I have always enjoyed the music of the Eagles and saw them in concert at Murrayfield in 1996. They are one of the most successful rock acts of all time and were initially active between 1971 and 1980. Their Greatest Hits compilation is the biggest-selling album in American history, shifting an incredible 38 million units in the States. Follow-up LP Hotel California clocked in at a mere 32 million! After an acrimonious split, singer/drummer Don Henley famously declared the band would never play again until "hell freezes over" - a temperature that was finally achieved down below in 1994 after Satan forgot to switch the heating on. The juggernaut rolled into Edinburgh two years later and I attended with my folks. Mum turned 77 last week and I gifted her tickets for an Eagles tribute show being staged two days after her birthday by Scottish band Hotel California.
The concert was at Carnegie Hall, Dunfermline and my sister Linda came along. The event was a sell-out and I had only been able to obtain back-row seats when I booked a week beforehand. The theatre holds around 400 and sitting up in the balcony was no great hardship. The view of the stage was perfect. Most of the Hotel California guys also perform in a tribute to Free/Bad Company and it was while attending one of those shows that I found out about their main gig. I bumped into a guy I knew and he told me to keep an eye out for an Eagles booking. That night, singer Al King did a superb job of handling Paul Rogers bluesy vocal parts for the Free/Bad Company songs and the whole band played exceptionally well. Now it was time to see an expanded line-up (seven musicians in total) tackle the country/rock groove of the American legends. This meant King shared vocal duties with a couple of others as the Eagles themselves adopted this approach. Lush harmonies are frequently required, whereas The Free/Bad Company Experience was a one-man show as far as the singing was concerned. Al strapped on a guitar for tonight's concert but I suspect this was a case of giving him something to lightly strum when he wasn't required at the mike. The other principal singer was Ed Jones, who also played a bit of rhythm guitar. I observed how his voice was better suited to laid-back numbers such as Peaceful Easy Feeling while King was the go-to man for songs originally sung by Don Henley. Horses for courses! The twin lead guitars of Jim Bowie and Sean Lithgow provided nice embellishments and the rhythm section comprised Mark Anderson (drums) and Des Whitlie (bass) - both fine players. Keyboard flourishes were supplied by Kenny Archibald. The set covered the entire Eagles career and the real band are still active today, minus Glen Frey who sadly passed away in 2016. I must confess I wasn't too familiar with the newer material but there were enough classics to keep me happy.
The solo careers of Henley and Joe Walsh weren't overlooked and songs like Boys of Summer and Rocky Mountain Way are widely known. The first half closed with Take it to the Limit - originally performed by bass player Randy Meisner, who left the Eagles in 1977 and didn't return to the fold after the reformation. Guitarist Don Felder did, but was booted out in 2001, as hell began to warm up again. Ed Jones quipped that Hotel California are "the best of pals" and the faithful replication of the music doesn't extend to the actual personalities. Fifer Al King informed the crowd he'd recently received his bus pass and would be catching the number 19 back to Rosyth after the show. Interval over, the familiar extended intro to Hotel California - perhaps the Eagles best known song - rang out in darkness before the stage lights came on for the immortal first line - on a dark desert highway. It's my personal favourite, along with Life in the Fast Lane. I also adore Witchy Woman. The duelling guitars at the climax to Hotel California were flawlessly executed and a real highlight. As you might expect, the final part of the show was laden with hits and the band left to rapturous applause, Mark Anderson remaining on his drum stool to beat out the pattern for Heartache Tonight which triggered the inevitable encore. They did "one more for the road" with the ballad Desperado - which sent mum home happy. An excellent night of entertainment and only slightly marred by the bloke sitting next to mum who turned up late then sat and rabbited away endlessly to his companion. Fortunately I had two unclaimed seats beside me and we discretely slid one along. On the band's website, I read they had 16 theatre shows scheduled for 2022 (and a further eight as Free & Band Company). Tonight's gig had twice been postponed due to lockdown restrictions. Glad to see the hotel open again for business. You can check out any time you like...
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