By the mid-1970s, the Eagles were at the pinnacle of their success. They had been working through every rock trope they could think of. The album One of These Nights produced three separate singles. However, with success comes pressure. The band found themselves with their backs against the wall when it came to recording Hotel California.
When discussing the album’s idea, Don Henley acknowledged wanting to express something about the situation in Hollywood. He added, “There’s a fine line between the American dream and the American nightmare.” The rest of the band was more than happy to oblige. Joe Walsh came up with the original lick for ‘Life in the Fast Lane‘ on a whim.
Walsh claimed to use the lick as a warm-up exercise, but it evolved into its piece once Glenn Frey decided on the song’s title. While guitarist Don Felder created the main chord idea for the title tune, he was also working on another song for the album.
Midway through the recording, Felder stated that he wanted to sing the song ‘Victim of Love‘. He claimed he had composed it himself. According to Henley, Felder only gave the band a collection of riffs, which Frey and JD Souther fashioned into a song.
After one terrible take after the next, the band told Felder that it would be best if he didn’t perform the song, but Felder refused. The band agreed to let Felder play his version of the song. However, they were also keeping an eye on their manager.
As the sessions came to a close, the band tasked manager Irving Azoff with taking Felder out to dinner while they re-recorded the entire tune. Felder described feeling betrayed (via Songfacts) upon discovering he was being deleted from the song. “I was promised a song on the next record.”
While Henley still claims that no commitments were made to Felder, this marked the beginning of the band’s split. As the tour expanded, Felder became increasingly disgruntled with Frey and Henley for receiving all songwriting rights.
By the time the band arrived in Long Beach for a benefit concert, Felder had gone too far. He made an offhand remark to Senator Alan Cranston about the free show. In contrast to the petty arguing behind the scenes, a recording captured the infamous gig. During this performance, Frey and Felder threatened to kill each other onstage. That night, as the house lights dimmed, Felder grabbed his guitar, smashed it, and then drove away, vanishing without a trace.
When bassist Timothy B. Schmidt called Frey about the next rehearsals, he confirmed the worst: the band was over. The Eagles’ music may have reeked of California sunshine. The Eagles’ final days were a whirlwind of planning, animosity, and dramatic episodes that most bands would dread.
