Don Henley makes unusual dedication at Eagles 'Hotel California' show in Newark: review

America, how about a song dedication from the Eagles?

Don Henley delivered Friday, April 7 to close the band's “Hotel California 2023 Tour” show at the Prudential Center in Newark when he dedicated “Best of My Love” to the U.S.

“This is a song from 1974 that I had the privilege of writing with Deacon's dad (Glenn Frey) and our buddy J.D. Souther,” Henley said. “It's a song about a breakup of a couple, originally, but tonight I want to dedicate this song to America and all of its insanity and all its glory. Sing it with me, OK? Let's do something with unity.”

The packed crowd swayed and sang along to the mid-tempo country rock classic. Yes, the lyrics do seem to fit the current state of the country.

“You see it your way, I see it mine, but we both see it slippin' away,” Henley, 75, sang.

Henley had said no politics earlier in the show, but there is an underlying disquietness in the Eagles songs that often suggests a frustration with the societal status quo. Nowhere is this more apparent than on the song “Hotel California,” a musical treatise on 1970s America dissipation as viewed from the hazy West Coast. The band performed the album, leading off with “Hotel California,” in its entirety in the first part of the show.

A mysterious Captain (programmed to receive?) began things by putting the 1976 classic album on a record player and dropping the needle. The band struck up “Hotel California's” rich harmonies and sunset sparkle guitar leads. Vince Gill, a noted musician in his own right, took the late Frey's vocal leads on “New Kid in Town.” He evoked the original, but found his own space, too.

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The band — including guitarist Joe Walsh and bassist Timothy B. Schmit — was complemented by touring musicians, an orchestra — which Henley called the Northeast Corridor Orchestra — and the Rutgers University Kirkpatrick Choir. Touring guitarist Steuart Smith was a focal point on multiple leads and solos.

An extensive greatest hits set followed the “Hotel California” performance. Deacon Frey come on sing two of his dad's classics, “Take It Easy” and “Peaceful Easy Feeling.” He looks and sounds like his father Glenn, who passed away in 2016 at the age of 67. An image of the late Frey was shown on the concert screens after Deacon's performance.

Walsh received audience call outs during the night and it's no wonder. He's a graduate of Montclair High School Class of 1965. He performed “Rocky Mountain Way,” solo hits “Life's Been Good” and “In the City,” as well as his James Gang classic “Funk #49.”

“I'm glad to be back here,” Walsh said. “You know what I miss? I miss when people say, 'Get out of here!'“

No one in the baby boomer crowd told him to get out. Henley, who alternated between drums and guitar, also performed a solo hit, 1984's “Boys of Summer.”

The Eagles “Hotel California” concerts began in 2019 in Las Vegas. The tour has one more scheduled stop, Saturday, April 8 at the CFG Bank Arena in Baltimore.

“It's good to be here,” Henley said. “At this stage in the game it's good to be anywhere. … Fifty-one years is a long time in this business, and just in case we don’t pass this way again I want to thank you all on behalf of the band, on behalf of the crew and everyone up here for sticking with us through thick and thin. We appreciate you very much.”

Eagles Newark setlist

• Hotel California

• New Kid in Town

• Life in the Fast Lane

• Wasted Time

• Wasted Time (Reprise)

• Victim of Love

• Pretty Maids All in a Row

• Try and Love Again

• The Last Resort

• Seven Bridges Road

• Take It Easy

• Peaceful Easy Feeling

• Tequila Sunrise

• One of These Nights

• Take It to the Limit

• Witchy Woman

• In the City

• I Can't Tell You Why

• Lyin' Eyes

• Life's Been Good

• The Boys of Summer

• Funk #49

• Heartache Tonight

• Rocky Mountain Way

• Desperado

• Already Gone

• Best of My Love

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Chris Jordan, a Jersey Shore native, covers entertainment and features for the USA Today Network New Jersey. Contact him at @chrisfhjordan; cjordan@app.com

This article originally appeared on Asbury Park Press: Eagles rock 'Hotel California' Newark show: Review, setlist