Five covers of Eagles hits that are better than the originals
The Eagles have a habit of dividing opinion.
They are one of the best-selling groups of all time. However, their soft-rock sound, drenched in Californian wine and dried out by the beating sun of the West Coast, is a difficult drink to swallow on occasion. They can feel a little too sweet, their harmonies a little too on the nose, and their mouthfeel can leave you spitting.
Of course, the group are also behind some of the most anthemic songs ever composed. ‘Hotel California’ and ‘Life in the Fast Lane’ are just two examples of how deeply they consider songcraft. Each piece is perfectly balanced to not only allow the instrumental to flourish but also provide an opportunity for each vocalist to deliver some of their best work.
It’s easy to see how the group can be polarising. Don Henley, Glenn Frey, Joe Walsh, Don Felder, and Randy Meisner were equally as torn, regularly falling out with one another or finding themselves on stage ready to fistfight. It’s a message that has perhaps got out to the music-loving public, too.
But, if you’re in need of the perfect set of songs to satisfy both divisions of the muso world, then a collection of covers of the Eagles that are better than the originals is probably as welcome as a glass of cool water in the Mojave Desert. Covers from empirical singers like Etta James provide a richness the group simply didn’t have, while Johnny Cash is the perfect shadow to their sunshine ways.
Eagles maybe a divisive band, but one thing that everyone can agree on is that they had a habit of writing some truly mesmeric songs and, in a bunch of new hands, thsoe songs can get even better.
The five best covers of the Eagles:
‘Desperado’ – Linda Ronstadt
Some artists are simply born to sing, and when covering a song by the Eagles, that really comes in handy. Linda Rondstadt is one such artist, and because of that, she delivers a truly spellbinding cover of ‘Desperado’. Considering her strong connection to the group, it’s no surprise that she would eventually sing on one of their more revered tracks, but with this one, she makes it her own.
Though it has origins in the Wild West, the track was initially inspired by Ray Charles. “It’s really a Southern gothic thing, but we can easily make it more western,” noted Don Henley when Glenn Frey brought him the unfinished track. The Annie Oakley of song, Ronstadt, then instantly became the most obvious candidate to make this into one of her own fabled stories.
“I was extremely flattered that Linda recorded ‘Desperado’,” Henley said. “It was really her that popularised the song. Her version was very poignant and beautiful.”
‘Take It To The Limit’ – Etta James
Sometimes you just gasp when you see a certain singer’s name, and Etta James is one of those mesmeric voices that can lift you off your seat before she sings a word.
It’s easy to align the Eagles with the mesmeric harmonising they delivered on almost all of their songs. A uniquely placed band, who all seemed as able to create vocal heavenscapes as each other, will naturally lend themselves to compelling singers. Give one of their songs to Etta James, and you will have yourself a match made beyond the shining pearly gates.
Of course, to assume that James can bulldoze her way into any track is a little shortsighted, but her brutish soul works a charm on this cover. She is a blistering powerhouse who turns the otherwise delicate tune into something far meatier.
‘Hotel California’ – Gipsy Kings
Few songs typify the Eagles better than ‘Hotel California’. The track is ubiquitous, not just with the band but with the 1970s, with California and America at large. For many, the tune has become a national anthem. It’s why the Gipsy Kings’ version is so wildly appealing.
First appearing on the 1990 album Rubáiyát, the Catalonian group delivers a wondrous multicultural take on the inescapable abode. A flamenco-style sound is perfectly flecked with the French and Spanish origins of its singers, all mixed together with the red, white and blue blood of Eagles.
Perfectly deployed in The Big Lebowski, arguably the greatest cult movie ever made, this cover version has taken on a new life, and while it will never outsell the original, it does a great job of being altogether more pleasing on the ear.
‘Desperado’ – Johnny Cash
If you wanted a rock gunslinger to take on your country-tipped ballad and make it into a heartfelt reflection on the very nature of humanity, then finding the number of Rick Rubin and Johnny Cash would have been essential. Released in 2002 as part of Cash’s enigmatic American IV: The Man Comes Around, Cash delivers a brutal reminder of his imposing talent.
Ronstadt’s version of the song is not without pathos but is naturally sweetened by her honeyed vocals. It says something about the band’s songwriting that two different singers could take the song in such different directions, and that is certainly what happesn with Cash’s version.
Here, Cash takes the story into bleaker settings with a gruff tone and the cadence of a cowboy who has seen it all before. Shared just a year before his passing, the recording shows Cash perhaps in his most perfect spot—singing the greats and making them his own.
‘Witchy Woman’ – The Hollies
Covers are a great way to piggyback on the success of an already-legendary tune, but taking on a classic song shortly after its release is always a difficult mountain to climb.
The track is already on the airwaves, and what you can add to it is obviously going to be compared to the original without the necessary time and space between versions to make the new cover feel fresh. But The Hollies, one of the British invasion bands who refused to go away, were time-hardened and used to taking on the work of others.
The track is a Halloween staple, but while the Eagles take the song into a more mellow space, The Hollies kicked things up a notch. It is decidedly smokier, filled with far more soul and just generally a harder-hitting experience than Henley and Co were able to muster. There’s something about The Hollies that makes them perfect for this cover and helps to make their song their own.
