{"id":259352,"date":"2025-11-12T22:48:12","date_gmt":"2025-11-12T22:48:12","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/259352\/"},"modified":"2025-11-12T22:48:12","modified_gmt":"2025-11-12T22:48:12","slug":"don-henley-and-the-eagles-member-who-didnt-meet-band-standards","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/259352\/","title":{"rendered":"Don Henley and the Eagles member who didn’t meet “band standards”"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"Don<\/p>\n

(Credits: Far Out \/ YouTube Still)<\/p>\n

Wed 12 November 2025 17:35, UK <\/p>\n

Don Henley, Glenn Frey and Bernie Leadon made up the classic trio of songwriters at the heart of the Eagles<\/a> during their early rise to fame. <\/p>\n

Through the early 1970s, the group honed a winning formula of energetic, country-infused rock music. With chart-busting hits like \u2018Take It Easy\u2019 and \u2018One of These Nights\u2019, they were already one of the world\u2019s most beloved and successful acts by the mid-1970s. <\/p>\n

Despite the band\u2019s unmitigated success following 1975\u2019s One of These Nights, Leadon decided to leave the band, shirking the intrusive limelight. It has long been believed that Leadon left because he was dissatisfied with the band\u2019s gradual departure from country to pop-rock. However, he denied that this was the case in a 2013 interview.<\/p>\n

\u201cThat\u2019s an oversimplification,\u201d he told Rolling Stone when questioned on the matter. \u201cIt implies that I had no interest in rock or blues or anything but country rock. That\u2019s just not the case. I didn\u2019t just play Fender Telecaster. I played a Gibson Les Paul, and I enjoyed rock \u2018n\u2019 roll. That\u2019s evident from the early albums.\u201d<\/p>\n

Fortunately, the band was well-equipped to deal with Leadon\u2019s departure, having welcomed guitarist Don Felder in 1974. Furthermore, the band took on Joe Walsh, the former frontman of James Gang<\/a>, as Leadon\u2019s direct replacement in 1975. <\/p>\n

With this new configuration, the band soared to new peaks of popularity with their fifth album, Hotel California. The 1976 release rose through album charts worldwide with a hefty debt owed to its titular single, which reached number one on the US Billboard Hot 100 the following year.<\/p>\n

\"The<\/a>The band members of the Eagles. (Credits: Far Out \/ Showtime \/ The Eagles)<\/p>\n

The late \u201970s were shaping up to be a heady ride for the Eagles, but external smiles and success disguised inner tensions that rose to a boil approaching the 1980s. While the band sang of peace and harmony, their internal affairs were somewhat hypocritical. Most notably, amid the rock \u2018n\u2019 roll lifestyle of excess, the all-too-familiar woes of intra-band politics began to take hold, with a major power struggle forming a rift between Felder and Frey. <\/p>\n

In the 2013 documentary The History of The Eagles, Frey cited Felder\u2019s lack of vocal ability as an ongoing issue. \u201cDon Felder, for all of his talents as a guitar player, was not a singer,\u201d he said. Drummer Henley agreed, maintaining that it \u201csimply did not come up to band standards\u201d.<\/p>\n

The truth is, Eagles were a multi-faceted outfit that required more than just one talent to be a part of the group. It wasn\u2019t enough to just be a great guitarist or singer; you had to be able to achieve extremely high levels in both arenas. Just ask Henley, arguably the greatest lead singer and drummer the world has ever known. <\/p>\n

The high of Hotel California remained unmatched by the end of the 1970s, ultimately leading to the Eagles\u2019 acrimonious dissolution in July 1980. That month, during an infamous show at Long Beach, California, nicknamed \u2018Long Night at Wrong Beach\u2019, animosity between Frey and Felder reached a violent pitch<\/a>. <\/p>\n

Backstage, before the show began, Felder allegedly said, \u201cYou\u2019re welcome \u2013 I guess,\u201d to California Senator Alan Cranston\u2019s wife as he thanked the band for performing a benefit concert for his re-election. Frey, taking issue with Felder\u2019s response, entered a tirade of furtive taunts throughout the show. <\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019re onstage, and Felder looks back at me and says, \u2018Only three more songs till I kick your ass, pal.\u2019 And I\u2019m saying, \u2018Great. I can\u2019t wait\u2019,\u201d Frey recalled of the fateful night. \u201cWe\u2019re out there singing \u2018Best of My Love\u2019, but inside, both of us are thinking, \u2018As soon as this is over, I\u2019m gonna kill him.\u2019 That was when I knew I had to get out.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n

The Eagles broke up in 1980 and have since resurfaced several times for reunion tours. Felder returned to the Eagles in 1994 but was subsequently fired in 2001, triggering a raging legal battle as Felder sued for wrongful termination. The case was settled in 2007 out of court for an undisclosed amount. <\/p>\n<\/p>\n

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