The Artist Who Played Don Henley “Hundreds of Times”

The artist Don Henley loved so much that he "knew the songs backwards"

(Source: Alamy)

Sat Jul 20 2024 20:40, UK

Every artist has to do their homework before they even think about going on stage. No matter how many hours they spend listening to their favorite songs, it’s a whole different beast to pack as much emotion into a song as possible when it’s time to let people hear it. Don Henley has often talked about wanting to put that emotional heart into every Eagles song, but he admitted that he knew working with Linda Ronstadt almost better than the band.

When Henley first moved to California, he had already developed his own take on the country-rock sound. Gram Parsons may have helped found the genre with the later material of The Byrds, but in the early ’70s, artists began to add a more Western twang to their music, with Henley even being scouted by Kenny Rogers.

Although the anti-commercial title of the song, “Simply Little Down Home Rock and Roll Love Song For Rosie,” did not do Henley any favors in his old band, Shiloh, he was much better suited to play behind Ronstadt. Her voice was slowly becoming one of the most powerful on the scene, and she seemed to light up the room every time she took the stage at the Troubadour.

Although Henley had an affinity for Ronstadt’s music, he knew all of her melodies and said in History of the eagles, “I was looking for a job. Glenn (Frey) introduced me to (manager) John Boylan and I auditioned at this house in Laurel Canyon. I had listened to her records hundreds of times, so I knew the songs inside and out. I learned a lot from Linda. That was a very formative experience for me.”

It’s one thing to be able to play songs like Hank Williams’ “Lovesick Blues,” but there were only so many places Henley could go from there. He was the leader in Shiloh, so becoming a backup singer was another story, usually harmonizing with Frey as Ronstadt made her way through songs like “It’s So Easy” and “You’re No Good.”

After one too many shows, however, Henley knew that something more than just being a backup singer was waiting for him. He wanted a band, and Frey was the one to help him get there. Despite being from Texas and Michigan, respectively, Henley and Frey were musically inseparable and felt that it would be better if they worked on their own material.

While it’s probably painful to see an Eagles member abandon you, Henley recalled that Ronstadt was perfectly fine with letting them leave the nest. He said, “She was incredibly kind, like John Boylan. They weren’t bitter or anything. They were supportive, to be exact.”

The duo did eventually take a few songs with them, and supplemented their debut album with songs like “Nightingale,” which had to be scaled down to accommodate Henley’s voice. It would be a few more years before the Eagles became a country-rock powerhouse, but it’s fair to say that without Ronstadt, they’d still be playing the Troubadour.