Extra Credit Blog

One of the best-known songs of the album-oriented rock era, The Eagles’ song “Hotel California” released as a single in February 1977, is a beautifully constructed surface-deep story with a deep allegory into a desperate, corrupt lifestyle. The song is said to be an allegory about self-destruction and greed in the music industry during the 1970s, a time when the Eagles were soaring (pun totally intended) in the business. With the business of fame and fortune, everyone knows that the culture of “sex, drugs, and rock n roll” can emerge and consume the lives of those progressing.  Don Henley, drummer and vocalist, described the song as "our interpretation of the high life in Los Angeles" and later reiterated "It's basically a song about the dark underbelly of the American dream and about excess in America, which is something we knew a lot about” on the TV show 60 Minutes in 2007. On the surface, the song illustrates the tale of a weary traveler that comes upon a soon-to- be thought  lavish hotel, which at first appears inviting, even tempting, but which turns into a place of trepidation and impasse.

The ambiguous nature of the lyrics allows its listeners to establish their own interpretations about the song and its meaning, but I interpret it the way that the band urged to express the dangers of the tempting life of the rich and famous. Not only from interviews with the band, but because in the younger days of Rock-N-Roll, many artists composed and performed songs about their struggles with drugs and/or alcohol because the substances became such a major and devastating part of their careers and their lives.

To me, almost every line supports my interpretation of the song, but what stands out to me the most, is the repetition of the beginning of the song’s chorus, “Welcome to the Hotel California/Such a lovely place (Such a lovely place)/Such a lovely face” which expresses and emphasis of the beauty and inviting “face” that the hotel, or the substance, presents to its visitors. Following that, lines like “They livin' it up at the Hotel California/What a nice surprise (what a nice surprise)/Bring your alibis” and “Plenty of room at the Hotel California/Any time of year (Any time of year)/You can find it here” which both glamorize and show how easy it is to become sucked into the atmosphere of “Hotel California”. Along with the repetition in the chorus, the song highlights all of the desirable things that the hotel has to offer, like “The pink champagne on ice”, “the feast”, and “Her mind is Tiffany-twisted, she got the Mercedes bends/She got a lot of pretty, pretty boys she calls friends/How they dance in the courtyard, sweet summer sweat”, but after they build up the splendor of the place, they add lines like “But they just can't kill the beast” and “Some dance to remember, some dance to forget”. I think the song is constructed this way because it is meant to express how desirable and fun the abuse seems at first, but it can easily end in someone getting trapped and discovering the truth and ugliness about the actions.

Finally, the last, and most powerful line of the song, is “You can check out anytime you like, but you can never leave” and this speaks to tell the audience that the battle can seem endless and impossible to escape from, and that may have been how the band felt about their life of fame in the hay-day of Rock-N-Roll, and I think that to anyone who really listens into it could possibly benefit from the powerful, classic message.