{"id":409589,"date":"2026-01-15T22:04:10","date_gmt":"2026-01-15T22:04:10","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/409589\/"},"modified":"2026-01-15T22:04:10","modified_gmt":"2026-01-15T22:04:10","slug":"the-one-musician-glenn-frey-described-as-the-eagles-muse","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/409589\/","title":{"rendered":"The one musician Glenn Frey described as the Eagles’ “muse”"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"Glenn<\/p>\n

(Credits: Far Out \/ Steve Alexander)<\/p>\n

Thu 15 January 2026 20:11, UK <\/p>\n

The Eagles<\/a> have always been open about the influence that a wide range of artists has had on their sound. When they first emerged in the early 1970s, they played a crucial role in preserving and modernising the rock sound of the 1960s, ensuring that its spirit lived on beyond the hippie era. However, the band credits much of their success to one performer in particular, whom they refer to as their \u201cmuse\u201d.<\/p>\n

The thing about a \u201cmuse\u201d in rock is that it can sound like mythology, as if a band is describing some hazy lightning bolt rather than the reality of how careers actually get built. In practice, the greatest influence is often proximity. It is the person whose orbit you move in, whose standards you absorb, and whose instincts quietly recalibrate what you think is possible.<\/p>\n

For the Eagles, that influence was never simply musical in the narrow sense. It was about professionalism, taste, and the discipline of making songs feel effortless even when they are carefully engineered. Ronstadt was already operating with the poise of someone who understood the whole machine, and that kind of example leaves fingerprints on everyone who passes through.<\/p>\n

More so than a muse, this name can really be credited for the band\u2019s origins. The formation of the Eagles<\/a> was unlike any other 1960s and \u201870s troupe. It\u2019s not the dream story of a group of ragtag friends growing up together, learning instruments and one day making it. Instead, it was more like a puzzle where the pieces were placed together until, one day, they clicked. As for the puzzle master making the earliest moves for the band\u2019s creation, that would be Linda Ronstadt.<\/p>\n

In 1971, Ronstadt was on the hunt for new musicians to join her band. Having already established herself as one of the most influential names in the 1960s scene<\/a>, she was already a hot ticket and an artist that players scrambled to work with. During the audition process, she and her manager, John Boylan, recruited two guys called Glenn Frey and Don Henley. Both coming from opposite sides of the US, them both being invited to join the band was a moment of true kismet that set the ball rolling for one of the most beloved rock groups in history.<\/p>\n

\"Linda<\/a>The Eagles\u2019 muse, Linda Ronstadt. (Credits: Far Out \/ Linda Ronstadt)<\/p>\n

It was on tour with Ronstadt that the two decided to start a troupe, prompting the mastermind to play her hand again and recommend Bernie Leadon for the group. They also wanted Randy Meisner in the troupe, so they got Ronstadt to invite both into her own band to test out the musical chemistry. For a while, it seemed as if the folk star\u2019s backing band was merely a musical lab, figuring out the formula for what would come to be the Eagles.<\/a><\/p>\n

When they finally got it right and recorded their self-titled debut album in 1972, they never forgot the contributions Ronstadt gave to the band, not only as an essential logistical force bringing them together, but as a vivid musical and artistic inspiration too. \u201cLinda was our muse and a brave artist who followed her instincts,\u201d Frey told Express<\/a>.<\/p>\n

In particular, he looked towards her 1983 album What\u2019s New time and time again as a kind of gold standard to meet. \u201cThis album, the first of three with Nelson Riddle, is my benchmark,\u201d he said. More so than any of her 1970s albums, which feature Frey as part of her band, it\u2019s this 1980s record that stood out as one of his all-time favourite albums from a musician who played a vital hand in his career.<\/p>\n

He describes the record as being \u201cwell-written, infectious, beautifully sung0.\u201d But even that isn\u2019t high enough praise for Ronstadt, who Frey honoured again and again throughout his long career. <\/p>\n

\u201cShe has always felt a responsibility to educate as well as entertain. She\u2019s always putting in a Chuck Berry song for people that might not have heard of that, or \u2018Blue Bayou\u2019 by Roy Orbison, [\u2026] I really admire her bravery and credibility,\u201d he said of the singer, deeming her \u201cthe first lady of country rock\u201d and the band\u2019s ultimate \u201cmuse\u201d.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n

Related Topics<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"(Credits: Far Out \/ Steve Alexander) Thu 15 January 2026 20:11, UK The Eagles have always been open…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":349973,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[53],"tags":[6346,88,53388,34850,216],"class_list":{"0":"post-409589","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-music","8":"tag-eagles","9":"tag-entertainment","10":"tag-glenn-frey","11":"tag-linda-ronstadt","12":"tag-music"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/409589","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=409589"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/409589\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/349973"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=409589"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=409589"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=409589"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}