Favorite Eagles harmonies

[YoungEaglesFan]

Obviously the Eagles are an elite harmonizing band, but what is your favorite Eagles song in terms of harmonies. (Something outside of like seven bridges road which is too obvious)

[New Kid In Town]

YEF - LOL - I would have to say SBR - That is one of my all time favorite Eagles songs. However, I think the harmonies on LE, NKIT and BOML are beyond beautiful ! They won the Grammy for Best Vocal Arrangement for LE and a Grammy for Best Vocal By a Group or Duo for NKIT.

[YoungEaglesFan]

NKIT i too love those songs but to me the peak for the Eagles vocally was already gone. Having bernie made them fuller to me.

[Delilah]

In no particular order other than chronological:

1. Take It Easy
2. Nightingale
3. Doolin-Dalton/Desperado Reprise
4. Saturday Night
5. Already Gone
6. My Man
7. Best of My Love
8. Ol' 55
9. You Never Cry Like a Lover
10. Midnight Flyer
11. One of These Nights
12. Lyin Eyes
13. New Kid in Town
14. Waiting in the Weeds (Don and Timothy's voices blend beautifully here)

ETA: oops I mis-read the OP...it's supposed to be one song...I guess it's either Best of My Love or My Man...it's hard to choose. To me the On the Border album was where their harmonies truly shined the most.

[New Kid In Town]

There are so many songs that we could talk about the famous Eagles harmonies. Delilah has a good list. They really shined on the first four albums.

[Pippinwhite]

One of mine would have to be the "Doolin-Dalton/Desperado Reprise". And "Ol' 55". The way the harmony builds is just so perfect. It's really a beautifully produced track. You can hear each instrument individually, but they all blend, too. The harmonies don't drown out Glenn's lead, and they slip between leads so easily. I do like that one.

[Fred Doolin]

That part on New Kid In Town where they harmonize the Tears On Your Shoulder line, it's so beautiful especially Randy Meisners high part

[LovinGlennGirl]

Ol 55 is incredible, for the reasons listed. Love that song.

I loved the one they opened Take It Easy with in the beginning. I think it was Silver Dagger (maybe). The first line "My daddy was..." set the harmonies standard from the beginning.

[thelastresort]

Most of mine have been said but I will add my own comments.

I love Silver Dagger; I wish it had never been culled but that of course is totally implausible. It sounds so raw and I like the utterly random nature of it, it does sound like something you just sing backstage for five minutes to get warmed up. I have never been a Seven Bridges Road fan, as much as I love the lyrical content, as it sounds far too polished and I think it begins to drag.

My next is Doolin-Dalton / Desperado (Reprise); the strength of the closing harmonies I think probably takes it beyond my beloved username as the strongest closing track on an Eagles album. It was haunting back in the day when you used to see Glenn really lean back to put all his energy into singing it, you could tell they all threw absolutely everything they had at the ending.

Ol' 55. Never did harmonies save an Eagles song more than this. I love the steel pedal (as ever on an Eagles song) but were it not for the chorus the rest of it would be a forgettable cover. How fortunate then that they probably produce the best harmonies of their entire career on the chorus. Absolutely beautiful.

Moving onto 1976 and deliberately bypassing the most obvious candidate for this thread (Lyin' Eyes), I will say New Kid in Town. This is Glenn's unparalleled best contribution to the band's discography for me; but I love the final two minutes or so, when the various combinations of voices join in. As well as 'tears on your shoulder...' I also love Glenn's 'and you're still aroooooound' and the way Henley, Randy and Joe (I think) hold the backing vocals whilst he does it, before joining back in for the 'there's a new kid in town' etc. until the end. Wonderful.

My final nomination would be Pretty Maids All in a Row. Not as spectacular as the others I've mentioned, but the way Glenn (I think, and Henley?) harmonises the final verse and chorus, and the subsequent 'Oooh' over the outro (especially when Joe played slide ove it live) is absolutely heartbreaking. How brilliant that the tenderest and most delicate moment on the album came from the newbie with a reputation for good old fashioned rock and roll destruction.

[Delilah]

Most of mine have been said but I will add my own comments.

My final nomination would be Pretty Maids All in a Row. Not as spectacular as the others I've mentioned, but the way Glenn (I think, and Henley?) harmonises the final verse and chorus, and the subsequent 'Oooh' over the outro (especially when Joe played slide ove it live) is absolutely heartbreaking. How brilliant that the tenderest and most delicate moment on the album came from the newbie with a reputation for good old fashioned rock and roll destruction.

I can't speak to how it was performed live, but on the album version, I'm pretty sure that's Henley harmonizing on the final verse. I think Glenn joins in on the 'oooh' parts. This video plays the vocals, drum and bass parts so anyone who is interested can listen and decide for himself. I agree the harmony here is lovely.

It starts about 50 seconds in.

http://m.youtube.com/watch?v=tI7rwWJ1v3g

[YoungEaglesFan]

One song that I find underrated overall, but has amazing harmonies has to be "try and love again". I love the "ah ooooo" part in the Middle and the "gonna try gonna try gonna try" part in the Outro. I LOVE that song and I wish they had put it out as a single and played It live but oh well...

[New Kid In Town]

YEF - I love TALA too. They did sing it while Randy was still in the band. Many years ago I had read an interview with Glenn, who stated they had planned to release TALA as the next single from the HC album. Glenn stated because Randy had left the band they never released it as a single. A shame because that song is beautiful and Randy just nails it.

[Delilah]

One song that I find underrated overall, but has amazing harmonies has to be "try and love again". I love the "ah ooooo" part in the Middle and the "gonna try gonna try gonna try" part in the Outro. I LOVE that song and I wish they had put it out as a single and played It live but oh well...

It is my fervent hope that when the special edition of Hotel California is released, one of the live tracks will be TALA. :pray:

[thelastresort]

I can't speak to how it was performed live, but on the album version, I'm pretty sure that's Henley harmonizing on the final verse. I think Glenn joins in on the 'oooh' parts. This video plays the vocals, drum and bass parts so anyone who is interested can listen and decide for himself. I agree the harmony here is lovely.

It starts about 50 seconds in.

http://m.youtube.com/watch?v=tI7rwWJ1v3g

A superb find, thank you very much. I will agree that that without question is Henley. I'm trying to remember back to HFO but I think when I saw them play it live in the HOTE tour Glenn was in there too. I seem to recall Timothy remained silent in all instances, including the outro, which must make it one of the very few live songs he does no vocal work at all on.

[thelastresort]

It is my fervent hope that when the special edition of Hotel California is released, one of the the live tracks will be TALA. :pray:

Is there a source for this? I don't doubt you, it's just I find it hard to keep on top of the rumour mill, especially of late!

I do like TALA, indeed the first chorus ('the look was in her eyes...') is very well done; however I always thought it was let down by the seven quadrillion year long fade out. How many times does Randy need to say 'Gonna try'?!

[Delilah]

Re: the video, you're welcome, tlr.


Is there a source for this? I don't doubt you, it's just I find it hard to keep on top of the rumour mill, especially of late!


The source is Don Henley, according to the Runaway Tour thread. Granted, since we're talking about Don, it may be the 45th anniversary before we see the special edition, lol.



I do like TALA, indeed the first chorus ('the look was in her eyes...') is very well done; however I always thought it was let down by the seven quadrillion year long fade out. How many times does Randy need to say 'Gonna try'?!

:steviesmack: As many times as he wants. :nahnah::lol:

[Freypower]

I can't speak to how it was performed live, but on the album version, I'm pretty sure that's Henley harmonizing on the final verse. I think Glenn joins in on the 'oooh' parts. This video plays the vocals, drum and bass parts so anyone who is interested can listen and decide for himself. I agree the harmony here is lovely.

It starts about 50 seconds in.

http://m.youtube.com/watch?v=tI7rwWJ1v3g

Well, that is an illusion shattered for me. I thought it was Glenn for all these years. Yet MORE Henley vocals on a song where for once I thought Glenn played a more prominent vocal role. :rolleyes:

Oh well.

My favourite song for harmonies is my favourite song, New Kid In Town, and I will leave it at that, except that now I've been corrected on PMAIAR I will give a huge shout out to Glenn's efforts during the verses on LROOE. And that IS Glenn. It's nobody else.

[chaim]

Well, that is an illusion shattered for me. I thought it was Glenn for all these years. Yet MORE Henley vocals on a song where for once I thought Glenn played a more prominent vocal role. :rolleyes:

Oh well.

My favourite song for harmonies is my favourite song, New Kid In Town, and I will leave it at that, except that now I've been corrected on PMAIAR I will give a huge shout out to Glenn's efforts during the verses on LROOE. And that IS Glenn. It's nobody else.

There's at least one more harmony part that is on the record (PMAIAR) that is not in that "isolated" clip. There's certainly a harmony vocal below Joe's main melody during the verse about ribbons and bows. If you hear his voice there somewhere, that lower voice could easily be Glenn.

[Freypower]

There's at least one more harmony part that is on the record (PMAIAR) that is not in that "isolated" clip. There's certainly a harmony vocal below Joe's main melody during the verse about ribbons and bows. If you hear his voice there somewhere, that lower voice could easily be Glenn.

Thank you so much for saying that. :idea:

It didn't even occur to me that whoever made the clip might have only isolated one part.

[chaim]

Thank you so much for saying that. :idea:

It didn't even occur to me that whoever made the clip might have only isolated one part.

Also, Glenn, Randy, or Joe himself, may have doubled one of the harmony lines even though his/their voice is not on that clip. I love all these clips with isolated tracks, but they don't necessarily contain everything. They may, but not necessarily.

(Sometimes everything is not what it seems with these clips. There's a "Welcome to the jungle" clip with Izzy Stradlin's guitar only. Here and there Izzy's guitar disappears and a guitar played by Slash's takes its place. There's another "isolated track" clip from WTTJ (don't remember which instrument or if it's a vocal track), where you can hear the "missing" Stradlin guitar bits. In other words, it looks like they cut Izzy's guitar part here and there and moved some of it to another track. So his guitar can be heard throughout, but not always on the same track. When I looked at the YouTube comments, many people seemed to believe that those Slash punch-ins were Izzy and they were amazed.)

I'm not saying that Glenn sings in the final verse in PMAIAR (I have no idea whether he does or not). I'm just saying that the isolated clip doesn't prove that he doesn't.

[East Texas Girl]

My favorite harmony songs are You Never Cry Like A Lover "try a little harder" is just beautiful. I close my eyes and sit totally still and just picture myself there with the guys as they are singing. Next up is Doolin Dalton/Desperado Reprise "is there gonna be anything left" it has such a soulful sound, again beautiful. And Bernie's My Man "see it in his eyes" just dreamy.

I agree with you Delilah, I think their harmonies really shined on the On The Border album.
Also hope they have a live version of Randy's Try And Love Again to add to the special edition of Hotel California release. I would love to hear it.

[groupie2686]

I love the harmonies on all the songs mentioned already (Try and Love Again is playing on my pandora as I'm typing this). To add something new, their harmonies on the HFO version of The Heart of the Matter and Help Me Through the Night are heavenly.

[chaim]

I'm listening to the Hotel California album. I can clearly hear Glenn in the word "places" in PMAIAR, but maybe I'm imagining it. :headscratch: