I've got a different take on the solo albums. I think that I've got excellent solo records by every member of the Eagles, past & present, with the exception of Deacon Frey. Indeed, Don Henley's Inside Job and Timothy B. Schmit's Expando are candidates for my two favourite records of the Twenty First Century. Don Felder's three albums are not quite at that quality but they are still full of excellent songs, at least according to my taste.
I was going to ask if Don could read music. He strikes me as someone who can. Found this.. "I was totally self-taught. I began at the age of 10 learning a chord here and there from a few neighbors. I learned primarily by ear until I taught myself to read music at the age of 15. I bought guitar instruction books and learned every song and lick I could off the radio and records. There was no music school in my small town and the music programs in the local schools were only for formal band instruments. My family could not afford private music lessons. Later I exchanged hours of teaching beginning guitar students for hours of instruction from a Berklee College of Music graduate, who owned a small music school. He taught me music theory, arranging and composition." From: Don Felder | Guitar Center Music Foundation
He's a talented musician with an attitude problem, at least as far as being a good fit for the Eagles. He wanted to sing lead on "Victim of Love, " and Frey/Henley insisted Henley do the lead vocals instead. That was a big complaint for Felder in his whiney book. He did help write the tune, but it would not have been a single if he had sung the lead. He added a lot to the band in terms of playing and arranging (he created the bass intro to "One of These Nights, " for instance). But he needed to have a more realistic idea of where he fit into the band.
i cannot pinpoint who plays each and every guitar part on each and every eagles song, but remember that there were 4 other guitarists in that band at different times and glenn frey was pretty ****ing good in his own right as a guitarist. i doubt there is anywhere that breaks it down by guitarist anywhere on the internet. but leadon, frey, felder, walsh and smith are all over all those albums, and i've no idea which is playing guitar on which song.
I can tell who is playing what...and yes chock full of lead players with distinctive styles...especially Walsh!
"Victim of Love" wasn't a single even with Felder not singing the lead. As far as his musicianship goes, consider the circumstances. The band already had two guitarists. They brought in a third, had him play lead, and made him a full partner. Felder wasn't just a guy to fill out the sound, he was needed to take them to the next level. Joe Walsh was less than the sum of the parts. He was brought in to be a big name. But there were clear limits on how many songs he was going to be writing. That made no sense to me. If you bring someone into the band, you want to be getting their best work, and they didn't with Walsh by choice.
I think Don had the chops to have a better "guitar hero" reputation but he was in the wrong kind of band. I think he would've been more of a standout player in a band along the lines of Humble Pie.
If I recall correctly from liner notes, each of the three solos on "King of Hollywood" are by a different guitarist!
There is now a whole second page about Felder's poor solo career though... That one stood out live for me last night too. He brought some "heft" to the original lineup's sound.
Walsh and Felder had a great chemistry and their styles were complimentary. Great dual guitar attack with that late 70s lineup. I agree with sentiments of those who said they both helped take Eagles to the next level, although I can see how fans of Leadon and country rock prefer the older albums.
Disagree with this. He upped their rock quotient but he didn’t play drums or create a grooving rhythm section or write a ton of rocking tunes for Eagles. He brought unique rock credentials to an outfit that had already established their own rock style, for better or worse. Love Joe and have respect for the band, but I don’t think he raised the game that much for them.
For me, the went in a different direction rather than a up to another level. I like Joe and what he brought to the band but the early four-piece albums are excellent too. My favourites are the mid period Leadon/Felder albums, Border and Nights. The rock/country balance is just right on those two.
I've heard stories about Felder from three different people who worked with him, and none of them painted him in a very positive light. I'm certainly not suggesting Henley and Frey were wonderful human beings, but I don't blame them for the Felder situation. He really seems like someone who's pretty difficult to work with, and I think Henley and Frey took a lot of heat for not being willing to deal with his BS anymore. I also thought his book came across as somewhat whiny. My recollection is that he talked about divorcing his wife basically because he was bored with being married, and then spent the remainder of the book whining about how hard it was to be a single dad.
Great player overshadowed by great songwriters......maybe a little under rated on that basis.. I think and guitar player that pays attention respects Felder.
I think he’s a great guitar player and was a perfect fit for The Eagles, but AFAIC, seems a bit whiny and arrogant. I saw a video of him on YT arriving at an airport in the US with about 5 to 10 people asking for autographs. He refused to sign any. Really Don! Also, as a side note, if anyone has the big Woodstock box, you can hear Chip Monck mentioning “Don Felder” during a stage announcement.
Almost violently disagree. I found the first one to pretty much a complete throwaway. Only really liked Takin' a Ride (Heavy Metal) which wasn't even on that one. The two more recent solo albums are far superior even though I'm not sure he's done another tune I liked as much as Takin' a Ride (Heavy Metal).
Ok fair enough, and my intention was not an A vs B type thread. All guitarists in that band were certainly talented.
