Felder's "Heaven and Hell" Discussion Thread

[sodascouts]

Speaking of the press, here's the latest interview:

"Former Eagles Guitarist Tells His Story in Book"
By Gene Triplett
Entertainment Editor

[Ive always been a dreamer]

He did not contribute as much as Frey and Henley but he does not deserve to be cut out! He DID contribute to the band, that is undeniable.

But Haywire - here is the crux of the problem. He did, in fact, contribute to the band. I don't think anyone has ever tried to dispute that. However, I also don't think there is any evidence that suggests that Henley and Frey were trying to cut him out completely when he was a member of the band. The problem is that they wanted to compensate him for his contribution proportionately. Now, I can see how that proportionate amount may be negotiable. However, Felder didn't want to negotiate - he wanted the same amount as Henley and Frey just like he had in the beginning. Again, to quote him:

"Do you let your two partners screw you over and run off with the whole thing?" replied Felder. "Or do you stand up for what you agreed to do when we started?"

[sodascouts]

I don't know whose decision it was to cut Felder out of the photo in Rolling Stone, but I wouldn't read too much into it.

As dreamer says, I don't think anyone can deny that Felder contributed to the Eagles. He made their sound more rock-edged in the late 70s, he came up with the instrumental track to their most famous song.... he was definitely a valuable asset to the band.

However, I think by the time he was fired, he was more of an albatross than an asset.

[Freypower]

To me it seemed the story about Hotel California being a single was meant t o show how smart Henley was, to think of releasing such a long song as a single. It didn't take any guts to release New Kid in Town as a single so why talk about it?

New Kid In Town runs for 5.03. It isn't exactly short. So history should be rewritten because it isn't as long as Hotel California?

It isn't a question of 'not taking any guts' to release it. It is one of the band's most challenging songs. His objection to it is that Frey sings it and he had no hand in writing it. He wanst it to sound like Hotel California was the first single from the album which went to Number One. This is not true.

If I read one more comment by him saying 'I just cared about the music' .... seriously. Why can't he be honest? And he talks about being 'friends' with these people when all he does is insult them. I concentrate on Frey, but he says stuff about 'Henley gave a rare smile'. What does that mean? That he wants to emphasise the stereotype of Henley being humourless as opposed to the real person he claims to have known?

What Henley did in Rolling Stone was give his and Frey's side of the firing, after enduring endless variations on Felder's side. I thought he handled it with dignity. He is surely as entitled to give the other side as Felder is.

As for all the moaning about no longer being friends but associates and shareholders, would he have preferred the Eagles to stay in the minor league and not make any money so he could hang on to his alleged 'idealism'? He contradicts himself at every turn. If it was only about music he would not have sued and he would not be so obsessed with the 'equal share' stuff.

And finally, Bernie Leadon at least was not pushed out by 'oppression'. Both Leadon and Meisner did clash with Frey, true. But again we get this 'redressing the balance for Leadon and Meisner' stuff. What did Felder to do stop them leaving? Has he seen them since?

I don't want to be this harsh. I really don't. But there are far too many holes and discrepancies in what Felder claims.

[Mrs Frey]

'Mrs. Frey' I could tell you were a huge fan, if your name didn't tell me all those beating hearts would, you made your point!

I read the recent Rolling Stone interview and Henley took stabs at Felder in that. And Felder was even cut out of photos though I don't know if that was the Eagles' fault.

He did not contribute as much as Frey and Henley but he does not deserve to be cut out! He DID contribute to the band, that is undeniable.

My user name and beating hearts aside, Haywire, I felt I needed to emphasise the fact that it's difficult for us Frey fans to swallow all Felder's negativity regarding our hero. Felder is, after all, not without fault.

I read the Rolling Stone interview too and truth be told, I'll need to go back and find the stabs that Henley took at Felder, as I can't even remember them. It's STILL true that Frey has said nothing about the whole affair.

I noticed that Felder was cut out of the Rolling Stone double-page spread photo, but that's probably because the article was focused on the current band. I don't think it has anything to do with purposely wanting to deny his significance to the band. When Glenn was interviewed by Bob Costas back in 1992, he made a point of giving Felder credit for his contributions to the Eagles.

How often has Glenn subordinated himself in the Eagles to stroke others' egos? How often does he get credit for that? I'm sorry, but Glenn is not a villain. It has ALWAYS been Glenn's band, and the biggest problem with the Eagles back then is that the members didn't want to accept that. Henley admitted in the "60 Minutes" interview that Glenn's leadership was and still can be a source of tension between him and Glenn. Fortunately, now, they've found a way to make things work.

[sodascouts]

Check this out guys!

"Psycho Santa" responds to his depiction in Felder's book!

Looks like everything is patched up now.

[DonFan]

That is quite an amazing account.

No matter how much I read about the guys, every day something new comes to light. It is hard for me to imagine all the crazed fans they have had to deal with over the years. No wonder they are so guarded about their privacy!

[rcknalwys]

What a great story Soda! Thanks for sharing. I can only imagine the lengths some people will go to for an autograph. No wonder the guys shy away from people.

[Ive always been a dreamer]

Yeah - I can definitely see how the guys could get freaked out by over-zealous fans. Well, at least in this case, all has ended well, hopefully. If the guy is sincere in that he is "just a fan" and he meant no harm, it's great that he had the opportunity to apologize to Don for his bad judgement.

[TimothyBFan]

Thanks for posting that Soda--I enjoyed reading it. Glad it all working out in the end.