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25听|听Top 100
'Hotel California'
The Eagles
By the time the Eagles came to record their fifth album, they were in the enviable position of being the biggest band in America but by then they were barely talking to each other. Bassist Randy Meisner recalled: 鈥淏y 1976鈥 we couldn鈥檛 sit down like guys anymore, it was all |
 Song facts |
| Composer |
Frey/Henley/Felder |
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| Genre |
Rock |
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| Album |
Hotel California |
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| Year of release |
1977 |
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| UK Chart Position |
8 |
|
business. The friendships were kind of gone.鈥
Guitarist Don Felder who came up with the original riff for 鈥楬otel California鈥, which was then developed by Don Henley and Glenn Frey. From the beginning, it had been apparent that the song was taking on a life of its own however. Because of its length - it was running at six and a half minutes - the record company was reluctant to release it as a single. Luckily, the band persisted and eventually won the argument - in March 1977, the song gave them their fourth American No.1.听 In Britain it got to No.8, giving them their biggest UK听hit.
鈥楬otel California鈥 marked a departure from the band鈥檚 familiar country-rock offerings. The tale was brooding and atmospheric, marking the hotel鈥檚 sad decline from elegance to decadence. The duelling guitars of Felder and Joe Walsh were harder-edged and there was even a hint of reggae in the song鈥檚 rhythm. The lyrics might be a tad clunky (surely wine isn鈥檛 a spirit?) but they were elevated by the seamless solos that marked the song鈥檚 lengthy conclusion.
The Eagles' Glen Frey on creating Hotel California |
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Eagles co-founder Glen Frey talks about how听the band created their Rock masterpiece - "we were trying to expand our lyrical horizons and try and to take on something in the realm of the bizzare like Steely Dan had done".
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Other versions |
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听Latino strummers the Gypsy Kings provide a tinge of "rumba flamenca" to The Eagles classic rock song.
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Songwriting tips Hotel California is widely held to be an allegory for the death of the hippie dream. Why are lyrics important? Find out here. |
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Test your knowledgeDo you really know everything about Hotel California? Try our quiz and find out.TAKE THE CHALLENGE! |
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