I know that the Eagles have 7 studio albums to their credit - as well as countless compilations and live albums - but the album Hotel California has sold 33 million copies and is considered the band's masterpiece, which automatically makes it the most representative of the group.
In 1971, Don Henley and Glenn Frey founded the group, joined by Bernie Leadon and Randy Meisner.
Leadon, who played guitar, banjo, and mandolin and preferred the band to be more country-oriented, left the Eagles and was replaced by guitarist Joe Walsh in 1975.
The new lineup gave birth to Hotel California, which, in 1976, brought honor and glory to the group, making them rightfully enter among the superstars of music.
But what often brings success, besides money? Tension and bad feelings.
The Eagles held out for another four years (passing through the departure of Meisner, replaced by Timothy B. Schmit), then, in 1980, they took a break.
A break, yes, because officially the band did not break up, but to see the group reunited, we had to wait until 1994.
During this period of reflection, the Eagles flew solo.
Joe Walsh
Joe Walsh released six albums in that period of time.
The first two, There Goes the Neighborhood (1981) and You Bought It – You Name It (1983), had a fair amount of success.
The Confessor, the album from 1985, was poorly received by critics, but still reached number 65 on the Billboard 200.
A worse fate for Got Any Gum? (1987), Ordinary Average Guy (1991), and Songs for a Dying Planet (1992), which were not even successful with the public.
Walsh continued his career with the Eagles, but in 2012 he released a new solo album, Analog Man, and took revenge, reaching #12 on the album charts and receiving slightly more favorable reviews.
Speaking of Walsh, allow me a little digression: since 2008 he has been Ringo Starr's brother-in-law, having married Marjorie Bach, the sister of the actress Barbara, wife of the former Beatle. Wow, what exciting family dinners.
Timothy B. Schmit
Timothy B. Schmit also released three solo albums: Playin' It Cool, Timothy B, and Tell Me the Truth. Little popular success, but these are the works of a great artist nonetheless.
Between albums, Timothy played bass and sang backing vocals on other artists' studio recordings, including Crosby, Stills and Nash, Don Henley, Jars of Clay, America, Sheena Easton, and Toto. He also sang the final vocals on Toto's Africa.
He also toured with the latter in 1982.
In 1992, he was part (along with Joe Walsh) of Ringo Starr & His All-Starr Band, the live supergroup founded by the former Beatle.
Don Henley
Speaking of commercial success, Don Henley did much better with his three albums, which climbed the American charts.
The first is a 1982 work, I Can't Stand Still, which reached number 24 in the album charts.
Building the Perfect Beast, two years later, did even better, reaching 13th position and also conquering the English chart.
The last album, The End of the Innocence (1989), reached number eight.
These three albums have produced very successful singles. One of these is The Boys of Summer, the first single from Building the Perfect Beast.
I chose this song because it is still very popular in 80s-themed programming.
The lyrics are by Don Henley and the music by guitarist Mike Campbell of Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers.
Campbell proposed the demo to Tom Petty, who rejected it because it was not suitable for the album he was working on.
The lyrics are about the end of youth and the relative entry into middle age.
The Boys of Summer won Don Henley the award for best male vocal in a song at the 1986 Grammy Awards.
The video clip of the song won four awards at the 1985 MTV Music Awards: video of the year, best direction, best photography, and best art direction.
The most famous cover of The Boys of Summer is the one from 2003, published by the American band The Ataris. Worth a listen, for those who missed it.
Glenn Frey
Another eagle and another solo flight.
Glenn Frey passed away in 2016 due to complications from rheumatoid arthritis diagnosed in 2000.
In those years, he was playing again with the Eagles, but during the band's hiatus, he released four solo albums: No Fun Aloud (1982), The Allnighter (1984), Soul Searchin' (1988), and Strange Weather (1992).
In 1984, Frey participated in the soundtrack of the film Beverly Hills Cop, with The Heat Is On, the most successful piece of the film. The single, in fact, sold all over the world.
Glenn Frey loved cinema and TV, and, in 1985, he wrote another big hit: You Belong to the City, included in the soundtrack of the TV series Miami Vice. A very successful single, which also drove the album to the top of the charts.
He also acted.
After appearing as a guest star in an episode of Miami Vice, he acted in the series Wiseguy, South of Sunset, Nash Bridges, and Arliss. In the cinema, he appeared in Let's Get Harry and Jerry Maguire.
This was a "brief" summary of the 80s of the members of the Eagles. As members of the band, they were all inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1998, but, individually or as a group, the result is the same: they can be proud of their careers.
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