# RIP Glenn Frey **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [January 18, 2016, 9:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rip-glenn-frey/743530 "2016-01-18T21:57:23Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![stolatt](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/b5e925/32.png) [@stolatt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/stolatt)\ **Post date:** [January 19, 2016, 2:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rip-glenn-frey/743530/41 "2016-01-19T02:06:22Z")
> [@faithfool](#): > > Jesus Jiminy, make it stop. How very, very sad. ☹ > > On a related note though, I’m boarding the next plane to Arizona and bubble wrapping Alice from here to eternity. I’ll take care of bubblewrapping Townshend and Daltry, then Waters and Gilmour. ---
**Author:** ![aceplace57](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/aceplace57/32/3500_2.png) [@aceplace57](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/aceplace57)\ **Post date:** [January 19, 2016, 2:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rip-glenn-frey/743530/42 "2016-01-19T02:22:59Z")
The Eagles were a big part of my young years. They were on the radio constantly then. Glenn was a founding member and a big part of their sound. I’m quite shocked and saddened at his passing. A very sad day for music. ☹ ---
**Author:** ![jsquire](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/ce73a5/32.png) [@jsquire](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jsquire)\ **Post date:** [January 19, 2016, 2:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rip-glenn-frey/743530/43 "2016-01-19T02:34:15Z")
> [@nearwildheaven](#): > > Rheumatoid arthritis, ulcerative **colitis** , and pneumonia. > > Autoimmune diseases suck. ☹ (emphasis added) Bizarre coincidence, given this 1997 SD column: > **[In the song “Hotel California,” what does “colitas” mean?](https://www.straightdope.com/21342208/in-the-song-hotel-california-what-does-colitas-mean)** ---
**Author:** ![Yookeroo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/yookeroo/32/323_2.png) [@Yookeroo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Yookeroo)\ **Post date:** [January 19, 2016, 2:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rip-glenn-frey/743530/44 "2016-01-19T02:47:28Z")
Was there a warm smell of colitis rising up through the air? Sorry, couldn’t resist. ---
**Author:** ![joyfool](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/df788c/32.png) [@joyfool](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/joyfool)\ **Post date:** [January 19, 2016, 2:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rip-glenn-frey/743530/45 "2016-01-19T02:53:05Z")
> [@stolatt](#): > > I’ll take care of bubblewrapping Townshend and Daltry, then Waters and Gilmour. Deal. Man, we gotta be more diligent. ---
**Author:** ![Nawth\_Chucka](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/c57346/32.png) [@Nawth\_Chucka](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nawth_Chucka)\ **Post date:** [January 19, 2016, 3:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rip-glenn-frey/743530/46 "2016-01-19T03:03:34Z")
> [@faithfool](#): > > Deal. Man, we gotta be more diligent. Short straw gets to do Halford. ---
**Author:** ![stillownedbysetters](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/41988e/32.png) [@stillownedbysetters](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/stillownedbysetters)\ **Post date:** [January 19, 2016, 3:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rip-glenn-frey/743530/47 "2016-01-19T03:40:20Z")
It’s your world now My race is run I’m moving on Like the setting sun No sad goodbyes No tears allowed You’ll be alright It’s your world now ---
**Author:** ![j666](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/9de0a6/32.png) [@j666](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/j666)\ **Post date:** [January 19, 2016, 3:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rip-glenn-frey/743530/48 "2016-01-19T03:50:33Z")
[Stars beginning to fade](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X2LfRsWx97s) ---
**Author:** ![Art\_Rock](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/art_rock/32/525_2.png) [@Art\_Rock](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Art_Rock)\ **Post date:** [January 19, 2016, 6:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rip-glenn-frey/743530/49 "2016-01-19T06:46:24Z")
As we grow old(er) ourselves, this is of course to be expected. Still blows though. Playing Tequila sunrise in his memory - RIP. ---
**Author:** ![Helena330](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/helena330/32/531_2.png) [@Helena330](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Helena330)\ **Post date:** [January 19, 2016, 6:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rip-glenn-frey/743530/50 "2016-01-19T06:53:20Z")
It seems like so many of these rockers are dying in their 60’s. Even if they cleaned up years ago, the hard living must take its toll. Damn. I hope he’s having oen heck of a jam wherever he is. ☹ ---
**Author:** ![Greg\_Charles](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/839c29/32.png) [@Greg\_Charles](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Greg_Charles)\ **Post date:** [January 19, 2016, 7:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rip-glenn-frey/743530/51 "2016-01-19T07:08:55Z")
> [@Rilchiam](#): > > Man. > > I have tequila left over from New Years’, plus orange juice and grenadine. So I’m raising a tequila sunrise to him. > > WTF, man. Who’s next? Dylan? Springsteen? > > ETA: Colitis? Seriously? I’m with you, Rilch. Some deity or other has a sick sense of humor. Frey/Henley were one of the great singer/songwriting teams of all time. I’m sorry to see Glenn go so young, and after a painful struggle too. RIP. ---
**Author:** ![cochrane](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cochrane/32/10441_2.png) [@cochrane](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/cochrane)\ **Post date:** [January 19, 2016, 7:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rip-glenn-frey/743530/52 "2016-01-19T07:38:11Z")
He did some acting, too. He played Jimmy the pilot in the “Smuggler’s Blues” episode of _Miami Vice_ and he played the Arizona Cardinals’ GM in _Jerry Maguire_. ---
**Author:** ![aceplace57](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/aceplace57/32/3500_2.png) [@aceplace57](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/aceplace57)\ **Post date:** [January 19, 2016, 9:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rip-glenn-frey/743530/53 "2016-01-19T09:05:35Z")
Sorry Jim, he’s fried. I’m a doctor, not a miracle worker. 😉 No one else said it, so I had too. Man, it is ironic that Glenn wrote a song about colitas when he was young and he died of colitis decades later. Especially since colitas seems to be a made up word. ---
**Author:** ![aceplace57](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/aceplace57/32/3500_2.png) [@aceplace57](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/aceplace57)\ **Post date:** [January 19, 2016, 9:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rip-glenn-frey/743530/54 "2016-01-19T09:14:54Z")
I suspect a poll would show the majority of people think the Eagles are singing about colitis in Hotel California. Because they have no idea colitas is even a word. ---
**Author:** ![Charlie\_Wayne](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/4bbf92/32.png) [@Charlie\_Wayne](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Charlie_Wayne)\ **Post date:** [January 19, 2016, 9:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rip-glenn-frey/743530/55 "2016-01-19T09:35:43Z")
What? Oh no! So many great musicians have passed recently. I didn’t really care to comment on any of the others. But I loved this man’s music \*\*… SO MUCH … \*\*this news hit me like a sledge hammer. Doggone it! ---
**Author:** ![Charlie\_Wayne](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/4bbf92/32.png) [@Charlie\_Wayne](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Charlie_Wayne)\ **Post date:** [January 19, 2016, 9:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rip-glenn-frey/743530/56 "2016-01-19T09:38:36Z")
> [@Yookeroo](#): > > Was there a warm smell of colitis rising up through the air? > > Sorry, couldn’t resist. Oh, you cruel cruel man person. How can you be so cruel? (just j/k - humor is always a welcomed way to cope with loss - what else can help?) P.S. - How do you get strikeout in this editor? I wanted to strikeout the word “man” above. ---
**Author:** ![Starving\_Artist](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/aeb1de/32.png) [@Starving\_Artist](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Starving_Artist)\ **Post date:** [January 19, 2016, 10:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rip-glenn-frey/743530/57 "2016-01-19T10:01:34Z")
I’m surprised at how sad Glenn Frey’s passing has made me. I guess I never realized the depth of the affection I’ve held for him. In addition to his unquestionable talent he just seemed like a hell of a fun, sensitive, good guy. One of my absolute favorite DVDs is _The Eagles Farewell 1 Tour, Live From Melbourne, Australia_. I can’t recommend it highly enough. The performances of every band member were excellent and somehow the songs had been slightly changed in ways that were virtually unnoticeable but which made them sound even better than the originals. Frey was the driving force behind that concert and worked hard to make sure the concert itself as well as the recording and marketing of it were all top notch. I’ve been a fan for decades. I enjoyed him as an actor, and loved _Strange Weather_, a solo album he released in the early 90s. I snapped it up the day it went on sale. Still, I never thought of myself as a fanboy and mainly just admired him for his talent and as a cog in the wheel that was _The Eagles_, while liking him for the big grin and fun-loving, likable personality he projected. And yet now I find myself more saddened by his passing than by all the others this year combined, and that isn’t to downplay or minimize their loss in any way. Part of the reason I think is that he was so young and looked so healthy and robust that his death came like a lightening bolt out of nowhere. I read some of Don Henley’s comments shortly before deciding to write this post and they seem to be a fitting way to bring it to a close. > [@](#): > > 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. > > 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, big guy. You’ll be sorely missed. ---
**Author:** ![cochrane](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cochrane/32/10441_2.png) [@cochrane](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/cochrane)\ **Post date:** [January 19, 2016, 10:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rip-glenn-frey/743530/58 "2016-01-19T10:18:01Z")
I echo Henley’s words. I didn’t know Frey personally, but I’ve been an Eagles fan for almost 45 years. I will be grateful every day that my life has been filled with such fantastic music. Henley’s and Frey’s voices blended together wonderfully. ---
**Author:** ![aceplace57](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/aceplace57/32/3500_2.png) [@aceplace57](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/aceplace57)\ **Post date:** [January 19, 2016, 10:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rip-glenn-frey/743530/59 "2016-01-19T10:42:24Z")
I don’t have time (tonight) to dig up the exact quote. But Linda Ronstadt wrote about the Eagles in her autobiography. She knew the guys before the band formed and the guys were in her backing band for awhile. She had some really nice things to say about them. She saw their talent and chemistry together. Pretty much knew that their band would be a success. Now i want to go back and reread that chapter. See if she specifically says anything about Glenn Frey. I’ll look it up on my Kindle later today and check to see if she mentions Glenn. If it’s not too long, I’ll quote the paragraph. ---
**Author:** ![aceplace57](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/aceplace57/32/3500_2.png) [@aceplace57](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/aceplace57)\ **Post date:** [January 19, 2016, 12:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rip-glenn-frey/743530/60 "2016-01-19T12:33:37Z")
I looked up the quote from Linda Ronstadt’s autobiography about the forming of the Eagles. She saw a band (Shiloh) performing her song _Silver Threads and Golden Needles_. She was very impressed with the drummer and felt he was very skilled at complementing a singer without overpowering them with his drumming. She learned his name was Don Henley. Linda asked him to play some shows she had coming up. Her boyfriend John David Souther (produced her album and wrote many songs for the Eagles) suggested his friend Glenn Frey to play guitar. Souther and Frey had formed a folk duo called Longbranch Pennywhistle. \*Witchy Woman \*was written by Don and Glenn during a jam session in John and Linda’s living room. 😉 That brought together the two founding members of the Eagles. 😉 Then this happened,… \*Simple Dreams: A Musical Memoir [Linda Ronstadt] \* From Chapter 5 The Eagles > [@](#): > > In those days we couldn’t afford to get single rooms for everyone, so the guys had to double up.Glenn wound up rooming with Don and discovered why Don played so well (as a drummer) for singers. It turned out Don was a singer himself, and a good one. Like Glenn he was also an accomplished songwriter, and the two played music all night and ignited a musical friendship. Glenn referred to Don as the “secret weapon” and said they had decided to form a band together. > > John offered to help them and suggested that they continue to tour with me while they waited to get a record deal and gigs of their own. That way they would have an income and I would have a solid band for several months. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rip-glenn-frey/743530.md?page=2) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rip-glenn-frey/743530.md?page=4)