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Hotel California

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"Hotel California"
Song
B-side"Pretty Maids All in a Row"

"Hotel California" is the title song from the Eagles' album of the same name, and was released as a single in early 1977. The single version has an earlier fade-out than the album version does. It is one of the best-known songs of the album-oriented rock era. Writing credits for the song are shared by Don Henley, Glenn Frey and Don Felder.

History

The lyrics of the song describe the title establishment, a hotel where "you can check out anytime you like, but you can never leave." On the surface, the song is a tale of a weary traveler who becomes trapped in a nightmarish hotel that at first appeared tempting. There are many urban legends about the meaning of this metaphor (see Lyrics Interpretations below). The song has generally thought to be about the hedonism and self-destruction in the Southern California music industry. [1]

The original version of the song is performed in slow rock style, opening with a long, repeated acoustic twelve string guitar motif. During the verses, guitar and bass provide melodic counterpoint to the vocal. The end section of the song consists of a series of guitar solos building to a multi-layered variation on the opening theme with multiple guitars in chorus. The song is also well known for its guitar solos, which are performed by both Joe Walsh and Don Felder.

"Hotel California" won the Grammy Award for Record of the Year in 1978.

It is rated by many polls to be one of the greatest songs of all time: Rolling Stone magazine, for example, states it is the forty-ninth greatest song of all time.[2] Similarly, it is one of The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame's 500 Songs that Shaped Rock and Roll.

As one of the group's most popular and well-known songs, "Hotel California" has been a concert staple for the band since its release; performances of the song appear on the Eagles' 1980 live album and, in an acoustic version, on the 1994 Hell Freezes Over reunion concert CD and video release.

Cover Versions

A few cover versions of "Hotel California" have been released, notably by flamenco band the Gipsy Kings. Bob Marley has also done a reggae cover of the song. In 2004, it was recorded by American Idol reject William Hung. Australian band The Cat Empire recorded a version of the song in French (L'Hotel de Californie), for Triple J's Like a Version segment and subsequent CD compilation. Marc Anthony has often sung the song live. Brixton (England) based band Alabama3 also covered the song on their 2000 album "la peste." Country group Rascal Flatts performed their own version of the song at the 2007 Grammy Awards. In 1977, German artist Stefan Hallberg [3] recorded a cover in [4] German. Krzysztof Piasecki has recorded a cover in Polish. Also the American band SkaDaddyZ released a ska version of the song in 1999.

Influences

The song may have been influenced by the 1969 Jethro Tull song "We Used to Know", from the album Stand Up. The bands toured together prior to the release of the song. Additionally, the chord progressions are nearly identical, however, as the Ukulele Orchestra of Great Britain highlight in their live act, the chords are also similar to I Will Survive, Fly Me to the Moon and classical works, amongst others. While recording in Miami, Don Felder had to phone home to California to have his maid send him a copy of the demo in order to reproduce the introduction and end solos, which may have accounted for the words "copyright in dispute" in the liner notes and the use of compulsory license, as noted by the EU copyright designation "no claim to underlying music". Additionally, fans have noticed thematic similarities with Don Henley's solo single "Sunset Grill".

  • At Camp Nama, a secret detention and interrogation facility outside of Baghdad International Airport operated between mid-2003 and mid-2004 by U.S. Army unit known (then) as Task Force 6-26, high-value detainees were housed in a separate area of 6-by-8-foot cubicles known as Hotel California.[5]
  • In the television show CSI: Crime Scene Investigation episode "Pirates Of The Third Reich," the song is referred to in a comparison to a clinic. Greg Sanders says "This clinic is like the Hotel California. You can check in anytime you like but you might never leave."[6]
  • In an episode of Family Guy, Peter and Lois separate to date other people. Peter moves in with Mort Goldman who, when asked what he does for fun, replies that he watches old films and listens to "Hotel California" to see if it links up in a significant way (in reference to the phenomenon of "Dark Side of the Rainbow"), adding that "so far, no, nothing has."
  • In an episode of My Name Is Earl that features events taking place in both America and Mexico, "Hotel California" is played as background music for a montage juxtaposing main characters Earl Hickey and his brother Randy with two Mexican brothers that humorously resemble Earl and Randy in their demeanor, behavior and appearance. The original version of the song plays during the segments showing the American brothers, and the Gipsy Kings cover plays during the segments showing the Mexican brothers.
  • On his 1995 debut album Cledus T. Judd (No Relation), country music parodist Cledus T. Judd parodied the song as "Motel Californie", detailing a visit to a run-down, desolate motel.
  • On the 2005 triple J album "like a version", Australian band "Cat Empire" covered the song sung in French.
  • Entourage Season 3, Episode 20 (the season finale) ends with a endering of Hotel California sung in Spanish in Flamenco style, as the characters celebrate heading off to Columbia to make a movie.

Lyrics Interpretation

  • The term "colitas" in the first stanza of the song is a Spanish term for "little buds." This is a reference to the buds of the marijuana plant, which contain higher concentrations of the psychoactive ingredient, THC, than other parts of the plant. [7]
  • The lyric "They stab it with their steely knives/But they just can't kill the beast" was widely believed to be a nod to Steely Dan's lyric "Turn up the Eagles, the neighbors are listening" in their song "Everything You Did" (and in the liner notes of Eagles: The Very Best Of, Glenn Frey confirmed this).
  • Urban legend has attributed the name "Hotel California" to many actual locations:
    • The Church of Satan which happens to be located in a converted hotel on California Street. The Satanic Bible was also written in 1969, a year that is mentioned in the song. Some believe that the lyrics, " ... kill the beast," and "... that spirit here" refer to black magic. Also, others believe on their inside cover of the Hotel California album, looking down on the festivities, is either Satan or Anton LaVey, the founder of the Church of Satan. These rumors, however, were proven false.[8]

Trivia

  • The version of this song in the live album "Hell Freezes Over" is performed by 8 guitars in total.
  • Snopes.com article debunking the Satanic myth
  • Schmitt, Eric (2006). "Task Force 6-26: In Secret Unit's 'Black Room,' a Grim Portrait of U.S. Abuse". New York Times. {{cite journal}}: Unknown parameter |coauthors= ignored (|author= suggested) (help); Unknown parameter |month= ignored (help)
  • Cecil Adam's "Straight Dope" article: In the song "Hotel California," what does "colitas" mean?
  • Soldes d'hiver : Pack Hotel California A collection of versions of the song
  • Hotel California back masked and other songs
  • Spanish Version of the Song

References

  1. ^ http://www.snopes.com/music/songs/hotel.asp
  2. ^ "The RS 500 Greatest Songs of All Time". Rolling Stone. 2004-12-09. Retrieved 2006-12-13. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  3. ^ http://www.feedshow.com/show_items-feed=26893a1e9f9f2c81ab62045f95816712
  4. ^ http://profile.myspace.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=user.viewprofile&friendID=174802121
  5. ^ http://www.nytimes.com/2006/03/19/international/middleeast/19abuse.html
  6. ^ http://www.tv.com/csi/pirates-of-the-third-reich/episode/619664/summary.html
  7. ^ http://www.straightdope.com/classics/a5_001.html
  8. ^ http://www.snopes.com/music/songs/hotel.htm
Preceded by Billboard Hot 100 number one single
May 7 1977 		Succeeded by
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