Inspired by my good friend from the US and a genuine “good old Rock and Roller” John O’Leary, I decided to post a 7 minute video of my rock idols The Eagles on Simplicity Blog.
Hotel California has been described as one of the classic rock songs of all time.
Even if you are not an Eagles fan I hope you can find 7 minutes in your busy schedule to appreciate the genuine talent on display from these four oldies now 60 years old or approaching 60!
Don Henley – fabulous voice; drummer extraordinary; politically irreverent
Glen Frey – the brains behind The Eagles; founder of the band; best voice of the lot
Joe Walsh – absolute eccentric (some would say a nutter); best guitarist in rock history according to many
Timothy Schmidt – amazing voice; shame about the hair Tim
Annie and I will be seeing The Eagles at the National Indoor Arena in Birmingham in July which will be the third time we have seen them in 4 years. Having waited almost 30 years to see them I am now making up for lost time. (Annie is very tolerant)
This video was filmed at a live conference in 2008
Not bad for a bunch of pensioners say I.
23 comments:
"Hotel California has been described as one of the classic rock songs of all time." - Amen to that. I am a big fan of the Eagles.
You are spot on when you call their songs simple. They are simple and effective. "Simply the best". I am sure you've listened to the acoustic version of this song. That one blows my mind away.
Joe Walsh; correct me if I am wrong - probably one of the best classical guitar player.
And, I love the numerous assumptions made from this song. Brilliant lyrics complemented with great music.
Their latest album too blew me away. You are one lucky man to see them LIVE!!!
Enjoyed this post!!! A great blog you have here!!!
This of course is one of the great R&R classics which they'll be playing on oldies radio hundreds of years from now, while perhaps commenting on the decadence of 20th century America. Maybe different radio stations will feature the hits of particular centuries instead of particular decades.
My favorite Eagle's memory is the Joe Walsh quote I have hanging in my classroom. "Just because I wrote it, don't mean I can play it"...there is a lesson in that statement for every manager who thinks they are a leader!
Joe Walsh post-Eagles: "Life's Been Good To Me So Far"
Amen to that.
They stabbed "it" with their steely knives, but they just couldn't kill the beast.
An obvious reference to la coca back in the 70's culture, but the metaphor can also apply to the pens of many congressmen attempting to pass stimulus and spending loads of money in the USA and "not" being able to kill the beast of deficit spending and misappropriation.
Walsh----a great guitarist (rhythm and fills) but pales in comparison to more traditional classical guitarists. Walsh is his own personality and this reflects in his style, which makes his style brilliant.
Hotel California is one of my favorite songs ever and timeless. The multiple guitars covering different octaves in the solo are awesome. Very "airy" music littered with classic lyrics.
Those were the good ole days. Hip-hop and the collapse of record companies has all but ruined music. I was listening to the radio the other day and heard Nickelback's new song and thought, "How many ways can a band remake a song and be successful?" They all sound the same.
Coldplay is pretty popular in the States right now and the guys in the band seem pretty reasonable. Very different sound and great piano.
Thanks for a great start to the day Trevor.
"Having waited almost 30 years to see them I am now making up for lost time."
Something every generation tries to tell the next-
'Don't worry about lost opportunities when you're young- you never know what's coming down the pike and some things are even sweeter later on.'
Lois Gory
Brosreview – welcome to Simplicity Blog – glad you like the Blog - tell your friends!
I’ve no doubt “Long Road Out of Eden” will be regarded as a classic Album in years to come.
It was the first studio recorded album The Eagles had produced in 28 years.
Class never dies
John – Hotel California has to be an immortal song that my Great Grandchildren will sing – thanks for your suggestion of posting an Eagle video – you are a star my friend!
Dave - what a brilliant quote from the immortal Mr Walsh and so appropriate to management and leadership in business. John O’Leary will no doubt be looking at that quote for his upcoming book I suggest.
Jo is just a hero and somewhat eccentric.
He was interviewed over here on BBC Radio a couple of years ago and the conversation went something like this:
Interviewer: Jo there are suggestions The Eagles did not act with the greatest professionalism at their peak and in fact they treated it all as just one long party. What do you have to say to that accusation?
Jo: I can’t remember
Classic Walsh.
Mike - thanks for that. Says it all about Walsh really and the sub-title might well have been 'I'm surprised I made it this far'
Scott – great comments. Although I am not a ‘technical’ music person I hear what you say. One of the greatest joys of seeing The Eagles ‘live’ is to appreciate their instrumental talent – it is breathtaking.
The lyrics of some of Henley’s protest songs are fabulous.
I particularly enjoy the title track from the album “Long Road of Eden” – a 10 minute masterpiece. The song is a protest about the invasion of Iraq. The climax is this powerful haunting verse: (BTW - I’m not making a political statement about the rights and wrongs of the Iraq war just a point about the gigantic power and symbolism of music and lyrics to get over a message)
“Went down the road to Damascus, the road to Mandalay
Met the ghost of Caesar on the Appian Way
He said, "It's hard to stop this binging once you get a taste
But the road to empire is a bloody, stupid waste"
Behold the bitten apple, the power of the tools
But all the knowledge in the world is of no use to fools
And it's a long road out of Eden”
Lois - thanks for your comment. The best things come to he (or she) who waits :- )
Old rockers . . . well . . . rock! If there is any doubt of this, the Eagles dispel it -- as do Cream at Prince Albert Hall, 2005, which I am fortunate to have in my DVD collection. It is amazing what a big sound this trio of accomplished artists puts out. Sorry, but I have yet to see any arena band of today have the presence, musicality, and soul-grabbing qualities of these old rockers.
Trevor,
Maybe you or one of the bloggers can confirm a rumor I heard about the Eagles. Apparently, they were in the studio on 9/11 and wrote "Hole in the World" on the evening of the tragedy that befell New York.
Is that true? I love the song and it's done wonderfully live. The DVDs for their events are phenom on surround sound. Like one of your other bloggers stated, thanks for starting the day off right.
@Trevor - "welcome to Simplicity Blog – glad you like the Blog - tell your friends!"
Ah, I loved it!!! Thus, I am following it henceforth. Yes, I have spread the word. So, you shall face some heavy traffic heading this way, haha.
Please visit mine while you are free. Thank you.
Dick - I couldn't agree more about old versus new! Long live all old rockers!
Roll on July 7th when we see The Eagles concert again in Birmingham ... I am just wondering whether they will still be performing when they are 70 - now that would be something to behold don't you think?! :-)
When we saw them in concert in 2006 Glen Frey opened the show by saying said they would probably be the only band in history to do a 'resurrection' tour!
Hi Scott – how I heard it was that they were rehearsing together in 9/11 and they couldn’t carry ion obviously when they heard the news. Don Henley wrote 90% of the lyrics on the night of 9/11 and a few weeks later Glen Frey came up wit the final 10% lyrics - then they recorded the whole thing. "There's a Hole in the Wall Tonight” performed live is awesome - a song that brings a lump to my throat and creates moist eyes to anyone with a heart – a classic song. Another example of the power of music and lyrics.
Brosreview - thanks for the feedback.
I have visited your Blog - I have it as a favourite and will keep in touch with your thoughts!
Best
"I can't remember"...how cool is that?
Hi Dave - I imagine Joe must be great company - unpredictable but lovable ... I guess :-)
The best Eagles' song is, "The Last Resort." End of debate.
Joe Walsh, as good as he is, was never even the best guitar player in The Eagles. That accolade has to go to Don Felder: I saw them on the Hell Freezes Over tour and frankly, it was Felder that held the band together musically. (And by all accounts, Steuart Smith pretty much does the same with the current band.)
Hi Mark – you will be getting worried as I am agreeing with you a lot these days :-)
The Last Resort is my favourite Eagles track of all time. ‘A Don Henley virtuoso’ as Glen Frey described it.
I would say it is 7 minutes of so of Henley at his most irreverent, politically astute best. Amazing song – amazing singer – what a range he has.
Don Felder was terrific and I am not the best judge of whether he is/was better than Walsh but I do feel Stuart Smith is absolutely fantastic. There was speculation a year or so ago that the could become the fifth Eagle – I would be happy with that. He is incredible ‘live.’
nice video..
nice song..
i like this..
make me happay...
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