Bernie Leadon

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Bernard Leadon (born July 19, 1947, in Minneapolis, Minnesota) is an American musician and songwriter, best known as a founding member of the American rock band Eagles. He has also played in other bands, including the Flying Burrito Brothers and Dillard & Clark. He is a multi-instrumentalist (guitar, banjo, mandolin, steel guitar, dobro) coming from a bluegrass background. He introduced elements of this music to a mainstream audience during his tenure with the Eagles. His music career since leaving the Eagles has been decidedly low-key, resulting in merely two solo albums with a gap of twenty-seven years in between. Leadon is, however, a noted session musician who has appeared as a guest on many other artists' records.

Early career

Leadon's family was constantly on the move in his early life, and he found himself, still in high school, in San Diego, California. His interest in the banjo and in folk music gravitated him to a place called the Blue Guitar, run by folk and bluegrass music enthusiasts Larry Murray and Ed Douglas. This interest would land him a spot in the proprietors' band, "The Scottsville Squrriel Barkers", when their banjo player, Kenny Wertz, joined the Air Force. The Barkers were a breeding ground for future California country rock talent as its members included Murray, who founded Hearts and Flowers (another group Leadon would join), a shy, 18-year-old mandolin player by the name of Chris Hillman, (Byrds, Flying Burrito Brothers (with Leadon), Desert Rose Band, and others) with whom Leadon would strike a life-long friendship, and Leadon. In the mid 1960s Leadon attended Gainesville High School in Gainesville, Florida. One of his classmates at Gainesville High was Don Felder, who would years later be his bandmate in the Eagles. Felder was a member of a band called the Continentals with Stephen Stills of Crosby, Stills & Nash fame. Leadon ended up replacing Stills and joining Felder in the band, which was renamed the Maundy Quintet. An interesting note: in the 1966 Gainesville High School Yearbook the Maundy Quintet is pictured next to another Gainesville band destined for fame - Tom Petty and his early band the Epics, a band Bernie Leadon's brother, Tom Leadon, was in. Leadon played with various Southern California bluegrass and country rock groups in the 1960s, such as The Scottsville Squirrel Barkers (with future Byrd Chris Hillman), Hearts & Flowers, The Flying Burrito Brothers, and Dillard & Clark featuring his work on dobro, banjo and mandolin, as well as guitar. He honed his songwriting skills in The Flying Burrito Brothers and the short-lived Dillard & Clark, writing "God's Own Singer" (used as Gram Parsons' epithaph on his gravemarker) in the Burritos and co-writing the now classic "Train Leaves Here This Morning" with Gene Clark. He re-recorded the latter, somewhat of a signature song, on the debut album of the Eagles.

Tenure with the Eagles

Leadon used his boyhood choir training to arrange intricate harmony vocals on the Eagles' first few albums^{[citation needed]} . He also wrote or co-wrote several songs, including the band's second hit, "Witchy Woman". Leadon left the Eagles in December of 1975, and was replaced by Joe Walsh. According to a 2008 interview with Don Felder, Leadon had left in order to spend more time devoted to exercising and taking care of his health. He had also expressed a desire for the band to take some time off, and when Henley and Frey opted to continue the heavy touring schedule, Leadon bowed out.

Life after the Eagles

Since then, Leadon has played with numerous other country and bluegrass artists, including a stint with the Nitty Gritty Dirt Band. He was a member of Run C&W, a novelty group singing Motown hits "bluegrass style." Leadon released his second solo effort in 27 years, 2004's Mirror. Leadon is also known as a surfing enthusiast.

He also co-founded the now defunct Pioneer Music Group in Japan which released an album from former Atlantic Records recording artist Judson Spence; an effort Leadon also produced. It is not known who will portray Leadon in the planned Eagles biopic.

Leadon reunited with the Eagles (with all current and former Eagles members) in 1998 in New York City for the band's induction into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame . The seven musicians performed together on "Take It Easy," and "Hotel California".

Eagles songs

Eagles songs written or co-written by Bernie Leadon

• "Train Leaves Here This Morning" from Eagles (co-written with Gene Clark)
• "Earlybird" from Eagles (co-written with Randy Meisner)
• "Witchy Woman" from Eagles (co-written with Don Henley)
• "Twenty-One" from Desperado
• "Bitter Creek" from Desperado
• "Saturday Night" from Desperado (co-written with Meisner, Henley, and Glenn Frey)
• "My Man" from On the Border
• "On The Border" from On the Border (co-written with Henley/Frey)
• "Hollywood Waltz" from One of These Nights (co-written with brother Tom Leadon and Henley/Frey)
• "Journey Of The Sorcerer" from One of These Nights. This piece was used as the theme music for the radio, television and film versions of The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy
• "I Wish You Peace" from One of These Nights (co-written with Patti Davis)

Eagles songs with Bernie Leadon on lead vocals

• "Train Leaves Here This Morning" from Eagles
• "Earlybird" from Eagles
• "Twenty-One" from Desperado
• "Bitter Creek" from Desperado
• "My Man" from On the Border
• "On the Border" - co-lead vocal in the bridge ["Never mind your face, just show us your card"]- from On the Border
• "I Wish You Peace" from One of These Nights

External links

• Bernie Leadon's official website