On this day (November 26) in 1994, the Eagles topped the Billboard 200 with Hell Freezes Over, where it stayed for two weeks. Recorded during an MTV special, the LP was their first in 14 years. After releasing The Long Run in late 1979, the band went on a hiatus that many fans didn’t believe would end.

The tension within the band came to a head during a 1979 show in Long Beach, California. Their studio album, The Long Run, dropped later that year. Then, in 1980, Asylum Records released Eagles Live. By that time, though, most band members weren’t on speaking terms. In fact, the album’s title, Hell Freezes Over, is a reference to a quote from Don Henley. After the band split, someone asked when they would get back together. He told them, “When Hell freezes over.”

[RELATED: On This Day in 2007, the Eagles Reached the Top of the Chart with a Landmark Album Following an Extended Hiatus]

How the Eagles Reunited

Hell Freezes Over wouldn’t have happened without the 1993 tribute album, Common Thread: The Songs of the Eagles. Country singer Travis Tritt signed on to cover “Take It Easy” for the album, which was released as a single. When the time came to record a video for the song, Tritt said he wanted the Long Run-era lineup to appear in the video. After some negotiations, the band agreed. It was the first time fans had seen the band together in more than a decade.

Months after recording the video, Glenn Frey and Don Henley met with their management to discuss the future of the band. Then, they chose to reunite.

In April 1994, Frey, Henley, Timothy B. Schmit, Joe Walsh, and Don Felder performed together publicly for the first time. They took the stage at Warner Bros. Studios in Burbank, California, for an MTV special. The next month, they embarked on their reunion tour.

The album contained 11 classic songs and four new studio tracks. The new tracks–“Get Over It,” “Love Will Keep Us Alive,” “The Girl From Yesterday,” and “Learn to Be Still”–were released as singles. “Learn to Be Still” reached No. 15 on the Adult Contemporary chart. “Love Will Keep Us Alive” topped the chart. “Get Over It” was the only single to reach the Hot 100, where it peaked at No. 31.

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