"However, once Don Henley began to write the lyrics, it turned out to be in the wrong key. "The first version we recorded was just a riff,” says Bill Szymczyk, who earned a 'Producer Of The Year' Grammy for his efforts producing and engineering the album. So, it's interesting that the track itself underwent three different versions before emerging in the form that everyone knows. Ostensibly, a song about a luxury hotel visit that crosses over to the dark side, but really an allegory about American materialism and excess - as well as the decadent LA lifestyle that many musicians experienced during the mid‑'70s - 'Hotel California' was a pivotal track for the Eagles.Īt a time when punk was starting to explode and album‑oriented rock was all the rage, the song not only topped the US singles chart and scooped the Grammy for 'Record Of The Year' it also established the theme of - and lent its name to - the Eagles' autobiographical, multi‑platinum LP that, courtesy of guitarist Bernie Leadon's replacement by Joe Walsh, saw the band make the transition from country rock to mainstream rock while achieving their greatest critical and commercial success. The Eagles on stage, Rotterdam, 1977.Photo: Redferns Producer Bill Szymczyk tells us how it happened. ![]() ![]() Hotel California saw the Eagles abandon their country origins in favour of full-blown rock & roll, and made them one of the biggest selling groups in the world.
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