The Eagles album Don Henley didn’t want to release to save his own embarrasment
Not every artist is necessarily thrilled with every album they have pressed to vinyl. Even though they may have spent years trying to make songs that appeal to people worldwide, there are just as many times that records are made just to get them done, with the musicians kicking and screaming into the studio. While the Eagles had long since broken up by the 1980s, one of their most famous later releases didn’t sit well with one of its founding members.
Usually, such an issue arises when the record just didn’t align with what they wanted to put out. Or, perhaps, that the LP is no longer connected with their audience. For Don Henley, though, one Eagles album was derided simply because it had so much potential to outsell him.
Compared to every other band making the rounds in the 1970s, though, no one could touch the California rockers. Capturing the feeling of the Sunshine State better than anyone else, albums like Hotel California would become mainstays of the band’s catalogue. Don Henley considered it the peak of the band’s creative output. Even outside of their mainline studio albums, the band’s compilation records also turned into massive sellers.
Before releasing their magnum opus, the band had assembled a collection of their best work for their first greatest hits album. Although the album would be a fan favourite and include their finest tunes like ‘Take it Easy’ and ‘Lyin Eyes’, the reception was rapturous, propelling the album to become one of the biggest-selling albums of the 20th century.
The timing couldn’t have been better, either, setting the band up to become one of the biggest names in music once Hotel California finally hits shelves. After the band reached the top of the mountain, though, the road to making the next album, The Long Run, would be fraught with tension, leading to the band breaking up shortly after performing a benefit concert while on tour.
Even though none of the members liked the idea of going solo, both Henley and Glenn Frey became stars overnight, each having solo successes. As both of them were having hits with songs like ‘The Boys of Summer’ and ‘You Belong to the City’ respectively, their label wasn’t finished milking their legacy, either.
Trying to capture the same magic they had the first time, the label ultimately released the band’s second greatest hits album, comprised of songs from the group’s last two albums. It’s a cheap trick that many bands have pulled over the years. But usually, as in this case, the real push comes from the label looking to squeeze another dollar from their mixes.
Being able to point to the label as the main culprits means bands can skim their royalties without making a new record, and everyone goes home happy. However, this time, things weren’t quite as serene. While the album sold decent numbers then, guitarist Don Felder remembered his bandmates not being too happy about the album coming out.
In his book Heaven and Hell, Felder remembered the success of the greatest hits album killing any momentum that any of the band’s solo material had, saying, “Don and Glenn were now competing in the charts against the Eagles Greatest Hits Volume 2, released by Asylum/Elektra in time for the 1982 Christmas market. Despite its lack of direct involvement with the band, it far outsold both solo albums. It was a hard act to follow”.
This also corresponded with the advent of classic rock radio around the same time, leading to many listeners tuning into the Eagles’ greatest hits around the same time that they broke up. While the band had a better time apart than together most of the time, it was only natural for them to settle their differences later, reuniting in the 1990s for the tour Hell Freezes Over. The band may have taken a hiatus, but those greatest hits were never going to be overshadowed by any of the band’s solo careers.
