Glenn Frey
Glenn Frey, one of the founders of the rock band, the Eagles, and a 1966 graduate of Royal Oak Dondero High School, died Monday in New York at age 67.
Some of his band's greatest hits included "Hotel California," "Take It Easy", "Peaceful Easy Feeling," "Tequila Sunrise," "Already Gone," "Lyin' Eyes," "New Kid in Town," and "Heartache Tonight".
After the band broke up In 1980, Frey launched a successful solo musical and acting career in which he appeared on such shows as Miami Vice.
A statement on the Eagles' Facebook page said:
"It is with the heaviest of hearts that we announce the passing of our comrade, Eagles founder, Glenn Frey, in New York City on Monday, January 18th, 2016.
Glenn fought a courageous battle for the past several weeks but, sadly, succumbed to complications from Rheumatoid Arthritis, Acute Ulcerative Colitis and Pneumonia.
Frey founded the band, the Eagles in the early 1970s along with Don Henley, guitarist Bernie Leadon and bassist Randy Meisner. But it was Frey and Henley that rose to true stardom.
They broke up in 1980. AP reported that Henley had vowed the Eagles would reunite only when "hell freezes over." In 1994, the group produced an album called "Hell Freezes Over."
The Associated Press reported:
Their popularity grew through much of the decade, and they embodied for many listeners the melodic Los Angeles sound despite having no native Californians in the group. Critics often dismissed them as slick and unadventurous, but their blend of mellow ballads and macho rockers, and of pop and folk and country, gave them unusually broad appeal.
Fellow Eagle Henley posted this on Facebook Monday night:
He was like a brother to me; we were family, and like most families, there was some dysfunction. But, the bond we forged 45 years ago was never broken, even during the 14 years that the Eagles were dissolved. We were two young men who made the pilgrimage to Los Angeles with the same dream: to make our mark in the music industry — and with perseverance, a deep love of music, our alliance with other great musicians and our manager, Irving Azoff, we built something that has lasted longer than anyone could have dreamed. But, Glenn was the one who started it all.
He was the spark plug, the man with the plan. He had an encyclopedic knowledge of popular music and a work ethic that wouldn’t quit. He was funny, bullheaded, mercurial, generous, deeply talented and driven. He loved his wife and kids more than anything. We are all in a state of shock, disbelief and profound sorrow. We brought our two-year “History of the Eagles Tour” to a triumphant close at the end of July and now he is gone.
I’m not sure I believe in fate, but I know that crossing paths with Glenn Lewis Frey in 1970 changed my life forever, and it eventually had an impact on the lives of millions of other people all over the planet. It will be very strange going forward in a world without him in it. But, I will be grateful, every day, that he was in my life. Rest in peace, my brother. You did what you set out to do, and then some.”
