohainu are pseudonyms for Fagen himself when he plays an instrument sample patch on a synthesizer trying to replicate the actual instrument.
Production
- Producer: Donald Fagen
- Tracking Engineer: Elliot Scheiner
- Overdub/ProTools Engineers: Brian Montgomery, T. J. Doherty
- Mix Engineer: Elliott Scheiner
- Second Mix Engineer: Brian Montgomery
- Assistant Engineers: Eddie Jackson, Jim Keller, Chad Lupo, Steve Mazur, Brian Montgomery, Matt Scheiner, Bryan Smith, Allan "A.T." Thomas
- Piano Technicians: Sam Berd, Wayne Williams
- Drum/Guitar Tech: Artie Smith
- Music Copyist: Gary Blu
- Mastering Engineer: Darcy Proper
- Additional Mastering: Joseph M. Palmaccio
- Mastering Assistant: Maria Triana
- Management: Irving Azoff
- Production Coordinators: Jill Dell'Abate, Cindy Osborne
- Production Assistant: Mary Lou Arnold
- Art Direction: Jeri Heiden
- Design: Ryan Corey
- Photography: Danny Clinch
Charts
Album
Year | Chart | Position |
---|---|---|
2006 | European Top 100 Albums | |
2006 | The Billboard 200 | 26 |
2006 | Top Internet Albums | 26 |
2006 | UK Top 40 | 35 |
References
- ↑ Morph the Cat at Metacritic Retrieved 2012-11-02.
- ↑ Allmusic review
- ↑ BBC Music review Chris Jones, 2006-03-13
- ↑ Entertainment Weekly review
- ↑ The Guardian review
- ↑ Jazz Police review
- ↑ Mojo, April 2006, p.104
- ↑ MusicOMH.com review
- ↑ Okayplayer review
- ↑ PopMatters review
- ↑ Q, April 2006, p.113
- ↑ Rolling Stone review
- ↑ Slate review
- ↑ Stylus review
- ↑ Uncut, April 2006, p.104
- ↑ Kaplan, Fred. "What Rhymes With Orange Alert?". New York Times. Retrieved 1 June 2016.
- ↑ Erlewine, Stephen. "AllMusic Review". AllMusic. Retrieved 1 June 2016.
- ↑ "Fagen Preps For 'Morph'". Billboard. Retrieved 2 June 2016.
- ↑ "Morph The Cat: Donald Fagen Solo Album Set for Reprise Records Release on March 7; Tour Dates Announced; Panasonic ELS Surround Is Presenting Sponsor". Marketwired. Retrieved 2 June 2016.
- ↑ "Panasonic ELS Surround(R) Collaborator Honored with Emmy(R); Elliot Scheiner Wins for Outstanding Sound Mixing". BusinessWire. Retrieved 2 June 2016.
External links
- Donald Fagen interview in Sound on Sound - Article by Paul Tingen about the making of Morph The Cat