I became a fan of the Eagles while I was a child because my older sisters listened to them. Much of my love for '70's music came this way. But by the time I became old enough to go to one of their concerts, they decided that the band was finished. Then came the "Hell Freezes Over" tour and my hopes were rekindled to see them again.
And that is exactly what happened last week in downtown Cincinnati. Stacey and I finally got to see Glenn, Don, Tim and Joe in person. After 40+ years of rockin' out, I was convinced that they could not sound as good as they did in their prime. And not only was I wrong, but I wonder if maybe now is their prime. They seem to be at peace with themselves and each other and making jokes about themselves and their past.
At 61, Glenn opened the concert by saying "Welcome to the Assisted Living Tour." He also dedicated "Lyin' Eyes" to his first wife, "Plaintiff". And he said that the band's wives think that "this next song is about credit cards", then proceeded to play "Take It To The Limit".
Dressed in black suits, white shirts and black ties, they played all of the hits that made them famous and some deep new songs from their new album from which they named their tour. "Hotel California", "Peaceful Easy Feeling", "The Long Run", "Take it Easy", with "Dirty Laundry"(great video primarily of FoxNews and Bill O'Reilly), "Life's Been Good" for good measure and ending with what else, "Desperado". And their "Long Road Out of Eden" song had a great rythym with deeply moving lyrics about America and the Iraq war. Showing that they still have great writing skill, here's a line from the song...
Behold the bitten apple, the power of the tools
But all the knowledge in the world is of no use to fools
And it's a long road out of Eden.
And for 3 hours and 45 minutes, these guys gave it all that they had. For someone just turning 40 (and I was one of the youngin's in the crowd), it was such an inspiration to see these men enjoying life and in top form at an age when most people would be playing parcheesi and counting their money.
So, my 40th birthday present (thank you Beard family) was one for the memory books and I can cross one more thing off of my bucket list. Next on the list, slightly younger rockers U2.
