Listen to how clean and crisp this sounds... 40+ years old!!!

"A just machine to make big decisions.... programmed by fellas with compassion and vision" - how prophetic is that lyric.  Brilliant.

I.G.Y. was a real thing when I was a kid.  This song perfectly capture what it was supposed to be about.

The charm of this tune is the lyrics. The International Geophysical Year (IGY) was 1957-1958, an international effort from over 60 countries to learn all about Earth. The endpoint was a future like the Jetson’s (a 1962 cartoon sitcom) having flying cars, “spandex jackets for everyone”, an orbiting wheel in space, etc. It was a time of unbounded optimism, and naïveté following WWII. I remember the excitement of the future, almost too good to be true, and alas it was. Great tune of the times, captures that excitement. Hope this provides some backdrop and thanks for listening. You’ll love all the Donald Fagan solo albums!

The Nightfly is a classic album , great songs , musicianship & production.

Not one bad song on that album. Still sounds fresh and relevant 😎

You probably already know - this was one of the first all digitally created albums. Every track is great.

"it picked right where gaucho left off" perfectly put

By the time the verse gets to "Just machines will make big decisions" my heart breaks for that innocent boy and all of his dreams which have been turned pretty much to ash.  My heart weeps for that little boy in all of us when we see what the world has become.

Fagen's Nightfly album is still widely considered an audiophile reference album, “The Nightfly” by Donald Fagen is a musical classic.   The incredible “I.G.Y.” is a great example.  The song sets the tone for the album and is both sonically and lyrically intriguing.  Just what you'd expect from a talent like Donald Fagen.  Thanks, guys, for showcasing Fagen's solo tunes.  Every track on this album is amazing/cool.

The International Geophysical Year was back around 1958. We were all very optimistic about the future. Then the bullets of Dallas, Memphis, New York and LA came in the 1960s and we were all disillusioned.

I used to book all the music at a beachside restaurant. We had an in house sound system so the musicians could just come in, plug and play. Almost every single act, whether solo or a band, would play this album through the sound system while they were setting up and tuning their instruments. One day it dawned on me this was no coincidence and I asked one of the band members and he said this album was perfect. Perfect tuning, perfectly engineered, and sung pitch perfect. No better standard to use to set up the band for a gig. Interesting. Fagen is a master.

This is a great album. No drop off from “The Dan.”

Woohoo! My favorite reactors with one of my favorite albums!!!!❤😊
International Geophysical Year totally recreates the hopefulness we were feeling in the early 60’s and late 50’s with space exploration, civil rights, futuristic designs, etc. ❤
Fagen on Melodica again.
Ruby Baby and Maxine are masterpieces on this record. The whole record is flawless.

Great reaction! I bet it's the finest song you'll hear all week. You'll still enjoy listening to it in 41 years time

The time and effort that Fagen spends to make songs perfect is amazing. It seems like he nails it every time.

One of the first ever digitally recorded records I believe, and still the "go to" for any audiophile wanting to test drive new speakers. Producer Gary Katz (all Steely), engineer Roger Nichols (Aja, Gaucho) and mastered by Bob Ludwig (Zeppelin, Springsteen, Hendrix, Rush, Nirvana etc)...legends, especially after this album.

"90 minutes from New York to Paris"..... Who remembers the Concord...?

International Geophysical Year  was 1957-8 a worldwide program of geophysical research that was conducted from July 1957 to December 1958. IGY was directed toward a systematic study of the Earth and its planetary environment.

IGY is referring to the International Geophysical Year, a global science initiative for new discoveries and innovations, held from July 1957 to December 1958. The song basically made fun of a few 'futuristic' concepts, like everyone wearing spandex jackets, robotics, space exploration, and foretold the use of solar energy. iGY changed the scientific landscape, and this song changed the musical landscape of the early 80s.