Don Henley Wouldn’t Continue The Eagles Without Glenn Frey’s Family Blood

There have been many occurrences of band separation in the music industry, and people know how to deal with it, but many don’t know how to manage when a band member dies. Do the other members carry on or disband? This scenario has no right or wrong; the living members will follow their guts. 

A typical example is the case of the Eagles, who lost a band member, Glenn Frey, in 2016. When he was alive, he proved his extraordinary talent as a solo artist and a band member playing the guitar, keyboard, and piano, most importantly serving as lead vocals alongside Don Henley. 

Who replaced Glenn Frey of the Eagles?

Don, who was a close pal of Glenn, prioritized having a replacement from his family due to his personal regard for the late star who died of pneumonia complications. He revealed in a 2017 interview with Rolling stone saying, “The only way it felt justified to me was to have family blood in the band.”

RELATED: Glenn Frey’s Son Deacon Is Leaving The Eagles After Replacing Late Dad

However, based on Don’s proposition, the only person that fit the bill was Deacon Frey. The founding member’s son had followed his father to perform at functions, so he had what it took. Although he hadn’t performed in front of large audiences, he held himself pretty well, and Don gave him credit for that. 

Don Welcomes Deacon Frey To The Band

Don revealed how he integrated him into the band, “I have to hand it to Deacon. We rehearsed for a couple of months. And his first gig with us was at Dodger Stadium. He had done some gigs with his father – private parties, clubs, in front of maybe 200 people. To go from that to 55,000 people is extraordinary. I don’t know many people who could have done that without freaking out.”

Deacon assumed his father’s roles in 2017 and stayed five years before leaving in April 2022 to chase a solo career.