The Eagles: Glenn Frey, Don Henley, Bernie Leadon, Don Felder, Joe Walsh, Randy Meisner, Timothy B. Schmit.
Initial pressings included a bonus DVD.
THE VERY BEST OF includes a 46-page booklet with pictures and track information.
The Eagles: Bernie Leadon (vocals, guitar, slide guitar, pedal steel guitar, banjo, mandolin); Don Felder (vocals, guitar, slide guitar, steel guitar, keyboards); Glen Frey, Joe Walsh (vocals, guitar, slide guitar, keyboards); Randy Meisner (vocals, guitar, guitarron, bass); Don Henley (vocals, drums, percussion); Timothy B. Schmit (vocals, bass).
Producers: Glyn Johns, Bill Szymczyk, Eagles, Elliot Scheiner, Rob Jacobs.
Compilation producer: The Eagles.
Recorded between 1972 & 2003.
"Hole In The World" was nominated for the 2004 Grammy Award for Best Pop Performance By A Duo Or Group With Vocal.
Eagles: Don Felder (vocals, guitars, slide guitar, steel guitar, keyboards); Bernie Leadon (vocals, guitars, slide guitar, pedal steel guitar, banjo, mandolin); Glenn Frey, Joe Walsh (vocals, guitars, slide guitar, keyboards); Randy Meisner (vocals, guitarron, bass guitar); Timothy B. Schmit (vocals, bass guitar); Don Henley (vocals, drums, percussion).
Additional personnel: Steuart Smith (electric guitar); Al Perkins (pedal steel guitar); David Sanborn (alto saxophone); Jim Ed Norman, Willie Hollis (piano); Jay Oliver (keyboards); Scott Crago (drums, percussion).
This 1994 greatest hits package (released in anticipation of the band's wildly successful reunion tour and album) supplants THEIR GREATEST HITS 1971-1975. It adds seven songs, but unfortunately deletes "Already Gone," one of their best rockers.
What's most interesting about THE VERY BEST OF THE EAGLES - apart from the presence of obviously classic songs like "Take It Easy" and "Hotel California" - is that it demonstrates that the band's esthetic was fully formed from day one. Despite the fact that the songs here span nearly a decade, listening to them back to back you could almost believe they were the product of one marathon recording session.
The Eagles' founders Don Henley and Glenn Frey were forthright in their desire to bring then-emerging country rock to new heights of commercial success. Formed in Los Angeles in 1971, they learned from their observations of the scene around them, and subsequently took their music to the top of the charts. They stayed there throughout the '70s, becoming synonymous with the sound of Southern California rock.
The band's first hit was with a song by Jackson Browne, and their first album also included a cover of "Ol' 55" by Tom Waits, but the bulk of the material they're known for was penned by Henley and Frey. This two-disc set wisely expands the original VERY BEST OF collection with important album tracks that have also long been band staples and favorites (such as the aforementioned Waits tune and a number of other songs from their pre-platinum first three releases). As is often the common industry-wide practice, there's also a new song, "Hole in the World."