"Everything Must Go" very good album, but its no "Two Aginst Nature".

 

Everything Must Go gets my vote. The songs "Two Against Nature", "Almost Gothic", and even "West Of Hollywood" are pretty self indulgent if you ask me. I can't find any songs on "Everything Must Go" that aren't accessible on the first listen. It's a fatter sound-no thin tiny snare drums and DX7 keybord sounds.
 

I couldn't agree more.  Everything Must Go is the first Steely Dan album capable of competing with Gaucho for my personal favorite.  Great memories associated with Gaucho, but not a single moment of wandering attention on the entire EMG album.
 

I agree, but I'm not so down on Two Against Nature, I think it suffers only a little in comparison with Everything Must Go. I with you on "Two Against Nature" and "West of Hollywood" - the melodies seem hastily done and cliched and (to me inconceivable for Steely Dan) the sequencing really shows. I'd never expect that from guys that are reputedly so fussy in the studio. "Cousin Dupree" leaves me kind of flat as well - not much melody there compared to most of their other songs. I have to differ on "Almost Gothic" though. This song is a new take on the subject begun in "Hey Nineteen" and continued in "Pixeleen", and is moving to me because the singer knows it's hopeless, but he's a goner over this younger girl anyway.

On Everything Must Go, there are some disappointments (keeping in mind that it's only relative to the high standards they set in their music as a whole). I know you guys do "The Last Mall" but after the way they've stretched the blues form in other songs, this seems kind of pointless. And "Blues Beach" suffers from a relatively lackluster melody, although the bridge is a nice (although brief) change. But there's plenty of meat as well. The intro to "Everything Must Go" starts out like a salute to the Coltrane quartet, but they could never be so obviously serious, so the chords and melody get more and more trite until it collapses under its own weight and becomes almost a parody. Those guys are such rascals. The groove on "Green Book" is vicious, and if I ever get around to figuring out the changes, I'm sure it will be like a little theory lesson, as many Steely Dan songs have been for me. And "Things I Miss the Most" captures that (familiar) situation perfectly, at least to me.
 

I'm glad you brought up the bridge of "Blues Beach". There are several bridges I really dig on EMG. 'Birdie Bye bye' is a stellar moment for "Things I Miss the Most", and I live for the 'Be very very quiet' section of "Godwhacker". The burnin synth solo on "Lunch With Gina" is another mid-tune highlight. The interchange between male and female in "Pixeleen" is also a favorite moment of mine. EMG for me has more hooky memorable moments than TAN.