(Credits: Far Out / The Eagles)
Hailing from California, like the Eagles so proudly did, it’s almost inevitable that a contrived underbelly exists in the heart of the band.
They may have had free-flowing hair and soaring three-part harmonies that almost mirrored the West Coast sunshine under which they lived, but the truth is the band were as calculated as they come. Each note was desperately thought about, and each unbuttoning of the shirt was deliberated over as the band sought to create an outfit that could conquer the musical world.
Of course, they successfully achieved that. But all of the acclaim they experienced in the heady 1970s came from a fine-tuning of their artistic vision. Whether it was sacking guitarists for not committing to the high note or working each member to the bone with a relentless touring schedule, the band adopted an approach of my way or the highway.
Randy Meisner eventually chose the highway, exiting just after the band reached Hotel California. Meisner delivered a truly iconic vocal performance on ‘Take It To The Limit’, which was both mesmerising and taxing. When the latter sentiment began to weigh heavily, the fiercely ambitious leaders of the band, Don Henley and Glenn Frey, gave him a pretty swift option. Get up there and sing, or leave.
Meisner essentially grew disillusioned with the intensely focused vision for the band, and yearned for a simpler time in his music career where writing music was done, just for the hell of it. Because as a founding member of the band, he knew better than anyone how curated the band’s sonic and visual identity was. He stood alongside Frey and Henley, discussing what influences they needed to adopt in order to make their grand idea of a Californian rock band come to life.
Speaking of the band’s initial influences, Meisner explained, “With Poco and the Eagles, there’s a common musical thread that runs throughout with the disciples being the Byrds, Buffalo Springfield, and Flying Burrito Brothers.”
He continued, “We listened to The Byrds and Buffalo Springfield a lot. I was in awe of Chris Hillman’s bass playing, still am. He played some great bass parts although he played with a pick and real direct. A way different style than me but man, I was just amazed at his playing. The Byrds records were so good. I mean even The Beatles loved the Byrds music. It’s the way the band looked and sounded, they just had it going on.”
With the Eagles, there never seemed to be an obvious sense of enjoyment in their music. Both in the studio and on stage, there was almost a creative and personal tension that pushed the music further into the heart of greatness. Clearly, it worked well for the band, but that sort of effortless charm that existed in the bands that inspired them didn’t necessarily exist.
They were truly one of the most paradoxical bands of the modern era, with beautiful harmonies and delicate melodies hiding a band who would be remembered as one of the most fraught and volatile of all time.
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