Movie Review: “History Of The Eagles” DVD

Its hard to imagine how many bands were involved in the creation of the Eagles… it’s a who’s who of country-rock (JD Souther, Bob Seger, Kenny Rogers, Jackson Browne, Linda Ronstadt, etc.). And getting that first album out (with producer Glyn Johns) wasn’t easy, but effectively created the Eagles sound. “Take It Easy” was called the song of the times, a contrast to the turmoil of the era (Vietnam, Watergate, etc.). The Western California sound was new and fresh and the Eagles thrived in it.

The film gathers amazing rehearsal footage and interviews about the bands history. “It was the 70’s, drugs were everywhere…” Glen Frey mentions, yes – this documentary pulls no punches either, showing rare backstage footage of “the 3rd encore” where the groupies were willing and ready to party. Once the band hired Bill Szymczyk(producer) and Don Felder(guitarist) the band hit their stride. Adding Joe Walsh shifted the band’s sound to a full rock and roll sound, so by 1977 the Eagles were considered the most popular and successful band of the decade. Like The Beatles, you had four strong alpha musicians (Felder, Frey, Walsh, Henley) and something had to break. After the 1980 tour it all fell apart, but then we go through the 1994 reunion and the depth of each members post-Eagles catalog. Highly Recommended even if you aren’t a big Eagles fan.

Amazon