SoaringRockyMountainWay
01-02-2014, 02:21 PM
I'm doing this Hotel California report for school. I want to get a good grade for the Eagles. I was hoping you guys could check it over for me. Let me know if I have factual errors, weird wording, or mechanical errors. I also need a cool title for it. Thanks for the help! Here it is:
In 1976 the Eagles set out to make their fifth record and the first song they wrote was Hotel California. The rest of the songs they wrote developed around the idea of Hotel California so that’s what they decided to call the album. The album went gold, had mega-sales, won a grammy, and is considered to be one of the greatest albums of all time. The single Hotel California was a number one hit.
The lyrics were written by Don Henley and Glenn Frey. The music was mainly written by Don Felder. Felder said he wanted to write something to fit two guitar players since Joe Walsh was now in the band with him. He wrote an acoustic guitar riff with a Spanish flare and gave it to Henley and Frey along with some other music Felder had assembled. That riff stood out to them and they knew it was really good so they worked hard on the lyrics. They became real songwriters. The beat of Henley’s drums, Walsh and Felder’s great electric guitar playing, Frey playing the acoustic riff, Randy Meisner’s bass in the background, and Henley’s amazing voice made the perfect blend of sound that made it their signature song. The end of the song features Walsh and Felder’s electric guitar harmony. The two great guitar players were able to play off each other which made the song better. Hotel California is considered to have one of the greatest guitar solos of all time.
Over the past forty years, people have speculated about what the lyrics in Hotel California mean. Glenn Frey says that the song has hidden deeper meaning. That means the lyrics have a deeper meaning than what’s on the surface and not every word is taken literally. Don Henley said, “The Hotel itself could be taken as a metaphor not only for the myth making of Southern California, but for the myth making that is the American dream because it’s a fine line between the American dream and the American nightmare.” In my opinion, that describes the fact that people go to Southern California wanting to be rich and famous. Once they get caught up in it, it’s really hard to get away from it especially if they get pressured into drugs and alcohol. The last line in the song, “You can check out anytime you like but you can never leave” could be talking about that. The lyric, “And I was thinking to myself this could be Heaven and this could be Hell” could mean that when you become rich and famous, it can be Heaven because you have a lot of money but it could be Hell because you can become greedy and arrogant. Fame is a lot to handle. “There were voices down the corridor. I thought I heard them say, Welcome to the Hotel California. Such a lovely place (such a lovely face) There’s plenty of room at the Hotel California. Anytime of year, you can find it here.” This could mean that people can pressure you into doing things. They can make anything sound good. “And she said, ‘We are all just prisoners here, of our own device.’ In the Master’s chambers, they gathered for the feast. They stab it with their steely knives but they just can’t kill the beast.” This could mean that when you get caught up in fame, fortune, and addiction you become a prisoner to it and it will always leave its mark on you. Frey said that the song has some lyrics in that are just their’s, that nobody else would figure out so I won’t be able to decipher every lyric but I think that the meaning of the song is that everyone wants to have a lot of money and be famous but once you are, you’re caught in it forever. It will always be a part of you and it could change your personality. “It’s a song about a journey from innocence to experience, that’s all,” Henley said. Henley didn’t want to give away the hidden deeper meaning but he gives us that hint. Becoming a different person because of fame and fortune could be a “journey from innocence to experience.”
Hotel California is my favorite song because of the musical aspect of it. The lyrics are amazing too but I love the way every sound comes together to make a breath-taking song. Every member of the Eagles does so much to make the song wonderful. I can feel each beat of the drum and the guitar harmony is very moving. It never gets old. The song paints a beautiful picture in my mind every time I hear it.
In 1976 the Eagles set out to make their fifth record and the first song they wrote was Hotel California. The rest of the songs they wrote developed around the idea of Hotel California so that’s what they decided to call the album. The album went gold, had mega-sales, won a grammy, and is considered to be one of the greatest albums of all time. The single Hotel California was a number one hit.
The lyrics were written by Don Henley and Glenn Frey. The music was mainly written by Don Felder. Felder said he wanted to write something to fit two guitar players since Joe Walsh was now in the band with him. He wrote an acoustic guitar riff with a Spanish flare and gave it to Henley and Frey along with some other music Felder had assembled. That riff stood out to them and they knew it was really good so they worked hard on the lyrics. They became real songwriters. The beat of Henley’s drums, Walsh and Felder’s great electric guitar playing, Frey playing the acoustic riff, Randy Meisner’s bass in the background, and Henley’s amazing voice made the perfect blend of sound that made it their signature song. The end of the song features Walsh and Felder’s electric guitar harmony. The two great guitar players were able to play off each other which made the song better. Hotel California is considered to have one of the greatest guitar solos of all time.
Over the past forty years, people have speculated about what the lyrics in Hotel California mean. Glenn Frey says that the song has hidden deeper meaning. That means the lyrics have a deeper meaning than what’s on the surface and not every word is taken literally. Don Henley said, “The Hotel itself could be taken as a metaphor not only for the myth making of Southern California, but for the myth making that is the American dream because it’s a fine line between the American dream and the American nightmare.” In my opinion, that describes the fact that people go to Southern California wanting to be rich and famous. Once they get caught up in it, it’s really hard to get away from it especially if they get pressured into drugs and alcohol. The last line in the song, “You can check out anytime you like but you can never leave” could be talking about that. The lyric, “And I was thinking to myself this could be Heaven and this could be Hell” could mean that when you become rich and famous, it can be Heaven because you have a lot of money but it could be Hell because you can become greedy and arrogant. Fame is a lot to handle. “There were voices down the corridor. I thought I heard them say, Welcome to the Hotel California. Such a lovely place (such a lovely face) There’s plenty of room at the Hotel California. Anytime of year, you can find it here.” This could mean that people can pressure you into doing things. They can make anything sound good. “And she said, ‘We are all just prisoners here, of our own device.’ In the Master’s chambers, they gathered for the feast. They stab it with their steely knives but they just can’t kill the beast.” This could mean that when you get caught up in fame, fortune, and addiction you become a prisoner to it and it will always leave its mark on you. Frey said that the song has some lyrics in that are just their’s, that nobody else would figure out so I won’t be able to decipher every lyric but I think that the meaning of the song is that everyone wants to have a lot of money and be famous but once you are, you’re caught in it forever. It will always be a part of you and it could change your personality. “It’s a song about a journey from innocence to experience, that’s all,” Henley said. Henley didn’t want to give away the hidden deeper meaning but he gives us that hint. Becoming a different person because of fame and fortune could be a “journey from innocence to experience.”
Hotel California is my favorite song because of the musical aspect of it. The lyrics are amazing too but I love the way every sound comes together to make a breath-taking song. Every member of the Eagles does so much to make the song wonderful. I can feel each beat of the drum and the guitar harmony is very moving. It never gets old. The song paints a beautiful picture in my mind every time I hear it.