Eagles' Documentary

[westen44]

I just think it's a little out there to blame anyone else for the fact that Gary Hart carried on an affair with someone younger and prettier than his wife when he got the chance and then lied about it when confronted. Like it or not, that killed his chances to be President in that day and age. That has nothing to do with politics, it's just what happened. All the backroom machinations and how it was revealed have no bearing whatsoever on the fact that he actually did do the deed. That was his choice and that's what I'm referring to.

What I was referring had to do with other factors that might have been involved which would have been there whether or not Gary Hart had an affair.  But to go into detail on that might require getting political and that's something I'm not interested in even if talking about politics was okay.  I'm glad you feel the same way, though. 

[uwe]

Oddly enough, in my opinion only, the "target" on public figures backs insures that the people who actually run for public office tend NOT to be the "doers" in the world, but the mediocre non-doers. "Doers" all have skeletons and can't run.

That is not untrue. There is only a very fine line between perfection and mediocrity.

[uwe]

For all his musical and lyrical merits as well as political views that sometimes converge with my own, Don Henley, from what I know, seems to me an extreme sourpuss and omnipotence-wallower, not a pleasant man at all. He probably does believe he's guilty and does not see the hubris in that. When I saw him at a concert where he admonished the audience for taking pictures of him "unallowed" and then went into a rant about IP rights not being respected anymore I felt ashamed for him - "fremdschämen" is the German word for it. Get off the stage if you don't want to be photographed.

[Dave W]

What a dinosaur. And a jerk.

[uwe]

Jerk is the perfect word for it.

I don't think IP is for free nor that it should be (if someone gives me a home-recorded CD of some other act's music and I like it, I always buy the official CD again), but if you're a member of The Eagles on stage before thousands of people having paid your high ticket prices, shutthef***up, have your picture taken and smile. Liberace style: "Do you like my diamonds, you bought them for me!"

[patman]

If I was ever famous, I would be out there shaking hands and signing stuff till my fingers fell off.  Beats working a day job.

If Don Henley didn't have the Eagles, he would have to make a living just like the rest of us.

[westen44]

It seems to me you almost have to have at least some kind of sense of humor to have a personality, and Don Henley seems to be humor-challenged.  Sourpuss describes exactly how I feel about him, too.  I suppose a lot of celebrities have let success go to their heads, but in his case it does seem way more obvious than usual to me.  However, I really am interested in how the documentary deals with issues such as this one. 

[uwe]

The Eagles are highly interesting to me for their disfunctionality! They play this well-crafted, smooth and mellow music, yet hate each other's guts, at the same time the Eagles legacy is the millstone around the necks of their solo careers.

Who wants to read about a group that states: "We were friends when we started, always got along well and still like each other today"? That's a group you want to be in, not read about.  

[Highlander]

Most of the solo material has been somewhat disapointing, imho...

I really like Henley's Inside Job, which is head-and-shoulders the best Eagles record they never released - if you even remotely like the Eagles then get this release and enjoy...

[westen44]

That sounds interesting. 

[uwe]

Excellent album, I agree. Love that song on it because it shows the ambivalence of Henley's character in the dark brooding verse and the Bryan Adams'ish uplifting chorus, all gospelly at the end. Listening to it you get the feeling he is not the forgiving type.

[Highlander]

I love the would they travel a billion miles just for mcnuggets attitude he has...

I have too many tracks I like on that release to pick a favourite...

[westen44]

Excellent album, I agree. Love that song on it because it shows the ambivalence of Henley's character in the dark brooding verse and the Bryan Adams'ish uplifting chorus, all gospelly at the end. Listening to it you get the feeling he is not the forgiving type.

I'm living in the land of the blocked videos.  So, I don't know about that one.  In "The Heart of the Matter" he talks about forgiveness.  Maybe he needs to follow his own advice.  I wouldn't mind being able to write and sing a song like that. 

[westen44]

I love the would they travel a billion miles just for mcnuggets attitude he has...

I have too many tracks I like on that release to pick a favourite...

It's possible Sturgeon's Law may be applicable, but only to the attitude, not the music.  Henley's attitude may be crappy, but not the music itself. 

[drbassman]

Who's Gary Hart?