Asylum 1039
Producer: Bill Szymczyk
Track listing: One of These Nights / Too Many Hands / Hollywood Waltz / Journey of the Sorcerer / Lyin’ Eyes / Take It to the Limit / Visions / After the Thrill is Gone / I Wish You Peace
July 26, 1975
5 weeks
After initially making their mark as Linda Ronstadt’s backing band, the Eagles took flight in 1972 with their self-titled debut album, which reached number 22. The band’s subsequent efforts, 1973’s Desperado and 1974’s On the Border, clocked in number 41 and 17, respectively. It was the band’s fourth album, One of These Nights, that put the Eagles among the ranks of pop music’s superstars.
Although the Eagles were based in Los Angeles, One of These Nights marked the first full album the band recorded in America. The group’s first two albums were recorded in England with producer Glyn Johns, known for his work with the Rolling Stones. With On the Border, says drummer/vocalist Don Henley, “We cut two tracks over there and we got homesick, basically. We were tired of England. That’s also when we changed producers.”
For One of These Nights, the band which also included singer/guitarist Glenn Frey, guitarists Bernie Leadon and Don Felder, and bassist Randy Meisner, voted to stay with producer Bill Szymczyk, who had taken over On the Border, and returned to Criteria Studios in Miami. At the close of the On the Border sessions, Felder had been asked to become a full member of the band.
At the time, Henley and Frey were roommates in a house that overlooked the Sunset Strip and was built in 1942 for actress/singer Dorothy Lamour. “It had a music room in it and we converted it to a recording studio and rehearsal space,” says Henley. “Glenn and I would go home and listen to Ohio Players and Al Green records. We called that period our occult/country-rock/R&B period.”
The latter genre isn’t usually associated with the Eagles, but Henley insists it was an influence. “‘One of These Nights’ is a rhythm & blues track as far as I’m concerned,” he says. “The drum style, when you hit the snare and the tom at the same time, was heavily influenced by Al Green records.”
The song was written during a particularly productive period. “We wrote ‘One of These Nights’ and ‘Lyin’ Eyes’ in the same afternoon,” says Henley. “We were very excited when we wrote those songs. We knew we had something good. ‘Lyin’ Eyes’ wrote itself. We just sat down and it came pouring out.”
Although the group was “growing out of country-rock,” Henley nonetheless calls “Lyin’ Eyes” the band’s “quintessential country-rock song.” Part of the reason for the change in producers was the band’s shift in direction. “We were excited about getting more hard-edged and more rock ‘n’ roll oriented,” says Henley. “We knew we were headed somewhere. Things were getting better and the band was getting better. We were defining a direction for ourselves.”
The album closer, “I Wish You Peace” was written by Leadon and his then-girlfriend, Patti Davis, daughter of future President Ronald Reagan. Davis’s songwriting credit annoyed Henley, who felt she hadn’t contributed much to the song. This put him at odds with Leadon. “There was a lot of tension in the band at that point,” Henley says.
Tension or not, the Eagles jelled on One of These Nights. In its fifth week on the chart, the album made Number One. A week later, the title track hit Number One on the Hot 100.
THE TOP FIVE
Week of July 26, 1975
1. One of These Nights, Eagles
2. Venus and Mars, Paul McCartney & Wings
3. Love Will Keep Us Together, The Captain & Tenille
4. Captain Fantastic and the Brown Dirt Cowboy, Elton John
5. Cut the Cake, Average White Band