The addition of guitarist Don Felder game Eagles a new, fuller sound on On The Border, and it is definitely a change for the better. Although this album is at least as musically diverse as those that came before, every song works well. Unfortunately, most of the best material is still written by outsiders.

“Already Gone” puts a harder edge on the country-rock stylings of Eagles’s previous singles, and the band succeeds in adding power without sacrificing the beauty of their earlier work. The closing track, “Best Of My Love”, has all of the same features as “Tequila Sunrise” from the previous album but manages to sound fresh. “On The Border” is the band’s first foray into funk-rock, and is quite promising.

The album also contains two good ballads (“You Never Cry Like A Lover” and “Ol’ 55”), an interesting hard rock boogie (“James Dean”), and a surprisingly enjoyable bluegrass tune (“Midnight Flyer”). Bernie Leadon’s tribute to Gram Parsons, “My Man”, works well also. “Is It True?” would be filler for most bands, but with Frey’s slide guitar and Meisner’s bass playing it becomes more than a generic rocker. The same can be said of “Good Day In Hell”, where Felder’s leads nicely complement Frey’s fuzzy upbeats.