Don Henley Sues California Politician Over Song Use

Here we go again. Another songwriter is filing suit against a politician who has been using his music in political advertisements. Republican Charles DeVore is planning to challenge veteran California Senator Barbara Boxer for her senate seat in next year’s Congressional elections.

Unfortunately for Don Henley, of Eagles fame, DeVore’s campaign has decided to make use of Henley’s song “All She Wants To Do Is Dance” by applying their own spin on the tune and changing the lyrics to “All she wants to do is tax.” Kind of a clever play on words, but Henley is clearly not impressed and would like the DeVore campaign to stop.

So far, the advertisements have only been presented as videos that were posted on the internet, including the popular video-sharing site YouTube. It appears that at least some of the videos have been taken down by YouTube due to complaints regarding copyright violation that were filed by Warner/Chappell music.

As might be expected, Senator Boxer’s camp and DeVore’s camp have been sniping at one another over the parody videos, with someone on Boxer’s staff stating that “…while Chuck DeVore is writing song lyrics she is working for tax cuts in Washington.”

DeVore’s position is that it is within his rights to political free speech to parody Henley’s material. With regard to Henley, Devore said it was “time to up the ante on Mr. Henley’s liberal goon tactics. By popular request, I have penned the words to our new parody song.”

So far, we have not heard any word of any serious repercussions that have resulted in these types of lawsuits being filed against politicians, but since the wheels of justice often grind slowly, it may just be a matter of waiting a while until we start hearing about how these cases are adjudicated.

Since the big-name artists and music companies have plenty of money to pay for lawyers, and politicians always seem to have an adequate supply of dirt to toss at each other, this probably won’t be the last case like this that will be making headlines and contributing the bank accounts of various attorneys at the same time.

Subscribe to RRN via RSS Feed or follow us on Twitter to stay up-to-date on classic rock news

Tags: Barbara Boxer, California, Charles Devore, Copyright, Don Henley, lawsuit, Senate

Eagles Extend Tour Into Next Year

The Long Road Out of Eden just got a bit longer. The Eagles have decided to extend their tour into next year and although that’s good news for fans who have wanted to see them live and have not yet had the chance, there’s even more good news to report.

The cost of the tickets for the newly-added shows will not be accompanied by the additional fees fans have had to endure in the past. The elimination of the fees comes days after TicketMaster acquired a controlling stake in Irving Azoff’s Front Line Management Group, whose roster of acts includes the Eagles. Azoff himself is now the CEO of the new entity, dubbed Ticketmaster Entertainment.

TicketMaster is making moves towards transforming itself into an “all-encompassing entertainment company,” according to a statement from Azoff.

The new shows will commence in January with dates in the Eastern U.S., including Hampton, VA; Charlotte, NC; North Charleston, SC; Greensboro, NC; Greenville, SC; and Birmingham, AL.

Although I’m sure many fans were never sure about the justification for “convenience fees” that had been customary in the past, I am sure that fans will be happy to note their absence when they purchase tickets for next year’s Eagles shows. These days we don’t see prices dropping on many things other than fuel, so it’s commendable that Ticketmaster Entertainment has decided to give fans a break by eliminating those fees.

The current leg of the Long Road Out of Eden tour is scheduled to complete early next month and give the group a little time to rest up and enjoy the holidays. For more details and full tour itinerary, see Live Daily.

Tags: 2009, Eagles, Fees, TicketMaster, Tickets, tour

Former Eagle Don Felder In Boston TV Interview

Don Felder, former guitar player for the Eagles, appeared on our local Fox television station for an interview during the morning news show today. Felder is in town for a book signing to promote his new book, Heaven and Hell: My Life in the Eagles (1974-2001).

During the interview Felder revealed some interesting tidbits from his past, including how he provided guitar lessons for a young Tom Petty and learned how he to play slide guitar from Duane Allman.

Felder spent some time living in Boston, and that is where he originally hooked up with the Eagles when he attended a concert at Boston University where the Eagles were the opening act for Yes.

Being friends with Eagles band member Bernie Leadon, Felder joined the group backstage in the dressing room where he played some guitar with Leadon and impressed Don Henley and Glenn Frey with his abilities.

After that experience, Leadon convinced Felder to move to California. After his arrival in The Golden State, Felder worked with David Crosby and Graham Nash for a while before Stephen Stills joined the group to form Crosby, Stills and Nash.

Called to do some session work on a new Eagles album, which apparently went well, Felder was asked to join the group the day after he finished working on the album with them.

Felder is not stingy with his praise for the musical talent of his former band mates and says that every member “brought brilliance musically to the band.” At the same time, there were “five huge egos in the band that eventually led to problems.

He then went on to talk about the struggle for power, control and greed that intensified during the 1990’s when the group re-formed after its breakup in the late 1970’s to record a new album: Hell Freezes Over.

The money that began to flow in after the group reunited became a major sticking point between members, particularly Felder who dug deeply into how the money was being distributed and discovered that Henley and Frey were being paid double the amount that Felder was getting. Something that Felder says was not part of the original agreement when the group was first formed.

Following Felder’s discovery of the new pay structure, he hired an attorney to look into the matter and was promptly fired from the band.

Felder also talked about his efforts to write the book in an unbiased way and provide a “nice clear snapshot of what was going on behind the scenes.” With what he describes as a life behind a “steel curtain,” Felder said that the group was always a very “tight-lipped organization,” who would rarely grant access to backstage areas and do very few interviews.

When asked to describe some of his former band mates with a quick line, Felder described Glenn Frey as “bipolar.” Of Don Henley, he refers to him as “a difficult guy to hang out with, which was also a comment he made regarding Frey. However, he offered high praise for the talent of both Frey and Henley.

Joe Walsh was apparently the member of the group that Felder was closest to, calling him and “wonderful guy” and how he “loves him to death.”

Regarding the Eagles most recent album, Felder says he is very happy for the group’s continued success, but also reveals his disappointment with the album, primarily due to the lack of guitar work by Joe Walsh, who he calls one of the “best rock and roll guitarists alive today.”

Don Felder also does not attempt to hide the facts of his own bad behavior during his years with the Eagles, and admits in the book to his own drug use and infidelity. Even the story of how his wife came to discover his infidelity, which, by itself, may be worth the price of the book for people who love the Eagles and celebrity gossip.

For Eagles fans, the book sounds like a “must read.” For me, Felder came across as a very personable and honest guy. Without knowing him personally, that’s not something I cannot guarantee by any means, but that is they way he struck me while watching him during the course of the interview.

The interview is available online at MyFoxBoston.com.

Tags: Book, Boston, Don Felder, Fox, interview, TV

New Book From Former Eagle Don Felder

This week John Wiley & Sons will be releasing Heaven and Hell: My Life in the Eagles (1974-2001), Don Felder’s revealing behind-the-scenes stories about the Eagles, the band’s creative process, and its legendary partying.

Heaven and Hell is a raucous and bittersweet tale about the love of music and the price of fame. It offers a glimpse into Felder’s childhood in Gainesville—during which he crossed paths with several rock greats, from Duane Allman to Stephen Stills to Tom Petty–and goes on to chronicle his years as a member of The Eagles.

Felder recalls every part of the band’s wild ride, from the pressure-packed recording studios to the trashed hotel rooms. Yet, beyond the mayhem and clashing egos, he also captures the joy of writing powerful new songs with his band mates, the magic of performing in huge arenas packed with fans and the hard work, dedication, and creativity that each band member brought to the music.

Tags: Book, Don Felder, Eagles

New Don Henley Interview

Don Henley recently took some time from his schedule to grant another interview and talk about the Eagle’s new album as well as some history of the group and how they ended up where they are today.

There were some interesting things revealed for this piece that I had not seen before. Granted, I am not the biggest Eagles fan in the world but I thought the following was quite impressive.

Their latest album, Long Road Out of Eden sold 711,000 copies during the first week of its release. Sure that sounds like an impressive number but what’s interesting to me was that how it compares to a new Britney Spears album which sold only 290,000 copies.

Not only that but Long Road Out of Eden was recently certified platinum seven times over which makes it the best-selling album from a group during all of 2007. It’s very clear that the Eagles are still hot!

Eagles fans may be interested in some of Henley’s comments regarding the group’s history and their off-again-on-again efforts to join together again to work on new music after being apart for a few years and working through legal problems and other obstacles.

There’s also a little bit about how the Eagles first formed after a chance meeting between Henley and Glenn Frey at a Los Angeles club back in early 1970’s when Henley was looking for work.

Towards the end of the interview, Henley talks about the last song on the latest album, which is called “It’s Your World Now,” which he describes as primarily a message for their kids, but also says, “could be construed as a fond farewell – some parting thoughts for our loyal fans as we ride off into the sunset.”

Whether or not that means the Eagles are actually finished this time is something the group does not even seem to know. We’ll have to wait and see.

For the entire interview, check out Canada’s Globe & Mail.

Tags: Don Henley, Eagles, interview