Although Joe Walsh is more widely known for being the finest of the Eagles‘ internal guitar heroes, he had an extraordinary life before joining the iconic Californian act of the 1970s. He gained notoriety as the frontman and axeman of the Midwest group James Gang. The trio successfully combined psychedelic, hard rock, and the emerging Southern rock subgenre.
The group played a significant role in the classic rock era with hits like “Funk #49” and “Walk Away.” Walsh amply demonstrated his abilities as a guitarist and songwriter while they were together. Because of his influence during these formative years, he would go on to carve out a niche for himself as a fretboard artist. Later, when Generation X reached the pinnacle of music, fretboard titans like Jerry Cantrell of Alice in Chains cited him as an inspiration. Even Dave Grohl acknowledged his influence. The former would point to his tone and feel as two characteristics that were especially crucial in helping him create his unique sound.
Remarkably, Walsh departed from James Gang towards the end of 1971 to focus on his solo career. The following year, he formed Barnstorm, an additional power trio. In 1975, he continued his journey and formally signed with the Eagles, marking a turning point in his career. This move surpassed all expectations and even defined an era. The legendary Hotel California, which he recorded with the group for the first time in 1976, appropriately set the tone for future releases.
Walsh’s initial five-year contract with the Eagles was, of course, followed by commitments to other endeavors. Among them was his solo hit “Life’s Been Good,” which debuted on the FM soundtrack in 1978. A song that scathingly parodies the excess of the classic rock era. A variety of his real-life encounters inspired it. Some included well-known figures like Keith Moon, the resident maniac of The Who. He showed him the way to ruin when James Gang opened for the British band.
The song is Walsh’s career high point. Nevertheless, in 2016, when he wrote 15 songs about his life for Rolling Stone, he felt the lyrics were “dumb”.Scheiner’s disappointment stemmed from his fear that Martin wouldn’t appreciate Steely Dan’s work.
He clarified, saying, “I didn’t want to use the lyrics. I intended to swap them out for something more rock & roll. However, Bill Szymczyk and [drummer Joe Vitale] remarked, “No, these words are amazing.” They are real, and you should make use of them. And I thought to myself, “Well, they’re kind of dumb.” The song will either be perceived as funny and satirical or it won’t be funny at all, and it will go down the toilet as one of the worst things ever written. That’s what I was afraid of.”
Then Walsh disclosed that the hotel-themed sections of the song, like “I live in hotels / Tear out the walls,” alludes to Keith Moon liking him when the James Gang opened for The Who in Europe during Tommy’s premiere. “One of the scariest things that happened to me – ever – happened,” he said, referring to the drummer’s admiration for him.
Unfortunately, Joe Walsh learned “the art of hotel damage, of destroying things.” He learned “of making things that blow up, of superglue madness and mayhem, of trashing rent-a-cars.” Just causing as much trouble as possible from the king of rock obliteration during the tour.
As the decade progressed, Joe Walsh would add his unique touch to this way of life. As Elton John and Irving Azoff will attest, the freehand use of a chainsaw proved helpful when he was deep into his next, pre-Eagles chapter.
