The Metropolitan Museum of Art and the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame teamed in 2019 on an exhibit. They promised to provide music lovers a unique view into the instruments behind some of cultural history’s most treasured tunes. A white double-neck sat alongside Chuck Berry’s hollow-body Gibson and James Jamerson’s upright bass. It belonged to Don Felder, who notably performed both the twelve-string and six-string sections on live performances of “Hotel California.”
Felder came to New York for the exhibition’s opening, while Jimmy Page arrived later that day. Page, for his part, had lent them seven guitars, one of which was the cherry red equivalent to Felder’s double-neck. “I am an absolute monstrous fan of him,” Felder said to WOUB. “Both as a person and his musical creations and the things he’s brought to this planet for everyone to enjoy.”
Even though Felder developed his southern rock with the Eagles, it was evident that the Led Zeppelin guitarist had left him starstruck. But he didn’t have much time to think about it since the exhibit’s personnel immediately asked if he’d go out and perform ‘Hotel California’ for everyone.
He remained unfazed. It was a guaranteed crowd-pleaser, and he had likely played it so many times by this point that it was muscle memory. Instruments and reporters filled the space to capacity.
He mentioned that he didn’t have a band with him, but he did have a couple of songs under his sleeve. They were eager to hear Felder perform, backing band or no backing band. They quickly placed him on a small platform, where 200 members of the press sat wide-eyed. Video cameras, television cameras, still photographers, newspaper writers, and magazine personnel were all present. The space was jam-packed with instruments and reporters.
Felder, however, showed no concern. Until he came out on stage and saw Jimmy Page seated in the front row. “I’ve got to stand there and sing and play the solos on ‘Hotel [California]’, the whole thing, just spotlessly,”. He said, “Because if I make a mistake, I would turn over in my sleep every night for the rest of my life, agonizing over that moment.”
He’d never been afraid of coming on stage, but performing a surprise performance for Page would make any guitarist nervous. “I got a gasp inside,” he confessed. “[I] took a deep breath and went, ‘Well, this is gonna be interesting.'”
Following the performance, he quickly cornered Page. “I told [Page] how frightened I was by him sitting right there listening to every note,” he was quoted as saying. He imagined Page sitting in the audience, waiting for a terrible fret or a harsh pitch as he stood on stage. He chuckled and said he’d been there previously when he told Page this.
“We became bonded there, at that event, to connect ‘Stairway to Heaven‘ and ‘Hotel California’,” Felder went on to say. “The two double-neck guitar players.”
