Does the world need another album by the Eagles? After hearing some of the band's bungled attempts at creating new material over the years - the gimmicky"Get Over It" and the excreble "Hole In The World" - I'd have to say no. Now comes a two-disker of 20 new songs.
I ain't buyin' it.
My problem with the Eagles is this: They claim to be champions of the country-rock tradition that strings through Buffalo Springfield, the Byrds, the Flying Burrito Brothers and Poco (dare I rope Pure Prairie League into this?). You listen for rough-hewn vocals, story-songs and slightly rustic instrumentation. But much of their stuff is as polished and produced as Steely Dan. Part o the blame, I suspect, rests on the shoulders of Don Henley, who in his solo work has seemed deathly afraid of even the slightest imperfection showing up in his performance (which is why, I think, songs like "Boys of Summer," "All She Wants To Do Is Dance," "The End of the Innocence" and "Sunset Grill" sound like they have computertized music tracks playing beneath them)
The new single, "How Long," is one of the greatest songs never written for a beer commercial or motor oil ad that ought to have been, if you ask me. For my money, fans can just listen to "Already Gone" or "Take It Easy" and get what they need. I've heard precious little else from the new album, but with such portentous song titles as "I Dreamed There Was No War" and "Frail Grasp On The Big Picture" on board, I fear for the worst.
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2 comments:
Don't need anymore Eagles, but do love James Dean and Already Gone. Also In the City, but that's really Joe Walsh
I find the album reassuring, if hardly great; like an old friend you've not seen in a while and has become a bit of a blowhard but still retains some of his charms. The lovely harmonies are still there, the hooks obvious but pleasurable, the politics admirable yet hypocritical. Certainly worth the money, $11 for a download at the Eagles website.
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