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47 edits and a $150,000 machine: How Steely Dan’s ‘Gaucho’ almost destroyed Jeff Pocaro
Steely Dan’s perfectionism made recording their 1980 album *Gaucho* a demanding process for the musicians involved, including drummer Jeff Porcaro. The sessions show how Donald Fagen and Walter Becker pursued precise, controllable rhythms, sometimes at the cost of musicians’ morale and patience.
The duo were dissatisfied with the drum tracks, despite contributions from players including Steve Gadd, Rick Marotta, Bernard Purdie and Porcaro. Engineer Roger Nichols said he could build a machine to let them adjust recorded kick and snare sounds independently; Steely Dan allocated $150,000, and six weeks later he delivered Wendel. The article notes that using it could still be slow: Fagen recalled Nichols spending 20 minutes entering instructions before producing one snare hit.
In short
- *Gaucho* sessions tested musicians with Steely Dan’s exacting standards.
- Roger Nichols built the Wendel drum machine for $150,000.
- Wendel enabled detailed control but did not make recording quick.
Steelman: both sides, in good faith
The strongest fair case each way — we don't pick a winner.
The case for
Steely Dan’s meticulous approach can be defended as an artistic commitment to the exact sound they wanted, with rhythm and tone treated as deliberate parts of the composition. Wendel offered control over kick and snare sounds that ordinary recording methods could not provide, and the substantial investment reflected the duo’s determination to realise that vision.
The case against
The pursuit of precision can be criticised when it makes skilled musicians’ performances feel endlessly replaceable and turns recording into a test of patience. Spending six weeks and $150,000 on a machine, then laboriously programming individual hits, suggests that technical control came at a significant cost in time, morale and trust in the musicians’ own judgement.
Explained simply
Steely Dan were the American songwriting and recording partnership of Donald Fagen and Walter Becker. For their 1980 album Gaucho, they sought tightly controlled rhythms and repeatedly revised the drum recordings, even though several experienced drummers had played on the sessions.
Engineer Roger Nichols developed a machine called Wendel that let the pair alter recorded kick and snare sounds separately. Drummer Jeff Porcaro was among those involved in the demanding sessions, which illustrate how the pursuit of precision affected the musicians’ working lives and helped bring technology into the recording process.