The legendary guitarist and sometimes singer for the staple 1970s band The Eagles had surgery for intestinal problems in November and then “in the last few days his condition took a turn for the worse”.
Glenn Frey died in New York City.
Frey co-wrote and sang most of the Eagles anthems, including “Take it Easy”, “Tequila Sunrise”, “Lyin’ Eyes”, and “Heartache Tonight”. His most notable work came when he teamed up with bandmate Don Henley to pen their biggest hits, “Hotel California” and “Desperado.”
After the break-up and a couple solo hits, The Eagles regrouped in 1994, for their monster “Hell Freezes Over” tour and recorded music till the end, dropping their final studio album, After Hours, in 2012.
From Detroit, Michigan, he was born Glenn Lewis Frey and grew up in Royal Oak. Frey studied under concert pianist John Harrison and became a well-known name in the mid-1960s Detroit rock scene. An early band of his, Subterraneans, named after the classic Jack Kerouac novel, was formed with former high school pals.
After high school, he would join another group, The Four of Us. They wanted to be The Byrds. Their biggest coup was getting Bob Segar to write their first single and made a TV appearance to promote it.
That was followed up by Frey’s biggest solo opportunity – performing guitar and background vocals on Seger’s single, “Ramblin’ Gamblin’ Man” in ’68. Frey was 20 years old.
Frey met Henley in 1970, when singer Linda Ronstadt needed backup guys for a gig. She hired Frey, Henley, Randy Meisner and Bernie Leadon on the advice of her boyfriend J.D. Souther. The foursome continued to tour with Ronstadt into the summer of ’71. After the tour, they formed The Eagles.
While the news broke just a couple hours ago, social media has once again been rocked by the loss of a Rock legend:
SHOCKED to report the death of GLENN FREY. Eagle & brilliant songwriter. We shared some memories at RRHOF. Shocked.. pic.twitter.com/0uVYgaKVIT
— Paul Stanley (@PaulStanleyLive) January 18, 2016
Heartbroken over Glenn Frey’s death. Terrible news.
— Fred Willard (@Fred_Willard) January 18, 2016
Glenn Frey on guitar, Lemmy on bass, Bowie on vocals. I think if I was Mick Fleetwood I’d be nervous.
— Ally Fogg (@AllyFogg) January 18, 2016
Henley had prepared a statement. Had Twitter in tears:
My Dad was a huge fan of The Eagles. Both times he saw them on their Farewell tour, he bought me a t-shirt, which I still have stored away with my other concert wear. There were so many hours in my Dad’s car spent singing to The Eagles, while we were on the road, late at night, trying to make it to our destination in one piece.
Thanks for the company, Glenn Frey.
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