What is the only Eagles album to get to number one in the UK?
Make no mistake about it: the Eagles are one of the biggest and most successful rock bands ever.
Their compilation album Their Greatest Hits (1971–1975) is one of the best-selling records of all time in the United States, while Hotel California comes in at number three on the list. But curiously, neither of those albums went to number one in the UK. And even more curiously, it wasn’t until several years later that the group finally scored a British number one. So, which Eagles album made it to number one in the UK? And why was there such a disparity between their success in America and their success across the pond?
The first reason is simply a question of style. The Eagles’ music drew heavily from American folk, rock, and country, sometimes being labelled as ‘country rock.’ This combination made it a natural fit for US audiences, who were familiar with country music’s influence. In the UK, however, country had a more niche following and was perceived as quintessentially American.
This difference is made clear when you consider that the Eagles weren’t the only group to achieve success stateside but not in the UK. Acts such as Kenny Rogers, Steve Miller Band and Garth Brooks are among the best-selling acts of all time in America, but their music never really had the same impact in the UK. These artists incorporated elements of country and soft rock into their sound, which perhaps didn’t suit the British musical palette at the time.
It’s also true that in the Eagles’ most commercially successful years in the mid-to-late-70s, the band didn’t tour the UK nearly as extensively as the US. For instance, between 1975 and 1980 (the year they split up for the first time), they only played a total of ten shows in Blighty. By contrast, the band performed hundreds of gigs in America over the same timeframe, building a loyal fanbase and leading to massive airplay on FM rock stations. In fact, the UK shows they played in 1977 would be their last British appearances until they reformed in the 1990s.
But that’s not to say that the Eagles never made any kind of impact in the UK, though. Hotel California, their best seller in the UK, made it to number two in the charts and was the seventh-top-selling album of 1977. It meant that by the time they reformed in 1994, they had managed to maintain a loyal fan base in the UK, largely built around the success of Hotel California.
So, which album went to number one?
It still took them another 13 years after reforming to release a new album. When they finally did – 2007’s Long Road Out of Eden – it became their first and only UK number one.
Between May and June 2024, the Eagles played five sold-out nights at Manchester’s Co-op Live Arena, which were said to be the band’s final-ever performances in the country. Though they never quite matched the incredible success they achieved back home, there’s little doubt that they still hold a place in the hearts of millions of fans in the UK.
