Sunday, February 20, 2005

"Journey of the Sorcerer"

You'll probably know this one as the theme to the BBC Radio version of the Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy. One thing that it never fails to do for me, is put me in mind of "Love Reign O'er Me" by The Who, particularly the intro. Now, the Eagles aren't to everyone's taste; some folk think they were a little too country in their early days (from which this comes), while others reckon they ended up as nothing but a bunch of drugged-out dinosaurs. But that's neither here nor there: we're talking about their musicianship and songwriting ability here. Bernie Leadon didn't hang around to see in those Hotel California years, but he did create this masterpiece which, if all things were equal, would stand right up there alongside "Hotel California", "The Last Resort" or "Wasted Time" as songs the Eagkles are best remembered for. But as justice and record sales would have it, Don Henley's agenda won out (bless him anyway, you'll be hearing from me about him later) and so The Eagles played soft rock with a conscience. But, if you strip all that away, you're still left with a bunch of guys who knew how to play.

No comments: