The Eagles have plenty of classic songs in their catalog. But it turns out that one hit song took less effort than you would expect. All they had to do was check their mailbox.
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During a 2003 interview with The Uncool, The Eagles' Glenn Frey revealed that he found the song "Already Gone" in his mailbox.
"I got a tape of the song from Jack Tempchin in my mailbox at 1740 La Fontaine CT, the house in Coldwater Canyon where I lived for 16 years," he said. "[Old Hollywood movie star] James Cagney's brother, Ed, had once owned the house, and it still holds a lot of memories for me. James Cagney, in his later years, sometimes used the house as a hideaway and went there to play the piano and relax. In earlier years, the Cagneys held great parties in that bungalow. A lot of music happened there."
The Eagles Find A Hit
"'Already Gone,' though, arrived in the mail," Frey recalled. "Jack was a songwriter we liked who was from San Diego, and he'd already written 'Peaceful Easy Feeling.' 'Already Gone' was one of the first songs we'd later do when we switched producers and started recording in Los Angeles. I had a very strained relationship with [producer] Glyn Johns. I think he got along better with all the other guys in the band. He was so intimidating."
While it didn't quite reach the level of iconic status as "Take It Easy" Or "Hotel California," "Already Gone" was a solid tune for the band that required little effort to conjure up. The Eagles ended up slapping the tune on their album On the Border.
The song proved to be a minor hit, reaching No. 32 on the Billboard Hot 1oo. It stayed there for 15 weeks, but never managed to break into the top 20. Fellow song on the album, "The Best Of My Love" proved to be more successful, reaching No. 1 for 19 weeks.
Still, "Already Gone" has its fans and has stood the test of time. That's not bad considering all The Eagles had to do whas go out and check their mail.
