FM (No Static at All) - Steely Dan (1978) 10/23/22

Anyone who has ever tried to listen to an AM radio station during a thunderstorm knows it's nearly impossible because of the static generated by lightning.

For several decades, it was something you had to live with...but then along came FM radio....and things started to change.

But not right away. Old habits die hard, and it took a while before listeners realized FM radio was almost always in STEREO...and because of the different frequency range, no electrical storm static!

In fact, NO STATIC AT ALL!

Even people who worked in radio were slow to warm to FM radio. At first, FM was home to free-form album rock--in many cases songs you'd never hear on AM: Too long, too obscure, and too different in style from Top 40.

By the mid-70s, however, things were changing fast, and Top 40 (and even country music) started moving to FM.

That brings us to today's "Great Song of the '70s."

The film "FM" was released in 1978--starring Martin Mull, Cleavon Little and several others--with appearances by Linda Ronstadt, Tom Petty, Jimmy Buffet and REO Speedwagon.

The plot was very "inside radio," and basically revolved around a fight between management, sales, and the DJs that REALLY gets out of hand.

It was all a little TOO "inside" for most movie-goers, and it bombed at the box office. HOWEVER, the soundtrack album sold more than a million copies!

The title cut ("FM-No Static at All") was provided by Steely Dan.

Donald Fagen and Walter Becker were working on their soon-to-be-classic album, "Aja" when they got the call, and they were told that the only requirement was to make sure it mentioned "FM." That's it.

So, without having to tie the song to the plot, they didn't. They finished writing it in just a few hours...and a few days later, recorded it.

Some of the folks who joined them to sing and/or play on the track were Jeff Porcaro of Toto, as well as Don Henley, Glenn Frey and Timothy B. Schmidt of The Eagles."

Four different versions were released so stations could pick and choose, and collectively, "FM" went to #19 in Canada and #22 in the US.

When you think about it, it's almost a miracle that the song charted that high.

Sure, it's definitely a "Great Song of 1978," but there were still quite a few Top 40 stations on the AM dial...and, for obvious reasons, they somehow neglected to play it. :-)

Others, believe it or not, went so far as to splice out the "F" and add the "A" from the song "Aja" to make it "AM." Fagen and Becker were NOT pleased, but there wasn't much they could do about it.

"FM (No Static Al All)" by Steely Dan: a "Great Song," and ground-breaking, too! https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HV3zWSawJiw