Felder's "Heaven and Hell" Discussion Thread

[sodascouts]

the reaction around the net is overwhelmingly anti Frey and I was amazed at the reaction here and wondered if people saw the same video I did.

Probably the fact that this is an Eagles fan forum had something to do with us being more positive than the comments sections of various websites, which are infamous for their vitriol (see http://www.scientificamerican.com/ar...rnet-so-angry/). If that's not to everyone's tastes, so be it. Nobody's forced to post here.

Anyway, if you are actually contributing something meaningful and not just insulting band members and pouring contempt on other board members (ie "go out and get a life" "[Calling band members by first names] like you are old pals is just sad" "You guys here must be truly obsessed"), then I withdraw my judgment of troll.

[VAisForEagleLovers]

I am all alone in the following opinion but Hotel California is not on my list. It always annoyed me for some reason. The vocals, not the music. The guitars are amazing.

EDIT: I just listened to three versions of HC and I take it all back.

You are not alone!! It's not on my list of favorites, either. For me it wasn't really vocals 'or' music, it was 'and'. However, hearing it live has given me a new appreciation for it. Same with Desperado.

[thelastresort]

I should say guys I meant the 'have a drink with' more as a metaphor of what their professional personality is like, as others have said Glenn appears very affable offstage and away from it all: it also applies to other musicians and I'm sure the reverse applies where those perceived to be nice guys were abrasive at times. I too couldn't care less what the personalities of Frey, Henley, Felder, or any other musician whose work I love is like, I'm just grateful for their gift!

BTS - glad to see you've settled in a bit! And despite taking back what you said, I would agree with your original point in not sharing the universal love of Hotel California. Would just about scrape into my top 20 Eagles songs but is my fourth favourite off the album, behind The Last Resort (duh!), Pretty Maids All in a Row and New Kid in Town.

[sodascouts]

I'm a Glenn...sorry, Frey fan ( ), but personally I don't mind people criticizing him. Often I just don't agree. But it seems to me that people criticizing Felder usually just criticize his words or actions, while people "criticizing" Frey call him names. I'm not necessarily referring to this forum, although the "douchebag" is quickly becoming a classic. There are hundreds if not thousands of people "out there" who hate Frey so much that they constantly call him names. Most of the time they don't mention any examples, or they just automatically take Felder's word as the ultimate truth.

I've noticed this too. A lot of times, these people don't even really talk about what they like about Felder. They just talk about what they hate about Glenn, and they make it personal. Then they wonder why his fans get defensive.

[VAisForEagleLovers]

We talked about this in the documentary thread (and elsewhere), by taking the high road and not lowering themselves to Felder's level, our guys left themselves open to this kind of speculation. When all the masses hear is Felder's drivel in his book, where he set out from the start to talk them down, then they believe it because they aren't hearing anything else. I say that he had this agenda because obviously, he knew them well enough to know that since they guarded their privacy so zealously, writing such a book would really hit them at a vulnerable spot. He of all people knew how they'd feel about it. Obviously, he didn't care, he was dealing with his emotions at being let go. It just upsets me that intelligent people can read that book and see only one side, one shouldn't need to hear the other side to know that it's not gospel truth.

[WalshFan88]

BTS, welcome.

I don't agree with everything you have to say, but I will agree that I wasn't happy the way Don Felder's participation was handled in HOTE, and it's not just Glenn's words on the actual firing.

As far as HC, I think without HC, the Eagles would not have enjoyed the success they did, as much at least, in the later 70s and today. That song is huge. I love the vocals and the music. The guitars seal the deal and the solo is one of the best in classic rock history. It's a masterpiece record, with a masterpiece title track. I can only imagine being in the studio when it was recorded. They had to know they were making history when Walsh and Felder cut the guitars on that.

[AlreadyGone95]

Well, it looks like I won't be reading the book until sometime in August, unless one of the semi local libraries has a copy. My music budget for July is tighter than I thought. Though I love and cherish my collection, sometimes the bug is too much!

As for HC, it has a special place in my heart, as I can remember being 7/8 years old and singing my heart out to it. It's not my favorite, but it's still in my top 5 Eagles songs.

BTS, welcome from me as well.

[BTSinAustin]

We talked about this in the documentary thread (and elsewhere), by taking the high road and not lowering themselves to Felder's level, our guys left themselves open to this kind of speculation. When all the masses hear is Felder's drivel in his book, where he set out from the start to talk them down, then they believe it because they aren't hearing anything else. I say that he had this agenda because obviously, he knew them well enough to know that since they guarded their privacy so zealously, writing such a book would really hit them at a vulnerable spot. He of all people knew how they'd feel about it. Obviously, he didn't care, he was dealing with his emotions at being let go. It just upsets me that intelligent people can read that book and see only one side, one shouldn't need to hear the other side to know that it's not gospel truth.

Question. Since you were not there, what makes you call the book drivel?

I am not saying it is true or false, I have no idea what went on in private.


The smoking gun in all this is, the one thing in all of this that can't just be "he said, she said"; we know he was a full partner, we know he sued, we know they settled. No one would settle on a suite that big if they were in the right. Not a chance. They fought it for 6 years, then caved.

If someone was trying to screw me out of a billion dollar enterprise that I owned a third of, I would want to hit them too.

[BTSinAustin]

You are not alone!! It's not on my list of favorites, either. For me it wasn't really vocals 'or' music, it was 'and'. However, hearing it live has given me a new appreciation for it. Same with Desperado.

I agree, the live versions are amazing. But the vocals still annoy me for some reason.

[chaim]

If someone was trying to screw me out of a billion dollar enterprise that I owned a third of, I would want to hit them too.

This is a good point. But on the other hand, I probably wouldn't have immediately made a newcomer a full partner in the first place - like they did when Felder joined.