Book description
Don Felder was just a poor boy from Florida, but when he joined the
Eagles he soared into the stratosphere. Alongside former bandmates Don
Henley, Glenn Frey, Randy Meisner, and Felder's childhood friend Bernie
Leadon, he sold tens of millions of records (Eagles: Their Greatest
Hits: 1971-1975 is the bestselling album of all time), performed before
countless adoring fans, and co-wrote the renowned hit 'Hotel
California'. His guitar-playing ability lifted the band from mere
popularity to iconic status. And now Don Felder finally breaks the
Eagles' decades of public silence to take fans behind the scenes - where
drugs, greed and endless acrimony threatened to tear the band apart
almost daily.
"Maybe there was too much talent. Maybe the personalities clashed
with the egos. Whatever the reason, there were always these explosive
arguments going on while I sat silently in a corner. I never expected it
to survive. Never once did I feel, 'Hey, I got it made. This thing's
gonna last for years.'"
Felder was wrong about that, but he was also right: the band split up
in 1980, only to reunite for 1994's mega-selling 'Hell Freezes Over'
album and tour. But tempers continued to flare, and in 2001, after 27
contentious years as an Eagle, Felder was summarily fired by the 'board
of directors': Frey and Henley. Lawsuits and counter-suits followed. In
'Heaven and Hell', Felder takes us inside the pressurised recording
studios, the trashed hotel rooms and the tension-filled courtrooms,
where he, Frey, and Henley had their ultimate confrontation. Don
Felder was born in Florida in 1947. He joined the Eagles in 1974,
composed the music to their groundbreaking hit 'Hotel California' and is
still widely considered one of the most gifted guitarists in the music
industry.
