Dumb things said about The Eagles

[sodascouts]

I agree with Austin's sentiment that they don't get enough credit for how hard they rock, though!

[VAisForEagleLovers]

I agree, Austin, with your two main beefs. The people who heap that criticism on them aren't bright enough to realize they have the talent, as songwriters, musicians, and vocalists, to encompass a wide range of influences. Some of their songs are soft. Some are not. Some are pure rock, most are rock with strong influences from other genres. Those that do recognize they can't be put in a box figure they went outside the box purely for corporate success.

I still can't figure out why keeping an eye on the bottom line in any business is supposed to be a bad thing. The music business isn't any different. There is still equipment to buy, beer to buy, drugs to buy, mouths to feed, crew to pay, and parents who deserve a better house or car. Not keeping an eye on the bottom line just generally means you aren't smart enough to do all that math.

[WalshFan88]

I don't thnk the Eagles are like any of those bands, not even the Stones & Zeppelin. The other bands listed do nothing for me. I don't know why everything has to be reduced to 'Walsh and Felder' all the time given that in reality there were only a handful of tracks that feature Walsh & Felder rocking 'hard' and given that neither man was in the band for its entirety. Their vocals & lyrics are something else and what they are best known for. Why can't they be given credit for that?

All I can say is that I must disagree.

There were more than a handful of tracks, and I consider them every bit as much of a guitar band as a vocal band - personally I feel that side of the band is underrated here. I mean not just Hotel California - they are known for their guitar sounds I believe especially in the guitar world and their signature riffs.

ETA: You have to keep in mind I got into this band not for their singing or even their songs - my first experience and the thing that took my breath away was the guitar work. I wasn't even a huge music lover until I heard that solo on HC. It was the guitar on that record that did something that nothing else at the time could. Before then, I wasn't a music listener. And then I listened to all of their songs with all of those riffs, and certainly Bernie and Glenn's riffs too and immediately fell in love with their triple guitar attack and the way they crafted guitar parts and sounds and I loved nothing more than seeing that guitar thing happen onstage. I recognize their immense talents as singers and songwriters but it was guitar that lit the fire, so I will always gravitate to that as being my favorite about the band. Even today when I see a band - my eyes never leave the guitar players and I'm mostly listening to them. I'm just a guitar oriented guy. Where lyrics and words move some people in a song, I'm moved by notes and pouring your heart out through the strings.

[Funk 50]

I'm a rock music fan but I can enjoy all types of music. One of the highlights of a Phil Collins show I attended was his schmaltzy ballad Separate Lives which, on record I really can't stand.

During the HFO tour I was amazed at how great the Eagles performances of the Henley and Frey solo material were. I always thought the Eagles were workmenlike to adequate playing the solo Walsh stuff, nothing outstanding but, for 20 minutes during the HFO show, the Eagles were rocking as hard as U2 or Genesis at their strongest. It's not about the guitarists or the tempo, it's about the power of the music.

Joe says the Eagles are primarily a vocal harmony group. If he turns up too loud, he says he gets a drumstick on the back of his head . but the Eagles can kick-ass with the best of them, with the added bonus of material that sounds great, at home on the turntable too.

I must mention Timothy's brilliant bass playing. I've seen him a few times, solo, with the Eagles and playing bass for a Ringo Starr line up that had four rocking lead guitarists, Todd Rundgren, Dave Edmonds, Nils Lofgren and Joe Walsh. His rock bass playing was fabulous. Brilliant on the solo Eagles tracks too. Boy was he wasted in Poco.

[WalshFan88]

I agree Funk 50... I also enjoy rockin' country songs as well as RnB/Motown but even in that, I gravitate to the guitar sound as what has my attention.

They definitely consider them and Joe considers them a singing band that is all about the songs, which they are. It's guys like me who love them for what they are seemingly unappreciated for, which is their recognizable guitar sound throughout all eras, but I prefer the Walsh era. To me they have a certain guitar sound that is hard to duplicate but it like candy to my ears. But for all music I love, the guitar is what I always gravitate to and focus on, so obviously I'm biased to that, where as most people focus on lyric content, vocals, or the whole package. Guilty as charged. I do however, like guitarists that serve the song and don't overplay. But I still focus on them regardless.

Joe has said many times he has to use small amplifiers in low wattage to keep the stage volume down and keep the sound from bleeding into the vocal mics. Peter Stroud, who played for Don Henley, said the stage volume was quieter than the audience in the front row talking during slow songs and that he really had to attenuate his amps to accommodate.

[Funk 50]

To me they have a certain guitar sound that is hard to duplicate but it like candy to my ears.

Have you heard Richard Marx's Don't Mean Nothing WalshFan88?

When I heard it on the radio, I nearly fell off my chair, "Jesus, the Eagles have got back together" I thought until Richard's voice came in. I think Paul McCartney's Wings, for one, were inspired by the Felder/Walsh twin guitar attack but I can't think of many tracks that sound like the Eagles even though a lot of bands (Poco come to mind) are constantly compared with them.

I know having 2 drummers forces the drummers to play more straight forward, less complicated fills, I suppose it's the same for two lead guitars.