And it came to pass, on the day appointed to remember his passing, that the voice of Glenn Frey was heard once more. As the strings and chords of “Take It Easy” rose into the air, the hearts of many were carried back unto the days of their youth, when first the Eagles spread their wings across the firmament of rock and roll.
It was not mere music that filled the ears of the faithful, but memory itself—legacy woven with sorrow and joy, a reminder of the moment when history was changed forever. For to hear him sing again was as if one touched the soul of an age that shall not perish.
Of the Song Born in Fellowship
Know ye this: Glenn Frey, the craftsman of melody and friend of Don Henley, was called the spark plug, the man with the plan. With his hand he wrought many songs—Peaceful Easy Feeling, Heartache Tonight, and more—but it was with Take It Easy that his tale was first sealed upon the tablets of time.
The song was birthed not by him alone, but in fellowship. For in the year 1971, Jackson Browne labored with the verses, yet could not pass the second line. And when Glenn, his neighbor and companion, did hear him sing, “I’m a-standin’ on a corner in Winslow, Arizona,” Frey was struck with fire and added unto it: “Such a fine sight to see, it’s a girl, my lord, in a flatbed Ford, slowin’ down to take a look at me.”
Thus was the song completed, and the Eagles—newly formed—did bring it forth to the people.
Of the Song’s Glory
Recorded in London beneath the guidance of the master Glyn Johns, Take It Easy was loosed upon the world in 1972, and the scribe Bud Scoppa of Rolling Stone declared it “the best sounding rock single to come out so far this year.” And so it was.
Jackson Browne himself, in later years, spake these words: “Glenn finished the song in spectacular fashion, and arranged it in a way far superior to my own.”
A Legacy Unfading
Now Glenn Frey hath been gone since the year 2016, at the age of sixty and seven, yet his song endureth. For when his voice is heard, whether by record or vision, the people remember not only the man, but the dawning of an age—the birth of Eagles, whose flight carried them unto immortality.
And the fans, in unison, declare: “Still we miss thee, Glenn Frey, and still thy music liveth.”
