I had the pleasure of seeing Steely Dan play Tuesday night (11/18) at The Wellmont Theater, a new music venue in my hometown of Montclair, NJ. I have been a longtime fan of “the Dan,” but this was my first chance ever to see the band live. This was one of four East Coast tour dates in November that had been added to the band’s “Think Fast ‘08″ tour, the bulk of which took place over the summer.

A few minutes after 9 PM, eight pieces of the 13-piece band walked onstage and warmed up with a couple of Steely Dan songs instrumentally before bringing on Donald Fagen, Walter Becker, and three backup singers. Fagen, ever cool, sported a black leather coat and sunglasses. He sat down at his Fender Rhodes and the band launched into “The Royal Scam.”

In addition to Fagen on keyboards and vocals, Becker on guitar, and the three superb backup singers (Cindy Mizelle, Tawatha Agee, and Catherine Russell, all wearing large Afro wigs) the band consisted of a stellar four-piece horn section (Jim Pugh on trombone, Michael Leonhart on trumpet, Roger Rosenberg on baritone sax, and Walt Weiskopf on sax), Freddie Washington on bass, Keith Carlock on drums, Jim Beard on piano, and musical director Jon Herrington on guitar.

Fagen, as is his style, cocked his head while singing, which, combined with his sunglasses gave him kind of a Ray Charles look. His vocals were solid throughout the evening. The backup singers were awesome—they nailed every part with nary a bad note, while dancing, and sometimes playing percussion. When the band did “Parker’s Band” later in the show, Mizelle, Agee, and Russell sang lead, while Fagen, who sang it on the record, just played his Rhodes.

The band covered songs from a variety of Steely Dan eras, including material from as far back as Countdown to Ecstasy (1973) up to the relatively recent Two Against Nature (2000). The group was remarkably tight, and seemed relaxed and in control. Herrington was superb on guitar, handling the solos on a lot of the older songs, including “My Old School,” “Bodhisattva,” and “Black Friday, which he absolutely tore up. Becker played his fair share of solos, as well, but his clean noodly style of lead guitar was not nearly as compelling Herrington’s melodic soloing.

Drummer Carlock was a massive musical presence, combining a big solid backbeat with intricate and flashy fills. He received a standing ovation for the drum solo section of “Aja,” which he made his own while keeping the vibe of the original Steve Gadd part.

The band played for about two hours, doing 17 songs plus a 2-song encore. Here was the set list:

The Royal Scam

I’ve Got the News

Show Biz Kids

Bodhisattva

Two Against Nature

Hey Nineteen

Godwhacker

Babylon Sisters

New Frontier

Gaucho (sung by Becker)

Black Friday

Parker’s Band (sung by backup singers)

Josie

Aja

Love is Like an Itching in My Heart (Supremes cover, sung by backup singers)

Green Earrings

Peg

(encore)

My Old School

Kid Charlemagne