![\"The](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/The-singer-both-Don-Henley-and-Glenn-Frey-called-the-greatest-22I-always-loved-it22-Far-Out-Magazine.jpeg\")
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(Credits: Far Out \/ The Eagles \/ Don Henley)<\/p>\n
Thu 18 December 2025 18:30, UK <\/p>\n
When Don Henley<\/a> and Glenn Frey first joined Eagles, they weren\u2019t going to settle for average singers.\u00a0<\/p>\n They had grown up on some of the greatest vocalists that California had ever produced, and since they were in the same area that birthed Brian Wilson, there was no way they could go out there sounding rough around the edges. Every member of the band needed to be able to carry a tune, but there\u2019s a difference between singing a song and embodying one whenever you\u2019re behind the microphone.<\/p>\n It\u2019s not like the head Eagles didn\u2019t understand that, either. Both of them had enough humility to understand when a song suited someone else\u2019s voice better, and while they would hand off songs to Randy Meisner on \u2018Take it to the Limit\u2019 or Timothy B Schmit on \u2018I Can\u2019t Tell You Why\u2019, it was clear that Henley was the true frontman of the group whenever he opened up that golden throat of his on their classics.<\/p>\n But Frey had a much different voice half the time he sang. He was more comfortable with the rock and roll tunes, and despite not having the same vocal register as Henley, his weary voice was absolutely perfect for a song like \u2018New Kid in Town\u2019. A lot of that came from practice and musical instinct, but each of them knew that the great singers hit people in their soul first before getting every single note right.<\/p>\n While they were both avid fans of people like Hank Williams and The Beatles, there was always a healthy respect for the greatest voices in soul music as well. Frey had already come from Detroit and had a decent education of all things Motown, but few could compare to the massive presence Ray Charles had whenever he started singing tunes like \u2018What\u2019d I Say\u2019 or \u2018Hit the Road Jack\u2019.<\/p>\n When talking about Charles\u2019s ballads, though, Frey felt that no one could compare to songs like \u2018Worried Mind\u2019 when he covered it for his standards album After Hours, saying<\/a>, \u201cThere\u2019s no beating Ray. It was on a country album that he did, and I always loved it. I thought, it\u2019d be nice on an album full of very sophisticated chord changes to do something a little simpler.\u201d The melody was perfect, but what endeared Charles to Henley was that country background as well.<\/p>\n