Original The Eagles Rock Band Members Then And Now

The original Eagles band members include Don Henley, Glenn Frey, Bernie Leadon and Randy Meisner. The band was formed in 1971 in Los Angeles.

Don Henley is the drummer and percussionist of the Eagles band and also one of the lead vocalists. Glenn Lewis Frey was also the lead vocalist and frontman of the band. He played the lead and rhythm guitars until he passed away in 2016.

Multi-instrumentalist Bernie played guitars for the band and also supported with back vocals. The fourth member of the original lineup was Randall Meisner or Randy Meisner wrote songs for the band and led the bass guitar. He also backed as a high-harmony vocalist for the band or when working as a session musician. 

The members came up with the idea of forming a new band when they were touring with Linda Ronstadt. Before they were called Eagles, they were known as Teen King and the Emergencies.

The present members of the band Eagles include Don Henley, Joe Walsh, Timothy B. Schmit and Vince Gill.

Joe Walsh is one of the most accomplished guitarists of all time. He was also listed on the 100 Greatest Guitarists of All Time by Rolling Stone magazine. He had joined the Eagles in 1975 and ignoring the long hiatus of the band has been playing lead guitar and keyboard ever since.

Spanning a career of more than five decades, Joe has played with other bands like Ringo Starr & His All-Starr Band and James Gang.

Timothy B Schmit had joined the Eagles in 1977 replacing Randy Meisner on Bass. Before joining the Eagles he was the bassist for the band Poco. Schmit was the one who sang the lead vocals for "Love Will Keep Us Alive" at the band's reunion in 1994.

Vince Gill began playing with the band in 2017. He is a renowned country musician who had been a member of the bands like Pure Prairie League, Cherry Bombs and The Time Jumpers. He has won massive 22 Grammys in his career out of 47 nominations – his first Grammy was for When I Call Your Name for which he won the best Country Vocal Performance, Male award.

Much of the legacy of the Eagles band was already written before the band broke up in 1980. When they reunited after 14 years, the lineup still continued.

Don Felder was removed from the band due to some legal and financial issues in 2001. Except for that case, all other members who were with the band until 1980 continued their association. So, there was no way to doubt the quality of the songs they would produce.

Their first live album Hell Freezes Over debuted at #1 on the Billboard album chart.

The band has over 19M Monthly Listeners on Spotify as of now. Long Road Out of Eden (2007) debuted at #1 in the US Chart and also won two Grammys for the band. It also became the highest-selling album of the year and got 7xPalatinum certification from RIAA.

Eagles' third live album, Live from the Forum MMXVIII (2020) albums released after their reunion also proved that nothing was changed because of their long break. The band enjoyed success much more like before, and earned new fans. 

The band members have kept the heritage alive through tour performances covering songs from their classic albums and new ones. It was proven, the band picked up from where it started.

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Out of the famous four, only Don Henley is still continuing with the band. Glenn Frey passed away in 2016, while the other two members have different stories.

Randy Meisner was experiencing serious mental health issues by 2015 and had a problem with the law too. After his wife's death, Meisner has been under the care of his friends, owing to his health issue. After leaving the Eagles, Meisner had pursued his own music career and even released two solo albums – Randy Meisner and One More Song. 

Meisner had also joined the country rock band Black Tie and later World Class Rockers. In 2020, he had made a remote appearance singing background vocals and had also appeared in a radio show talking with Joe Walsh. Far and large, Meisner is a retired musician.

Bernie Leadon had joined the group for the History of the Eagles tour. He had also played alongside the band in honor of Glenn Frey at the Grammys.

After leaving the Eagles, he settled in Nashville and worked as a songwriter, producer and session musician. He also released an album Natural Progression teaming with Michael Georgiades and later joined bands like Ever Call Ready, the Nitty Gritty Dirt Band. In 2003 he had released a solo CD, Mirror.

The Eagles band was formed in 1971 when all of the band members were in their 20s. Except for Deacon Frey, all past and present members are in their 60s or 70s.

All of the past and present Eagles band members have been involved in music careers regardless of their status with the band. Besides instruments, almost all of them are adept at vocals, which helped them in their band or solo careers, especially during the band's hiatus.

Out of the four original Eagles band members, only Don Henley is still associated with the band. 

Besides playing the drums for the iconic American rock band Eagles, Don also co-wrote many songs for the legendary band. He has also voiced in the modern signature classics like Hotel California, Desperado, One of These Nights and Life in the Fast Lane.

Don has also enjoyed a successful solo career as a singer and has released more than half a dozen albums like The End of Innocence (1989), Inside Job (2000), Cass Country (2015) and others. He has over 4M Monthly Listeners on Spotify.

Glenn Frey was active in the band until he passed away in 2016 fighting rheumatoid arthritis. One of the signature songs of the band Take It Easy was co-written by Glenn. His death was mourned by all major musicians and the band along with Jackson Browne had performed Take It Easy at the 58th Grammy Awards in his honor.

Bernie Leadon had left the band in 1975 and rumor has it that, Leadon wanted to stick to country rock, but the band moved more towards rock and roll. He left the band shortly after pouring Budweiser beer over Glenn Frey's head. The departure didn't create any tension; the band introduced Joe Walsh as the replacement for Leadon. 

Leadon also succeeded in his solo career as an artist and session musician.

Randy Meisner left the band in 1977 due to personal reasons citing exhaustion from touring for many months with the band. But, in an interview, he said that it all started when his Glenn asked him to perform Take It To the Limit on one of their tours when he didn't want to. He was replaced by Timothy B Schmit. 

With the ongoing Hotel California Tour 2023 number of concert reviews has come up.

The tour was first launched in 2019 and resumed again in 2021 when the pandemic settled down a bit. The tour features the songs from their classic 1976 album "Hotel California" performed in its entirety. Take It Easy, Take It to the Limit, Seven Bridges Road are other hits the band has been performing at their sold-out shows.

The band has also been joined by a symphony orchestra and choir with other touring members playing drums, percussions, mandolin, keyboards, synths, accordion and piano, and all supported by backing vocals. Their performance at downtown Phoenix also witnessed a surprise guest appearance of Deacon Frey – son of Glenn Frey – who recently left the band to pursue his own career.

Online newspapers have called the occasion a "Time Machine," taking back the audience to the 1970s. Rock band Eagles has always been known for its flawless melody, and soothing vocals – it is never a one-man show led by the lead vocalist – and its ability to bring nostalgia to the concert-goers.

Their songs have never gone out of fashion. Though the band members are all well above 60, their performance quality is unsurpassable.
The tour will continue to Tennessee, North Carolina, New Jersey and Maryland. Added information can be found on the band's official website too.