Event Details

JULIEN'S AUCTIONS IS PROUD TO PRESENT OUR PROPERTY FROM THE ESTATE OF WALTER BECKER AUCTION EVENT TAKING PLACE IN BEVERLY HILLS AND LIVE ONLINE AT JULIEN'S LIVE ON FRIDAY, OCTOBER 18TH AND SATURDAY, OCTOBER 19TH.

The Property From The Estate of Walter Becker auction is a two-day celebration of the musical artistry of the famed Steely Dan co-founder, co-songwriter, bassist, producer and guitarist. Rocking the auction stage will be an exceptional collection of the jazz rock legend’s stage-played and recorded guitars made by D’Angelico, Sadowsky, Gibson, Fender, Martin, and others as well as amplifiers, speakers, recording gear, and ephemera.

Known for his sublime and immediate identifiable guitar tone, his intimate knowledge of the tools of studio and stage, and his unique, impeccable ear, Becker is heralded as one of the most potent forces in popular music of the last 50 years.

Born February 20, 1950 in Queens, New York, Walter Carl Becker began his legendary collaboration with songwriting partner and fellow jazz aficionado Donald Fagen while they were students at Bard College and bandmates in the groups, the Don Fagen Jazz Trio, the Bad Rock Group and the Leather Canary, which for a time included future comedy star Chevy Chase. After graduation, they toured with the group Jay and the Americans and had their music featured on the soundtrack of Richard Pryor’s film You’ve Got to Walk It Like You Talk It or You’ll Lose that Beat. In 1971, Becker and Fagen moved to Los Angeles where they formed the band Steely Dan with guitarists Denny Dias and Jeff “Skunk” Baxter, drummer Jim Hodder, and singer David Palmer. They created a distinctive sound unlike any other of its time: a unique blend of rock, jazz, pop and R&B musical styles, with sophisticated, ironic lyrics containing obscure literary and cultural references.

It was the release of the band’s sixth album Aja in 1977 that would solidify Becker's and Fagen's reputation as songwriting and studio recording masters. The U.S. Top Five charting album, featuring top jazz luminaries including Larry Carlton, Victor Fledman, Wayne Shorter, Tom Scott and Lee Ritenour, won the Grammy for "Engineer – Best Engineered Recording – Non-Classical" and produced the hits “Peg,” “Josie,” and “Deacon Blues.” Aja also became one of the first American LPs to be certified 'platinum' for sales of over 1 million albums.

The 2000 release of their first studio album in twenty years — Two Against Nature — garnered four Grammy Awards including Best Engineered Album – Non-Classical, Best Pop Vocal Album, Best Pop Performance by Duo or Group with Vocal and Album of the Year. In March 2001, Steely Dan was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. In 2003, Steely Dan released Everything Must Go, their ninth and final studio album with Becker singing lead vocals on a Steely Dan studio album for the first time. In 2008, Becker released his sophomore solo album Circus Money in collaboration with musical luminary Larry Klein (his first solo album was 11 Tracks of Whack in 1994). From 2003-2017, Becker would play sold out tours and concerts around the world with Steely Dan until his death at the age of 67 on September 3, 2017.

If you can't make it out to Beverly Hills to bid in person, you can still watch all the action as well as bid online at julienslive.com!