Glenn Frey (1948 - 2016)

I don't care what "The Dude" said. This one really hurts.

Glenn Frey is gone at age 67, another great musician done too soon. He wasn't old, not by today's standards anyway, but he had a host of medical problems. He suffered from acute ulcerative colitis, pneumonia, and rheumatoid arthritis and the ensuing complications from all of them unfortunately took his life.

I was a big fan of the Eagles and by default, Frey. Not only did I love the early country-rock version of the quartet more than the Joe Walsh era quintet I thought the Eagles' founder was an absolutely wonderful singer. He was the smoothest of the smooth, almost a crooner. In the hall-of-famers' early days he was the man. He took the lead vocals on "Take It Easy," "Tequila Sunrise," "Peaceful Easy Feeling," "James Dean," "Lyin' Eyes," "New Kid In Town," and many more.

After the Eagles Frey forged a solo musical career that wasn't nearly as successful or critically acclaimed as Don Henley's, but I don't care because I continue to believe he was the perfect balladeer who could also compose.

In addition to the the originals listed above Frey also wrote a very funny verse for the Eagles' first hit by finishing an early Jackson Browne tune:

"Well, I'm a standin' on a corner in Winslow, Arizona
Such a fine sight to see
It's a girl my Lord in a flat-bed Ford
Slowin' down to take a look at me."

After his very famous group broke up Frey turned to acting. He guest starred on Miami Vice and took a supporting role in Jerry Maguire.

I laugh at the people who hate the Eagles. I sometimes thought the disdain just became a trendy stand to take among snobs who wanted to show how cool they were by jumping on the hatred bandwagon. You know how some people are. They won't allow themselves to listen to anything that is popular. I'm sure Frey and Henley didn't care because their greatest hits album moved enough units to go platinum twenty-nine times over. Somebody must have loved them.

One of Frey's finest solo works was included in one of my all time favorite films. "Part of Me, Part of You," from Thelma and Louise ranks with his very best Eagles' stuff.

All I can say is thank you for the music Glenn.

Comments

Post a Comment

WHAT'S HOT TODAY!

Slower Than Slow: 16 RPM Records

Image
Have you ever heard of a long forgotten vinyl format, the 16 2/3 RPM record? They were half the speed of the 33 1/3 RPM albums that were the traditional standard for recorded music. Most record players in the 1950s and 1960s came with a speed setting to play these long forgotten discs that were considered novelties even during the years they were available. Because most, but not all, 16s had big holes and were 7" in diameter many of them were mistaken for 45 RPMs and at that size the speed allowed for up to 20 minutes of playing time per side. However, there was no true standard size and they were also manufactured to be 9, 10, or 12 inches in diameter, and these larger records played even longer. Just like the other speeds and formats 16s could be played one record at a time or stacked on a changer for continuous play. Radio stations often used the discs for pre-recorded radio shows containing interviews, dramas, and documentaries. More frequen
Read more

Last Albums: James Taylor - American Standard (2020)

Image
In 2022 I wrote a blog post on The Rolling Stones' Blue & Lonesome as part of Bloggerhythms' Last Albums series. Then Mick Jagger, Keith Richards and their friends ruined the whole thing by by releasing Hackneyed Diamonds two years ago. Despite that, I'm taking my chances that 76 year old James Taylor won't let me down too and release another album, even though that might not be such a bad thing. In 2020, Taylor released a set of tunes from the Great American Songbook, and it's a good one.  American Standard is a fourteen track record of cover tunes from the man who is often credited with jump-starting the entire 70s singer-songwriter movement. Taylor is no stranger to covers. Even though he's a songwriter of great importance he's recorded many singles written by others, most notably, Carole King's "You've Got A Friend," his only Billboard #1 hit from very early in his career. He also charted with "How
Read more

Howlin' Wolf - The London Howlin' Wolf Sessions (1971)

Image
Many blues purists site a lack of authenticity as a reason to dismiss an artist's work but I refuse to participate in such snobbery. If performed well a hybrid arrangement adds unique freshness to an old piece of music. The fact that the great blues singer, composer, and guitarist Chester Burnett (a.k.a Howlin' Wolf ) flew to London in 1970 to record with a few of the hottest British Invasion all-stars of the day - most of them heavily influenced by the blues - shouldn't make the music any less compelling. The participants on The London Howlin' Wolf Sessions include Eric Clapton on lead guitar, Steve Winwood on piano and organ, and three men with Rolling Stones connections: bassist Bill Wyman, drummer Charlie Watts, and pre-worldwide fame Stones' pianist,  Ian Stewart .  Hubert Sumlin - Wolf's devoted longtime sideman - provided rhythm guitar throughout these sessions. Even Ringo Starr proved he could play the blues on one track, "I A
Read more

New Earth Farmers - The Sky From The Underground (2024)

Image
On New Earth Farmers'  website  composer, singer, guitarist and keyboard player Paul Knowles tells us that he and composer, vocalist, and guitarist Nicole Storto never stick to one style when writing music. He says that " the song drives the treatment and genre of each track ." Their lyrics are the primary concern in an era when they  "often take a backseat to style, fashion, materialism, and hipness ." Because their emphasis is on composition you need to spend some time with The Farmers' new album,  The Sky From The Underground ,   to fully absorb their work. Trust me, it'll be worth your while. Knowles and Storto display their love of topical songwriting with "War Inside Our Hearts," a track he said is inspired by the greatest of all punk bands, The Clash. "You say your way is better than another. That’s how our minds are torn apart." "Frequency" tackles the devastatingly sad subjec
Read more

Why Do 45 RPM Records Have Big Holes?

Image
Today we're going to find out why 45 RPM records have much larger holes than 78s and 33s. Believe it or not I often wondered about this burning question when I was collecting hundreds of these little seven inch gems back the 1960s. According to several websites, including Answerbag , the reason for the large hole used by 45s was simple. It was difficult for the old 78s, with their smaller holes, to find their way onto jukebox spindles. The large hole effectively eliminated that problem. Strangely, seven inch 45s were often pressed with the smaller holes used for LPs in many countries outside the United States, especially in the United Kingdom, Australia, and New Zealand. Overseas the inserts (commonly know as spiders) were manufactured into the large holes at the factories but they could be punched out if desired. The Beatles' British single of "Love Me Do," pictured here, is a typical example. Why were the spiders built into English 45s? I was unable to fi
Read more