“It was a no-brainer”: Don Henley on the only person who could replace Glenn Frey
In 2016, the Eagles were rocked by the death of founding member their co-leader Glenn Frey. While his health had been in decline for some time prior to his passing, the sad news was still a shock to the system and left a gaping hole at the heart of the band that many feared would be impossible to repair. Alongside the band’s drummer and Frey’s songwriting partner Don Henley, the duo were such a prominent driving force behind the band’s success, and without one-half of them, the Eagles would have a huge dilemma on their hands.
Many questioned whether it would even be possible for the band to continue performing or even existing without such a key figure, and fans were left worried that Frey’s absence would spell the end of the band for good. They had obviously reformed many times in the past and introduced new band members along the way, but none of their new recruits over the years had had quite the same task of replacing a member of Frey’s significance.
However, with Henley still present and other key members of the group in Timothy B Schmidt and Joe Walsh still capable of committing to touring, there were faint glimmers of hope that Frey’s death didn’t spell the end of the Eagles. They hadn’t released a studio album since 2007’s Long Road Out of Eden, so they didn’t need to commit to writing new music with new members, but they would have to find a suitable replacement to fill Frey’s shoes in a live capacity.
When the Eagles returned to touring in 2017, many were excited to see who the band had settled on to take the role, but the main surprise that came to audiences and fans was that they hadn’t found one person to assume Frey’s position, but they’d in fact found two.
Joining the band on lead vocals was country legend Vince Gill, but the more surprising new recruit was Frey’s 23-year-old son, Deacon, who was brought in to play rhythm guitar for the band. The band performed a show at Nashville’s iconic Grand Ole Opry early on into their return with the new lineup, and during the band’s rendition of ‘New Kid in Town’, Gill chose to dedicate the track to the young Deacon, despite how both of them were essentially ‘new kids in town’.
While Gill was clearly making a comment about Deacon’s age, the new members were both well-received by fans, and Henley went as far as to suggest that there was little deliberation about bringing in Gill as their new frontman. Speaking to Rolling Stone, Henley said that “it was a no-brainer for us to get Vince” before declaring that “nobody else, other than Deacon, was even discussed”.
Henley further explained why he was so sure that Gill was perfect for the role. “Glenn played golf with him. And Vince was in a band called Pure Prairie League. They did a style of music similar to ours – country-influenced pop. He fit like a glove. And his personality is great. He’s just glad to be there. He’s probably the happiest guy onstage.”
While the rounds of golf might not have been the greatest indicator, the rest certainly seems like a reasonable resume to have for becoming a key member of the Eagles, and while Frey was sorely missed by the band and fans alike, Gill was an ideal replacement.
