Randy Meisner

[Highlander]

... and another inane posting from me...

This Eagles tune, "Got To Get You In The Mood", goes right back to the very start, the B-side of the original release of "Take It Easy"; never appeared on anything else and not now commercially available - absolutely no reason I can understand - classically Frey tune (slightly corny lyrics), great bass and a nice Leadon solo with sweet harmonies... completely forgotten...

[Stjofön Big]

Yeah, right, Herbie! Of course it was Leadon. I was tired writing that yesterday, came home from my younger brothers place 400 kilometers away, after getting his home in shape for selling. Ulf, my brother, was an archeologist, had his house full of litterature in the field, reports, stones of different kinds, leather, the lot. He was specially interested in the hunter societys in the Northern world - above the Polar circle. 25 years ago he got a museum built called Vuollerim 6000. But he got in fight with the politic powers, and got fired 15 years ago. I wrote about his conditions a couple of years ago here on LBO, when the Big C got it's hooks in him. Ulf passed away three months ago, June 12th.
In the stuff I brought with me for selling on the net, to get some money for his four children, was a pack of albums. And, to close the circle, the double album An anthology, by Duane Allman. Complete with Layla!
Plus Flaming Groovies, Zombies, Del Shannon, Rockpile, Hank Williams, Stones, Byrds, Kinks, Connie Francis. Yes, you might say it; Ulf was an archeologist in more then one sence!

[uwe]

I'm still trying to find the part in my postings where I said Wishbone Ash were hugely popular in America. I must have written it with magic ink, but fortunately some people can read that. For the record: WA were never hugely popular anywhere, because they didn't have an extrovert frontman, no hit singles nor flashy performances. Argus was however album of the year in 1972 for Melody Maker and while that might mean nothing in the US of A mainland, I first heard WA when an American of all people  loaned his album of Argus to me in 1975 and was raving about it. He must have been the only one, history is all about coincidences.

But the discussion of "were they popular or not" misses the point, when we are talking about influence. Both the New York Dolls and The Ramones are justly called influential, yet neither of them ever came close to the album sales and live drawing power of Grand Funk Railroad or Foghat, which are regularly not filed under "influential".

Perhaps we can agree that the Allmans were both more popular and influential in the US while Europe was more WA's turf (though they toured a lot in the US, but it is a big country and as a Brit band you could pe popular in one state or big city and not the next adjacent one).

And even if WA had never set foot on Amercian soil, I venture forth the observation that the fact that completion of There's the Rub was a little rushed because their producer was now booked in the same studio with the Eagles to record Hotel California might have something to do with the fact that HC (the song) contains the longest lead twin guitar part recorded by The Eagles ever. That having spent weeks with a band which twin lead guitared every song would not leave an imprint on a producer's set of ears is hardly an evident assumption, but of course you are allowed to make it. Maybe ole Bill S. had a habit of not listening to the bands he produced.

Sigh.

[uwe]

Frey is a Detroit native and a Bob Seger buddy, he probably heard more Motown than country as a youth and his post-Eagles output of blue-eyed soul seems to indicate a lasting influence. That said, he pretty quickly developed country ears with The Eagles and is resopnsible for some of the soppiest country folk ballads the Eagles ever committed to vinyl or CD. But he was no Burrito ever.

[nofi]

i'm still not buying the 'big country' theory put forth by you and kenny. but nice try anyway.

i owned a few WA records and i bet guys in alabama, florida, south carolina and tennessee did as well.

[gweimer]

Frey is a Detroit native and a Bob Seger buddy, he probably heard more Motown than country as a youth and his post-Eagles output of blue-eyed soul seems to indicate a lasting influence. That said, he pretty quickly developed country ears with The Eagles and is resopnsible for some of the soppiest country folk ballads the Eagles ever committed to vinyl or CD. But he was no Burrito ever.

That would certainly explain this...


I always wondered how Seger took co-writing credit for this, since he basically took it from a cover.  Gee, like that NEVER happens in the music biz.

[westen44]

Oh yeah, the Eagles made a video short for the Desperado album I've never managed to find - anyone know a source for it...? I've seen plenty of stills from it but never the video...

I wasn't even aware of the existence of this. 

[westen44]

... and another inane posting from me...

This Eagles tune, "Got To Get You In The Mood", goes right back to the very start, the B-side of the original release of "Take It Easy"; never appeared on anything else and not now commercially available - absolutely no reason I can understand - classically Frey tune (slightly corny lyrics), great bass and a nice Leadon solo with sweet harmonies... completely forgotten...

The lyrics may be a little corny, but the song's message comes through crystal clear. 

[nofi]

chrissie hynde in the eagles?

[Dave W]

I'm listening to Fats Domino right now and trying to forget this thread. Somebody let me know when Uwe explains how Fats influenced Wishbone Ash. Or vice versa.

[westen44]

"Blueberry Hill.  My parents had it on 78 but it was obvious that they weren't very keen that I listen to it.  It was my introduction to questionable lyrics and I developed a fascination for such things which continues to this day.  This thread has now officially moved as far away as is humanly possible from discussing Randy Meisner's bass on "Hotel California."   LOL.

[gweimer]

I'm listening to Fats Domino right now and trying to forget this thread. Somebody let me know when Uwe explains how Fats influenced Wishbone Ash. Or vice versa.

We could just play six degrees of separation.  Fats Domino did "Ain't That A Shame", which was recorded by Cheap Trick, with Tom Petersson, who was a big user of Hamer basses, as was Martin Turner from Wishbone Ash.

Ta Da!   

[westen44]

In just now looking up the year HC was released--because I actually believed it was before 1977--I noticed in Wikipedia that the working title of the song was "Mexican Reggae."  So it appears the faux reggae sound on it must have been intentional from the first. 

[uwe]

Andy Powell and Ted Turner were both - like a lot of young Brits at the time - blues enthusiasts. Fats Domino was probably not delta enough for them. And ole Fats never really mastered the art of arranging twin harmonic melody lead in his band. Which explains why the Allmans were relatively uninfluenced by Fats Domino though Greg Allman might disagree.

To come full circle, Randy Meisner was a vintage rock'n'roll enthusiast which clashed with Don Henley's more serious aspirations. When Meisner and Walsh started throwing vintage rock'n'roll shapes during some Eagles songs Henley admonished them both after the gig. Ever the prankster!

[Highlander]

... I was tired writing that yesterday, came home from my younger brothers place 400 kilometers away, after getting his home in shape for selling...

Never a good trip, Stjofön, never a good trip... commiserations and enjoy the memories... I had a round trip of 1500 when I sorted my fathers place and on the way home, which I just wanted to do, I did it in the day, 0500 for the ferry and home at 2300... that was not a good trip, but I still have the memories...

Michael... the cover was from the set of the promo video, so I read some years back, as was the "dead-outlaw/gunslinger" shot with JD Souther and Jackson browne - Henry Diltz shot the cover and a shed load of other shots - it was a "short"...