10 Cool Donald Fagen Guest Spots On Other Artists' Recordings

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Donald Fagen’s unmistakable keyboard style and dry, instantly recognizable voice have appeared on recordings far beyond the Steely Dan catalog. From classic rock legends to unexpected collaborators, these ten guest appearances reveal another fascinating side of one of rock’s most distinctive musicians.

Feature Photo: Lev Radin / Shutterstock.com

Our new series, “10 Cool Donald Fagen Guest Spots On Other Artists’ Recordings,” begins as we dig into some of our rock and roll heroes’ guest appearances on recordings outside of their own work or the bands they have been part of. At times, it could be just playing a solo or a rhythm part. Other times, it could be as a backup vocalist or delivering harmonies throughout the entire song. Maybe it could even be a duet. Anything goes as long as they have received credit under their own names or even a fake name, like Paul Ramon, which Paul McCartney used. We think this will be a fun series, and who better to start with than one of the slickest rock stars in classic rock history?

# 10 – “Indian Summer” – Poco

We open up our “10 Cool Donald Fagen Guest Spots” list with a track from the band Poco. On the group’s 1977 album Indian Summer, Donald Fagen made two appearances. He performed on synthesizers for the title track, “Indian Summer,” which we are highlighting here. He also performed on the track “Win or Lose.” Both songs featured Paul Cotton on lead vocals. Also included in the band at the time were Timothy B. Schmit, George Grantham, Rusty Young, and Steve Foreman. Donald Fagen’s playing is very much in the background on these tracks, but his presence is there. This appearance is interesting, as one might not expect Fagen to be playing on a Poco album, but there he was.

# 9 – “I Mean to Shine” – Barbra Streisand

We had to make sure to include this one. This is more than just a guest appearance; it’s a song that was written by Donald Fagen and his partner in crime, Walter Becker, before the Steely Dan years. On this track, Fagen plays the organ. The song was released on Barbra Streisand’s 1971 album Barbra Joan Streisand. If only the world had known at that time the success that Fagen and Becker would soon achieve. Wow, this is cool history.

# 8 – “Don’t Hang Up Those Dancing Shoes” – Terence Boylan

This may be one that many people have never heard before. I would definitely recommend giving this one a listen because it’s just a phenomenal song. Terence Boylan has a fabulous voice. He was a friend of Donald Fagen and Walter Becker, having gone to college with them at Bard College in New York. In 1977, Boylan released his second studio album, Terence Boylan. On this album, Donald Fagen played on two tracks, “Shame” and this one. The music is really cool 1970s adult-contemporary pop that falls somewhere between bands like Firefall and Ambrosia.

# 7 – “Caroline Yes” – Jon Herington

Donald Fagen pays back his longtime guitarist Jon Herington by contributing keyboards to two songs on Herington’s album Time on My Hands. Jon Herington began working with Steely Dan back in the early 2000s when the band was back in the studio recording new music. Herington would go on the road with Steely Dan, delivering killer solos night after night. Herington is one of the greatest guitar players out there. You should definitely check out this album.

# 6 – “Pirates (So Long Lonely Avenue)” – Rickie Lee Jones

Landing in the number six spot on our top 10 songs list is a song from one really cool chick and one groovy dude. You know who we are talking about here. On Rickie Lee Jones’s phenomenal sophomore album, Pirates, Donald Fagen made a guest appearance on the title track, playing keyboards. The Pirates album was released in 1981.

# 5 – “Big Noise, New York” – Jennifer Warnes

Most people know Jennifer Warnes from her famous duets with Joe Cocker on “Up Where We Belong” and Bill Medley on the legendary song from Dirty Dancing, “(I’ve Had) The Time of My Life.” In 1992, she recorded the Donald Fagen and Marcelle Clements song “Big Noise, New York” for her album The Hunter. Donald Fagen sings background vocals on the track. The sound quality on this is excellent, as is the overall production. This is really good stuff.

# 4 – “Memo to Willie” – Derek Smalls

When Larry Carlton was making all that great music with Steely Dan back in the 1970s, he probably never thought that one day he would team up with Donald Fagen on a Derek Smalls album in the 21st century. Larry is not in the live video, but I guess the collaboration was just inevitable. Now, if you don’t know who Derek Smalls is, I’m sorry, but we are not going to tell you. You’re just going to have to listen to this and try to figure out what the heck is going on, especially when Donald Fagen starts singing, “Willie Don’t Lose That Lumber.” It’s a madhouse… a madhouse…

# 3 – “Rodriguez for a Night” – David Crosby

Moving along on our list is the captivating moment when David Crosby met Steely Dan. That’s exactly what this sounds like, and it’s breathtaking. Donald Fagen made a guest appearance on David Crosby’s 2021 album For Free. Donald Fagen co-wrote the song “Rodriguez for a Night” with the legendary Crosby. Fagen also plays keyboards on the track. What a joy it is to listen to these two great artists collaborating.

# 2 – “Drowning in the Sea of Love” – Boz Scaggs

Now, talking about collaborations, Donald Fagen, Michael McDonald, and Boz Scaggs came together at Lincoln Center in New York City for the concert project The Dukes of September. If you have never seen this, we highly recommend it. It features three of the greatest musical artists of our time performing together with a phenomenal band. They sing the best songs from their own catalogs as well as wonderful covers. We could fill this whole list with songs from that night, but we picked this killer song, “Drowning in the Sea of Love,” which was also released on Boz Scaggs’ Anthology album. Donald Fagen plays keyboards on this one.

# 1 – “Tin Foil Hat” – Todd Rundgren

We close out our “10 Cool Donald Fagen Guest Spots On Other Artists’ Recordings” list with this fabulous duet between Donald Fagen and Todd Rundgren. This one sounds like something that could have been released on any of Steely Dan’s classic 1970s albums. It is simply extraordinary. Todd and Donald sound great together, singing in harmony. The album entitled White Knight was released in 2017.