Mr. Henley's Opus.

VoicesDownThe

CorridorVille


Back in the days of yore (i.e. when the olds were young), we used to pore over album gatefolds like the one pictured above.

Why?

Because, while there was Rolling Stone, Creem, Circus and, in a pinch, Hit Parader, there were no interwebs where you could find out pretty much anything about any album or band like, say,  this.

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Hotel California was released in late 1976.

In the summer of 1977 I worked at a local hardware store that was less then two blocks away from my house which meant that I could saunter home for lunch.

During one of those lunch times I distinctly remember putting on headphones, lying on the couch, and listening to this album full blast.

While the title track was the big hit off the album at the time, I was particularly struck by 'The Last Resort' which Glen Frey later called 'Mr. Henley's Opus' given that it included lines like:

...Some rich men came and raped the land. Nobody caught 'em...

Of course, Don Henley would soon become a very rich man himself.

And while Henley has often supported environmental causes and the rights of his fellow musicians over the years, he has also railed against, and shut down, bootlegs and amateur covers of his and his bandmates' songs on the Youtubes.

Thank the spaghetti monster this cover by my current favourite internet kids still stands (so far)...

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