Already Gone (Eagles song)

"Already Gone"
Single by Eagles
from the album On the Border
B-side "Is It True"
Released April 19, 1974
Format 7"
Recorded 1973
Genre Hard rock[1]
Length 4:13
Label Asylum
Writer(s) Jack Tempchin, Robb Strandlund
Producer(s) Bill Szymczyk
Eagles singles chronology
"Outlaw Man"
(1973)		 "Already Gone"
(1974)		 "James Dean"
(1974)
Audio sample
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"Already Gone" is a song recorded by the American rock band Eagles for their 1974 album On the Border. It was written by Jack Tempchin and Robb Strandlund and produced by Bill Szymczyk.

The song was the first single released from On the Border and peaked at #32 on the Billboard Hot 100. Since then, the Eagles have included it on their greatest hits albums and in their live performances. Tanya Tucker and Wilson Phillips have covered the song.

Background

"Already Gone", which is four minutes and 13 seconds long, was written by Robb Strandlund and Jack Tempchin.[2][3] In the liner notes for The Very Best Of, Glenn Frey said that Tempchin sent him a tape of the song through the mail. Tempchin had already written one of the Eagles' previous singles, "Peaceful Easy Feeling".[4]

"Already Gone" was one of the first songs that the Eagles recorded after they moved to Los Angeles, and it was produced by Bill Szymczyk.[4] Frey was the lead vocalist.[5]

Release

"Already Gone" is the opening track of the Eagles' album On the Border, which was released by Asylum Records on March 22, 1974.[2] It was released as the first single from the album in April 1974.[6][7] Its b-side was "Is It True".[6]

The song has also been included on some of the Eagles' compilation albums, including Their Greatest Hits (1971–1975) and The Very Best Of.[8][9]

Critical reception

"Already Gone" has been described as a "classic".[10] In his book To the Limit: The Untold Story of the Eagles, Marc Eliot wrote that the song "was an out-and-out rocker ... Musically it sounded like a fuel-injected rave-up, with melodic echoes of both 'Peaceful Easy Feeling' and 'Take It Easy.'[11]

Chart performance

The song was a "staple" on AM and FM radio.[12] It peaked at #32 on the Billboard Hot 100 on June 29, 1974, and spent 15 weeks on the chart.[13]

Live performances

The Eagles have included "Already Gone" in their live performances since the 1970s. It was one of their "best selections" at a 1979 Michigan show, according to one reviewer.[14] At a 2002 concert in Washington, the song created a "frenzy," with the audience singing along.[15] A performance was included on the 2005 Farewell 1 Tour DVD, which was filmed in Australia.[16] In 2006, the band played the song in Manchester, and Frey delivered it "with humour and passion."[17]

Track listing

7"[6]

  1. "Already Gone"
  2. "Is It True"

Charts

Chart (1974-2013) Peak
position
Billboard Hot 100[13] 32

Cover versions

"Already Gone" was covered by Tanya Tucker for the 1993 cover album Common Thread: The Songs of the Eagles. Rolling Stone's Kara Manning wrote that Tucker's version "transforms its male bravado into a feminist battle cry."[18]

The song was also covered by Wilson Phillips on their 2004 album California.[19]

References

  1. ↑ AllMusic "[For "On the Border"] the band wanted to take more of a hard rock direction... They got what they wanted on "Already Gone", the lead-off track"
  2. ↑ 2.0 2.1 "On the Border - Eagles". allmusic.com. Retrieved December 30, 2011.
  3. ↑ "Already Gone". allmusic.com. Retrieved December 30, 2011.
  4. ↑ 4.0 4.1 Crowe, Cameron (2003). "Conversations with Don Henley and Glenn Frey". In The Very Best Of (p. 13) [CD booklet]. Warner Music Group.
  5. ↑ Eliot, Marc (2004). To the Limit: The Untold Story of the Eagles. Da Capo Press. p. 313.
  6. ↑ 6.0 6.1 6.2 Strong, Martin Charles (2006). The Essential Rock Discography. Canongate U.S. p. 345.
  7. ↑ Ruhlmann, William. "Eagles". allmusic.com. Retrieved December 30, 2011.
  8. ↑ "Their Greatest Hits (1971-1975) - Eagles". allmusic.com. Retrieved December 30, 2011.
  9. ↑ "The Very Best Of - Eagles". allmusic.com. Retrieved December 30, 2011.
  10. ↑ Reno, Jamie. "Sound". San Diego Magazine. August 2005. p. 248.
  11. ↑ Eliot, Marc (2004). To the Limit: The Untold Story of the Eagles. Da Capo Press. pp. 111-112.
  12. ↑ Kubernik, Harvey (2009). Canyon of Dreams: The Magic and the Music of Laurel Canyon. Sterling Publishing Company, Inc. p. 281.
  13. ↑ 13.0 13.1 "Already Gone - Eagles". billboard.com. Retrieved December 30, 2011.
  14. ↑ Yavorcik, Jim. "Eagles Need No Gimmicks to Satisfy Their Listeners". Toledo Blade. October 19, 1979.
  15. ↑ Kershner, Jim. "Audience Soars with the Eagles". The Spokesman-Review. June 18, 2002.
  16. ↑ MacIntosh, Dan. "The Eagles: Eagles - Farewell 1 Tour - Live From Melbourne". popmatters.com. January 9, 2006. Retrieved December 30, 2011.
  17. ↑ Torpey, Mike. "The Eagles, MEN Arena, Manchester". icliverpool.icnetwork.co.uk. June 28, 2006. Retrieved December 30, 2011.
  18. ↑ Manning, Kara. "I'm Alive". rollingstone.com. November 11, 1993. Retrieved December 30, 2011.
  19. ↑ Gardner, Elysa. "Wilson Phillips: 'California' dreaming". usatoday.com. June 17, 2004. Retrieved December 30, 2011.

External links