They named themselves the Eagles and approached David Geffen, who had already had dealings with Frey and was willing to sign them despite some grumblings about royalty shares. The band formally became a part of Asylum records in September of 1971. After playing some gigs in Colorado, the band started to gel. Soon they were off to London to be guided by famous producer Glyn Johns.
While Glenn Frey started the band and was its leader, Meisner initially had the impression that he would be an equal member in terms of the amount of song credits per album and the amount of lead vocals. For the first Eagles album, this was indeed the case. He and Frey bonded quickly during the making of the first Eagles album, sneaking away together to spoke marijuana in defiance of Johns' strict "no drugs" policy. Meisner even sung vocals for the Frey-penned song "Most of Us Are Sad." Henley and Leadon, on the other hand, had also bonded from the outset, writing "Witchy Woman" together. While Frey especially chafed at Johns' handling of the band, it paid off in the form of three hits: "Take It Easy," "Witchy Woman," and "Peaceful Easy Feeling."
The band dynamics were to change considerably when Frey approached Henley to do some co-writing for the Eagles' sophomore album, Desperado. The two worked so well together that from that moment on, they began to form a united songwriting front that would eventually begin to edge out Meisner and Leadon. This became apparent immediately; Frey and Henley were involved in every song on Desperado except the two written by Leadon, whereas Meisner only co-wrote two songs and sang sole lead on one (he shared lead with Henley on "Saturday Night").
Not that Meisner was completely disregarded; two lead vocals was reasonable in a band with four members that only had about ten songs per album. It was the lack of songwriting credits that really became noticeable. On their third album On The Border, he only wrote one song: "Is It True." His other lead vocal, "Midnight Flyer," was a cover. Frey and Henley, quickly becoming the power brokers of the band, were rejecting his material as not up to the standards of the Eagles. Frey and Henley were working more closely with "fifth Eagle" John David Souther than with the other members of the band. The success of On the Border and its breakout Frey/Henley/Souther hit "Best of My Love" seemed to lend veracity to their arguments, and Meisner accepted it, but with a deepening sense of unease about his loss of influence on the inner workings of the band.
Another source of problems was Meisner's progressively worsening involvement with drugs, alcohol, and the "rock'n'roll lifestyle." Although he was still married and had three children, he was unable to resist the temptations of the road. The success of On the Border only made things worse. Struggling with constant guilt and self-recrimination at his seeming inability to be faithful to his wife, Meisner often spoke of quitting the band.
One of These Nights was to yield a pleasant surprise for Meisner, however. His songs were not usually selected as singles, but "Take It to the Limit" was - and it was a smash success, becoming the Eagles' first gold record. Co-written with Frey and Henley, it was to become one of the Eagles' signature songs. Meisner's song "Too Many Hands," co-written by the band's new member Don Felder, was also deemed high-quality by Frey and Henley; Frey even expressed that they'd finally found the type of songs for which Meisner's voice was perfectly suited. Things were looking up musically, despite continued conflicts over the direction of the band. Frey and Henley, so productive and successful as a team, were beginning to argue between themselves as well. Leadon felt so completely marginalized the he finally quit the band in frustration.
By the time the Eagles were recording Hotel California, relationships had deteriorated considerably. While Frey and Henley continued to work together creating hits, their personal conflicts also grew. Joe Walsh had been brought in to replace Leadon, and while his contributions continued to move the band in a rock-oriented direction, Meisner felt increasingly left behind. "Try and Love Again" was his only lead on the album, written alone; the song stuck out as the only one on the album not aligned with the Frey/Henley vision of the disillusion created by success that wasn't all it was cracked up to be.
Amidst band conflict, Meisner's marriage was finally ending. His partying, drinking, and drug using was now completely unchecked by any lingering marital guilt. It began to interfere with performances, and it didn't help Meisner feel any more positive about the band. It didn't give him confidence about performing, either. He hated touring, hated being in the spotlight, and was nervous about his ability to consistently hit the high notes on "Take It to the Limit" live. The song was a show-stopper, however; people loved its dramatic build and soaring climax, and screamed for it every night. It was a fundamental part of the Eagles live set. When Meisner refused to sing it one night in Knoxville, Tennessee, citing illness that Frey suspected was caused by partying too hard, Frey lost patience with him. He called Meisner a vulgar name and threw a sweaty towel in his face, setting off a fistfight that had to be broken up by roadies. Meisner decided at that point to leave the band at the end of the tour, hoping that Walsh and Felder would join him; they too had expressed dissatisfaction with the Frey/Henley rule that had now expanded to include manager Irving Azoff. Walsh and Felder refused, proving any prior conversations about forming a trio with Meisner were nothing more than idle talk. Before Meisner had a chance to reconsider, he was replaced by Timothy B. Schmit... just as he had been when fired from Poco.Now Meisner was on his own. In some ways, it was a relief; certainly, there was less pressure on him now. On the other hand, going from being a part of the world's most successful band with multitudinous offers down to a solo artist whom few were interested in was a difficult adjustment. Under Azoff's continued management, he released a solo album in 1978 and had a song appear on the FM soundtrack. Ironically, it was a cover of the Frey/Souther song "Bad Man."
Puzzled by the lack of live gigs, Meisner went to Azoff to inquire about it. Azoff, whose first loyalty was always to the Eagles, had little patience for the much-less-marketable Meisner. Azoff exploded at him, backing him up against the wall and shouting at him to "Get out of here and never come back" (qtd. in Eliot). Meisner realized with dismay that even his own manager wasn't on his side.
He had better luck with the album One More Song (1980).
P/W - 33&third
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