Birmingham, AL 1-24-09

[DonFan]

I'm back---and the show was FABULOUS as always! It really was fun seeing the show with a group of people who had never seen it, giving me fresh eyes as well. My daughter Rachel (Bamagirl) took well over 200 pictures with the new Nikon camera we gave her for Christmas, so I will post some pics as soon as I can.

The guys weren't as quite as chatty as they were in Memphis, but they were still pretty talkative--all except Don. The only time he talked was his standard line about taking a break and then "we'll come back and sing a long time" during his intro to Long Run. He did sing "All the debutantes in Bama, baby, couldn't hold a candle to you," to big cheers from the hometown crowd.

Rachel laughed when Glenn said his line about "That was the botanical portion of the show, 'No More Walks in the Woods & 'Waiting in the Weeds.' Next is the meteorological portion, 'No More Cloudy Days.'" Then, when Glenn was introducing Lyin' Eyes, he said it was written at Dan Tana's, "A repository for some of the world's most beautiful women, all of them unattainable to us." Glenn didn't add any little extras during the introductions that I hadn't heard before, except to add that Scotty won the football pool six times. No "My Girl" tonight.

Timothy did his bit where he says, "It's my turn to talk now," and pointed to the nosebleed seats and said "I see you up there---and over there too." He sang two lines of "Tempted by the Fruit of Another" when he was taking about Paul Carrack then added, "But he's not here and we are, so we're going to sing now."

"Long Road Out of Eden" continues to be my real favorite live. Don's vocals, Joe's guitar work--the whole song is just breathtaking. And I never tire of watching Don rock his guitar and share a mic with Timothy on "Somebody."

When they came back for the encore, Glenn sang a little bit of Randy's Newman's song, "Birmingham": "We've been traveling across this entire land and there ain't no place like Birmingham!"

I have certainly been spoiled by having close seats. Our seats were on Joe's side on the first set of risers on the side, not really bad but of course I wish we had been closer. I did get to watch the screens more this time, since I was further back. Just ONCE I wish I could have a seat where Don doesn't have cymbal-head when he sits at the drums, however! But here's the best part: when Don got ready to sing Desperado, my friend Deanna said, "I wonder if they will let us go down front so I can take some pictures during the last song?" She slipped out and headed down the stairs so I followed her down on the floor. I figured the guards would send us right back to our seats but they didn't. She took some pictures behind the first block of floor seats then she asked the guard if we could go down front for the very end of the song. To my complete astonishment he said YES, and escourted us down to the end of the barricade on Timothy's side in front of the front row! We were right inside the barricade--they were literally just a few feet from us! Her hands were shaking as she was taking the pictures and I was absolutely frozen, being that close to the stage as Don sang that long, loooooong "Let somebody loooooooove you..." It was unbelievable. Then the house lights came up and they lined up for their group bow, and Don & Glenn came over to our side of the stage and stood right in front of us. I blew Don a kiss and he grinned and looked right at me before walking to the other side of the stage. Then Timothy and Joe walked over right in front of us and bowed, and Timothy was blowing kisses to the entire front row. If I had had ANY idea that we would have been able to get that close, I would have brought roses again! Anyway, I couldn't believe our luck. You just never know what you'll get unless you ask! It was the PERFECT ending to a wonderful night!

[EagleLady]

Aww DF, That is so awesome. Don has an adorable grin.

[DonFan]

Eagles Deliver--by Jim Dunn -- For The Birmingham News
Saturday January 24, 2009
The economy is comparable to that of the Eagles' '70s heyday, and so was the crowd response. And the crowd, for that matter. It's a safe bet that many of the concertgoers that nearly filled the BJCC Arena tonight were reliving an experience they first took part in during the Carter administration, judging by the slightly middle-aged demographics.
In its first, hour-long set, the band -- Glenn Frey, Don Henley, Joe Walsh and Timothy B. Schmit -- played some songs from its newest CD, "Long Road Out of Eden," like "Busy Being Fabulous" and "I Don't Want to Hear Any More."
They're good songs, but it didn't matter. The crowd paid their ticket money for "Witchy Woman," "Hotel California," "Lyin' Eyes" (which Frey dedicated to "my first wife, Plaintiff"), "Peaceful, Easy Feelin'" and "In the City."
And they got their money's worth. The band delivered the moneymakers with the polish that decades of recording and touring affords. The voices might have been the teensiest bit weaker (but, in the Eagles' defense, some of those harmonies have always been vocal cord-stretchers), but that everlasting, cool, '70s California vibe was as strong live in 2009 as it was on 8-track in 1976.
The band broke for an intermission at about 9:30 with "The Long Run," saying that they'd be back to play for "a long, long time."
The second half of the Eagles' show was peppier than the first, with a more relaxed feel, particularly whenever Joe Walsh took the spotlight for "Walk Away" and "Funk 49," from his time with the James Gang, and "Life's Been Good" from his solo career.
"Funk" had the addition of a four-piece horn section that made the song even greasier than the radio version, plus Walsh's extended shredding on his sherbet-green guitar. Walsh not only has the strongest guitar chops, but his voice was the strongest, too, a surprising fact for a guy not known for having the healthiest of lifestyles..
The weakest part of the second set were the four numbers the band performed on stools. They might have been shooting for a homey feeling, but the target they hit was more community singalong.
For a full review of The Eagles at the BJCC Arena, see Monday's Birmingham News.

[EagleLady]

That last comment really irks me. Obviously it was written by a hater who doesn't appreciate The Eagles

[eaglesvet]

Eagles Deliver--by Jim Dunn -- For The Birmingham News
Saturday January 24, 2009
The economy is comparable to that of the Eagles' '70s heyday, and so was the crowd response. And the crowd, for that matter. It's a safe bet that many of the concertgoers that nearly filled the BJCC Arena tonight were reliving an experience they first took part in during the Carter administration, judging by the slightly middle-aged demographics.
In its first, hour-long set, the band -- Glenn Frey, Don Henley, Joe Walsh and Timothy B. Schmit -- played some songs from its newest CD, "Long Road Out of Eden," like "Busy Being Fabulous" and "I Don't Want to Hear Any More."
They're good songs, but it didn't matter. The crowd paid their ticket money for "Witchy Woman," "Hotel California," "Lyin' Eyes" (which Frey dedicated to "my first wife, Plaintiff"), "Peaceful, Easy Feelin'" and "In the City."
And they got their money's worth. The band delivered the moneymakers with the polish that decades of recording and touring affords. The voices might have been the teensiest bit weaker (but, in the Eagles' defense, some of those harmonies have always been vocal cord-stretchers), but that everlasting, cool, '70s California vibe was as strong live in 2009 as it was on 8-track in 1976.
The band broke for an intermission at about 9:30 with "The Long Run," saying that they'd be back to play for "a long, long time."
The second half of the Eagles' show was peppier than the first, with a more relaxed feel, particularly whenever Joe Walsh took the spotlight for "Walk Away" and "Funk 49," from his time with the James Gang, and "Life's Been Good" from his solo career.
"Funk" had the addition of a four-piece horn section that made the song even greasier than the radio version, plus Walsh's extended shredding on his sherbet-green guitar. Walsh not only has the strongest guitar chops, but his voice was the strongest, too, a surprising fact for a guy not known for having the healthiest of lifestyles..
The weakest part of the second set were the four numbers the band performed on stools. They might have been shooting for a homey feeling, but the target they hit was more community singalong.
For a full review of The Eagles at the BJCC Arena, see Monday's Birmingham News.

Weakest?!! I happen to LOVE the songs they do in the beginning of the second set, as I imagine many of us do. I don't get the impression of either hominess nor community singalong...it's just the style of song that lends itself to that acoustic presentation. Oh, brother!

[DonFan]

Ask and you shall receive, EV:

[TimothyBFan]

OMG!!!

Bamagirl can have the honor of taking pictures anyday!!

[ticky]

Ask and you shall receive, EV:

That is a very nice pic of Timmy. Open shirt too

Oh! is Tim in that picture too?? *G* Silly me.. guess I was distracted by... something else *G*

[Troubadour]

OH. MY. GOODNESS. Both of them look drop dead gorgeous, but the guy on the left...

I love the rest of your photos too. The grinning-Glenn one is fab! I am so glad you had such a great time, DF.

It's now official - I can't wait 'til July.

[Peekaboo]

I'm so glad that you had a wonderful time!!! You're review was great and the pictures were FABULOUS!!!

I'm especially lovin these two pics!!!