Joe Walsh‘s influence on the Eagles will never be defined simply by songs. It was really about the vibe.
They’d started as country-leaning rockers, then went all in with 1973’s Old West-themed Desperado. But Glenn Frey and Don Henley clearly aimed for something more, adding crunchy guitarist Don Felder during the sessions for 1974’s appropriately titled On the Border. Former Flying Burrito Brothers member Bernie Leadon, the rootsy soul of their early era, soon departed.
That opened the door for Walsh, who’d already established himself through solo albums and work with the James Gang and Barnstorm. His first Eagles album, 1976’s Hotel California, included a furious tandem guitar workout with Felder on the title track.
READ MORE: Ranking Every Eagles Solo Album
Through it all, however, Walsh never really rose to frontman status with the Eagles, despite the fact that he’d already released two gold-selling Top 15 U.S. hits with 1973’s The Smoker You Drink, the Player You Get and 1974’s So What before joining. His first group also had three consecutive gold-selling LPs, topped by 1970’s Top 20 smash James Gang Rides Again.
Even when the Eagles gathered for a belated 2000s-era double LP, Walsh only had two showcase moments. Still, that takes nothing away from his enormous impact. As the group continued on past the sudden death of Frey, Walsh became a symbol of their lasting resiliency. Here’s a ranked look back at all of his Eagles songs:
No. 5. “Guilty of the Crime”
From: Long Road Out of Eden (2007)
As with the pre-Joe Walsh era, there was typically more country than rock on the Eagles’ final studio effort. So, thank goodness for Joe Walsh and songs like “Guilty of the Crime,” right? Unfortunately, Walsh disappears into a rather faceless song co-written by Frankie Miller and the late Jerry Lynn Williams, the latter of whom composed a bunch of boring songs for Eric Clapton, too.
No. 4. “Last Good Time in Town”
From: Long Road Out of Eden (2007)
Walsh wasn’t much of a presence on Eagles’ long-awaited follow up to 1979’s The Long Run, singing on just two tracks. This is actually his only credited co-write on Long Road Out of Eden. Walsh contributed the verses while longtime Eagles collaborator J.D. Souther crafted the chorus. Still, “Last Good Time in Town” – with its winking tributes to the joys of home life after giving up the high life – sounds 100% Walsh. It’s a high point of the whole album.
No. 3. “Life in the Fast Lane”
From: Hotel California (1976)
Walsh was fooling around with this riff in a loose rehearsal when the others took notice. Don Henley memorably asked, “What the hell is that? We’ve got to figure out to make a song out of that.” Then Glenn Frey was barreling down the Santa Monica highway with a drug dealer he called “the Count,” and he blurted out the title phrase. The two were combined as the final single from Hotel California, and it shot to No. 11.
No. 2. “In the City”
From: The Long Run (1979)
Joe Walsh had already released his own version of “In the City,” as part of the soundtrack to 1979’s cult classic The Warriors, when the Eagles approached him about rerecording the song for their long-delayed new album. Musically, the approach was lighter but largely the same; the major difference is their gorgeous vocal blend. Later, after “In the City” had become a live and radio staple, Eagles added a memorable reference to the Beatles‘ “Day Tripper” onstage.
No. 1. “Pretty Maids All in a Row”
From: Hotel California (1976)
The Eagles completed a shift from roots band to full-on rockers as Walsh took over for the brilliant picker Bernie Leadon. Nobody else could have come up with the riff for “Life in the Fast Lane,” Walsh’s other major contribution to Hotel California. But then “Pretty Maids All in a Row” couldn’t have been more different. An emotional meditation on regret, the song finds Walsh tearing off a mournful slide solo before catching a different gear when his new bandmates join the vocal finale. Rock’s clown prince has rarely been more revealing.
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Gallery Credit: Nick DeRiso
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