Eagles - The Road to Eldorado

Towards the end of the 1960s, the fusion of the two dominant souls of American music, country and rock, was considered a mirage, a dream pursued by dozens of musicians. An alchemy that was almost impossible to achieve. It seemed highly unlikely that a harmonious, cohesive whole could be forged from such different rhythms, different instruments and different themes. Blending the classic sounds of the banjo, the fiddle and the pedal-steel with the modern sounds of electric guitar, bass and drums was considered utopian. What's more, frontier life, the western epic, religion - typical country subject matter - sat uneasily with the frenetic pace of rock, which called for simpler lyrics, perhaps centered on pretty girls, fast cars and having fun. Few musicians dared to experiment in pursuit of this new, revolutionary sound. Among the very first to attempt a bold crossbreeding of different genres were the Californian Byrds, who, by merging protest songs (Pete Seeger and Bob Dylan above all) with electricity, helped forge folk-rock. But the road to country-rock had not yet been taken. Things changed in 1968 when, within the Byrds, a young and obscure musician named Gram Parsons (Winter Haven, November 5, 1946 - Joshua Tree, September 19, 1973) stepped in to replace the departing David Crosby and Michael Clarke.

Parsons, a skilled instrumentalist and songwriter from Florida, managed, over the course of a single year, to bring about an unprecedented change of direction both for the Californian band and for the entire American music scene. With a sound inspired by the likes of Merle Haggard and Hank Williams, but also by Woody Guthrie and Dylan himself, he was able to breathe new life into a band that had become heavily bogged down in psychedelia and torn apart by internal conflicts. The album "Sweetheart Of The Rodeo", released in 1968, is considered the first true cry of country-rock. The adventure with the Byrds, however, was short-lived, and just a year later Parsons, together with fellow departee Chris Hillman (Los Angeles, December 4, 1944), formed the Flying Burrito Brothers, "the first country band that sounded like a rock band" (or the other way around, if you prefer). In just two years, during which they released as many albums hailed as masterpieces of the genre, "Gilded Palace Of Sin" and "Burrito Deluxe", the Flying Burrito Bros. pulled off the impossible feat of creating an entirely new sound out of two diametrically opposed genres. Parsons' erratic personality, combined with his severe drug addiction (which would claim his life in 1973 at just 27 years old), soon brought the golden era of the Flying Burrito Brothers to an end, but that's another story. The road had been paved. All that remained was to follow it.

At the Court of Linda Ronstadt

In this period of great artistic ferment, the future members of the Eagles met almost by chance. Already active for years as session musicians, songwriters and hired guns on the Californian music scene, they were just waiting for the right moment to show off their talent and skill. The opportunity arose in the spring of 1971, when Linda Ronstadt (Tucson, July 15, 1946), one of the most acclaimed American performers of all time, together with manager John Boylan, recruited two young musicians for some studio sessions: drummer Don Henley (Gilmer, July 22, 1947) and guitarist Glenn Frey (Detroit, November 6, 1948). The former, a Texas native, had moved to Los Angeles in 1970 to record an album with his first band, Shiloh. Glenn Frey, on the other hand, had arrived in California from Michigan in 1969, following his girlfriend, an aspiring singer. There he formed Longbranch Pennywhistle, an obscure folk-rock outfit, and met Jackson Browne (Heidelberg, October 9, 1948), the famous songwriter, with whom he began a prolific collaboration that would prove crucial to the band's fortunes. Frey and Henley first met in 1970 at the Troubadour in Los Angeles and discovered they were working for the same label, Amos Records. By the time Ronstadt called on them, the two were already friends. They worked with her on her self-titled album, released in 1971, which also featured, as mere session players, the brothers Michael and Richard Bowen, former Flying Burrito Brothers members and skilled multi-instrumentalists Bernie Leadon (Minneapolis, July 19, 1947) and "Sneaky Pete" Kleinow, as well as bassist Randy Meisner (Scottsbluff, March 8, 1946), who came from Ritchie Furay's Poco.

The following summer tour gave the musicians a chance to get to know one another and reach a remarkable level of chemistry. Although they only ever played together live once, during the July date at Disneyland, the musical quality they achieved pushed the various members to form side bands once the tour was over. "Sneaky Pete" Kleinow and the Bowden brothers went on to form Cold Steel, while Frey, Henley, Leadon and Meisner formed the Eagles.

Legend has it the name came to Bernie Leadon during a collective "trip" fuelled by LSD and tequila that the band took in the Mojave Desert. Whether or not the story is true matters little, because the chosen name - whether by chance or not - speaks to a deep connection with the ideology, symbolism and musical tradition of their country. After all, what could be more American than the bald eagle that stands proud and imposing on every corner of the United States, from the Stars and Stripes to the one-dollar coin?

Unlike many other bands, the Eagles had little trouble landing a record deal, and just a few months later signed with David Geffen's fledgling Asylum Records. In producer Glyn Johns's car, in February 1972 they travelled to London, to Olympic Studios, to record their debut album, simply titled Eagles. Released just four months later, on June 26, 1972, it's a record steeped in easy listening, complete with acoustic guitars, soft vocal blends and relaxed atmospheres. The opening track, "Take It Easy", written largely by Jackson Browne, is a true gem of country-pop. Frey's soft voice and the light sound of his acoustic guitar form the song's backbone. The crystalline harmonies and Leadon's superb work on banjo and electric guitar give it strength and energy, along with a faintly retro flavour. A light fuzz tone and Henley's husky voice characterise "Witchy Woman", a great rock ballad in which the Eagles show off all their vocal qualities: the four-part harmonies in the chorus and central bridge pull the listener into a kind of spell, from which they're abruptly jolted awake by the powerful guitar riff. The energetic "Chug All Night" and the delicate "Most Of Us Are Sad", sung by Randy Meisner, lead into "Nightingale", another major "gift" from Browne to the Los Angeles band. Henley's raspy vocal line fits perfectly with the song's energetic rock melody, while Leadon's precise guitar work traces out magnificent sonic embroidery.

Side B mainly features tracks written by Leadon and Meisner. It opens with "Train Leaves Here This Morning", an acoustic number sung by Leadon and co-written with ex-Byrds man Gene Clark, before moving on to the dark and desperate "Take The Devil", an excellent songwriting showcase for Meisner. Birdsong paired with a frenzied banjo introduces the fiery "Earlybird", before Glenn Frey takes back the microphone to sing "Peaceful Easy Feeling", a true country pearl and future live staple for the band: as the title suggests, the mood turns relaxed and laid-back, while the harmonies, dominated by Meisner's falsetto, add sweetness and sheer enjoyability to the track. After so much calm, the listener gets a jolt of adrenaline courtesy of the scorching rock of "Tryin'", a Meisner composition that closes out the side.

After the album's release, Glenn Frey told Rolling Stone journalist Cameron Crowe: "Everybody had to look, sing, play and write their best." He was right. The album's outstanding quality, both technically and compositionally, made it an instant success. The three singles pulled from it, "Take It Easy", "Witchy Woman" and "Peaceful Easy Feeling", all made the Top 40. Still, despite the reassuring sales figures, plenty of critics panned the record. Robert Christgau, for instance, stated that although it contained some excellent material, the album as a whole sounded fake and forced. The Eagles paid little attention to the criticism: they were now ready for their definitive consecration.

Wings spread wide

The band's ambitions grew, and between late 1972 and the early months of 1973 they returned to London, this time to Island Studios, to record a worthy follow-up to their debut. April 1973 saw the release of Desperado, the Eagles' ode to the Old West and its lawless protagonists, told through their identification with one of the fiercest posses of all time: the Dalton Gang. The record is marked by the growing partnership between Henley and Frey, who co-wrote eight of the eleven songs on it. Bernie Leadon contributes just two tracks, while Randy Meisner is left decidedly on the sidelines. From the cover alone, showing the musicians as four weary and menacing outlaws, the band's intentions are more than clear. Confirmation comes from the grooves themselves, where a harmonica straight out of a Sergio Leone film opens the epic "Doolin' Dalton", co-written with regular collaborator Browne and J.D. Souther, on the theme of the outlaw's tragic existence: Henley's pained vocal and the grandeur of the harmonies underscore the inevitability of their fate. Leadon's technical skill shines through on his own "Twenty-One". The banjo's frantic skitter and the unmistakable sound of the dobro frame lyrics centred on freedom, the one goal worth chasing at any cost. The decidedly driving rhythm of "Out Of Control", which describes a brawl over a woman, sets the stage for one of the band's biggest hits, "Tequila Sunrise", sweet as love and bitter as a hangover. Glenn Frey on vocals and rhythm guitar and Bernie Leadon on lead guitar and mandolin are on fire, lending the song that streak of cowboy melancholy.

The first side closes with the title track, a true anthem to the golden age of the West and an absolute masterpiece: Frey's piano and the underlying string bed heighten the song's pathos, over which Henley's powerful vocal is laid; the harmonies are pared right down, turning it almost into a solo showcase, which only deepens the protagonist's loneliness and melancholy.

"Certain Kind Of Fool" opens side two. Sung by Meisner, the song deals with an outlaw's criminal escalation, from a poor boy of humble origins to gunslinger to bandit, constantly hunted by the law. The track also carries a subtle nod to the life of rock stars, especially in the lines "he saw it in a window", where it's not entirely clear whether the reference is to a gun or a guitar; "a poster on a storefront, the picture of a wanted man", which can equally be read as wanted by the law or wanted by fans; and "he's runnin' every day", which evokes both fleeing from bounty killers and the endless touring with the band. A brief reprise of "Doolin Dalton", played solely on Leadon's banjo, leads into David Blue's "Outlaw Man", whose title leaves nothing to the imagination: the track's hard, distorted sound perfectly captures the gunslinger's condition, often with no way out ("I am an outlaw, I was born an outlaw's son"), forever caught between sin and redemption ("In one hand I've a Bible, in the other I've got a gun"). Leadon's mandolin and Frey's twelve-string bring to life the tender "Saturday Night", while the stark, hallucinatory "Bitter Creek" evokes the desert sun and peyote-induced visions. The closing slot goes to the long "Doolin Dalton/Desperado" medley, which builds to a spectacular crescendo.

The album, while not matching the success of its predecessor, sold two million copies. The singles pulled from it, "Tequila Sunrise" and "Outlaw Man", made the Top 100, settling around the number fifty mark. Oddly, the title track was never released as a single, even though it would go on to become one of the band's trademark songs.

The tendency that had emerged during the making of Desperado found immediate confirmation in the period that followed. Henley and Frey gradually took on a dominant role within the group, partly unsettling its internal balance. Furthermore, given the lukewarm reception of the previous album, the two leaders opted for a radical change of style, partly abandoning country in favour of sounds more oriented toward rock. These tensions inevitably shaped the sessions for the following album, On The Border, released in 1974. Recorded partly at Olympic Studios in London and partly at Record Plant Studios in Los Angeles, the record had a particularly troubled gestation. Trusted producer Glyn Johns, openly hostile to the change of direction, was let go after recording just two tracks, and was replaced by Bill Szymczyk. On top of this, in order to reinvigorate a sound that was starting to feel dated, Glenn Frey asked Don Felder (Gainesville, September 21, 1947), formerly of Flow, to join the band, initially as a mere session player and later as a full member. A childhood friend of Leadon's and a gifted guitarist (nicknamed "Fingers" for his skill), Felder - though listed in the credits as the "new arrival" - contributed only minimally to the recording of On The Border, appearing on just two tracks.

It's actually one of those two, "Already Gone", that opens side one. The new guitarist's powerful sound is especially evident in his highly technical duels with Bernie Leadon. That said, the band's original musical style isn't entirely set aside, and it peeks through in the melodious harmonies and the acoustic-guitar-driven bed that characterise the track. The power ballad "You Never Cry Like A Lover", written with J.D. Souther, confirms the shift toward a much more radio-friendly, easily accessible sound, while country traces resurface in "Midnight Flyer", which, thanks to soaring vocal harmonies, banjo and slide guitar, rushes along like a train across the prairie.

"My Man" is Leadon's moving tribute to Gram Parsons, his former bandmate who had recently passed away. Here the rock sound fades away entirely to pay homage, through the skilled use of pedal-steel, to the glorious Flying Burrito Brothers. But no sooner do the last notes of "My Man" die out than the title track kicks in, edging close to hard rock. The only concession to the classic Eagles style is the inevitable four-part harmony, though it's buried under tons of overdrive. The hard edge of "On The Border" can also be traced back to a latent outrage over the "Watergate scandal", which the song is apparently inspired by; in the closing coda you can hear Frey whisper: "Say goodnight Dick!", an obvious reference to the then-president of the United States, Richard Nixon.

The rollicking "James Dean", co-written with Browne and Souther, opens side two. An anthem to a rebellious, anarchic youth idol ("too fast to live, too young to die") provides the springboard for a track with markedly rockabilly echoes, underscored by Meisner's frenetic boogie bass line. But the album's true gem is the bleak, aching "Ol' 55", written by a then very young and largely unknown Tom Waits (the Eagles would play an essential role in the artist's success precisely thanks to this cover). The masterful performance of the track, which alternates Frey's voice (on the verses) with Henley's (on the chorus), together with Al Perkins's pedal steel, stands as one of the high points of their output and one of the finest examples ever of the West Coast sound. The calm, persuasive mood continues on the following "Is It True", written and sung by Meisner, before fading out entirely on "Good Day In Hell", an almost southern-rock track, enriched by Don Felder's muscular slide guitar.

Country music, however, still flowed copiously through the band's veins, and the clearest proof of that is the wonderful "Best Of My Love", in which the Eagles, on fine form, unleash their full repertoire of twelve-string guitars, ringing pedal steel and sky-high harmonies.

The album, despite being rather inconsistent and uneven compared to its predecessors, was a huge success, selling over two million copies and reaching number seventeen on the charts. The singles pulled from it – "James Dean", "Already Gone" and "Best Of My Love" – also performed extremely well commercially. The latter, in particular, gave the Eagles their first No. 1.

The popularity they'd achieved turned the band into one of the most sought-after live acts in America. Their concert schedule grew considerably, reaching its peak on April 6, 1974, when the band played at "California Jam" in front of an estimated crowd of three hundred thousand people. The massive event, nicknamed "the Woodstock of the West Coast", boasted a lineup of top-tier acts such as Black Sabbath, ELP, Deep Purple and Earth, Wind & Fire, as well as ABC's media coverage, which gave the Eagles enormous visibility. Success was by then beyond dispute, and the internal tensions that never fully went away (mostly due to the undisputed leadership of the Frey-Henley partnership) did nothing, however, to dampen their inspiration.

A little over a year later, on June 10, 1975, came One Of These Nights, which confirmed the direction the Eagles had taken on their previous album. Recorded entirely in the United States, at Mac Emmermann's Criteria Studios in Miami and at Record Plant in Los Angeles, the album sees Don Felder present, this time, throughout the whole recording process. The result is one of those extraordinary blends that, as a rule, only work once: the band's two souls, country and pop, meld perfectly, bringing out both the melodic hallmark of the Eagles sound and Henley's warm, seductive vocals.

The title track that opens side A is spectacular: it starts with a great bassline – echoing the Beatles' "Come Together" – before blossoming into a radiant, perfect pop song, with Henley's intimate vocal, delightful falsettos and harmonies, and guitar solos that are as energetic as they are finely calibrated. It tells of nocturnal visions, of feverish dreams to be chased beneath a full moon. Everything about it is enveloping, polished, achingly poignant.

Western atmospheres return on "Too Many Hands" (Bon Jovi's "Wanted Dead Or Alive" surely owes it a debt of gratitude), which features an excellent vocal turn from Meisner and great twelve-string work from Frey: the lyrics are an ode to a beauty as precious as a rainbow ("Sometimes hard to find/ Like a rainbow"), on which, however, far too many hands come to rest (“Too many hands/ Being laid on her/ Too many eyes will never see/ That it’s dragging her down”).

Leadon's country soul finds room to breathe on "Hollywood Waltz", where Henley's dark-hued voice evokes the decadence of Desperado amid a flourish of mandolins and pedal steel, and on the magnificent instrumental-psychedelic suite "Journey Of The Sorcerer", an ecstatic banjo showcase enriched by both David Bromberg's violin and the strings of the Royal Martian Orchestra.

Pop takes over again on the sumptuous "Lyin' Eyes", which opens side B by recounting the exploits of a city girl, tied for convenience to a wealthy old man with hands as cold as ice ("a man with hands as cold as ice"), who is therefore forced to lie ("you can't hide your lyin' eyes"), but who finds solace in the memory of an old high-school sweetheart. Once again, Frey's polished vocal, the guitar flourishes, the aching harmonies and Henley's relaxed drumming combine to produce a song tailor-made for international radio standards, as warm as summer sunshine and as sweet as sugar. Built on one of those simple, irresistible melodies that go straight to the heart. And further proof of the band's skill at crafting soft, enveloping sounds arrives with the sweeping waltz of "Take It To The Limit": Meisner, on top form both vocally and as a writer, skillfully forges this stirring power ballad destined to melt the hearts of countless lovers; the swaying rhythm and the use of falsetto (especially in the finale) set the course, while the piano and string flourishes heighten the song's epic sweep, sealed by lyrics that champion freedom: "So put me on a highway, show me a sign and take it to the limit one more time".

Don Felder writes and sings the powerful "Visions", in which he gets to show off all his guitar talent, marked by the powerful, precise tone of his Gibson. After that rock jolt, things settle back into far more tranquil territory with the dreamy "After The Thrill Is Gone": sung by Frey in the verses before gaining strength in the chorus thanks to Henley's voice, the track – another display of immense class – features a sweet twelve-string guitar blending with energetic electric guitar lines and the distant sound of Leadon's pedal steel. It's a Leadon composition that closes the album, that "I Wish You Peace" co-written with his then-partner Patti Davis, daughter of the governor of California and future US President Ronald Reagan. Described by Don Henley as "smarmy cocktail music", it unfolds over a languid, dragging rhythm, unveiling yet another graceful chorus, seasoned with impeccable harmonies.

The album topped the charts, even earning a Grammy nomination in the "Album Of The Year" category. The three singles pulled from it, "One Of These Nights", "Lyin' Eyes" and "Take It To The Limit", reached, respectively, No. 1, No. 2 and No. 4 on the Billboard Top 100, immediately becoming bestsellers. And yet, following a well-worn ritual, part of the critical establishment turned up its nose at what was perceived as a "pop turn". It would take several years for what still remains one of the Eagles' most underrated records to be given its due.

The subsequent world tour, with Fleetwood Mac as the opening act, confirmed their status as international superstars but, despite the fame and the accolades, the band found itself facing substantial, irreversible changes.

Apotheosis and the end

The dizzying pace of the tour and the accumulated stress intensified the tensions already present within the group. In particular, the absolute control exercised by Glenn Frey and Don Henley over artistic and musical decisions began to irritate the other members. It was Leadon above all who suffered under this near-dictatorial management style and the radical shift in sound, growing increasingly impatient with the rest of the band. Firmly rooted in country music, he grudgingly endured the pop turn imposed on the last two albums. Over time his presence became more and more marginal, and his frustration eventually unbearable, to the point that he left the band in the worst possible way. As the story goes, during a heated argument, he poured a mug of beer over Frey's head. Clearly, a point of no return had been reached, and the split was inevitable.

The loss was a heavy one: Leadon, a skilled multi-instrumentalist, left behind a technical and instrumental void that was hard to fill, so much so that finding a suitable replacement proved particularly difficult. After months of indecision and numerous auditions, the new addition was officially announced on December 20, 1975. It was Joe Walsh (Wichita – November 20, 1947), a seasoned guitarist with stints in successful bands such as the James Gang behind him, as well as a decent solo career. The choice, however, was anything but easy, and was opposed above all by Henley, who felt Walsh's "wild" lifestyle was a poor fit for a band like the Eagles. The fact that the new candidate shared both manager Azoff and producer Szymczyk with the group was probably a decisive factor in his eventual hiring. Despite this particularly turbulent period, the Eagles went back into the studio to work on new material that would become the hugely anticipated follow-up to One Of These Nights.

Meanwhile, in order to make the most of the momentum generated by their latest studio album, Asylum Records released the band's first official compilation on February 17, 1976. It was an excellent move. Titled Their Greatest Hits (1971-1975), the compilation was a sensational success, going on to sell over 29 million copies in the United States alone and more than 42 million copies worldwide, making it one of the best-selling albums of all time, on a par with Michael Jackson's "Thriller". Despite their now undeniable status as the most successful band of the decade, the Eagles refused to be distracted, and on December 20 of that same year released what is considered their masterpiece and spiritual testament: Hotel California. The arrival of the new member allowed the band to fully complete its musical transformation, breaking entirely free of its country roots to embrace an unmistakably rock sound, built around the virtuosity of Felder and Walsh and an increasingly raw, powerful tone, with a keen eye on the mainstream.

Conceived and realized as a kind of concept album, Hotel California explores the decadence of America and its ever-growing materialism. The title track, opening side A, is the record's keystone. A powerful portrait of hedonism, luxury and the self-destruction of the Los Angeles upper class, disguised as a melancholy twelve-string ballad. The catchy chorus and the stunning closing solo are, without doubt, the song's most recognizable moments. The fleeting nature of love and success are at the heart of "New Kid In Town", a sweet song marked by lush harmonies, an elegant electric piano and Meisner's Mexican guitarrón. Walsh's contribution to the album comes both through co-writing (alongside Henley and Frey) and the powerful riff of "Life In The Fast Lane", a pulsating rock number about the "edge of the limit" lifestyle of a well-off Californian couple, amid outrageous parties, the right pills and high-speed drives.

The melancholy beauty of “Wasted Time” – literally “time wasted” – closes side one: it's the end of a love affair described by Henley's anguished voice, accompanied mainly by piano and strings, an arrangement that points directly back to the more famous “Desperado.”

An instrumental reprise of “Wasted Time” opens side B, ahead of the blistering “Victim Of Love,” in which distorted guitars mask the story of a violent, desperate love. The excellent ballad “Pretty Maids All In A Row,” penned by Walsh (also on lead vocals here), continues down the road of melancholy with a heartfelt reflection on time passing relentlessly, carrying away people and things and leaving behind nothing but the shadow of a memory. Maisner writes and sings “Try And Love Again,” a vaguely country-tinged song enriched by slide guitar, before the closing salvo of the wonderful “The Last Resort,” a fitting companion piece to “Hotel California.” Delicate and poignant, the song, sung by Henley, tackles the destruction of nature's beauty and of the ecosystem. An unexpected environmentalist streak and a veiled nihilism run through this elegy on the death of the American dream and the dawn of a new era of greed and careerism.

Thanks to the quality of both the lyrics and the music, the record won over critics and audiences alike. In the first months of 1977 it sold over sixteen million copies in the US alone, shooting to the top of the charts and staying there for eight weeks. The singles pulled from it, “Hotel California” and “New Kid In Town,” both topped the Billboard Hot 100, while “Life In The Fast Lane” reached a solid number eleven. It picked up several Grammy nominations, winning two – Record Of The Year and Best Arrangement For Voices (for “New Kid In Town”) – and came in second for Album Of The Year, beaten only by Fleetwood Mac's epochal Rumours.

The massive world tour in support of the album was greeted with huge enthusiasm, but it also gradually drove the band members apart, sharpening their artistic and personal differences. At the end of the tour, Maisner left the group. The official reason given was exhaustion from the frenzied pace of work. But his inability to handle the stress was just a cover story, meant to hide the real causes of the split: growing friction with Henley and Frey over their by-then unchallenged leadership. Ironically, his replacement was the very same bassist who had replaced him in Poco: Timothy B. Schmit (Oakland, October 30, 1947). This time finding the right musician wasn't hard, since, apparently, Schmit was the only one who put himself forward.

With the line-up once again shaken up, the band went back into the studio in 1977 without, however, recapturing their old chemistry. The new album, The Long Run, took two years of work and a million dollars to make. Originally conceived as a double album, it came out instead as a single LP, confirming the band's growing fatigue and a clear dip in inspiration (at Christmas 1978 they even released the single “Please Come Home For Christmas”/“Funky New Year”). Recorded in five different locations – Record Plant Studios, Britannia Recording Studios, Love 'n Comfort Recording Studios, One Step Up Recording Studios and Bayshore Recording Studios – it was also the last album released by Asylum Records.

Released in September 1979, The Long Run saw the Eagles drift even further toward straightforward rock and soft-pop sounds. The title track, which opens side A, fully reflects this shift, with its undeniable catchiness, clean production and a rhythm that leans toward rhythm and blues (note the horn section in the background). The themes also lighten up, moving from a bleak reflection on American society to lyrics with a far more lighthearted touch – in this case, a celebration of Henley and Frey's long-standing friendship.

Timothy B. Schmit shows off his class, playing a decisive role (he both sings and wrote much of the song) in “I Can't Tell You Why,” destined to become a bona fide classic over the years. Heartache, a melodic arrangement built on piano and organ, and heavenly falsetto harmonies make it a track of real emotional impact with undeniable radio appeal. Walsh, the band's most fiery personality, gives voice to his rock'n'roll soul by writing and singing the powerful “In The City.” Included on the soundtrack of Walter Hill's film “The Warriors,” the track is an energetic power ballad, built on overdrive and slide guitar, about the harshness of life in the urban outskirts.

Despite its title, “The Disco Strangler” isn't an Eagles foray into the then-dominant world of disco, but rather an uneven venture into funk territory, complete with syncopation and a pulsing bass line. The rarefied, aching atmospheres of Hotel California return on “King Of Hollywood,” a realistic portrait of a film producer now in decline. Here too, the sound echoes that of the previous record, especially in the intricate guitar dialogue between Felder and Walsh.

Side B opens with “Heartache Tonight,” a raw, southern-style blues written with the help of faithful collaborator J.D. Souther and Bob Seger: rough, dirty and deliberately stripped-down, the track is an interesting blend of the Allman Brothers' sound, embodied by Walsh's dominant slide guitar, and the Eagles' trademark melodic style, built on multi-part harmonies between Henley, Frey and Schmit. “Those Shoes” is, if anything, even more stripped-back, marked by a pulsing drumbeat and the wailing meow of the talk box. The plight of kids locked up in reform school comes through powerfully on the spectral, stretched-out “Teenage Jail,” whose dark atmospheres and plodding rhythm recall the most desperate prison songs of American tradition.

The mood lightens again with the fun “The Greeks Don't Want No Freaks,” which, thanks to its heavy use of synthesizer, significantly anticipates the coming 1980s. The side closes with the pop ballad “The Sad Café,” a tender remembrance of the band's early shows at the Troubadour in Los Angeles, embellished by David Sanborn's alto sax.

Released in September 1979, the album immediately landed at number two on Billboard's Pop Album Charts, knocking Led Zeppelin's latest album, “In Through The Out Door,” off the top spot a week later. The Long Run stayed at number one for a full eight weeks, and all three singles pulled from it reached the Top 10, hitting number eight (the title track and “I Can't Tell You Why”) and number one (“Heartache Tonight”) respectively.

The subsequent promotional tour, however, proved fatal for the band. Internal tensions grew to the point of boiling over on July 31, 1980 when, during a show in Long Beach (later nicknamed “Long Night In Wrong Beach”), Felder and Frey argued heatedly throughout the entire concert. The Eagles inevitably broke up right after, even though Elektra Records, the band's new label, already had plans to release a live album drawn from the final tour. Eagles Live bore the marks of the poisoned atmosphere in which it was made. The tracks on it were mixed remotely by Frey and Henley, who, having reached the point of refusing to share even the same city, let alone the same studio, were by then living on opposite sides of the United States. Producer Bill Szymczyk once said: “The perfect recording of the three-part vocal harmonies was kindly provided by Federal Express.” The liner notes, meanwhile, include a terse “Thank you and goodnight,” leaving little hope for the Eagles' future. Despite all this, the album reached a solid number twenty-one on the charts, buoyed by an incredible number of evergreen hits. The only new track was Steve Young's “Seven Bridges Road,” a song the band usually used backstage to warm up before going on stage.

The Eagles officially no longer existed. The most commercially successful band of the 1970s had ended in the worst possible way, torn apart by endless clashes between opposing personalities. But the last word had yet to be said…

Still Flying

After the split, the various members pursued solo careers with mixed fortunes. It was Don Henley who achieved the greatest success, releasing excellent albums such as I Can't Stand Still (featuring the hit “Dirty Laundry”) in 1982, Building The Perfect Beast in 1984 (with the massive hit “The Boys Of Summer”) and The End Of The Innocence in 1989.

Glenn Frey, for his part, achieved good results with No Fun Aloud in 1982 and The Allnighter in 1984, along with numerous contributions of various songs to several soundtracks ("Beverly Hills Cop," "Miami Vice," "Ghostbusters II," "Thelma & Louise").

Far more disappointing was the path taken by Joe Walsh, who, although he had already begun releasing solo work in the early '70s, was never able to recapture past glories after the Eagles, if we exclude the 1981 album There Goes The Neighborhood. He preferred instead to turn to prestigious collaborations, working as a high-end session man with internationally renowned artists such as Steve Winwood, Ringo Starr and ELP. Don Felder, too, stayed in the shadows, contributing two songs — "Heavy Metal (Taking A Ride)" and "All Of You" — to the soundtrack of the little-known "Heavy Metal," and releasing only "Airborne" in 1983.

Timothy B. Schmit kept himself quite busy, taking part in albums by artists of the caliber of CS&N, Toto, Jimmy Buffett, Richard Marx and Ringo Starr. He also scored a hit with "So Much In Love," taken from the soundtrack of "Fast Times At Ridgemont High." Former members Randy Meisner and Bernie Leadon stayed within the music world, becoming highly sought-after session players, in the face of solo careers that yielded little satisfaction.

Meanwhile, public interest in the historic brand was kept high by record labels, which throughout the decade periodically released various compilations. Eagles Greatest Hits Vol. 2, The Best Of Eagles, The Legend Of Eagles followed one another in rapid succession, consistently achieving excellent sales. Things took an unexpected turn in 1993 when, following the release of "Common Thread: The Songs Of The Eagles," a worthy tribute album, musician Travis Tritt asked for and got the former members of the legendary Californian band to appear in the "Take It Easy" video, in the same lineup that had recorded The Long Run.

After more than fourteen years of silence and speculation, the Eagles officially reunited the following year. In April 1994 they held their first concert since that sad night in Long Beach, backed by a team of excellent musicians including Scott Crago, John Corey, Timothy B. Schmit... Timothy Drury and Al Garth. The tour produced the album Hell Freezes Over, which debuted straight at number one on the Billboard chart. Featuring four new studio recordings ("Get Over It," "Love Will Keep Us Alive," "The Girl From Yesterday," "Learn To Be Still"), the record is mainly made up of fantastic reworkings of their greatest hits (first and foremost, the spectacular "unplugged" version of "Hotel California").

The run of concerts was suddenly interrupted by a bout of diverticulitis that struck Glenn Frey, but it promptly resumed in 1995 and continued through much of 1996.

The Eagles were riding high once again, and in 1998 they received the greatest recognition of their career, being inducted into the Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame. It was a truly special moment, because during the ceremony, for the first time in their history, every member of the Eagles, including Meisner and Leadon, played together on the same stage. The concerts kept coming, marked by ever-higher ticket prices. The band welcomed in the new millennium with a sold-out show at the Staples Center in Los Angeles on December 31, 1999, and with the release, on November 14, 2000, of the monumental box set Selected Works: 1972-1999, featuring their biggest hits, various rarities and a recording of the "Millennium Concert."

This extremely successful period on the professional front was not enough to make everyone forget old grudges. On February 6, 2001, Don Felder was unexpectedly fired, and he promptly took legal action against Don Henley, Glenn Frey and the Eagles Ltd California Corporation, seeking fifty million dollars in damages. Felder accused his colleagues of demanding a larger share of royalties from the albums Hell Freezes Over and Selected Works, when these should have been split equally. Henley and Frey in turn sued the guitarist for breach of contract, in connection with the writing of his memoir titled "Heaven And Hell: My Life In The Eagles (1974-2001)." This book, whose publication was repeatedly delayed and marred by numerous cuts and revisions, finally appeared in its definitive version on April 28, 2008.

The legal dispute was eventually settled out of court for an undisclosed sum. Meanwhile, in October 2003, the band released the greatest-hits collection The Very Best Of Eagles, featuring the new single "Hole In The World," inspired by the September 11 terrorist attacks.

Now destined to live off their legacy, the Eagles made the most of the commercial appeal of the biggest tracks in their catalogue, releasing on June 14, 2005 the double DVD "Farewell 1 Tour - Live From Melbourne," in which they revisited the key moments of their career, skillfully enriching it with two new songs: Frey's "No More Cloudy Days" and Walsh's "One Day At A Time."

After two years of silence, on October 30, 2007 the band released The Long Road Out Of Eden, their first album of new material in twenty-eight years, since The Long Run. A fine record in which the Eagles sound in great form, ranging from the a cappella singing of "No More Walks In The Wood" to the country-rock of "How Long" and "Busy Being Fabulous," from soft ballads like "No More Cloudy Days" to the rock of "Fast Company." The album topped the charts, selling three and a half million copies in the United States alone, and won two Grammys, for "How Long" and for the instrumental "I Dreamed There Was No War." A remarkable achievement, considering that during its first year of release it was only available in North America through the band's official website or at Wal-Mart and Sam's Club stores. The promotional tour kicked off on March 20, 2008 at the O2 Arena in London, going on to play major cities around the world.

To this day the Eagles remain one of the most acclaimed bands on the planet, able to sell out shows everywhere despite sky-high ticket prices. Repeatedly asked in interviews about a possible new album, Schmit, Frey, Walsh and Henley have always answered evasively. Whatever happens, there will always be a host of adoring fans ready to follow their whims, their feuds, their reconciliations and, above all, their great music — proof that the Eagles can still fly high.

In 2016, however, news came that would likely put an end to the Eagles' story once and for all: the death of Glenn Frey, following complications from rheumatoid arthritis and pneumonia. "It is with the heaviest of hearts that we announce the passing of our comrade, friend and Eagles founder Glenn Frey, in New York City on January 18, 2016," read the announcement on the band's website. A heavy loss to absorb, not only for all the fans of the Californian band, but for the entire history of rock.

Contributions by Claudio Fabretti ("One Of These Nights")

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