‘New York Minute’: The one Don Henley song that matched the Eagles
Leaving a successful rock band is one of the biggest gambles an artist can take. Even if you can’t stand the people in the group, there’s a certain sense of security that comes from having an album fail and being able to distribute the blame across every member rather than having to take the brunt of it yourself. There was no doubt that Don Henley would have a fine solo career after the Eagles, but ‘New York Minute’ was one of the first times where he reached the same songwriting heights he had with the California rockers.
That’s not to say that Henley was putting out nothing but middle-of-the-road rock before releasing his masterpiece. His debut single, ‘Dirty Laundry’ was a great case for him being known for more than just ‘Hotel California’ and ‘Desperado’, and by the time he started building momentum on ‘The Boys of Summer’, he was creating some of the greatest adult-oriented rock and roll of the 1980s.
And most importantly, he didn’t seem to do anything to embarrass himself along the way. Many singer-songwriters tried their hand at fitting into the 1980s, but every time someone wanted to fit in with the times, more often than not, they ended up looking extremely silly, like Phil Collins did when he put together ‘Sussudio’.
By the time Henley reached the end of the 1980s, he seemed to be wondering where all of the fun went. After years in the limelight, he started to realise the cold and calculated world he was living in, and The End of the Innocence is one of the most heartfelt listens of his entire career. The album is thematic in the sense of losing that childlike sense of wonder, and each song seems to explore one facet of adult life, like when he tries to figure out where to go on the title track or finding someone to relate to on ‘The Last Worthless Evening’.
While Henley is still hopeful throughout the record, ‘New York Minute’ is a tribute to those who get lost along the way. Despite being one of the unintentional ambassadors of California, Henley knows the hustle and bustle of The Big Apple all too well, talking about people struggling to make ends meet, turning tricks for money, and ultimately losing it all along the way.
If anything, this feels like an unintentional sequel to fellow Eagle Joe Walsh’s ‘Pretty Maids All in a Row’. While Walsh talked about meeting friends after a long time away and wishing them well, Henley is checking in on those same friends and realising that he didn’t have time to say all that he needed to say.
And whether he knew it or not, Henley would unintentionally write one of the greatest cautionary tales for Americans a decade before they needed it. No matter how much Henley tried to bring optimism back into the world following 9/11 with ‘Hole in the World’, ‘New York Minute’ is a firm reminder to cherish what you have, especially knowing that something could be lurking around every corner.
Despite its morbid subject matter, hearing each instrument play off each other and Henley’s yearning vocal deserves to be studied the same way that something like ‘Take It Easy’ is today. It’s far from the cheeriest track that Henley ever wrote, but in terms of subject matter, this actually eclipses a lot of the Eagles’ material, which probably explains why it was one of the few songs that found its way into the band’s reunion setlist from their solo careers.
Then again, singing about everyday people was what Henley was all about. His material was always there to provide a helping hand to anyone who needed it, and in terms of his older material, ‘New York Minute’ may as well be the same reckless kid from ‘Desperado’ spending a little too much time believing in the dream that ‘Hotel California’ had talked about all those years ago.
