Hotel California

 

 

Create your own review

If you were around in the late 70's and were within earshot of rock and pop radio, you heard the Eagles' 'Hotel California' and if you've listened to classic rock radio since then and till today, you are familiar with this album many times over, possibly even sick of it (as you might be with Fleetwood Mac's 'Rumours', Pink Floyd's 'The Dark Side of the Moon' and most of Led Zeppelin), as you might be sick of Eagles music in general. However, just this Christmas day, I was with family, and the household happened to have a superb DVD/Dolby surround setup and the man of the house received the DVD-A of 'Hotel California' as a gift. He put it on, and I was there to experience this already time-honored album in glorious multi-channel surround sound. If you thought you've heard enough of the Eagles' best album, you ought to give this a chance -- the classic title track alone makes it worth the purchase. You will hear cymbal swells, guitar parts separated and panned, vocals and all that is the musical brilliance of this album as you never have before. "Wasted Time" sounds so good it will make you weep (this was always one of my favorite Eagles album tracks, as is "The Last Resort", also benefitting from the DVD-A treatment) ... highly recommended for Eagles, classic rock, and music fans in general needing to hear how good either the DVD-A or SACD format can be.

Hotel California was the first Eagles album to feature Joe Walsh. By combining with Don Felder, they created a potent tandem and pushed the band to a harder sound. Like many other residents in the state, the band are not native Californians. Despite that fact, they have become synonymous with Southern California. On this album, they examine all the high and lows of the land of hopes and dreams. The word classic is thrown around a little too often, but the album's title track is one of only a handful of songs that are worthy of the title. From the opening guitar riff, to the cynical and vivid lyrics to the closing guitar coda, the song is a tour de force. Don Henley sings with a snarl in his voice and Mr. Walsh and Mr. Felder trade guitar licks in a can you top this fashion. The song is a masterpiece, became their third number single, won the 1977 Grammy for Record of the Year and one never tires of hearing it. "New Kid In Town" was the album's other number single and Glenn Frey sings with a smooth charm. The song perfectly captures that breezy Southern California sound the Eagles made famous. "Life In The Fast Lane" is the infamous rocker that details the hedonistic lifestyle of the late 70's that the band wholeheartedly embraced. "Wasted Time" is pretty ballad and the orchestral reprise of the song leads into a stinging rocker "Victim Of Love". Joe Walsh's Eagle lead vocal debut is the suprisingly sweet "Pretty Maids All In A Row". Randy Messiness' swan song with the band is the soaring "Try & Love Again". The album's closer, "The Last Resort", almost matches the title cut in power and brilliance. It tells of the pilgrimage from the east coast out to California and that it has to offer. Hotel California was the band's peak and one of the best albums of the 70's.

She'd taped a cool new song off the radio, a friend told me a little less than 25 years ago; she'd play it for me when I'd come to her place after school.

The song was "Hotel California," and my perception of music changed then and there, once and for all. I didn't even really understand the lyrics - I had barely begun to learn English, and apart from everything else I sure as hell didn't know what "colitas" meant. But understanding all the song's words wasn't necessary. From the first chords played by Felder and Walsh, this song was different from anything I had ever heard before. The layers of electric guitar riffs alternating with and ornamenting Don Henley's vocals, soaring in the chorus and culminating in a moving and evocative duet, touched a spot deep inside me that required no further explanation. Nor, really, did the other songs on this album which I instantaneously knew I had to have. I got the message conveyed in the raw edges of "Life in the Fast Lane," Joe Walsh's riffs throughout the song, the two guitar solos and Don Henley's sneering vocals, as well as I could hear the sense of loss in "Wasted Time," "The Last Resort" and "New Kid in Town."

This is not to say, of course, that the lyrics didn't matter to me once I was able to fully understand them. Rather, that understanding deepened my appreciation for the album; and yet another level of insight was added when I came to California for the first time in 1991. By that time I was an ardent fan, and although the Eagles didn't even exist as a band back then, their music has become an inseparable part of my memory of those months - particularly the album which bears the state's name and is so often called the quintessential California rock album (not only of the 1970s) that this description in itself is bordering on cliché now, true as it may once have been.

Since the release of their 1976 studio album, the Eagles have published several other versions of "Hotel California," and I love them all. (I even - sometimes - like the ska version Don Henley and his incredible tour band performed during their recent "Inside Job" tour.) But ultimately, it all comes back down for me to the duet of those two electric guitars which forever redefined the way I listen to music.

Also recommended:
The Eagles - Hell Freezes Over
Selected Works: 1972-1999
Long Road Out of Eden Deluxe Edition

Share your thoughts with other customers: Create your own review

› See all 230 customer reviews...

 

 

5.0 out of 5 stars Hotel California
Arrived on time, and in great shape! Loved the eight track, now I love the cd! Amazon comes through again!

Published 2 months ago by WolverineBob

5.0 out of 5 stars Great Memories
Just received this reprint... brought back awesome memories and this reprint has better packaging than the original. They packaged this to last a long time. Read more

Published 2 months ago by Zbowdawg

5.0 out of 5 stars Hotel California
5/5. It took the Eagles just 5 years to make a long way from Western outlaws to Los Angeles life experts. Read more

Published 4 months ago by Sain Alizada

5.0 out of 5 stars Good old fashion music.
I wanted hotel california and I got it. It's got other surprises sound wise, and deep lyrics. Good music group.

Published 4 months ago by KT

1.0 out of 5 stars A CD That Won't Play on My Computer
Is this a sad joke? Are you afraid that I might want to burn this CD to my computer? If I had known that it wouldn't be playable on my computer, I wouldn't have purchased it.

Published 4 months ago by William F. Jones

3.0 out of 5 stars So, you don't like the album? Or, maybe you think it's genius?
Guess what? Everyone reading these reviews knows what's on it and has already made up their mind whether they like it or not, no thanks to any of you. Read more

Published 5 months ago by Michael

5.0 out of 5 stars Sublime Eagles
So punk music came along to save as from the type of music The Eagles put out?
What a lot of garbage and just how many punk records from that period are remembered as fondly... Read more

Published 5 months ago by John D. Rayner

5.0 out of 5 stars milk the music lovers
not SACD/SHM stars...music=5...recording=1...if your searching for a real remaster...this insn't it...bit rates are well below pre and post albums...which bugs me... Read more

Published 5 months ago by jam

5.0 out of 5 stars Great Music Never Gets Old
I bought Hotel Califoria to enjoy anytime. I remembered playing my LP when I was a teenager over & over again. Read more

Published 7 months ago by Pam Long

5.0 out of 5 stars Great musicians
I'll tell ya what this is a great album i dont care what anybody says! All the eagles band members are great musicians and great singers. Read more

Published 7 months ago by jeffery parsons

Search Customer Reviews
Only search this product's reviews

› See all 230 customer reviews...