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Kid Charlemagne
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Wikipedia article
{{Infobox song
| name = Kid Charlemagne
| cover = Kid charlemagne cover.jpg
| alt =
| caption = The cover of the "Kid Charlemagne" single features Fagen (top) and Becker (bottom)
| type = single
| artist = Steely Dan
| album = The Royal Scam
| B-side = Green Earrings
| released = June 1976
| format =
| recorded =
| studio =
| venue =
| genre = Funk rock, pop rock, jazz fusion, jazz rock
| length = 4:38
| label = ABC
| writer =
| producer = Gary Katz
| prev_title = Bad Sneakers
| prev_year = 1975
| next_title = The Fez
| next_year = 1976
| misc =
}}
"'Kid Charlemagne'" is a song by the rock group Steely Dan, which was released as a single from their 1976 album 'The Royal Scam' and reached number 82 in the 'Billboard' charts.[ Steely Dan USA chart history], Billboard.com. Retrieved May 28, 2012. It is a fusion of a funk rhythm and jazz harmonies with rock and roll instrumentals and lyrical style. The guitar solo by jazz fusion guitarist Larry Carlton was ranked #80 in the list of the 100 greatest guitar songs by 'Rolling Stone'.. Retrieved 2011-01-25.
Lyrics
The song tell the story of the rise and fall of a drug dealer in the context of the psychedelic scene of the 1960s on the West Coast. Specifically, writers Walter Becker and Donald Fagen have stated that the lyrics were loosely inspired by the exploits of the San Francisco-based LSD chemist Owsley Stanley,[http://www.steelydan.com/bbc.html Complete transcript of Donald Fagen and Walter Becker in a BBC-Online Chat] , March 4, 2000 augmented with numerous other images of the Sixties:
On the hill the stuff was laced with kerosene
But yours was kitchen clean
Everyone stopped to stare at your Technicolor motor home
Every A-frame had your number on the wall
The first two lines draw on the fact that Owsley's acid was famed for its purity, and the Technicolor motor home of the third line is likely a reference to the famous psychedelic bus named Furthur, which was used by the Merry Pranksters, who were supplied their LSD by Owsley.
Larry Carlton's guitar solo
Carlton's guitar solo starts at 2'18" into the song and ends at 3'08". It was described, by Pete Prown and HP Newquist, as "twisted single-note phrases, bends, and vibrant melody lines"; they called this, and the solo in the fade-out, "breathtaking." According to 'Rolling Stone', which ranked "Kid Charlemagne" at #80 in the list of the 100 greatest guitar songs, "In the late seventies, Steely Dan made records by using a revolving crew of great session musicians through take after take, which yielded endless jaw-dropping guitar solos. Larry Carlton's multi-sectioned, cosmic-jazz lead in this cut may be the best of all: It's so complex it's a song in its own right.". Retrieved 2011-01-25. 'Far Out Magazine', in 2022, listed it as #4 in a list of the six greatest Steely Dan guitar solos, saying the "lead lines of 'Kid Charlemagne' are intense, fluid, and frequently on the brink of spinning out of control". Nick Hornby, in 'Songbook', spoke of the solo's "extraordinary and dexterous exuberance", though he questioned the relationship between the solo and the "dry ironies of the song's lyrics". Prown and Newquist described the solo during the fade-out as a "joyous, off-the-cuff break".
The tap on the fretboard, at the end of the solo, was cited by Adrian Belew as an early example of what he and fellow guitarist Rob Fetters were trying to accomplish, at the time when Eddie van Halen was experimenting with the technique.
Reception
'Cash Box' said that "the melody and arrangement are complicated, but accessible" and "every note is necessary."
Personnel
* Donald Fagen lead vocals, organ
* Larry Carlton lead guitar
* Walter Becker rhythm guitar
* Don Grolnick Fender Rhodes electric piano
* Paul Griffin Hohner Clavinet
* Chuck Rainey bass
* Bernard Purdie drums
* Donald Fagen, Michael McDonald, Venetta Fields, Clydie King, Sherlie Matthews background vocals
Other appearances
* Kanye West sampled the song on "Champion", from his 2007 album 'Graduation'. Becker and Fagen initially refused West's request to use the song. They changed their minds after receiving a personal letter from West explaining the song's importance.
References
Category:Steely Dan songs
Category:1976 songs
Category:Songs about drugs
Category:Songs written by Donald Fagen
Category:Songs written by Walter Becker
Category:ABC Records singles
Category:Song recordings produced by Gary Katz
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