What We Say
An evening with Deacon Blues presents you with eleven stellar musicians, composers, and educators based in Chicago — and features several Grammy® winners. They all share a unique passion for the Becker/Fagen repository, better known to the world as Steely Dan.
The genesis of this All-Star tribute began when Steven Kikoen, Jonathan Hey, and Cash Michaels formed an original jazz/rock collective known as Bebop Daddys. The Daddys also featured the renowned rhythm section of Tom Mendel (bass) and Tom Hipskind (drums). Considered a Daddys fan, Donald Fagen can be seen in many a YouTube video sporting his Bebop Daddys “tee.”
Steve, Jon, and Cash formed a bond within the Daddys which has followed them into Deacon Blues. Under the leadership of Steve, musical partner Brian Harris and arranger Jon Hey, the group reads as a "who's who" of world class musicians. Chicago luminaries and Grammy® artists such as Howard Levy (Kenny Loggins, Paul Simon, Bela Fleck); Chuck Webb (Aretha Franklin, Ramsey Lewis, and Al Di Meola); Wally Hustin (Dave Mason, David Benoit, Mike Stern); Sugar Blue, (The Rolling Stones); Billy Branch (The Sons of Blues); Khari Parker (George Benson, Destiny’s Child); Richard Patterson (Miles Davis, Boz Skaggs); and Bob Lizik (The Beach Boys; Brian Wilson) have been featured as special guests with the band. Most recently, original Dan session musician and legendary drummer Bernard “Pretty” Purdie appeared with Deacon Blues at their sold-out Arcada Theatre show. The band also plans on featuring famed drum legend Peter Erskine (Weather Report, Jaco Pastorius) at future shows as well.
This stunning collective is essentially the personification of what Steely Dan did on record — gathering top studio musicians for their albums – The Deacons are doing this in a live format. Speaking of “The Deacons” — that is actually the moniker of Deacon Blues’ alter ego — their original band. With support from legendary Chicago FM radio station personalities such as Bob Stroud (The Drive) and Scott Mackay (The River), The Deacons will be debuting their first album of original music, in a similar musical landscape to ‘The Dan,’ in 2016.
Deacon Blues has structured their live repertoire to encompass a wider range of the Dan's prolific material - including rarities as well as repertoire from the the Dan’s 1991 reunion prototype — The New York Rock and Soul Revue. The band has also produced “Album nights” — consecutive evenings showcasing a particular album masterwork in it’s entirety, followed by other greatest hits and rarities.
Deacon Blues has consistently played to sold-out audiences and has appeared on regional and national television. In the words of legendary Chicago FM Radio personality Bob Stroud (WDRV “The Drive”) — “If you are a Dan fan, you owe it to yourself to see Deacon Blues — they’ve got the right musicians with the right chops — they are an incredible tribute to the music of Steely Dan!”
In the words of ‘another’ defining band . . . "A splendid time is guaranteed for all!”
