You never know when inspiration will strike, as you would never expect riding shotgun to a poker game would later become the muse for an Eagles track. Revelations come left-right and center if you’re that creative, looking out for anything and everything that might be a lyric, melody, or song title. This was the case for the Eagles’ ‘Life in the Fast Lane,’ when an unexpected moment turned into one of the more recognized songs of the band.
It all started with Glenn Frey getting wrapped up in the fast-paced and stereotypical lifestyle of L.A., where there is nothing substantial, and it’s all about the party scene that transcends into drugs and alcohol. On one occasion, when Frey was riding a shotgun with a drug dealer to a poker inspiration stroke and a light bulb moment later, he realized that he had a song on his hands.
Frey even recalled that moment in the documentary ‘The History of the Eagles.’ “I was riding shotgun in a Corvette with a dealer on the way to a poker game. The next thing I know, we’re doing 90. Holding! Big time! I say, ‘Hey, man!” wanting the mand to slow down. The drug dealer grins and goes, ‘Life in the fast lane!’ I thought, ‘Now there’s a song title.’” After Frey heard that phrase, he immediately turned it into a track for their fifth studio album, ‘Hotel California.’
Glenn Frey, Don Henley, and their new guitarist Joe Walsh got in the studio to write and record the track that painted the picture of a couple that lived on the edge with their excessive and glamorous lifestyle, reaching uncontrollable lengths.
After the song was released, ‘Life in the Fast Lane’ became a popular phrase that made the jet-set lifestyle more glamorized and appealing than it actually entailed. The guys were trying to do the opposite and show the honest side of what a party scene with fast cars and drugs could do to one if they don’t control their urges; however, the fans severely misinterpreted the song.
Eventually, like most artists who realize that this type of living becomes addicting and doesn’t take anyone anywhere rather than pushing everyone further down the rabbit hole, Frey also came to his senses and got out of the fast lane in the late 80s. This was when he started to turn his attention to his well-being and picked up fitness along the way. It’s not to say everyone can get out of the fast lane and live a more centered lifestyle, as there is hope if you plan to change the habits you picked up along the way. Let’s face it. Life in the fast lane isn’t for everyone!
