Eagles fans may only get to take it to the limit one more time.
Don Henley, the last remaining founding member of the rock band, said in a wide-ranging interview with CBS Sunday Morning news that 2026 “will probably be it” for the group.
“And I’ve said things like that before, but I feel like we’re getting toward the end,” Henley said.
Henley cited a “miraculous” 53 years touring with the band, which released its self-titled first album in 1972. He said he’d like to grow more vegetables, spend more time with his family and travel back to places he has visited on tour.
“We see the airports and the hotel room and the venue, and we don’t get out much,” said Henley, 78. “I’d like to go back to the places I’ve been and see more of those places before it all disappears,” he said.
Also in the interview, Henley jokingly rebuked a popular claim that in America, “everyone loves the Eagles.”
“I don’t agree with that,” he said. “We have our detractors. I don’t think people in America agree on anything right now. We’re a staple. We’ve been around a long time. We’re some of the last of our generation to still be playing live.”
While discussing the band’s “Greatest Hits” record, Henley said he’s “thankful for the group’s perseverance,” and he doesn’t think too often about its record-setting sales and streaming. He said other things occupy him.
“I have family, health and the state of the world and country,” Henley said. “It’s nice and we all appreciate it. We’re proud of having put in the work. We have a good work ethic, which has enabled us to be able to play for the last 53 years.
“What makes us happy is that we make other people happy,” he said. “We say music is medicine and people need medicine right now because we’re ailing in this country.”
The current edition of the band has eight dates remaining for its residency at the Sphere arena in Las Vegas, spanning February and March. The Eagles are then set to play the New Orleans Jazz and Heritage Festival on May 2.
The four original members of the Eagles — guitarist Glenn Frey, bass player Randy Meisner, and guitarist Bernie Leadon — met while playing in Linda Ronstadt’s backup band, then left to pursue their own career.
The current touring lineup includes Henley, Joe Walsh, Timothy B. Schmit, Vince Gill and Deacon Frey, who is the son of Glenn Frey.