Doctor Wu

The Zoo Crew is spinning "Doctor Wu" by Steely Dan from their 1975 album Katy Lied, and this track has some wild stories behind it. According to Walter Becker in a 2009 Rolling Stone interview, the song dives into the murky trust issues between a patient and a shady doctor, with Becker saying, “People put faith in doctors, yet they abuse their power and become dangerous.” Donald Fagen, in a separate chat, called it a “love-dope triangle,” hinting at a messy mix of romance and drug addiction, with “Doctor Wu” possibly personifying a dope habit or a dealer. Fans on r/SteelyDan have speculated wildly, with some tying the song to heroin (calling “Katy” the drug) or even a Vietnam vet seeking a fix, though Fagen’s known for sarcastic interviews that keep the truth slippery. One cool tidbit: Michael McDonald, who sang backup on the track, told Mojo he struggled to nail his part in one breath because he was smoking too much at the time. Oh, and if you crank up the first 1.4 seconds of the song in a sound editor, reverse it, and slow it down, there’s a hidden message in the right channel—nobody’s cracked what it says, but it’s got fans buzzing on forums like Home Theater Forum.

Then there’s the jazz legend Phil Woods, whose alto sax solo on “Doctor Wu” is a total standout. Spectrum Culture called it a melody-packed 16 bars that tie the song’s ache to everything from Billy Joel to Billy Strayhorn. The album’s title, Katy Lied, comes straight from the song’s line “Katy lies, you can see it in her eyes,” and the cover art’s katydid insect is a sly pun on that. Becker and Fagen were bummed about the album’s sound, blaming a faulty dbx noise reduction system, and for years they refused to even listen to the finished record, as noted in a 1999 liner note by Denny Dias. Fans still love it, though, with posts on Steely Dan’s Official Facebook Group calling “Doctor Wu” a haunting classic that captures the band’s jazzy, cynical vibe.

Steely Dan started with Walter Becker and Donald Fagen, two college buds at Bard College in Annandale-on-Hudson, New York, back in the late ’60s. They were jazz nerds obsessed with Beat Generation literature, naming their band after a steamy dildo from William Burroughs’ Naked Lunch. After playing in local bands, they joined Jay & the Americans’ backing band in 1970, using fake names like Gustav Mahler (Becker) and Tristan Fabriani (Fagen). They split in ’71 to record a soundtrack for a low-budget flick, You Gotta Walk It Like You Talk It, produced by Kenny Vance. That fizzled, but it led to a gig as staff songwriters for ABC/Dunhill in Los Angeles, where producer Gary Katz pushed them to form a proper band. With guitarists Denny Dias and Jeff “Skunk” Baxter, drummer Jim Hodder, and singer David Palmer, they dropped their debut, Can’t Buy a Thrill, in 1972, with hits like “Do It Again” and “Reelin’ In the Years.” By Katy Lied, they’d ditched touring and the original lineup, focusing on studio perfection with ace session players like Jeff Porcaro and Larry Carlton.

You can keep up with Steely Dan on their official website for tour dates and vinyl reissues, or check out their Facebook for concert updates and merch. Their Instagram is mostly fan-driven, as the band doesn’t seem to run an official account, but it’s packed with throwback pics and memes. On X, the official handle shares news about remasters like the 2025 Katy Lied UHQR vinyl. For fan vibes, dive into the Steely Dan Official Facebook Group, where Zoo Freaks can geek out over lyrics and rare tracks. The r/SteelyDan subreddit is another hot spot for debates about “Doctor Wu” theories and album rankings, and sites like Steely Dan Wiki dig deep into the band’s lore.