"You could say that those songs have memorable melodies, married to decent lyrics."
Excessive modesty, party of one...
"You could say that those songs have memorable melodies, married to decent lyrics."
Excessive modesty, party of one...
http://www.houmatoday.com/article/20...-few-questions
Don Henley of the Eagles answers a few questions
"For the record, we never broke up, we just took a 14-year vacation!"
(Glenn Frey)
Henley shares views on legacy, music industry
http://www.collegian.psu.edu/archive..._industry.aspx
"For the record, we never broke up, we just took a 14-year vacation!"
(Glenn Frey)
Well, that was a very interesting read. I particularly liked the optimism displayed in the last question ...
JM: In an interview with CNN, you said that your latest album will probably be the last for The Eagles. After so many years, how does a band come to a decision like this, or know when it's time to stop?
DH: Well, that statement was just my personal opinion. The band, as a unit, hasn’t come to any such decision.
In any case, I think we’ll know, intuitively, when it’s time to stop. But it would be foolish to hang it up, now, when we’re still filling arenas and stadiums all over the world.
We’re enjoying the fruits of our labor.
"People don't run out of dreams: People just run out of time ..."
Glenn Frey 11/06/1948 - 01/18/2016
Of course the part Dreamer quoted caught my eye too, but Mr. Henley made me stop and think with this.
I’d hate to be starting out in these times, in this throw-away culture. So many things, now, are ephemeral, disposable. Nothing seems to be made to last and I think that’s because we’ve lost our attentiveness, our discernment, both as creators and consumers.
We don’t demand quality, so we don’t get it. There is still some good music being made, but a lot of what’s out there, now — to borrow a phrase from “Hamlet” — is just “... sound and fury, signifying nothing.”
But, everything runs in cycles and, sooner or later, we’ll come to the end of this one.
~ Cathy ~
And I dream I'm on vacation 'Cause I like the way that sounds,
It's a perfect occupation for me.
One of Don's better interviews; very well-written. You can tell he took some time with it. He makes good sense and I can understand where's he coming from better with this article than some of his others. He makes a lot of good points.
I agree that all things go in cycles, and in the digital era, those cycles become shorter and shorter. Look at MySpace - it used to be ubiquitous, but now it's fading. For good or for ill, nothing lasts forever.... and that includes corporations.
I found his comments about the money being in touring now to be food for thought. If it's true that the music industry is going back to being live-based, it would ironically be a throwback to pre-acetate days when being a musician meant being able to sing for your supper on a regular basis. Music was still a business - instruments have been made and sold for thousands of years; you can find them in ancient Egypt. People were paid to sing and play. They might not have become billionaires, but they were able to make a living doing what they loved. The profession of the musician has been around long before the evolution of the record company and will continue even if that corporate entity collapses.
Then, people could not hide their inadequacies through studio tricks. Perhaps it is time for a return to that paradigm. In such a paradigm, the attitude would become "They sounded great live; let's buy their stuff" rather than the record-label paradigm, which is the opposite. Their attitude: "You need us to get your name out there; that's the only way people will buy your album. Then, if they like it, they'll go see you live and buy more."
Don is right that in such a system - the system in which he and the Eagles thrived - the record labels are necessary. In the live-based scenario, perhaps they will not be, especially as the power of the internet continues to grow. What Don sees as a "myth" now might become quite possible before long.
After all, Mozart didn't need a record company to have a "lifetime career of scale."
Industries change. I bet the carriage-making industry was hit hard when everybody started using those darn cars.... cycles indeed.
And I bet that in 50 years, Google will also be a thing looked back upon with nostalgia and missed by those who benefited from that "sovereign nation."
In the end, though, it's all about the music. It's wrong to illegally download songs and I condemn that, but such behavior won't destroy music. Nothing can do that.
Oh dear, oh dear. I am sorry Don, but the words 'sound and fury signifying nothing ' are from Macbeth, not Hamlet. They are from the greatest soliloquy of all time which begins 'tomorrow & tomorrow & tomorrow/creeps in this petty pace from day to day'.
The relevant part is:
Life's but a walking shadow, a poor player
That struts and frets his hour upon the stage
And then is heard no more. It is a tale
Told by an idiot, full of sound and fury
Signifying nothing
I can understand why he might confuse it with Hamlet, however.
Please excuse me getting on my Shakespearean high horse. His comments were very interesting.
Yeah, he messed up on attribution, but at least the quote itself was used effectively within the context of what Don was saying. I always respect the incorporation of Shakespeare! Besides, he gave some props to his college profs, so I refrained from drawing attention to his slip-up.
By the way, something just occurred to me... I wonder if the wording of the line from Waiting in the Weeds - "while peacocks prance and strut upon the stage" - is inspired by Macbeth's bitterly despairing soliloquy?
Don Henley on the Eagles: 'It Would Be Foolish to Hang It Up Now'
http://www.670kboi.com/rssItem.asp?f...temid=29591188
"For the record, we never broke up, we just took a 14-year vacation!"
(Glenn Frey)
Right you are Don, right you are!!!
He sings it high, he plays it low