It is with good reason that Hotel California is the most well-known albums by the Eagles and one of the most popular in all of rock music. The loss of Bernie Leadon is regrettable, but the addition of Joe Walsh more than makes up for it. While he lacks Leadon’s country sensibility and a classically good voice, his unique singing style and rock chops take the band further down the path they chose when adding Don Felder.

The title track has become synonymous with what is now called “Classic Rock”, and it is indeed a classic example of everything that is good about rock music. Henley’s voice and mysterious lyrics fit the spooky rock riffs perfectly and Walsh and Felder’s extended solos manage to be both exiting and beautiful. A few minutes of that hypnotic repeated bass pattern, reggae upbeats, and repetitious arpeggiated solo leave the listener in a trance, perhaps not unlike visitors to the eponymous hotel.

“Life In The Fast Lane” is the first great hard rock song written by the band, no doubt due to the influence of Walsh. The main verse riff is not much to speak of, but the one used as the intro and under the choruses is remarkable. Still, the song might have been unremarkable if Walsh had not been interjecting tasty guitar licks throughout the tune. Henley’s singing is quite effective again, and it is clear that at this point he is the best lyricist in the group.

The other real gem is the album’s closer, “The Last Resort”. Once again, Henley writes a fantastic set of lyrics and sings them to a delightful melody. The song starts with simple, but effective piano accompaniment, but the rest of the band eventually joins in. Felder’s steel guitar is a distracting throwback to the band’s country roots, but the rest of the arrangement is spot-on. In particular, the key change is very effective.

Most of the other album cuts are quite good as well. “Pretty Maids All In A Row” is a strange combination of balladry and rhythm & blues, but it works. “Victim Of Love” does not quite have the energy or inspiration of “Life In The Fast Lane”, but it still rocks harder than anything the band had written previously. “New Kid In Town”, “Wasted Time”, and “Try And Love Again” are all mediocre at worst, although the synthesized strings can be a bit much at times. The instrumental reprise of “Wasted Time” is the only track that the album would be better without.

Few bands are able to belt out hard rock anthems in one breath and whisper heartfelt ballads the next without sounding silly, and fewer still are able to write such exceptional material as the Eagles do here.