For Those Saying Glenn Frey is Necessary to the Eagles; no Glenn, no legit Eagles

[Annoying Twit]

What if Deacon Frey had said no?

That is a question I have asked myself more than once most recently the other day when news of a 2018 North American tour was made official with more dates to be announced.

No Deacon, no Eagles. That's what I believe.

Note that I make no claims of telepathy.

[WalshFan88]

What if Deacon Frey had said no?

That is a question I have asked myself more than once most recently the other day when news of a 2018 North American tour was made official with more dates to be announced.

I don't think it would have stopped Irving or Don...Deacon made it easier for the fanbase to feel ok with it. That's what I think... I still think they would have tried to do it with someone else before scrapping the idea to see how the fans react.

[New Kid In Town]

Originally Posted by UndertheWire
I think you can read too much into Don's "estranged" comment. He and Glenn had very different personalities and that included how close they remained with old friends. Don has remained close with Jackson Browne and JD Souther, whereas Glenn didn't once their lives no longer touched. Instead he made new friends who fitted in with his new life.
Originally Posted by Soda
I think he compartmentalized, perhaps a bit more than most, his sets of friends. "I can't even relate to that guy anymore," he once said of himself, referring to what he was like in the 60s and 70s (this was an interview from the early 90s, I believe). I think that might have extended to the company he kept.

Interesting comments. I think Don and Glenn's friendship in the years after the break up in 1980 was complicated. They were two very different people with very different personalities. I think what originally drew them to each other in 1970 was obviously their love of music and desire to start a band. Once that happened, they were full force, Eagles 24/7 for nine years. The mind boggling success, fame and stress wore them both out and broke up that once close friendship. By the mid 80's, Glenn had given up the R & R lifestyle and went thru a marriage and divorce. Don at that point was still single and living that lifestyle. In fact, one of the main reasons the 1990 reunion did not work was because Glenn felt Don was still living that lifestyle. Glenn was happily married and expecting his first child. In that Wash.Post interview, Jackson stated he felt Glenn and Don were never able to rekindle that close friendship they had in their 20's. By the time Don married in 1995, Glenn had been married for five years and had two kids. I think when push came to shove, Glenn deep down was basically what he was raised - a mid-westerner who seemed to return to his roots in many ways. I think he loved and respected Don but that close friendship was apparently long gone. As people age and mature their interests and desires change and one time close friends grow apart. I think this was very much a love/hate friendship, and boy would I ever love to read a book regarding their friendship. Just my 2 cents.

Dawn - I would think that without Deacon this new version of the Eagles would have been difficult. Fans would be much less likely to accept it and they would have been torn apart in the press. There is obviously a very strong emotional appeal/tug the heart strings with Deacon in the band. However, at this point who knows. Don could very well have just gone with Vince.

[WalshFan88]

Dawn - I would think that without Deacon this new version of the Eagles would have been difficult. Fans would be much less likely to accept it and they would have been torn apart in the press. There is obviously a very strong emotional appeal/tug the heart strings with Deacon in the band. However, at this point who knows. Don could very well have just gone with Vince.

This is how I see it. It would have been more difficult to pull off without him but I think Don would have tried it to test the waters. It wasn't Deacon IMO that made them continue on.

[sodascouts]

I would think that without Deacon this new version of the Eagles would have been difficult. Fans would be much less likely to accept it and they would have been torn apart in the press. There is obviously a very strong emotional appeal/tug the heart strings with Deacon in the band. However, at this point who knows. Don could very well have just gone with Vince.

A lot of the reasons being proffered now - "we're doing it for the fans" - "we're keeping the music alive" - could have been used without Deacon's presence, and I think they would have been.

We're talking millions of dollars here. Deacon's participation made it easier for all involved, but it would have happened anyway.

[Freypower]

A lot of the reasons being proffered now - "we're doing it for the fans" - "we're keeping the music alive" - could have been used without Deacon's presence, and I think they would have been.

We're talking millions of dollars here. Deacon's participation made it easier for all involved, but it would have happened anyway.

So what about the 'family blood' stuff? I refer to Henley's justification for this in the Rolling Stone article which I posted a few pages back when the argument was starting to get heated (page 178 ).

As I think you said yourself, how convenient that Glenn had a singing guitarist for a son.

I have some comments about what was said during that argument, but I don't wish to revive it.

[YoungEaglesFan]

One thing that bugs me a little is people take such a cynical view of the Eagles right now. A popular theory as why they went on was purely based off greed. That would then imply they would be lying about reasons. I know sometimes they’ve said things that aren’t true but this would be a whole new level. No offense intended but if you think the band would do something that bad how could you like the band? I would be disgusted if that happened and would have to reconsider my interest in the band. I personally think that Without Deacon they would not have toured. Without Deacon saying yes, the Frey family would most likely be opposed to a tour and if the Frey family rejected that publicly there would be no way they would tour. People would be disgusted. I think the motivation to tour is similar to previous tours. For the music and money. Maybe money more so than enjoying the ride but not solely for money.

[sodascouts]

So what about the 'family blood' stuff? I refer to Henley's justification for this in the Rolling Stone article which I posted a few pages back when the argument was starting to get heated (page 178 ).

One cannot know such a thing, of course. However, we could always use a prior model to make an educated guess.

He might say he was "in shock" when he swore he'd only do it with Deacon and that now that he's emerged from his early stages of grief, he realizes that continuing the Eagles is the right thing to do with or without Deacon. He might even boost his backtracking by quoting Emerson out of context: "A foolish consistency is the hobgoblin of little minds."

That seems to work pretty well.

[WalshFan88]

One thing that bugs me a little is people take such a cynical view of the Eagles right now. A popular theory as why they went on was purely based off greed. That would then imply they would be lying about reasons. I know sometimes they’ve said things that aren’t true but this would be a whole new level. No offense intended but if you think the band would do something that bad how could you like the band? I would be disgusted if that happened and would have to reconsider my interest in the band. I personally think that Without Deacon they would not have toured. Without Deacon saying yes, the Frey family would most likely be opposed to a tour and if the Frey family rejected that publicly there would be no way they would tour. People would be disgusted. I think the motivation to tour is similar to previous tours. For the music and money. Maybe money more so than enjoying the ride but not solely for money.

For me, I can still like someone's or a group's music even if I don't like them as people or they've disappointed me. I listen to some artists music that I wouldn't ever want to meet in person and we don't share the same views/ethics. So that doesn't keep me from listening or liking their music, especially what I consider to be the real band. I can separate the music from the person the majority of times.

And no, not for a minute do I believe Don Henley or Irving Azoff are above lying.

[Annoying Twit]

I think the album and the article points out how close Bob was to Glenn.

I'll just point out that Bob clearly approves of Eagles continuing, as he played with them. Most importantly, in my eyes, at Classic West.

It does seem that the people closest to Glenn do approve of Eagles continuing.