Underrated Eagles Song Survivor

[Witchy Woman]

The first time I heard The Sad Cafe I rewound my tape and listened to it over and over until I learned all the words. I think it's terribly underrated, and an awesome song. So my vote goes to it.

[Jonny Come Lately]

I'm going to go for Doolin-Dalton/Desperado (Reprise) for the win!

I am delighted that it has made it to the final round of the survivor. I think it is a brilliant song and the perfect way of ending the great Desperado album. The harmony vocals are fantastic, even by Eagles standards, especially on the 'Desperado' fade out, Bernie's dobro is not only an effective bridge between the two halves but it is a very evocative piece of music in its own right, capturing the sense of despair as the outlaws' job goes wrong. The lyrics are also among their very finest, 'bloodthirsty bystanders' is one of the best alliterative lines I've heard, and I'd also like to draw attention to the final lines of the Doolin-Dalton reprise section, 'Four men ride out but only three ride back'. While this is obviously literally about one of the outlaws dying during in the showdown, it (probably unintentionally) proved prophetic for other rock bands. Think of Led Zeppelin (John Bonham) and The Who (Keith Moon) and you'll see what I mean by this.

I love the original Doolin-Dalton and Desperado songs themselves but I feel that they are incomplete without the Reprise. The 'don't you draw the queen of diamonds, boy' verse in Desperado, for instance, while a great lyric in itself, is tied up in the reprise where discover that the desperado has gone for the queen of diamonds, who has let him down. The former line is one of the most famous Eagles lyrics whereas the latter is nowhere near as widely recognised.

Yet, in spite of the song's brilliance, the song is largely ignored by Eagles compilation albums (something that could be said for the majority of the Desperado album, sadly) and until it was revived for the most recent tour was, as far as I'm aware, it had not been played live for the best part of four decades.

In short, while The Sad Café is another personal favourite of mine, the winner has to be the Doolin-Dalton/Desperado (Reprise).

[BBKron]

Well, here we are, and DD/DR has indeed made it to where it should be. I truly believe that this is the most underrated song in the Eagles catalog. It is certainly one of my very favorite songs of all-time, and one that has never gotten the recognition and appreciation that it deserves. When I first saw this game thread, I thought to myself that DD/DR just HAS to win that, but then these things almost never go as I think they should. But here it is, ready to take the crown. Although I can understand those that don't think of this as a 'real' song in itself, because it reprises the melodies from 2 previous songs, it adds so much (lyrically, musically, and emotionally), and goes beyond what was present in either of the original songs, that it truly does deserve to be considered as a separate song of the highest quality and order.

I had prepared to go into lengths about what I think is so great about the song, but JCL has already made several of the same points I was going to make. Well said, JCL! But I will just add a few more things. The reprise not only serves as the perfect ending for the 2 previous great songs (Doolin Dalton and Desperado), and the grand culmination of the entire Desperado album (which is my favorite album), but it also packs such an emotional punch (the most powerful ending of any Eagles song IMHO). I also agree that although DD and Desperado certainly stand on their own as great songs, they are just not quite complete without this moving finale, which adds the final pieces to these songs and the whole album, and changing the dynamics of the songs and the message itself. When the harmony vocals come in on the Desperado chorus ("Is there gonna be anything left, is there gonna be..."), it's just like, wow, where was that before?, because it is just so perfect. This conclusion is just needed to tell the whole story ('the queen of diamonds let you down... etc.'), yet most people have been unaware that it even existed.
Also, after we learn the 'fate' of the desperado, we get a small bit of hope, in the 'maybe tomorrow' part. To me, this is suggesting that, although it is too late for the song's protagonist (his 'fate is sealed'), there is still hope for the next guy that comes along, or maybe even you or me, and then as the song fades out on the choral anthemic 'Desperado's, we get one more great surprise tidbit in the reappearance of Bernie's sprightly banjo just coming up as the song fades out. I think this represents a return to the beginning of the whole song cycle, representing a new young one coming up and just starting on their journey (with the 'Twenty-One' thematic banjo picking), ready to make their own choices, and hopefully, to make better ones than the previous 'Desperado' did. It's just such a thrilling and beautiful way to end what could have been somewhat depressing lessons and themes. It's just awesome.

Lastly, I just want to say that it really is underrrated, not only by casual and more serious fans, but it has been vastly underrated by the Eagles themselves. I think this is their most powerful song, yet the band has never used it in concert the way it should have been presented. Even back in the original '70's shows when it was part of the setlist (and until the recent HOTE Tour, it has not been included in concert since the Hotel California tour), it was played very early in the show, usually right after Doolin Dalton, rather than later, or at the end of the show, where it would work best. Even worse, it has almost always been played at shows BEFORE they played Desperado, which just makes no sense. For the song to have the most impact, it has to come sometime after Desperado (How can it be a 'reprise' and finish the story, if the story hasn't even been told yet?). It's like reading the last chapter of a book before reading the story that sets it up. This has always irked me that it has never been featured in their live show the way it should. Now, I was thrilled that they brought the song back for the HOTE tour, but was dissappointed that it still was featured early in the set, and not at the conclusion (following Desperado) as it should be. Imagine how exciting it would be, after the usual Desperado ending, if they then went into DD/DR for a spectacular finish, the place would go nuts. Anyway, that is just my own bias, but I would love to have seen it be featured and placed more prominently in the show.

OK, as you can see, I really love this song. Thus, I proudly vote for and heartily endorse Doolin-Dalton/Desperado Reprise as the Eagles most underrated song.

[zeldabjr]

I vote for The Sad Cafe to win...

[VAisForEagleLovers]

Imagine how exciting it would be, after the usual Desperado ending, if they then went into DD/DR for a spectacular finish, the place would go nuts. Anyway, that is just my own bias, but I would love to have seen it be featured and placed more prominently in the show.

BBK, this is a great idea except I'm pretty sure I'd cry like a baby! That would be one heck of an impact.

[Ive always been a dreamer]

Very enjoyable posts, jcl and BBKron. I have always loved the reprise. In all the previous Desperado Survivor Games, I unsuccessfully lobbied very hard for it to win those games. The song seems to have earned some well-deserved respect since it has been added to the HOTE set list. So - this is a no brainer for me as well ...

I cast my vote for the Doolin-Dalton/Desperado Reprise.

[Ive always been a dreamer]

Well the stage was set for another showdown, but instead it turned into a landslide. The tribe has spoken and we can crown the winner of the Underrated Eagles Song Survivor. Congratulations ...

Doolin-Dalton/Desperado Reprise

Votes
Doolin-Dalton/Desperado Reprise – 17
The Sad Café – 5

Vote Breakdown
Doolin-Dalton/Desperado Reprise – UK TimFan
Doolin-Dalton/Desperado Reprise – shunlvswx
Doolin-Dalton/Desperado Reprise – thelastresort
Doolin-Dalton/Desperado Reprise – sodascouts
Doolin-Dalton/Desperado Reprise – VAisForEagleLovers
Doolin-Dalton/Desperado Reprise – DevineDon
Doolin-Dalton/Desperado Reprise – UndertheWire
Doolin-Dalton/Desperado Reprise – scottside
Doolin-Dalton/Desperado Reprise – LA Eagle
Doolin-Dalton/Desperado Reprise – Desperada
Doolin-Dalton/Desperado Reprise – Lacken101
Doolin-Dalton/Desperado Reprise – Brooke
Doolin-Dalton/Desperado Reprise – Glennsallnighter
Doolin-Dalton/Desperado Reprise – GlennLover
Doolin-Dalton/Desperado Reprise – Jonny Come Lately
Doolin-Dalton/Desperado Reprise – BBKron
Doolin-Dalton/Desperado Reprise – Ive always been a dreamer
The Sad Café – Freypower
The Sad Café – WalshFan88
The Sad Café – Funk 50
The Sad Café – Witchy Woman
The Sad Café – zeldabjr

Songs eliminated:
Most of Us Are Sad 1/29
The Last Resort 1/31
James Dean 2/02
Too Many Hands 2/04
Pretty Maids All in a Row 2/06
Bitter Creek 2/08
Those Shoes 2/10
My Man 2/12
Ol' 55 2/14
Do Something 2/16
After the Thrill Is Gone 2/18
Long Road Out of Eden 2/20
Good Day in Hell 2/22
The Sad Cafe 2/24

Once again...

CONGRATULATIONS TO DOOLIN-DALTON/DESPERADO REPRISE!!!

To celebrate, listen to this audio from 1975 ...

http://www.glennfreyonline.com/multi...ingfield75.mp3


Thanks for playing everyone and hope you enjoyed the game!

[WalshFan88]

Not my preferred win, but oh well...

Good game.

[shunlvswx]

Congrats to Doolin' Dalton/Desperado reprise. When we started this game, I had a feeling Doolin' Dalton/Desperado reprise would win. Its a great song and I definitely thought it was underrated.

Congrats to Doolin' Dalton/Desperado reprise. Great game.

[Ive always been a dreamer]

Congrats to the Doolin-Dalton/Desperado Reprise!!!

It is very deserving of the win. It wasn’t my first choice to win the game, but it was a close second, so I am very pleased with the outcome. As we often do after these games, I am going to post my list for the order I would’ve liked these songs to finish in the game. I made my list before the game started, and I divided the songs into the following 3 different categories to help myself determine the order. I would love to see others’ lists for those of you are interested in sharing it.

Some of the band’s better songs that don’t get the respect they deserve

1. After the Thrill Is Gone
2. Doolin-Dalton/Desperado Reprise
3. Good Day In Hell
4. Long Road Out of Eden
5. My Man
6. The Sad Café
7. The Last Resort
8. Do Something
9. James Dean

Really good songs that get the appropriate level of respect they deserve

10. Bitter Creek
11. Ol’ 55
12. Those Shoes
13. Pretty Maids All in a Row

Some of the band’s weaker songs therefore they aren’t underrated

14. Too Many Hands
15. Most of Us Are Sad