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16 min read Don Henley

Fake It To The Limit: Pay no attention to the Eagle behind the curtain...

What happens when one of the biggest classic rock bands in the world turns out to be little more than the Milli Vanilli of the Ford F-350 crowd?
Fake It To The Limit: Pay no attention to the Eagle behind the curtain...

Back in February of 2022, the most recent incarnation of iconic country-rock hitmakers the Eagles kicked off their “Hotel California Tour” at Savannah’s then brand-new, 9,500-seat Enmarket Arena. For that and each of the 21 shows which followed, the band performed their landmark 1976 LP of the same name in its entirety, from start to finish, followed by a second set of their greatest hits.

The Enmarket Arena concert was completely sold out in advance ― as in addition to being the opening night of the tour, it also served as the first official event held at the (barely) completed multi-use venue. An understandably important and highly anticipated night for classic rock fans in this region, there was an obvious social component to the proceedings as well. A wide range of movers and shakers from all strata in the Greater Savannah area turned out in droves to both see and be seen, all while listening to extremely tastefully played, completely food safe pop songs, replete with absurdly precise vocal harmonies. That’s the Eagles’ trademark: their beautiful, at times complex, “quasi-country” vocal harmonies.

Sure, the various singing musicians who have filled the ranks of that Southern California group since its inception in 1971 have uniformly been excellent at their craft(s), and frontman Don Henley remains a creative, above-average drummer with a knack for open, minimalist, danceable grooves. However, when most folks think about the aspects of the group that make them truly unique, their minds probably go to the Eagles’ stellar harmony vocals. Entire tutorials have been written on how to attempt to achieve the beautiful combinations of sung notes which render the group’s studio recordings and live performances instantly recognizable.

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