The Nightfly (studio album)
by Donald Fagen

The Nightfly by Donald Fagen
Year: 1982
Overall rank: 698th   
Average Rating: 
77/100 (from 383 votes)
     
Accolades:
Award Top 10 albums of 1982 (10th)
Award Top albums of the 1980s (108th)
Award Top 1,000 albums of all time (698th)

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Donald Fagen The Nightfly 1983 Vinyl Record
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Donald Fagen The Nightfly: Live (CD) Album
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Donald Fagen Nightfly Trilogy BOX Set 4 CD Rhino on MVI discs SUPERB SOUND!
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Donald Fagen bestography

The Nightfly is ranked as the best album by Donald Fagen.

Donald Fagen album bestography « Higher ranked
-
This album (698th)
The Nightfly
Lower ranked (4,353rd) »
Kamakiriad

(N.B. Bestographies include all albums by an artist (and their variations), but do not include albums ranked outside the top 100,000).

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The Nightfly track list

   The tracks on this album have an average rating of 83 out of 100 (all tracks have been rated).

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1.
Track pick (880 - 94 votes)
Average Rating: 88 (94 votes)Comments: View 1
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2.
Average Rating: 82 (70 votes)Comments: View 0
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Average Rating: 81 (73 votes)Comments: View 0
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Average Rating: 83 (70 votes)Comments: View 0
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Average Rating: 84 (80 votes)Comments: View 1
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Average Rating: 84 (81 votes)Comments: View 1
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Average Rating: 80 (68 votes)Comments: View 0
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Average Rating: 79 (64 votes)Comments: View 0
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Track pick (1000 - 100 votes) Top-rated track as rated by BestEverAlbums.com members.

The Nightfly rankings

Rankings summary
Overall rank: 698th | 1980s rank: 108th | 1982 rank: 10th

The Nightfly collection

The Nightfly ratings

Average Rating: 
77/100 (from 383 votes)
   Help Average Rating = (n ÷ (n + m)) × av + (m ÷ (n + m)) × AV
where:
av = trimmed mean average rating an item has currently received.
n = number of ratings an item has currently received.
m = minimum number of ratings required for an item to appear in a 'top-rated' chart (currently 10).
AV = the site mean average rating.

Showing latest 5 ratings for this album. | Show all 383 ratings for this album.

Sort by
RatingDate updatedMemberAlbum ratingsAvg. album rating
 
80/100
 !
12/10/2025 16:13 Jakor   4,88269/100
 
85/100
 !
12/05/2025 17:44 Araldo   1,46980/100
 
100/100
 !
11/21/2025 00:36 ZionSur   1685/100
 
90/100
 !
11/19/2025 15:56 SomethingSpecial   1,73082/100
 
65/100
 !
11/18/2025 21:48 Exist-en-ciel   4,25070/100

Rating metrics: Help Outliers can be removed when calculating a mean average to dampen the effects of ratings outside the normal distribution. This figure is provided as the trimmed mean. A high standard deviation can be legitimate, but can sometimes indicate 'gaming' is occurring. Consider a simplified example* of an item receiving ratings of 100, 50, & 0. The mean average rating would be 50. However, ratings of 55, 50 & 45 could also result in the same average. The second average might be more trusted because there is more consensus around a particular rating (a lower deviation).
(*In practice, some albums can have several thousand ratings)

This album is rated in the top 4% of all albums on BestEverAlbums.com. This album has a Bayesian average rating of 76.8/100, a mean average of 75.3/100, and a trimmed mean (excluding outliers) of 76.9/100. The standard deviation for this album is 17.6.

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The Nightfly comments

Showing latest 10 comments | Show all 22 comments |
Most Helpful First | Newest First | Positive Sentiment First | Longest Comments First
(Only showing comments with -2 votes or higher. You can alter this threshold from your profile page. Manage Profile)

Rating:  
75/100
From 03/22/2025 09:07 | #308146
Shortlisted for album of the year at the 1983 Grammys. The Winner was Toto IV by Toto
Helpful?  (Log in to vote) | 0 votes (0 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
Rating:  
85/100
From 01/13/2023 11:27 | #292794
This album is full of depth and feels so rich to the ears when you listen to it. Even to this day the quality of the production is fantastic with the flow of the record being incredible and each instrument being allowed to pop. This is even more difficult to do with the huge array of diverse instrumentation and they are all blended together so beautifully. This has led to a focused and cohesive listen which feels complete when you finish the record which leaves a feeling of fulfilment for the listener. The mastery of sound and instrumentation on here by Fagen is staggering and everyone should admire the phenomenal work he has done on this record. Overall, this album is grand, rich and a really relaxing listen and its quality is vastly under appreciated.
Helpful?  (Log in to vote) | +2 votes (2 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
Rating:  
90/100
From 11/12/2022 14:22 | #291239
Some of the comments and lower scores here are just.... man.... makes me wonder what the average age of BEA members is.... anyway

Good record. I'd say closer to pop than any Steely Dan record but still as good. If you like Jazz Rock I suppose....

I'm glad to say that Im in my 20s and I can say I enjoy this.

A-

Another comment said the last 2 were filler.... that's some damn good fillers then if that's the case.
Helpful?  (Log in to vote) | +1 votes (1 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
Rating:  
80/100
From 09/26/2022 12:31 | #289970
As enjoyable as typical Steely Dan record, nice, smooth and great in background. The production on I.G.Y. and The Nightfly is excellent and sound slick. Last two tracks are total filler not up to the rest of the album.
Helpful?  (Log in to vote) | 0 votes (0 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
Rating:  
100/100
From 06/29/2022 19:18 | #286861
Crisp as anything.
Helpful?  (Log in to vote) | +1 votes (1 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
Rating:  
75/100
From 03/02/2022 03:52 | #282108
All Steeley Dan albums sound the same, only completely different. This is the one Becker didn't make... Its good, like all the rest...
Helpful?  (Log in to vote) | -1 votes (0 helpful | 1 unhelpful)
Rating:  
95/100
From 01/23/2022 14:49 | #279892
For your pleasure listen this a high quality album, a lasting mark of quality never goes out of fashion,
Helpful?  (Log in to vote) | +1 votes (1 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
Rating:  
10/100
From 12/02/2021 14:25 | #277004
fluffy jazz fusion rock
Helpful?  (Log in to vote) | -1 votes (1 helpful | 2 unhelpful)
Rating:  
90/100
From 09/07/2021 22:07 | #273451
Streamlined and funky Steely Dan. Might be better than any Steely Dan album, it's that good.
Helpful?  (Log in to vote) | +2 votes (2 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
Rating:  
85/100
From 04/11/2020 03:38 | #249779
Sophisty-pop
Lyrics about post war / gold era of mainstream USA (50's) memories
Helpful?  (Log in to vote) | 0 votes (0 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
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Best Albums of 1982
1. Thriller by Michael Jackson
2. The Dreaming by Kate Bush
3. The Number Of The Beast by Iron Maiden
4. Pornography by The Cure
5. Nebraska by Bruce Springsteen
6. 1999 by Prince
7. Avalon by Roxy Music
8. Rio by Duran Duran
9. Love Over Gold by Dire Straits
10. The Nightfly by Donald Fagen
11. New Gold Dream (81-82-83-84) by Simple Minds
12. Combat Rock by The Clash
13. Imperial Bedroom by Elvis Costello And The Attractions
14. Peter Gabriel (1982) by Peter Gabriel
15. Big Science by Laurie Anderson
16. English Settlement by XTC
17. Screaming For Vengeance by Judas Priest
18. Hex Enduction Hour by The Fall
19. Bad Brains by Bad Brains
20. The Lexicon Of Love by ABC
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