Eagles’ Don Henley Fires Back at Don Felder: He’s ‘Just Bitter’
Don Henley is telling fans not to believe everything that his former Eagles cohort Don Felder says about their time together.
Felder derisively referred to Henley and fellow band co-founder Glenn Frey as "the gods" in his 2007 memoir Heaven and Hell: My Life in the Eagles. They were Felder's bandmates from 1974–80 and then again from 1994–2001, before an ugly split.
“A lot of people on the outside believe a lot of the bulls--- in Don Felder’s book, and believe Glenn Frey and I are some kind of tyrants,” Henley tells the Guardian, reportedly through gritted teeth. “The fact is, we are largely responsible both for the longevity and the success of this band, because we did it our way, and a lot of people didn’t like that."
The Eagles' initial breakup in 1980 was precipitated by growing tensions, to the point where Frey threatened to kill Felder during a particularly memorable onstage argument. The group reformed nearly 15 years later, and survived through an induction in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame before Felder was fired in 2001.
Felder sued Frey and Henley for wrongful termination, and then was countersued by Henley and Frey for breach of contract. The matter was settled out of court in 2007, but hurt feelings clearly remain.
"Felder’s just bitter because he got kicked out of the group, so he decided to write a nasty little tell-all," Henley concluded. "Which I think is a really low, cheap shot. I mean, I could write some stuff about him that would make your mustache curl.”
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