With six Grammy Awards and five American Music Awards, the Eagles proved themselves time and again as a rock band that could produce one hit after another, a feat accomplished in part thanks to their attention to detail. Even so, vocalist and drummer Don Henley feels there’s one detail the song “Earlybird” could have done without, a detail that might have made it less, in his view, “corny.”
The Eagles dominated the music scene throughout the ’70s, with founding members Henley, Glenn Frey, Bernie Leadon, and Randy Meisner frequently recruited by Linda Ronstadt as band members for touring or her solo album. Their album, Their Greatest Hits (1971–1975), is the best-selling album in the United States. So, why does Henley, , think the band made a misstep?
The Eagles made a unique choice with “Earlybird” that Don Henley has mixed feelings about
The Eagles struck gold fast with their debut studio album, Eagles. The collection featured hits like “Peaceful Easy Feeling,” “Witchy Woman,” and “Take It Easy,” the latter of which would prove especially evocative. But it was “Earlybird” that featured some unique artistic choices that got a lukewarm reception from Henley.
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The track famously includes birdsong, which Henley didn’t want on the song. “Those sounds are actual birds chirping,” Henley told Rolling Stone. “They were taken from a sound effects library. I thought – and still think – it was corny, but it wasn’t my song. Adding the chirping sounds was the decision of both the song’s author and our producer.”
Trial and error
Signed with Asylum Records, their debut album, the Eagles worked with Glyn Johns, who by then already had worked with Led Zeppelin and The Who. Of course, this gave them a solid start with big names in the industry, but there were a few hangups along the way, notes Far Out Magazine.
For instance, Johns was used to working with Led Zeppelin drummer John Bonham, who could strike the drums with an intensity that Henley struggled to match; yet Johns kept his drumkit with very few microphones because he was used to Bonham’s work.
As for “Earlybird,” despite misgivings by Henley, it, along with the rest of the album, set a solid stage for what the Eagles would bring to music, and by ’98, the band was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.