The 1976 song Steely Dan used to ‘take the piss’ out of the Eagles: “They’re very droll”
Despite what you might think, there are very few truly embittered musical rivalries. Oasis and Blur may have duked it out in the 1990s, but their tensions cooled almost as soon as their respective records stopped charting.
Neil Young and Lynyrd Skynyrd may have traded the odd barb, but even they have found space to settle things down. The Beatles and The Rolling Stones’ fierce newspaper fights can also be considered little more than a PR-driven marketing ploy. The same can be said for Steely Dan and the Eagles.
The two groups have often been thought of as two opposing forces in the world of music. One band is the epitome of mechanical musings, delivering multi-layered songs that are as rich as they are fragrant, while the other relies on a more potent cocktail of good times and good guitars. And during their years sharing the same airwaves, these two combatant cultural identities often pitted the two bands against each other.
The groups may not seem like the fighting type, and unlike Blur and Oasis, their rivalry existed purely within the context of their songs. It was Steely Dan who struck the first blow with a pointedly sarcastic comment nestled within their 1976 song ‘Everything You Did’ from the album of the same year, The Royal Scam.
The track can be regarded as one of the lesser-known efforts of Walter Becker and Donald Fagen. However, it does include one of their most quotable lines: “Turn up the Eagles, the neighbours are listening”. The line, within the context of an angry song directed at a lover, has often felt like a condemnation of the Eagles’ easy-listening attitudes.
The duo have never spoken about the line directly, but the rumours suggest that Becker’s girlfriend was a big fan of the groups led by Glenn Frey and Don Henley, and her near-constant playing of the band would annoy Becker. During a particularly unwelcomed fight, she allegedly turned up the band to drown out the crowing guitarist.
Whether born from personal irritation or playful observation, the lyric quickly took on a life of its own. Fans and critics alike interpreted it as a sly jab at the Eagles’ polished, radio-friendly sound, reinforcing the perceived divide between Steely Dan’s meticulous studio craftsmanship and the Eagles’ laid-back California rock ethos.
In reality, the exchange was far more tongue-in-cheek than hostile. Rather than fuelling a genuine feud, it became a rare example of bands acknowledging each other through their music, blurring the line between rivalry and mutual recognition.
While there is little to corroborate that story, the line clearly resonated with the Eagles as they quite clearly paid homage to Steely Dan on their most beloved song ‘Hotel California’ with the line: “They stab it with their steely knives, but they just can’t kill the beast.” The line was originally penned as “They stab it with their Steely Dan” but was changed to remove the band’s name but keep the phallic imagery.
However, any notion that this would spark tempers into a raging fire of 1970s rock was quickly doused with the cool, calm waters of two easy-going bands.
When speaking about the track to Uncut, Don Henley spoke candidly and with a great degree of humour: “I know them pretty well, and it was like he was sort of saying, ‘Everybody’s in LA’s playing this fuckin’ record, and I’m sick of it!’ It was a little bit of an acknowledgement and a little bit taking the piss, because we had the same management – still do — but you know, they’re very droll, Fagen in particular.”
Listen to ‘Everything You Did’ below.
