Don Henley doesn't take any prisoners. It didn't take a phone call to arrive at that understanding. Just a simple e-mail.
"Well, this is a tabloid, isn't it?" Henley replies when asked via e-mail to recall at what moment he considered his band the Eagles "struck gold".
"Gold?" he asks.
For a band with five number one singles, 14 top-40 hits, four number one albums and acclaimed as one of most successful recording artists of the 1970s, us wondering when it all took off should hardly have come as such a big surprise to Henley.
Sarcasm
Luckily, the sarcasm was quickly out of his system and Henley indulged us.
"I think we came to the realisation that we were headed for success when we performed at the original California Jam Festival in April of 1974 and a quarter of a million people heard us," he gave for starters. "The success of our fourth studio album, One of These Nights, was also a milestone and that release was also followed closely by the release of our first Greatest Hits album, the success of which exceeded anybody's expectations."
Hotel California
To date the compilation album has sold more than 30 million copies in the US alone and at the end of the 20th century, their Greatest Hits (1971-1975) and Hotel California ranked among the ten best-selling albums.
When the Eagles spilt in the early '80s, it was Henley who said the band would get back together "when hell freezes over" because of all the publicly-documented hatred between members. The album of the same name eventually released in 1994 went to No 1 on the Billboard album chart.
In 2001, when former member Don Felder sued the Eagles after being fired, his complaint alleged that from the 1994 Hell Freezes Over tour onward, Henley and founding member Glenn Frey had "insisted that they each receive a higher percentage of the band's profits". The case was subsequently settled behind closed doors.
But which band hasn't had ups and downs? Ahead of their Dubai concert at 7he Sevens Stadium on Thursday, Henley says the Eagles are flying high and cannot wait to meet their fans in the Middle East.
‘Universal language'
"We are expecting a warm reception," he said. "Music is the universal language. Expect a good two-hour show. No choreography, no pyrotechnics — just music," he added.
The band was formed by four Los Angeles-based musicians, who had migrated to the West Coast with music in mind: singer and bassist Randy Meisner, singer, guitarist, banjo and mandolin player Bernie Leadon, Glenn Frey, who served as a backup musician for Bob Seger before his move, and singer-drummer Don Henley.
In September 1971, after a stint playing in Linda Ronstadt's backup band, Frey, Henley, Leadon, and Meisner signed with manager David Geffen, agreeing to record for his soon-to-be-launched label Asylum Records — and the Eagles took flight.
Since then the hits are too many to mention. Peaceful Easy Feeling, Witchy Woman, Desperado, Take it Easy, Lyin' Eyes and, of course, Hotel California are among them.
Released in June 1975, the band's fourth album, One of These Nights, was a smash, going gold the same month and featuring Lyin' Eyes, which won the 1975 Grammy Award for Best Pop Vocal Performance by a Duo, Group, or Chorus.
Quiet period
World tours and fly-off-the-shelf albums ensued before a "quiet period" sparked rumour of a break-up in 1980, something which wasn't officially confirmed until 1982.
"The 14 years apart was very necessary and it's one of the reasons that we're still around today," says Henley. "That separation gave us all an opportunity to pursue solo work and develop as artists. It also gave each of us a chance to grow and to start our own families. Lastly, it gave the public an opportunity to miss us. It actually lengthened our career as a band."
During the '80s, Henley admits the band members received several lucrative offers to reunite, all of which were declined. It wasn't until 1990 when Frey and Henley began writing together again that a full-scale reunion was rumoured. In the spring of 1994 the waiting was over.
"It was a bit awkward at first, but after a while, it began to feel very familiar and comfortable," he says before partly correcting his last sentence. "Not too comfortable," he says. "That would be bad."
Today, all members are currently working on solo projects and Henley says he enjoys both elements of his career. "I give them both equal value," he says of solo and band performances. "Each makes possible and enhances the other. Sometimes it's great to be the boss; sometimes it's desirable to be part of a team — a cog in a bigger wheel. It created balance and perspective."
Desperado
The Eagles have crafted several country-rock standards, including Life in the Fast Lane and the more timeless Desperado, and Henley's finest evolve from country music too.
Working hard on his latest offering, Henley may not have made the Country Music Awards but had plenty of good things to say about today's younger stars.
"Taylor Swift speaks to the angst and the insecurities of teenage girls and they relate to her message quite strongly. And young boys like her because she's very pretty," he adds. "She's a good kid. She has an interesting mix of confidence and humility — a wide-eyed sense of wonder that many people find appealing. Kelly Clarkson is just an incredibly gifted singer. She's got real talent."
So with more than four decades behind him and his fellow band mates, is there anything Henley would do differently?
"If I could do it all again I would try to be more productive and avoid the distractions and diversions that were so prevalent before. But, hindsight is rather useless, isn't it? The past is what it is. It could certainly have been worse."
Don't miss it
The Eagles perform at 7he Sevens, Dubai, Thursday. Tickets, priced Dh350, Dh750 and Dh1,400, are available at eaglesdubai.com. Doors open at 6pm and show starts at 9pm.
In the news
Just weeks ago representatives for Don Henley and co contacted up-and-coming R&B singer Frank Ocean over a sample in his song, American Wedding, accusing him of stealing "the whole master track, plus the song's existing melody" of Hotel California.
Ocean broke the news earlier this week, writing on his Tumblr page that "Don Henley …is apparently intimidated by my rendition of Hotel California". "He [they] threatened to sue if I perform it again".
Henley's team came back denying Henley had been "intimidated", calling it a simple case of copyright infringement.
