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Credit: Far Out \/ YouTube Still<\/p>\n
Mon 24 August 2026 19:48, UK <\/p>\n
For most artists, picking just one song as a career favourite is a thankless task, but for Joe Walsh<\/a>, there\u2019s no debate.<\/p>\n Everyone has their different reasons for placing a certain song in pole position when looking back on their career. Typically, this might be due to artistic pride, the connection it made with the people en masse, and perhaps even the doors that it subsequently opened. For Walsh, all three of those played a role in his decision-making process.<\/p>\n As much as he\u2019s been a vital part of the Eagles for 50 years, that is only part of his story. While he has contributed to the songwriting process, including on Hotel California, that was always left primarily to Don Henley and Glenn Frey<\/a>. Therefore, it is unsurprising that his proudest songwriting moment pre-dates his tenure.<\/p>\n Walsh wasn\u2019t plucked out of obscurity to join the Eagles. He\u2019d been putting in the hard yards as a musician for a decade, which gave him the experience to take on replacing founding member Bernie Laudon. Admittedly, at first, it seemed like an unconventional choice to join the fold; those fears were quickly quelled when his first album with the band Hotel California arrived in 1976.<\/a><\/p>\n As a songwriter, he only contributed to two songs on the record, including the mega-hit \u2018Life in the Fast Lane\u2019. Nevertheless, while his role only continued to grow as the years passed, Walsh knew that it wasn\u2019t his band. Naturally, on a personal level, it\u2019ll never have equal meaning to Walsh as the song that truly launched him as an artist.<\/p>\n Before joining the Eagles in 1975, Walsh had already had some moderate success with the James Gang. This period acted as an apprenticeship for Walsh and was an invaluable chapter of his career. He got to see up close what it was like to be A-list when they supported The Who on a European tour, which also saw Keith Moon teach him how to be a rock star<\/a>.<\/p>\n However, he still felt unfulfilled. In 1971, Walsh decided it was time for a new adventure. He left the James Gang and started as a solo artist with the help of his backing band, Barnstorm. The first album was a flop, making it seem like Walsh had made a grave error in quitting the James Gang. Then, the second album looked set for a similar trajectory and potentially being dropped by his label, until \u2018Rocky Mountain Way\u2019 changed everything for him.<\/p>\n Further reading: From The Vault<\/p>\n It was a major hit for Walsh, altering the trajectory of his career<\/a> and making more people stand up to take notice of his talent. Following the failure of his first album, even Walsh was questioning if he\u2019d backed the right horse. Then, he wrote \u2018Rocky Mountain Way\u2019, and everything fell into place. To this day, Walsh still believes it to be the best song he\u2019s ever written.<\/p>\n He explained his circumstances, at the time of writing the classic track, to Howard Stern during an interview in 2012: \u201cI was in Colorado, I had left the James Gang and was worried that I might have made a mistake because we were doing fine.\u201d<\/p>\n On his departure, Walsh said he\u2019d become \u201csaturated with playing really loud and being a kick-ass guitar guy,\u201d which made him want to start something new.<\/p>\n Just as the regret was taking over, out of nowhere, an epiphany came to him at the most unexpected time, recalling, \u201cI\u2019m mowing the lawn. I look up, and there\u2019s the Front Range of the Rocky Mountains, and there\u2019s snow on them in the summer. And it knocked me back because it was just beautiful. And I thought, \u2018Well, I have committed. I\u2019m already in Colorado, and it\u2019s too late to regret the James Gang. The Rocky Mountain way is better than the way I had because the music was better.\u2019 I got the words. Bam!\u201d<\/p>\n After the lyrics arrived in his mind, nothing else mattered. Walsh quickly raced into his home and forgot about mowing the lawn, which majorly damaged his next-door neighbour\u2019s garden. It proved to be a small price to pay for producing a song that would pick him out of the gutter and put his career back on track.<\/p>\n At this crucial juncture, Walsh\u2019s chips were down, and he\u2019d begun to question every decision that landed him in this perilous position. However, everyone happens for a reason, and quitting the James Gang brought him to Colorado, which, in turn, led to the creation of \u2018Rocky Mountain Way\u2019 that marked a new artistic zenith for Walsh.<\/p>\n If he didn\u2019t write \u2018Rocky Mountain Way\u2019, then perhaps the Eagles wouldn\u2019t have eventually made the call for him to join<\/a>, either. While we will never know that for certain, one thing is for sure: Walsh deciding to mow his lawn that day is the best decision he has ever made.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n
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