I guess since I'm the instigator here I should post my saga. I'm always so slow...
A Little Background
Like GA, I was a child of the 70's. OK, well technically I'm a child of the 60's but I don't remember back that far. Consequently, I was a tad young when the Eagles first hit the air waves. I don't remember hearing about the hot new sound...it was just always there. When I started noticing the different styles on the radio, I didn't really pay attention to who was singing. I either liked a song or I didn't. [this is still a failing of mine...after Pebble Beach I bought Clay Walker's best of cd and discovered I had always liked quite a few of the songs without knowing it was him singing] I ended up with rather eclectic taste in music due to the fact my parents listened to country and folk music, my older sister (hence my user name) was into harder rock, my friends listened to pop and I played classical in the orchestra. My cassette collection had everything from Dolly Parton to Ozzy Osbourne.
Early Eagles Memories
One of my first memories of Eagles music is falling in love with "New Kid In Town". I attended 10 different schools during k-12, so this song was kinda "my song". I remember walking down the street to a babysitting job with my tape deck on my hip, singing along to "Life's Been Good". (we old folks didn't have walkmans, we had to carry big ol' boom boxes) I didn't put faces with the band until "The Long Run" came out. I was sitting in my best friend's big sister's room listening to that album and staring at the gatefold. Even at that young age I was mesmerized by Glenn. I would try to look at the others, only to have my eyes drawn back to Glenn. At the time I wondered why he looked sad. I guess because he wasn't smiling I must have thought he was sad. Hey...I was young. I thought "Life In The Fast Lane" was about racing cars. I had no idea what "lines on the mirror" were...i thought the mirror was cracked and the "lines on her face" was lost on me as well.I thought the "doctor" was a paramedic because they had "crashed" the car.
What can I say? No sooner did I discover there were men behind these songs I liked than I moved to Tucson, Arizona. (and they broke up) In Tucson the radio played both kinds of music...country and western! lol While country music was beginning to make the turn from honky-tonk to today's more rocking sound (courtesy of our beloved Eagles influence
), they didn't play the Eagles on my local country stations. As a result, I didn't hear "the boys" much for awhile.
The Boys Are Back In Town
I was sooooo excited to hear about the HFO tour. I wanted to go so badly I could taste it! But alas...I had four kids from toddler to pre-teen and the two oldest were in private school because the public schools where we lived then sucked. I had NO extra money for concert tickets. It really bummed me out. We weren't allowed to go to concerts in the 70's as the folks were sure we would be killed in a crowd rush a la the infamous Who concert.
The Wow! Factor
I was sitting there reading the credits and thinking, "I really should get up and turn this off"...when suddenly, I heard this utterly infectious laughter and the camera panned down to show Glenn with his head thrown back, cracking up! Guess what...I suddenly had a favorite Eagle. He didn't get me with the enormous talent or intelligence...he didn't get me with the good looks...he didn't get me with the charsima...or by the way he positively exudes sensuality...it was the joyful laughter and the heart-stopping grin! After playing my cd's to death (and getting half of them stolen) and watching a hole in my dvd, I was thrilled to hear that we were getting Farewell 1. I bought the eagerly awaited dvd the day it came out and, as I'd not been so lucky as to see these guys live, I decided to simulate the concert experience. I brought the dvd home, popped it in to play on the big screen tv and cranked up the volume.I sat in the middle of my living room floor, about 8 feet from the screen, for the next three hours! The only time I divided my attention from the screen was to comment on a song to my daughter. Like how much I loved the audience's extra clap as the stage went dark at the end of "Hole In The World" and during "No More Cloudy Days"...when Glenn sang, "I believe in angels, too", I gasped out loud and clapped my hand over my heart.
The Real Thing Baby!
Finally, after years of fandom, I got the opportunity to see the Eagles live in '05 on the California Tour. I live much closer to the Oakland venue, but couldn't get good seats....so I drove all the way to LA and went to see them at the Staples venue on October 22, 2005. Whoo hoo! I was way back behind and to the right of the mixing booth. I ended up holding binoculars to my eyes the entire show.lol My arms hurt for two days afterward, but it was worth it! The sound was PERFECT!!! The guys looked great...they looked happy...and were playful. I think I actually shrieked when Glenn did the shirt-tail-flip-up-butt-shake-thing during "All She Wants To Do Is Dance"!How could I not go? So we met up in Sacramento on November 19, 2005 along with Dreamer and Z. (Sacramento didn't know what it was in for) We had the best time! What a night! I never dreamed it could get better than the night I lost my "Eagle-ginity" but the second time was even better!
and looking forward to the next tour. I was hoping for some summer dates as my son will be moving to this coast in May. I really want my boys to see these guys live before they decide to stop touring for good. (oh, I dread that day
)
see part 2 as the growing Frey-fandom saga continues
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He very nearly stole me away from Don and Glenn! Really!
once again!
I only got out of the hospital the morning of the concert. A friend of ours took a get well card to one of the crew members we had met and he, in turn, took it backstage for the band to sign. It was so sweet...but once again we had to console ourselves with cds. At the end of September, I had to have heart surgery for the second time due to complicaitons from the original surgery. Wonderful friend that she is, Soda loaded an iPod shuffle with all of Glenn's songs plus a few extras and sent it to me the week before the surgery. Angioplasty and stent placement surgery is done with what they call conscious sedation. You are aware of everything that's going on but they (supposedly) control the pain. I call this the "hurts like hell" method. lol Because I had to remain awake and keep my arms above my head the whole time, I was able to listen to the iPod. Listening to Glenn singing helped me to keep my mind off the pain somewhat...but general anesthesia would have worked better. lol Then just last month we went out to Pebble Beach again. Glenn was sweeter than ever. I just love to watch him with kids. He must be a really great dad! He seemed to enjoy the fact that some of us fans were crazy enough to brave the weather and watch him golf. He played quite well regardless of his comments to the contrary. With his talent he could consider himself above the rest of us, but he doesn't. He's just such a nice, friendly, regular guy. I've not had the pleasure of meeting the other Eagles...but if I should be so lucky, I don't think any of them stand a chance of usurping Glenn. 
