10 Times Steely Dan Completely Ran Out Of F**ks To Give
4. When They Won A Controversial Grammy
In 2000, Two Against Nature was heralded as a comeback for the band, coming out 20 years after the bands last album and winning the Grammy for Album of the Year in 2001. But this win has been thoroughly criticized as one of the worst in Grammy history. It edged out Becks Midnight Vultures, Eminems The Marshall Mathers LP, and Radioheads Kid A, all of which were far more significant. But there was one irony to the win that Fagen and Becker took pleasure in. Eminem is widely believed to have been denied the Grammy due to his violent and sexually explicit lyrics. Protests over Eminem were even going on outside the Staples Center as the ceremony happened. Two Against Nature, meanwhile, despite being seen as a safer alternative, contained subject matter like incest, statutory rape, drug use, and a man and his mistress plotting to kill his wife. Hiding some of rocks most desperate and disturbed lyrics underneath a glossy sound has been the bands ongoing prank from the beginning. This time, they got the joke over on a national scale. Remarking on the controversy backstage after the show, Fagen said, Wed like to thank Eminem for taking the heat.
Kyle Schmidlin is a writer and musician living in Austin, TX. He manages the news blog at thirdrailnews.wordpress.com. Follow him at facebook.com/kyleschmidlin or twitter.com/kyleschmidlin1.
