The first time drummer Paul Kastick met American guitarist Rudy Valentino, they were at a recording session in 1999 for roots singer Lavaska at Tuff Gong studios in Kingston.

Over the years, their fusion of rock and reggae has enhanced songs by Tessanne Chin and Richie Stephens. The duo’s latest project is a cover of Steely Dan’s ‘Night by Night’, which was released on August 25.

The original song features Steely Dan’s signature jazz/rock sound, but for their version, Kastick and Valentino go for a reggae feel with searing rock guitar solos. Kastick, longtime drummer for Big Mountain and Maxi Priest, makes his recording debut on vocals.

He said while he is aware of Steely Dan, he never heard ‘Night by Night’ until Valentino played it for him in 2022. Their cover is co-produced by GrooveGalore Muzik, Kastick’s label and Valentino Muzik.

“Rudy sent me this track from last year, I never know the song, never heard the song before and I was trying to see if I could work on it before going on tour with UB40, Maxi, The Wailers, and Big Mountain. And we didn’t get a chance to do anything the whole year, and then that tour finished down in September, and this year we ended up in Detroit doing some stuff and I was like, ‘let me learn this track’,” Kastick recalled.

After the veteran musician discovered that the initial track was “catchy and infectious”, next step was adding a reggae vibe with Jamaican patois, complemented by Valentino’s rock riffs.

‘Night by Night’ was first recorded in 1974 by Donald Fagen and Walter Becker, the creative duo who comprised Steely Dan for over 45 years until the latter’s death in 2017. The original is from their acclaimed album, ‘Pretzel Logic’, which was also released 49 years ago.

Kastick, who is from Montego Bay, started his career during the 1980s playing in hotels on Jamaica’s north coast. His first break came late that decade when he joined the 809 Band which included saxophonist Dean Fraser and guitarist Winston “Bo Pee” Bowen.

He has toured and recorded with Big Mountain and Maxi Priest for many years. His most popular collaboration with Valentino to date is ‘Hideaway’, a 2006 reggae-rock song by Tessanne Chin that was a surprise hit in Jamaica.

“Working with Rudy is just on another level, man, even before we started collaborating with Tessanne’s album. Me and Rudy used to send stuff to each other and every time I sent him something to put guitar on, everytime he sent it back I would be like, ‘Yow! This bredrin hearing things different!’. I was just drawn to that,” Kastick explained.

A music video for ‘Night by Night’ will be released on August 28.

(Photos contributed)