As much as they get used as an unfortunate punching bag by those who weren’t au fait with their blend of jazz, pop and rock sensibilities, it would take an immense amount of denial to suggest that Steely Dan weren’t at least masters of their craft.

Sure, what they did may not have appealed to everyone, and was only truly appreciated by a select few groups of people who could handle the high-brow nature of their genre mutations, but from a compositional point of view, Steely Dan were a totally unique prospect for their time, and a band who were so far ahead of their contemporaries that they felt out of place.

With the songwriting duo of Donald Fagen and Walter Becker running a tight ship over the course of seven studio albums from 1972 to 1980, their sound was a celebration of musicality in its purest form, and opted to pull no punches when it came to creating elaborate arrangements and structures. Not only that, but Fagen’s lyrical style veered between observational satire and vibrant storytelling in ways that few others of the era were able to replicate, adding to the singularity of their sound.

It would be fair to say that Steely Dan were ahead of their time at all points during their initial run as a band, but in an effort to summarise when they’ve utilised all of their skills to the best of their ability, here are five examples of their work that feel far ahead, even by their own lofty standards.

Five Steely Dan songs way ahead of their time:

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