Henley the guitar man?

[EaglesKiwi]

I do think that Don can play guitar. As a songwriter, I think this is almost a necessity. Writing the lyrics to a song, I think one would need that unless he plays the piano, which I'm not sure if he does or not.

I'm sure I've read somewhere that he does play piano... I think it was a commentary around writing Desperado - Don played Glenn a couple of bars of music on the piano but at that stage the lyrics were "Leo, my God, why don't you come to your senses..."

If I remember correctly!

Edited to add: well d'oh and double-d'oh, It's from the liner notes of Very Best Of and they're also right here on Glenn Frey Online! Here's the link: http://www.glennfreyonline.com/eagle...linernotes.htm and this is the relevant part:

GLENN: It was only a day or two after we had been back from England with our first album. Don sat down at the piano and showed me this song he was working on, and it was the intro to "Desperado." Originally, it was written for a friend of his whose name was Leo. And so the song started out "Leo, my God, why don't you come to your senses. You've been out ridin' fences for so long now."

To be strictly accurate, it doesn't say that Don PLAYED it at the piano, but that's the way I interpreted it.

[sodascouts]

Yeah, I think that's a safe assumption to make. A lot of musicians can play the piano to a degree and use it in songwriting, even if they aren't virtuosos or comfortable enough to play it publicly.

[Topkat]

Don probably plays a bit of piano & guitar because as I said it is necessary for the songwriting process. Doesn't surprise me that he would play the piano too.

[Freypower]

This photo is on the band's website:



I am sure I have seen a larger version than that.

[EaglesKiwi]

This photo is on the band's website:



I am sure I have seen a larger version than that.

Awwww, so cute!

[Shadowland07]

Since we're talking about Don's playing, I was wondering how you guys feel about his drumming. I've read comments, on YouTube on the live Eagles videos that are still up, that say he's a crappy drummer. Now I think he's a great drummer. But others tend to think that he sucks.

"Don Henley's pedestrian drumming sucked all the soul out of this song."

"Henley obviously has never bothered to learn that wacky guitarist's tune from his nobody days. lol Henley does suck on drums, really barely passable if not for studio edits."

Those two were from the Walk Away video. There's more but they are more explicitive (however you spell it).
[ame]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WXtg9zg1ggc[/ame]

[sodascouts]

Those people are just haters. Don may not be the best drummer that ever walked the face of the earth, but he can rock those drums when he wants to. He certainly does NOT suck!

Check out this thread: https://www.eaglesonlinecentral.com/...ead.php?t=3278

[EaglesKiwi]

Don's drumming makes a fantastic contribution to the music, whilst never overpowering it. i.e. he doesn't seem to feel a need to indulge his ego when drumming, and he should be given credit for that.

Yes, he can absolutely rock out - if you have a chance to, check out his performance in Christchurch (specifically when Joe's playing his songs) - it was fantastic, full of energy and passion.

In my opinion, drumming is about more than just a solo exhibition and virtuosity - it's supposed to be a part of a song, for goodness sake. How many of us would want to listen to music that is nothing but drums?

Guns n Roses invited Don to perform for them on one occasion when their own drummer was unavailable - I don't think they would have asked him if he had been "barely passable." Some people just seem to have a problem with somebody else's success.

[Ive always been a dreamer]

Well said Soda and EK.

I don't know about the technicalities of drumming, but my ears tell me that Don is a terrific drummer. Just listen to the Eagles catalog for evidence. You can bet that he wouldn't have remained the Eagles drummer if he wasn't very good. Just because he isn't flashy or pounding on the drums full force all the time doesn't mean he isn't good.

[Freypower]

I have said for years that he is a much better drummer than he gives himself credit for.

A lot of YouTube comments are peurile & go out of their way to be negative, whether justified or not.