The Eagles are still regarded as one of the most influential bands of their time for a variety of reasons. This is specifically because, throughout their career, their music tackled a variety of common human issues, such as the difficulties of love and the realities of aging.
John Lydon, the former vocalist of punk icons Sex Pistols, famously criticized the Eagles for what he saw as the empty core of their music, which speaks to the divisive character of the band. Says Lydon: “They’re irrelevant. A band like that doesn’t write songs that mean anything. We’re the Charge of the Light Brigade, with decent generals, right?”
Nevertheless, despite all of the charges that may be leveled against the Eagles—such as that they are the opposite of the punk movement or that their lifestyles are hellish—they cannot, in all fairness, be condemned for being vacuous. Lydon misinterpreted the band because their statements were so tangible that they were praised in addition to their musical accompaniment. In one of their best-known early works, they even made allusion to the Watergate affair.
The song “New Kid in Town” from the 1976 classic Hotel California is among their most well-known successes. One of the band’s composers, J.D. Souther, gave Songfacts an illuminating look into the often contentious inner workings of the group in 2011 when he said that it is an homage to growing older and being replaced by more capable, younger models. Because of this aspect of life, Souther, Glenn Frey, and Don Henley “were writing about our replacements,” a reference to the Eagles’ constantly shifting lineup in the composition.
Souther explained, “‘New Kid’ emerged from our whole fascination with gunfire as an analogy. The point was, at some point, some kid would come riding into town that was much faster than you, and he’d say so, and then he’d prove it. That’s the story of life.”
He added, “That’s the story of ageing, especially coming out of your teenage and young man years and as you approach 30, you begin to see that things don’t stay the same forever. And that there’s a lot other guys like you and gals like you that want the same thing that are coming up, and they want their moment, too, and they’re going to get it. And it’s fine. It’s as it should be.”
“New Kid in Town” perfectly captures the excitement of fresh starts and the transient nature of celebrity. The band’s distinctive style is highlighted by the melodic vocals and gentle rock arrangement, which also vividly illustrate the cyclical nature of fame in the music business and the difficulties involved in receiving recognition.
Listen to the song down below.