By Rev. Stella Quinn
High Priest of Zymurgy
I should begin this by admitting that I like the Eagles. Lots of their tunes rock, and the Eagles will forever have geek street cred as the authors of "Journey of the Sorcerer" which served as the theme song to The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy. I’ll now try to get back in the good graces of my fellow Dudeists by saying that I dig Creedence way more than the Eagles. However, the first time I saw The Big Lebowski I was puzzled by the fact that one of The Dude’s strongest emotional reactions is to the fuckin’ Eagles, man. The Eagles literally wrote the tune telling us to "Take It Easy." So why doesn’t the Dude dig what they do?
Upfront it can seem baffling that Creedence would get the place of honor in the Dude’s car’s tape deck and the Eagles are so offensive as to warrant a protest that gets you 
kicked out of a cab. Both bands can fairly be accused of being, as Holden Caulfield would put it, phonies. John Fogerty was definitely not born on the bayou, and I seriously doubt that Glenn Frey ever stood on a corner in Winslow, Arizona with seven women on his mind. Both bands broke up due to personal conflict and creative control issues. So what’s the big difference between the two?
Quite a lot, it turns out.
Band origins were the first giveaway. The Eagles have an unapologetically polished studio sound. They were really more of a supergroup of seasoned session artists with specific business goals, much in the same way that Led Zeppelin was when they started out. It’s not that the Eagles’ decision to quit playing second fiddle and create their own band isn’t admirable, but the origins of Creedence feel more Dudely because the band began with friendship, not a business plan.
Fogerty wasn’t from the bayou, but he was from Berkeley, California, a place that was the epicenter of political thought in the sixties. (Now it’s populated by trust fund hipsters sitting at Starbucks using their iPhones to tweet about The Corporations, Man. Bummer.) The members of Creedence grew up in the same town and went to high school together. Every member of the original Eagles lineup was from a different state and didn’t meet until their careers as hired guns were well underway.
Like the Dude, John Fogerty was on the wrong side of authority figures. Creedence’s old record label ripped off record proceeds for years from Fogerty, even though he wrote almost every song the band ever recorded. They even sued him for playing his own song, claiming it sounded too much like one of his old songs. Which he wrote. Fucking fascists. For this exact reason, I’ll openly admit that I won’t pay for Creedence songs. As a method of protest I’ve ripped every one of them from a friend’s CD. If Fogerty ain’t getting paid then neither should the record company, as far as I’m concerned. And I’d like to think that the Dude would approve of principled digital piracy.
The Eagles, on the other hand, had an arsenal of lawyers at their disposal and never lost control of their music due to the naive belief that their record labels wouldn’t screw them over with bogus contracts. When they broke up they were still able to fulfill their contract obligations by releasing an album without ever being in the same studio together. That takes business acumen that a conscientious objector like Fogerty wouldn’t have wasted time on.
Most importantly to the themes of The Big Lebowski, Fogerty narrowly escaped being sent to ‘Nam by joining the National Guard. So when he wrote "Fortunate Son" he knew what the fuck he was talking about. "Ramble Tamble" gripes about fucking fascists of the sort that run Malibu. "Who’ll Stop the Rain" celebrated the power of numbers in the counterculture movement, and "Run Through the Jungle" protested the proliferation of guns in urban neighborhoods.
The Eagles didn’t write protest music. They wrote really great studio-polished pop songs performed in a rock style. While the members of Creedence were steeped in the political revolution of the late sixties, the Eagles weren’t around for any of it. Before 1971 they were touring as hired guns for Bob Seger and Linda Ronstadt. When they got together, they recorded their first three albums in Britain. They were making art, not politics, going so far as to compare their rock star lifestyles to that of Old West outlaws on their second album Desperado. Creedence stayed right at home in California, laying down every one of their tracks in San Francisco and Los Angeles.
I theorize that the Dude’s hatred of the fuckin’ Eagles is not overt. It’s more that their music offers nothing to The Dude’s ethos. Everything the Dude is just jives a little better with Creedence and isn’t reflected in the Eagles. Music can do a helluva lot more than a rug to tie the room together. The Dude didn’t steal the Big Lebowski’s rug and then go home and lie on it in silence. He put on his headphones. Sure, maybe he listened to the sound of the 1987 Venice Beach League Playoffs, but that’s got to be music to The Dude’s ears. Likewise, if I’m gonna light some candles and have a nice relaxing bubble bath, I’m definitely cranking up "Long as I Can See the Light" and not "Hotel California."
I don’t think that Dudeists are required to share the Dude’s dislike of the Eagles. That would be, like, dogma and stuff, which is super un-Dudely. But I believe we can all appreciate and respect the reasons behind his taste in tunes, and keep a special place in our tape decks for Creedence.
Kudos to the author for not paying for Credence songs. What the label did to Fogerty is typical of the bullshit that ran rampant throughout the industry and eventually brought the major labels down. Screwed the artist and the audience simultaneously and now they whine that their sales have plummeted (while indie artists are dong just fine marketing directly to their respective audience who want to see them succeed). Just like the Nihilists at the end of the movie as Walter kicks their crybaby asses.
But there’s a slightly deeper reason for the Dude hating the fucking Eagles, man. The Eagles are NON-THREATENING. Skilled musicians for sure, but symbolic of the disillusioning era that came after the Dude’s heyday as co-author of the Port Huron Statement who occupied those administration buildings. Laurel Canyon, cocaine and everything bad about the post-hippie era. They stand for everything that broke The Dude’s heart as he saw his protests to be in vain. Eagles versus Creedence? Different eras. More like Eagles versus Skynyrd.
Fogerty being from Berkeley instead of the bayou is irrelevant. Not only did Bakersfield, another CA city, produce some great Country music but songwriters are not obliged to be autobiographical. The public thinks every time we write a song it’s out of our diary. Not so. A good songwriter is a good storyteller and writes about archetypal people and situations just as much as his or her own first-hand experience.
Dude, Dude, Dude knockin’ at my back door.
I see the two bands as representing two sides of the Dude’s personality.
1. CCR=the side that draws a line in the sand and won’t allow aggression to stand, man. As noted in previous comment..the Port Huron Statement side..the side that seeks to makes things right (confronting BLebowski, concerned about that “poor woman,” attending Marty’s Cycle, confronting Little Larry..in short..teh more proactive side (The Yang perhaps).
2. Eagles= the lazier, more contemplative side (Take It Easy and Tequila Sunrise); the aspect of the Dude that makes him the “laziest man in Los Angeliize County; the side that drifts along as a roadie in Metallica’s “Speed of Sound tour” and takes baths with a J; the part that likes to drive around, bowl, have and occasional acid flashback (The Yin of the Dude).
I think we all have those times when we are in the zone that makes us prefer one or the other type of music. I certainly have my CCR times and Eagles moments.
But that’s just like…my opinion, man…
Great essay Rev,Stella dude!? I reckon the Dude was just having a real bad night.i like eagles and creedence too.:-)
Rev,Rob.
i’ve always thought the hatred of the eagles was based on stereotypes, and the Dude’s refusal to be stereotyped. As a burn out he’s supposed to like the mellow fm sounds of the Eagles. Their sound is supposed to define lazy california… Therefore, he’ll have none of it.
As a dude whose introduction to rock music (in 1993) was The Eagles, and who has had an appreciation for their contribution every sense… I just have to say that they can be pretty cool. One of my favorite songs ever is The Eagles “The Last Resort,” which Don Henley describes as being about how “we have mortgaged our future for gain and greed.” This is really a song that jives with Dudeism. Generally Creedence is my preference, though.
Maybe it’s an age and cultural reference point thing, but having been 18 in 1968, a part of that “place and time”, the fuckin’ Eagles sounded sterile, banal, and very uptight, man…..still do.
As a musician, I acknowledge the precision with which the fuckin’ Eagles perform, but therein lies the aforementioned sterility. Their music sounds like fucking neatly-pressed slacks! No balls!
I once played some Captain Beefheart for an FM station director for whom the fuckin’ Eagles (now the band’s official name) was the highest expression of “art”. 30 seconds into “Orange Claw Hammer” he became enraged, red-faced, screaming, “take it off! take it off NOW!”
Some people need the security of order and neatness, but the Dude doesn’t…he knows who he is….forgets to pay rent and sniffs his t-shirts to decide what to wear….he embraces chaos. The fuckin’ Eagles?………. VERY UNDUDE!
I agree with Frank, the fuckin’ Eagles sound was flat, compressed and very uptight; the drums in particular. The heavy compression allowed for the most control over how it would sound on radio, no matter how much of the energy and dynamic it strangled out. The Eagles were most definitely not abiding, even as they espoused their ‘take it easy’ mantra. The Dude will take the ‘ramble tamble’ vibe of the Creedence any day!
Ya know, I dig CCR a lot more than the fuckin Eagles, BUT,the fuckin Eagles do have some songs I like. (sorry) And I learned a few things about both groups from the article. Way to go Stella!!! Far out!!! But here’s my take on music, if it doesn’t touch something in me, or have any meaning to me, or stir…. uhhh… you know… what was I saying? Oh yeah, it’s just background noise. So abide brothers and sisters, abide, and listen to the music.
I also agree with Frank that from an aesthetic standpoint, CCR is much more appealing than the Eagles. The polished sound of the Eagles appealed to a greater section of the population because they were more deliberate and contrived, and easier to market. CCR, on the other hand, had a more rambling, stripped down sound. I appreciate the latter in all types of music. Generally, the more players (or effects) that are added to an artist’s sound, the less I want to listen. The Eagles are to CCR what Autotune is to, well…you fill in the analogy. Finally, any band that charges 155 bucks for a ticket to their “Greatest Hits” reunion tour is pretty un-dude. That isn’t to say that Don Henley and Joe Walsh aren’t socially conscious artists independently; they’re just part of a bigger machine that isn’t.
I also gotta say that the boards on the Dudespaper are the most civil, friendly boards on the internet. Period. Abide.
Frank, I so envy you for getting to be 18 in 1968. Seriously, I was born way too late.
Way to go Stella! Great article. It’s nice to see a reasoned discussion of the FE/CCR debate. CCR is certainly a more authentic rock band, in terms of origin,and sound, For myself, I personally like the F-cking Eagles. I know that to some, that may seem wrong, but I grew up with their music and it has helped me get through hard times. That said, I would 95 times out of 100 listen to CCR rather than the F-cking Eagles. But that’s just, uh, like my opinion, man. Rev. Stella is right, dogma is undude. If you’re gonna hate the F-cking Eagles, haate them on their own merits (or lack thereof). Abide in Peace – Rev. Tom
I like CCR and John Fogarty who always wears Flannel Shirts, even though the clothing police condemned him for not being in the established “style” so to speak. Like the Dude, he followed his own path and remained true to himself. John made a comeback, what about the Dude?
The Eagles are a band I’d not gotten around to exploring, and as such, for the past 20+ years I was oblivious (or at least not paying attention) to the fact that The HHGTTG theme was part of an Eagles song.
Every time I listen to Hithhikers’ I enjoy every second of that themesong, and every time I watched the TV series.
If that’s what they can come up with, I can certainly give them a chance. I mean, Hotel California was alright, and Take It Easy was a bit cheesy, and Don Henly did great with Boys of Summer… but, I never had a proper hook until now.
Thanks, Rev. Stella, for brining new shit to light (or snapping me out of my daze, whichever it was) :)
After years of legal battles, Fogerty does get the royalties for CCR songs now, so you’re ripping HIM off by stealing the music, not some corporation. Okay, the corporation gets the lion’s share, but pirating music is still very not cool, Dudess. If you can’t buy it, don’t burn it. And don’t burn it for friends: it’s not yours to give away.
And Jackson Browne wrote the lines “standing on a corner in Winslow, Arizona with seven women on my mind.” Heard him say so himself on his 54th birthday at a taping of Austin City Limits.
That said, there is no band equal to CCR for accessibility AND depth. Just about any garage band can play almost any of their stuff, but Fogerty’s lyrics are unparalleled.
I always loved the fact that the dude hated the fucking Eagles.
My own dislike for the band came about organically, from a long road trip with an unfortunate group of women and their fucking Eagles cassette tape.
She was not my special lady.
That, and the fact that their music is douchy and full of slide guitar.
Phony Labowski fans will never admit this, but its a question of taste. Jeffrey has good taste. Eagle’s fans don’t have good taste. Like Ellington said- “there’s good music, and then there’s the other kind.” Eagles are the other kind.
Creedence has an edge and mentions Buck in their songs. And they were the soundtrack to Viet Nam. And they were influenced by Hank and Lefty. Jeffrey Labowski simply has good taste.
I really enjoyed your article. I have always believed that The Dude’s dislike of the Eagles stemmed from his conflict with The Jesus.
If you recall that there was a great scene with Jesus in the bowling alley pulling up his socks and licking his bowling ball. The Gypsy Kings version of The Eagles song Hotel California, (which is fantastic) was playing… Nobody F#c&s with The Jesus scene.
Jesus likes the Eagles, thus the Dude hates the Eagles… as they remind him of his nemesis… Jesus.
Way to go Donnie! I’d never made that connection despite watching the sock-pulling scene about a hundred times. And even though that creep can roll, everything about him up to and including his pedophilia is contrived. Polished. F@#$ing Quintana that f@#$ing phony!
Although the Eagles are not pedophiles, not if I have anything to say about it, they are however quite contrived. Kind of like whores who have become very good at what they do. Which is not to say the Eagles can’t abide especially with their fancy therapists and cars and what-not. But Creedence, well…they just abide manually.
Firstly, thanks to Stella for bringing this specific topic up to one of the best films of all time.
Secondly, I myself enjoy both Creedence and The Eagles to varying degrees. While I have to admit, a lot of Creedence stuff sucks, most of their shit is awesome; for example : Run through the Jungle, Bad Moon, Proud Mary, Have You ever seen the Rain, Green River, Grapevine just to name a few; they have a really groovy rock feel. The Eagles on the other hand put out a few of chilled songs I liked and could get mildly into, but overall were in most cases too synthetic and country sounding for my liking.
More importantly of course was the Dude himself. I think that Frank Worrel was correct in his notion that it was largely an era thing and that the Eagles lacked the musical balls Creedence had and represented post Nam Era conformed laziness. An important thing to remember as well, I believe the Dude (who had just had a cup thrown at his head in Malibu)reacted the way he did probably because the last thing you would want to hear was a tune called “Peaceful Easy Feeling” by a band you really didn’t dig while you had a throbbing headache.
It’s pretty self explanatory really, I don’t think he passionately hated the Eagles guts. His reaction in the taxi was purely a product of circumstance.