Durable rockers Steely Dan, Winwood at Verizon

When a couple of legendary classic rock acts are brought together for a summer tour, disagreement could ensue among fans over which one should be the so-called headliner.

Such is the case with the pairing of Steely Dan and Steve Winwood, two acts who got their start in the rapidly receding 20th century. Steely Dan surfaced in the early 1970s; the mysterious band (that eventually emerged as a duo) debuted with two fine albums, Can't Buy a Thrill and Countdown to Ecstasy. In Winwood's case, he was first heard during the British Invasion in 1963, at 15, calling himself Stevie Winwood, when he sang, no, seemed to shout as he pleaded, "Gimme Some Lovin'" and "I'm a Man" as the lead singer in The Spencer Davis Group.

But back to the official headliner at the concert.

Steely Dan's core membership has always been two musicians, singer and keyboardist Donald Fagen and guitarist Walter Becker. Meeting as students at Bard College in New York, the two shared an interest in jazz in an era when rock dominated. They tried writing songs for other artists and spent time in the touring band of Jay and the Americans before striking out on their own and forming a group.

By 1972, Steely Dan burst on the scene with debut album Can't Buy a Thrill, powered by the singles "Do It Again," "Reelin' in the Years" and "Dirty Work." A year later came the album Countdown to Ecstasy, followed by Pretzel Logic, which contained the huge hit "Rikki Don't Lose That Number."

Fagen and Becker tired of touring, leaving the road in 1974, but continuing to release four more albums before formally breaking up in 1981. They decided it was time for a comeback after nearly 20 years, touring on occasion before releasing Two Against Nature in 2000 and winning a Grammy Award for Album of the Year. In 2003, Everything Must Go came out and since the release of that album, touring, not recording, has been their focus.

The duo's website lists the members of "The Dan Who Knew Too Much" 2016 touring band as: Jim Beard on keyboards, Keith Carlock on drums, Jon Herrington on guitar, Michael Leonhart on trumpet and keyboards, Jim Pugh on trombone, Roger Rosenberg on baritone saxophone, Freddie Washington on bass, Walt Weiskopf on saxophone and La Tanya Hall and Cindy Mizelle on backing vocals.

Winwood, a multi-instrumentalist who is best known for his keyboard work and his blue-eyed soulful vocals, has had his own historic musical path, moving on from the Spencer Davis Group at age 19 to form the band Traffic. Winwood briefly spent time in Blind Faith, which was hailed as the first rock "supergroup," thanks to a lineup that also included Eric Clapton and Ginger Baker from Cream, along with Ric Grech from Family.

After Blind Faith's one album, Winwood went back to Traffic and caught the tide of "album rock" on the new world of FM radio with John Barleycorn Must Die and The Low Spark of High-Heeled Boys. After three more studio albums and a live recording, Traffic was finished, almost.

Winwood then went solo and after a 1977 self-titled debut, found great success with his next four albums: Arc of a Diver (its single, "While You See a Chance," was his first Top 10 single since his days in the Spencer Davis Group); Talking Back to the Night; Back in the High Life (three Grammy Awards); and Roll With It (which reached No. 1).

Weekend on 06/23/2016