(43) The Eagles - On The Border (1974)

The Eagles began recording their third album in England with producer Glyn Johns, as they had their first two albums, but abandoned the sessions after completing two acceptable tracks. Johns, it is said, tended to emphasize the group's country elements and its harmonies, while the band, in particular Glenn Frey and Don Henley, wanted to take more of a hard rock direction. They reconvened with a new producer, Bill Szymczyk, who had produced artists like B.B. King and, more significantly, Joe Walsh. But the resulting album is not an outright rock effort by any means. Certainly, Frey and Henley got what they wanted with "Already Gone," the lead-off track, which introduces new bandmember Don Felder as one part of the twin guitar solo that recalls the Allman Brothers Band; "James Dean," a rock & roll song on the order of "Your Mama Don't Dance," and "Good Day in Hell," which is strongly reminiscent of Joe Walsh songs like "Rocky Mountain Way." But the album also features the usual mixture of styles typical of an Eagles album. For example, "Midnight Flyer," sung by Randy Meisner, is modern bluegrass; "My Man" is Bernie Leadon's country-rock tribute to the recently deceased Gram Parsons; and "Ol' 55" is one of the group's well-done covers of a tune by a singer/songwriter labelmate, in this case Tom Waits. The title track, meanwhile, points the band in a new R&B direction that was later pursued more fully. Like most successful groups, the Eagles combined many different elements, and their third album, which looked back to their earlier work and anticipated their later work, was a transitional effort that combined even more styles than most of their records did.

Bernie Leadon's "My Man" is a tribute to Gram Parsons, who had died of a drug overdose in September 1973. Leadon and Parsons had been members of the pioneering country-rock band The Flying Burrito Brothers.

"On the Border"This track was inspired by the infamous Watergate scandal and fears at the time of the government overstepping its bounds and infringing on people's privacy. Barely audible at the end of the song, someone (either Henley or Frey) can be heard whispering "Say Goodnight, Dick," a line made famous by Dan Rowan of Rowan and Martin but in this case referring to Richard Nixon's resignation.

Track listing

01.  Already Gone  (Strandlund, Tempchin) -  4:13

02.  You Never Cry Like a Lover  (Henley, Souther)  - 4:02

03.  Midnight Flyer  (Craft)  - 3:58

04.  My Man  (Leadon)  - 3:30

05.  On the Border  (Frey, Henley, Leadon)  - 4:28

06.  James Dean  (Browne, Frey, Henley, Souther)  - 3:36

07.  Ol' 55  (Waits)  - 4:22

08.  Is It True  (Meisner)  - 3:14

09.  Good Day in Hell  (Frey, Henley)  - 4:27

10.  The Best of My Love  (Frey, Henley, Souther)  - 4:35

Personnel

Glenn Frey - lead vocals, lead guitar, slide guitar, piano

Don Henley - lead vocals, drums, guitar

Randy Meisner - lead vocals, bass guitar

Bernie Leadon - lead vocals, lead guitar, banjo, steel guitar

Don Felder - electric guitar, slide guitar

Notes

Released:  March 22, 1974

Recorded at:  Record Plant Studios, Los Angeles, CA, Olympic Studios, London, 1973-74

Genre:  Country Rock

Length:  40:29

Label:  Asylum

Producer:  Bill Szymczyk, Glyn Johns