The Eagles
Ask Eagles co-founder Don Henley what’s propelled the band and his partnership with fellow singer-songwriter Glenn Frey and he’ll tell you it was a “mutual passion for great songwriting, great singing and great musicianship,” but there was something else too.
“We wanted to rise above our circumstances,” says Henley. “We both wanted to succeed in the music business, so we lived and breathed it, all aspects of it, and that was our bond.”
Don Henley
The Eagles
Despite a rancorous breakup in 1980, that bond never quite died. The Eagles reunited famously in 1994 for the Hell Freezes Over live album and tour, and the group has continued to perform and finally, record.
One of the most commercially successful acts in history (with 120 million albums sold worldwide), last fall the Eagles released Long Road out of Eden, their first new studio effort in 28 years. Picking up where they left off, the record has sold nearly six million copies (in a deal that initially saw the album available only through Wal-Mart stores)
As the group — which also includes guitarist Joe Walsh and bassist Timothy B. Schmit — makes its return to Memphis with a concert at the FedExForum on Sunday, Henley spoke to the Commercial Appeal about the making of Long Road, his relationship with Frey and what the future may hold for him and the band.
Q: Given the long gap between studio albums for the band, was there anything dramatically different in the process of making Long Road out of Eden, as compared to previous albums?
A: The thing that we found to be the most different was the technology. The digital revolution hadn’t happened in 1978 when we recorded The Long Run. Of course we’ve all made a number of solo albums since then using modern technology, but the electronic landscape changes every year and it’s a real chore to keep up. Working with computers can be very expedient in certain areas, but we were mindful of maintaining a balance. Technology is a tool — it should never be a substitute for ability or the creative process.
Q: You’ve suggested in recent interviews that this might be the last Eagles album. Do you foresee a time when recording or performing music — either with a band or solo — is no longer a part of your plans? Or, do you see yourself, for lack of a better term, as a lifer in music?
A: Well, if I’m not a lifer already, then I don’t know who is. Two things that would keep me from working with this band — or any band — are apathy and self-indulgence; a lack of discipline or will to do whatever it takes to be the best we can be every time we step on a stage or into a recording studio. But, if I someday find that I no longer enjoy working in the context of the Eagles, I think that the solo work will go on, at least for a while. I still find fulfillment and a sense of purpose in songwriting, recording and performing. I’m not quite ready to sit around and whittle.
Q:Although you’ve worked with various writers and musical collaborators, is there something unique in your partnership with Glenn Frey that’s different than any other relationship and the reason why it’s lasted so long?
A: I think that Glenn and I balance each other, compliment each other. He and I are very much alike in some respects, but we are also very different in many ways. When we are able to harness our energies and achieve equilibrium, we can really achieve a lot. But when there is an imbalance, we tend to stay away from one another and work with other people. Over the years, we have developed a system that works for us — it ebbs and flows — and we’re fine with that… Glenn and I have been through a lot together. Over the past four decades, we’ve wrestled all the demons and we’ve whipped their butts. We know how to persevere.
Q: Do you feel that the massive success of the Eagles, or perhaps the machinery behind the band over the years – people like your old label head David Geffen or manager Irving Azoff — has been held against the group in some way? Specifically in the way that that music critics or historians have tended to rate the band in the rock canon?
A: If having astute management and conducting business in a smart, professional way is a crime, then we plead guilty. We’re successful because we have the best manager in the business, because we’re good at what we do and because we work hard.
We couldn’t care less about what the critics think or where we “rate” in the rock canon, if such a thing even exists. A lot of critics like their bands dead, but that option didn’t appeal to us. And when Neil Young sang “It’s better to burn out than it is to rust,” we thought: “Are those the only two choices? How about neither?”
This is not a hobby for us; it’s our life’s work, just like it is for Tony Bennett or B.B. King. Most of the critics never liked what we did in the first place, but it didn’t matter. We’ve moved on. All we care about is what our fans think. They are the ones who matter to us.
Q: Given the success you’ve enjoyed both with the band and as a solo artist are there any creative or professional goals you still have a burning ambition to achieve?
A: Burning ambition? Them’s pretty strong words, Hoss. No, I guess you could say that burning ambition is what we had in the ‘70s. These days, that has matured into something a little less dangerous. We simply don’t have as much to prove, now, or as much to lose, so we don’t have to labor under that yoke.
We can go about our business without worrying so much about where we are on the proverbial ladder. It makes the work so much more enjoyable, you know? Of course, it would be gratifying to make another successful album or to win a few more Grammys or CMA awards, but nothing lasts forever.
We’ve had an extraordinary run. We like where we are right now and we intend to continue for a bit longer, but if it should all end tomorrow, that’s fine too.
For more about the Eagles, go to eaglesband.com.
— Bob Mehr, 529-2517
The Eagles
Sunday, 8 p.m. at the FedExForum. Tickets cost $45, $65, $95, $150. They’re available at all Ticketmaster outlets, online at ticketmaster.com or by phone at 525-1515.
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