contemporary Music – issue #6 – folk / Country rock
Folk rock is a popular music genre that emerged in the mid-1960s, primarily in the U.S. and UK, by blending the acoustic, lyrical, and melodic elements of folk music with the electric instrumentation, rhythm, and energy of rock & roll. It often features close vocal harmonies, poignant songwriting, and jangly guitars.
The American folk-music revival began during the 1940s; building on the interest in protest folk singers such as Woody Guthrie and Pete Seeger, it reached a peak in popularity in the mid-1960s with artists such as Bob Dylan and Joan Baez: The Byrds are credited with creating the genre’s “jangle” sound, particularly with their 1965 cover of Bob Dylan’s “Mr. Tambourine Man”. Dylan himself popularized the genre by “going electric” at the 1965 Newport Folk Festival. Besides Dylan and The Byrds, notable artists include Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young, Buffalo Springfield, Simon & Garfunkel, and The Band.In the UK, bands like Fairport Convention and Steeleye Span developed a distinct sound by electrifying traditional British folk tunes. Common instruments include acoustic and electric guitars, mandolin, banjo, and fiddle. In the United States folk rock acts personified a generalized, often self-righteous youthful rebellion that in its more pointed songs was labelled “protest” music. In Britain folk rock tended to be more respectful of tradition and combined centuries-old folk material with original, tradition-flavoured songs arranged for folk rock ensembles that often used old instruments to maintain a strong Celtic flavour. While the folk rock movement began and quickly surged in the 1960s, it has continued through the present day. It has spawned many offshoots, including psychedelic folk rock (Jefferson Airplane), country rock (the Flying Burrito Brothers, John Prine), progressive folk music (Richard Thompson, O’Death), punk-inspired folk rock (the Replacements, Dinosaur Jr., Buffalo Tom), and even folk metal (Skyclad, Moonsorrow). The annual Newport Folk Festival brings disparate folk acts together highlighting the wide array of songwriting and performance styles in today’s folk rock music.
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we will Feature Up to 4 Albums from Artists representative of a range of the Many sub-genres. We Hope to encourage Listeners of all tastes and passions. So Get your Headphones on and Consider discussing the musical Offering and sharing your views with like-minded peers.
In Issue #6, we feature the Eagles
Eagles (Asylum, 1972) The Eagles’ debut had a sound as all-American as the band’s name. This self-titled debut album helped define the 1970s Southern California country-rock with sweet vocal harmonies. It was recorded in London at the insistence of British producer Glyn Johns, but the music is pure Americana. First single Take It Easy, would become one of the band’s signature songs. Two more hits – the rockier Witchy Woman and the blissed-out Peaceful Easy Feeling – powered the album into the charts. The album is a polished blend of country-rock harmonies, tight songwriting, and West Coast charm, setting the tone for their career. The album is balanced in that members trade off on lead vocal chores and divide the songwriting but the three hit singles were sung by Frey and Henley, who would later go on to dominate the band. the complete album though belongs as much to Leadon’s country-steeped playing and singing and to Meisner’s melodic rock & roll feel, which, at time of release date, made it seem a more varied and consistent effort. It’s a confident opening statement, though later albums would refine and deepen their sound – a vital foundation, but not yet the expansive, genre-defining heights they’d soon reach.
Desperado (Asylum, 1973) After the success of their first album, The Eagles were brought down to earth when this follow-up, a concept album based on the legends of the Wild West and the Doolin-Dalton outlaw gang, performed poorly in the charts and the issued singles, Outlaw Man and Tequila Sunrise, failed to make even the Top 50. In hindsight, the obvious choice for a single was the title track, a beautiful ballad. Over the years, critical appreciation for the album has grown significantly and the album and title song have attained classic status. the music was among the most richly atmospheric that The Eagles ever recorded. The album was again produced by Glyn Johns and was recorded at Island Studios in London, England. Desperado is where the band first crafted their unique identity, blending country, rock, and folk into a seamless whole. The album’s concept gives it a narrative cohesion that few Eagles records match. Songs like ‘Tequila Sunrise’, ‘Desperado’, and ‘Doolin-Dalton’ reveal a deep emotional vulnerability and storytelling prowess, capturing themes of loneliness, freedom, and regret with poetic finesse.
One Of These Nights (Asylum, 1975) their first Album as a quintet with new guitarist Don Felder. the album introduces notable tracks “One of These Nights”: The title track is an absolute standout, introducing a sleek, R&B-infused disco groove driven by Randy Meisner’s sinister bassline and a stinging guitar solo by Don Felder. “Lyin’ Eyes”: A brilliant folk-rock shuffle that won the band their first Grammy Award. It highlights Frey’s vivid storytelling and the band’s faultless, tight vocal harmonies. “Take It to the Limit”: A grand, orchestrated ballad that features Randy Meisner’s career-defining, soaring high-note vocal performance. the album showcases impeccable harmonies, storytelling, and evolving musicianship. It also features Don Henley’s increasingly introspective lyrics and the band’s knack for crafting memorable hooks. One of These Nights represents a turning point where the Eagles matured from promising newcomers into superstars, It remains one of their finest, most compelling records
Hotel California (Asylum, 1976) Hotel California was, on the deepest level, a critique of modern America. More simply, it is an album full of great songs (Wasted Time, Life In The Fast Lane, The Last Resort), The Eagles’ masterpiece, and one of the greatest rock albums ever made. The band’s biggest-selling original studio album, Hotel California stands as the Eagles’ crowning achievement. Released in 1976, it captures the band at their creative peak, blending rock, country, and a touch of psychedelia with exceptional songwriting and musicianship. The album’s themes – fame, excess, and disillusionment – resonate deeply, while its polished production highlights intricate guitar interplay and rich vocal harmonies. the title track built on a reggae groove and capped with the mother of all lead guitar codas. Tracks like ‘New Kid in Town’ and ‘Life in the Fast Lane’ showcase the band’s ability to craft memorable melodies layered with thoughtful lyrics which perfectly capture the dark side of the American dream. The record’s enduring influence on rock music and popular culture is immense, cementing its status as a timeless classic – a defining statement of the 1970s West Coast sound – representing the Eagles at their most ambitious and artistically confident.
The Eagles are one of the most commercially successful and influential American rock bands of all time, originally formed in Los Angeles in 1971. Blending country, folk, and rock elements, they defined the laid-back Southern California sound of the 1970s. They were inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1998 and were ranked number 75 on Rolling Stone’s 2010 list of the “100 Greatest Artists of All Time”.
The Eagles had their origin in early 1971, founding members Glenn Frey (guitar, vocals), Don Henley (drums, vocals), Bernie Leadon (guitar, vocals), and Randy Meisner (bass guitar, vocals) had all been recruited by Linda Ronstadt and her manager John Boylan for her band. While on the tour with Ronstadt, Frey and Henley decided to form a band together and informed Ronstadt of their intention. It was later proposed that JD Souther should join the band, but Meisner objected. The four were signed in September 1971 to Asylum Records, the new label started by David Geffen. The group’s self-titled debut album was recorded in England in February 1972 with producer Glyn Johns. Johns was impressed by the harmony singing of the band, and he has been credited with shaping the band into “the country-rock band with those high-flyin’ harmonies”. Released in 1972, Eagles was a breakthrough success, yielding three Top 40 singles. The first single and lead track, “Take It Easy”, is a song written by Frey with his neighbour and fellow country-folk rocker Jackson Browne. Browne had written the first verse of the song, but got stalled on the second verse. Frey completed the verse, and Browne carried on to finish the song. On their second album, Desperado, Henley and Frey began collaborating. They co-wrote eight of the album’s eleven songs, including “Tequila Sunrise” and “Desperado”, two of the group’s most popular songs The pair also began to dominate in terms of leadership; the early assumption had been that Leadon and Meisner, as veteran musicians, would have a greater influence on the band.
The album was less successful than the first. For their next album, On the Border, Henley and Frey wanted the band to break away from the country rock style and move more towards hard rock. In January 1974, Frey called Felder to add slide guitar to the song “Good Day in Hell” and the band was so impressed that they invited him to join the group as the fifth Eagle the next day. He appeared on one other song on the album, the up-tempo breakup song “Already Gone”, on which he performed a guitar duet with Frey.The Eagles released their fourth studio album, One of These Nights, in June 1975. A breakthrough album for the Eagles, making them international superstars, it was the first in a string of four consecutive number 1 albums. The dominant songwriting partnership of Henley and Frey continued on this album. Leadon was disillusioned with the direction the band’s music was taking and his loss of creative control as their sound was moving from his preferred country to rock and roll. His dissatisfaction, principally with Frey, led to his leaving the band In December 1975. Leadon’s replacement was guitarist and singer Joe Walsh, who had been a friend of the band for some years. The following album, Hotel California, released in December 1976, was the band’s fifth studio album and the first to feature Walsh. The album took a year and a half to complete, a process that, along with touring, drained the band and strained their personal and creative relationships. Hotel California is the last album to feature founding member Randy Meisner, who abruptly left the band after the 1977 tour. The band replaced Meisner with Timothy B. Schmit. The Eagles went into the recording studio in 1978 to begin work on their next album, The Long Run. The album took a year and a half to complete. It was initially intended to be a double album, but the band members were unable to write enough songs.
With five number one singles, fourteen Top 40 hits, and four number one albums, the Eagles were among the most successful recording artists of the 1970s. The group was closely identified with a country and folk-tinged sound that initially found favour in Los Angeles during the late ’60s but the band also drew upon traditional rock & roll styles and, in their later work, helped define the broadly popular rock sound that became known as classic rock. As a result, the Eagles achieved a perennial appeal among generations of music fans who continued to buy their records many years after they had split up, which helped inspire the Eagles’ reunion in the mid-’90s.
The Long Run was released in September 1979 and considered a disappointment by some critics for failing to live up to Hotel California, however, it proved a huge commercial hit. On tour the animosity between Felder and Frey began to show and it appeared to be the end of the Eagles, but the band still had a commitment with Elektra Records to make a live record from the tour. Eagles Live (released in November 1980) was mixed on opposite coasts. Frey had already left the band and would remain in Los Angeles, while the other band members each worked on their parts in Miami. Following years of public speculation, the band formally reunited in 1994. On February 6, 2001, Don Felder was fired from the Eagles. He responded by filing two lawsuits against “Eagles, Ltd.” Felder accused them of coercing him into signing an agreement under which Henley and Frey would receive three times as much of the Selected Works: 1972–1999 proceeds. The case was settled out of court for an undisclosed amount. In 2007, the Eagles consisted of Frey, Henley, Walsh, and Schmit. In October 2007, the Eagles released Long Road Out of Eden, their first album of all-new material since 1979. After which there followed years of touring both in the USA and internationally On January 18, 2016, founding member Glenn Frey died at the Columbia University Medical Center in New York City at the age of 67. Despite Henley’s statements the previous year that he did not think the band would perform again, the band continued on and headlined the Classic West and Classic East concert in July 2017, which were organized by their manager Irving Azoff. Glenn Frey’s son Deacon performed in his father’s place. After just ten shows in early 2020, the remainder of the Hotel California Tour was postponed due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The tour resumed in 2021, with North American dates spanning August to November. The band then announced the tour would continue into 2022, with dates in both the U.S. and Europe. On April 6, 2022, the band announced on their Facebook page that Deacon Frey was leaving the group in order to pursue a solo career. Frey has since guested with the band on numerous occasions starting in June of that year. On July 6, 2023, the band announced their farewell tour, The Long Goodbye Tour with Deacon Frey again joining the band. Later that month, on July 26, founding bassist Randy Meisner died at the age of 77 from complications related to chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, leaving Henley and Leadon as the two remaining original members. In a joint press statement confirming the news, the band described Meisner as “an integral part of the Eagles and instrumental in the early success of the band”. In September 2024, the Eagles began a concert residency at Sphere in the Las Vegas Valley. The first eight concerts grossed $42.2 million from 131,000 tickets sold. The shows are scheduled to continue into March of 2026. In 2025, touring lead guitarist Steuart Smith was replaced by Chris Holt. Smith retired due to Parkinson’s disease. The band toured through May 2026. In February 2026, Henley said that the Eagles would disband at the end of that tour, “And I’ve said things like that before, but I feel like we’re getting toward the end…And that will be fine too”
Sound quality is important and the better online Streaming services will offer superior sound quality. As always, We do encourage you to purchase Favoured albums from good online or High street record stores. the Eagles label: - Asylum Records
Artists in upcoming issues: the Band, the grateful dead, joni Mitchell, Paul Simon....Keep Listening!! JOIN THE CONVERSATION...
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