"James Dean" | ||||
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Single by Eagles | ||||
from the album On the Border | ||||
B-side | "Good Day in Hell" | |||
Released | August 14, 1974 | |||
Recorded | 1973 | |||
Genre | Hard rock, rock and roll, [1] rockabilly [2] | |||
Length | 3:36 | |||
Label | Asylum | |||
Songwriter(s) | Don Henley, Glenn Frey, Jackson Browne, JD Souther | |||
Producer(s) | Bill Szymczyk | |||
Eagles singles chronology | ||||
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"James Dean" is a song written by Don Henley, Glenn Frey, Jackson Browne, and JD Souther, and recorded by the American rock band Eagles for their 1974 album On the Border . It was the second single released from this album, reaching number 77 on the U.S. pop singles chart. [3]
The song is about American actor James Dean (1931–1955). The lyrics, "too fast to live, too young to die" refer to the life and abrupt death of Dean in a car crash in 1955. [4] Bernie Leadon played the guitar solo. [5]
"James Dean" was first written for a planned album dedicated to antiheroes. According to Glenn Frey, he, together with Don Henley, Jackson Browne, and JD Souther, were jamming together after attending a Tim Hardin show at the Troubadour in 1972, and they came up with the idea of doing an album about antiheroes. [6] From this came the songs "Doolin-Dalton" and "James Dean". The album however evolved into a wild-west themed album Desperado which was released in 1973, and "James Dean" was shelved. When recording began for On the Border, the song was immediately pulled off the shelf and completed. [7] The song was written mostly by Jackson Browne according to Henley. [6]
The B-side "Good Day in Hell" is the first Eagles track recorded with Don Felder, who joined the band midway through the sessions for the album.
Billboard described "James Dean" as "good solid rocker" with "fine vocal harmonies" whose instrumentation is reminiscent of Jackson Browne's 1973 song "Redneck Friend," on which Eagles guitarist Glenn Frey provided backup vocals. [8] Cash Box said that this is "one of the best rockers to come around in years", that "lyrically, the tribute to the legendary film star is letter perfect", and that "musically, well, just try to keep from dancing here." [9] Record World said that the "legendary screen idol of the '50s still stands tall as a rebellious figure, worthy of the contemporary missive that these men definitely deliver with all due cause, speed and prowess." [10] Ultimate Classic Rock critic Sterling Whitaker rated it as the Eagles 8th most underrated song. [11]
Chart (1974) | Peak position |
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Canada Top Singles ( RPM ) [12] | 56 |
US Billboard Hot 100 [13] | 77 |
The Eagles are an American rock band formed in Los Angeles in 1971. With five number-one singles and six number-one albums, six Grammy Awards and five American Music Awards, the Eagles were one of the most successful musical acts of the 1970s in North America and are one of the world's best-selling music artists, having sold more than 200 million records worldwide, including 100 million sold in the US alone. They were inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1998 and were ranked number 75 on Rolling Stone's 2004 list of the "100 Greatest Artists of All Time". Founding members Glenn Frey, Don Henley, Bernie Leadon, and Randy Meisner were recruited by Linda Ronstadt as band members, some touring with her, and all playing on her third solo studio album, before venturing out on their own on David Geffen's new Asylum Records label.
Glenn Lewis Frey was an American musician. He was a founding member of the rock band Eagles. Frey was the co-lead singer and frontman for Eagles, roles he came to share with fellow member Don Henley, with whom he wrote most of Eagles' material. Frey played guitar and keyboards as well as singing lead vocals on songs such as "Take It Easy", "Peaceful Easy Feeling", "Tequila Sunrise", "Already Gone", "James Dean", "Lyin' Eyes", "New Kid in Town", and "Heartache Tonight".
Desperado is the second studio album by the American rock band the Eagles, released on April 17, 1973, by Asylum Records. The album was produced by Glyn Johns and was recorded at Island Studios in London, England. The songs on Desperado are based on the themes of the Old West. The band members are featured on the album's cover dressed like an outlaw gang; Desperado remains the only Eagles album where the band members appear on the front cover.
Eagles is the debut studio album by American rock band the Eagles. The album was recorded at London's Olympic Studios with producer Glyn Johns and released on June 1, 1972, by Asylum Records. It was an immediate success for the then-new band, reaching No. 22 on the Billboard 200 and achieving a platinum certification from the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA). Three singles were released from the album, each reaching the Top 40 of the Billboard Hot 100: "Take It Easy", "Witchy Woman", and "Peaceful Easy Feeling". The band, starting with this album, played a major role in popularizing the country rock sound.
On the Border is the third studio album by American rock band the Eagles, released on March 22, 1974. Apart from two songs produced by Glyn Johns, it was produced by Bill Szymczyk because the group wanted a more rock‑oriented sound instead of the country-rock feel of the first two albums. It is the first Eagles album to feature guitarist Don Felder. On the Border reached number 17 on the Billboard album chart and has sold two million copies.
One of These Nights is the fourth studio album by American rock band the Eagles, released on June 10, 1975. The album was the band's commercial breakthrough, transforming them into international superstars. In July that year, the record became the Eagles' first number one album on Billboard Top LPs & Tape chart, yielding three Top 10 singles: "One of These Nights", "Lyin' Eyes" and "Take It to the Limit". Its title song is the group's second number one single on the Billboard Hot 100. The album sold four million copies and received a Grammy nomination for Album of the Year. A single from the album, "Lyin' Eyes", was also nominated for Record of the Year, and won the Eagles' first Grammy for Best Pop Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocals at the 18th Annual Grammy Awards in 1976. The band embarked on the worldwide One of These Nights tour to promote the album.
Bernard Matthew Leadon III is an American singer, musician, songwriter, and founding member of the Eagles, for which he was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1998. Prior to the Eagles, he was a member of three country rock bands: Hearts & Flowers, Dillard & Clark, and the Flying Burrito Brothers. He is a multi-instrumentalist coming from a bluegrass background. He introduced elements of this music to a mainstream audience during his tenure with the Eagles.
Donald William Felder is an American musician who was the lead guitarist of the rock band Eagles from 1974 to 2001. He was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1998 with the Eagles. Felder was inducted into the Musicians Hall of Fame and Museum in 2016.
"I Can't Tell You Why" is a song by the American rock band Eagles that appeared on their 1979 album The Long Run. It was written by band members Timothy B. Schmit, Glenn Frey and Don Henley. Recorded in March 1978, it was the first song finished for the album and the first Eagles song to feature Schmit on lead vocals. Released as a single in February 1980, it became a Billboard top 10 hit in April, reaching number eight on the Billboard Hot 100 and number three on the Adult Contemporary chart. It was the group's last top ten hit on the Billboard Hot 100.
Common Thread: The Songs of the Eagles is a tribute album to American rock band Eagles. It was released in 1993 on Giant Records to raise funds for the Walden Woods Project. The album features covers of various Eagles songs, as performed by country music acts. It was certified 3× Platinum in the United States by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) on June 27, 1994, honoring shipments of three million copies in the United States. Several cuts from the album all charted on the Billboard Hot Country Songs charts after the album's release, the most successful being Travis Tritt's rendition of "Take It Easy" at number 21. Common Thread won all of its performers a Country Music Association Award for Album of the Year at the 1994 ceremony.
"Best of My Love" is a song written by Don Henley, Glenn Frey, and JD Souther. It was originally recorded by the Eagles, and included on their 1974 album On the Border. The song was released as the third single from the album, and it became the band's first Billboard Hot 100 number 1 single in March 1975. The song also topped the easy listening chart for one week a month earlier. Billboard ranked it as the number 12 song for 1975.
"One of These Nights" is a song by the American rock band Eagles, written by Don Henley and Glenn Frey. The title track from their 1975 One of These Nights album, the song became their second single to top the Billboard Hot 100 chart after "Best of My Love" and also helped propel the album to number one. The single version was shortened from the album version of the song, removing most of the song's intro and most of its fade-out, as well. Henley is lead vocalist on the verses, while Randy Meisner sings high harmony on the refrain. The song features a guitar solo by Don Felder that is "composed of blues-based licks and sustained string bends using an unusually meaty distortion tone."
"Take It Easy" is the debut single by the American rock band Eagles, written by Jackson Browne and Eagles band member Glenn Frey, who also provides lead vocals. It was released on May 1, 1972, and peaked at No. 12 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart on July 22, 1972. It was also the opening track of the band's eponymous debut album and has become one of their signature songs, included on all of their live and compilation albums. It is listed as one of The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame's 500 Songs that Shaped Rock and Roll.
"Lyin' Eyes" is a song written by Don Henley and Glenn Frey and recorded in 1975 by the American rock band Eagles, with Frey singing lead vocals. It was the second single from their album One of These Nights, reaching No. 2 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart and No. 8 on the Billboard Country chart. It remained their only top 40 country hit until "How Long" in 2007–2008.
"Take It to the Limit" is a song by Eagles from their fourth album One of These Nights from which it was issued as the last third single on November 15, 1975. It reached No. 4 on the U.S. Billboard Hot 100 and was also Eagles' greatest success to that point in the United Kingdom, going to No. 12 on the charts. Billboard ranked it as the No. 25 song for 1976.
"Life in the Fast Lane" is a song written by Joe Walsh, Glenn Frey and Don Henley, and recorded by American rock band Eagles for the band's fifth studio album Hotel California (1976). It was the third single released from this album, and peaked at No. 11 on the Billboard Hot 100.
"Tequila Sunrise" is a song from 1973, written by Don Henley and Glenn Frey, and recorded by the Eagles. It was the first single from the band's second album, Desperado. It peaked at number 64 on the Billboard Hot 100.
"Witchy Woman" is a song written by Don Henley and Bernie Leadon, and recorded by the American rock band Eagles. Released as the second single from the band's debut studio album, Eagles (1972), it reached No. 9 on the Billboard pop singles chart.
"The Long Run" is a song written by Don Henley and Glenn Frey and recorded by the Eagles. The sound of the song is viewed as a tribute to the Stax / Memphis rhythm and blues sound. It was the title track of their album The Long Run and was released as a single in November 1979. It reached No. 8 on the U.S. Billboard Hot 100 in early 1980. It was the second of three singles released from The Long Run album, preceded by "Heartache Tonight," which reached No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100 in November 1979, and followed by "I Can't Tell You Why," which also reached No. 8 on the Billboard Hot 100, in the spring of 1980.
"Already Gone" is a song recorded by the American rock band the Eagles for their 1974 album On the Border. It was written by Jack Tempchin and Robb Strandlund and produced by Bill Szymczyk.
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