The Long Run

The Long Run
Studio album by Eagles
Released	September 24, 1979
Recorded	March 1978 - September 1979 at Bayshore Recording Studio, Coconut Grove, FL, One Step Up Recording Studio, Los Angeles, CA Love 'n' Comfort Recording Studio, Los Angeles, CA Britannia Recording Studio, Los Angeles, CA and Record Plant Studios, Los Angeles, CA
Genre	Rock
Length	42:50
Label	Asylum
Producer	Bill Szymczyk
Professional reviews
Allmusic link Robert Christgau (C+) link Rolling Stone link
Eagles chronology
Hotel California (1976) The Long Run (1979) Eagles Live (1980)

The Long Run is the sixth studio album by Eagles, released in 1979 (see 1979 in music). This was the first Eagles album not to feature founding member Randy Meisner, who was replaced by Timothy B. Schmit.

The album was originally intended to be a double album to be released in 1978 but was instead demoted to a single album. Some of the tracks that were left off the album would be cobbled together to compose the cut "Long Run Leftovers" which appeared on the band's 2000 box set Selected Works: 1972-1999. Some of the bits in "Long Run Leftovers" were resurrected by Joe Walsh on "Rivers (Of the Hidden Funk)" from 1981's There Goes the Neighborhood and "Told You So" on 1983's You Bought It, You Name It.

Also, the band recorded a Christmas single during the sessions. First of which was a cover of "Please Come Home For Christmas" by Charles Brown, which was released as a single in November 1978. The song's B-side was a Don Henley and Glenn Frey original called "Funky New Year" which was the band's song about the pitfalls of celebrating New Years.

The Long Run took almost two years to complete and saw the Eagles move in a more hard rock direction that they started going in with its predecessor, 1976's Hotel California.

When released in September 1979, The Long Run debuted at #2 on Billboard's Pop Albums chart and a week later hit #1 dethroning Led Zeppelin's In Through the Out Door and was the last #1 album of the 1970s where it reigned for eight weeks and has sold over seven million copies to date in the US alone (it was certified Gold and Platinum in early 1980 by the R.I.A.A.).

The album spawned three Top 10 singles, the chart-topping rocker "Heartache Tonight", the album's opening title cut and the ballad "I Can't Tell You Why". "In the City," a song first recorded by guitarist Walsh for the soundtrack to the movie The Warriors, and "Those Shoes" received radio airplay, as well.

Track listing

Side one

1. "The Long Run" (Don Henley, Glenn Frey) – 3:42
   • Lead vocal by Don Henley
   • Slide guitar by Joe Walsh (played by Walsh and Don Felder in live performances)
   • Organ by Don Felder
2. "I Can't Tell You Why" (Timothy B. Schmit, Henley, Frey) – 4:56
   • Lead vocal by Timothy B. Schmit
   • Guitar solos by Glenn Frey (played by Don Felder in live performance)
3. "In the City" (Joe Walsh, Barry De Vorzon) – 3:46
   • Lead vocal by Joe Walsh
   • Slide guitar by Joe Walsh
4. "The Disco Strangler" (Don Felder, Henley, Frey) – 2:46
   • Lead vocal by Don Henley
5. "King of Hollywood" (Henley, Frey) – 6:28
   • Lead vocals by Don Henley & Glenn Frey
   • First guitar solo by Glenn Frey
   • Second guitar solo by Don Felder
   • End guitar solo by Joe Walsh

Side two

1. "Heartache Tonight" (Henley, Frey, Bob Seger, J.D. Souther) – 4:27
   • Lead vocal by Glenn Frey
   • Slide guitar by Joe Walsh
2. "Those Shoes" (Felder, Henley, Frey) – 4:57
   • Lead vocal by Don Henley
   • Talk box guitars by Joe Walsh & Don Felder
   • Solo by Joe Walsh
3. "Teenage Jail" (Henley, Frey, Souther) – 3:44
   • Lead vocals by Glenn Frey & Don Henley
   • Synthesizer solo by Glenn Frey
   • Guitar solo by Don Felder
4. "The Greeks Don't Want No Freaks" (Henley, Frey) – 2:21
   • Lead vocal by Don Henley
   • Background vocals by "The Monstertones" featuring Jimmy Buffett
5. "The Sad Café" (Henley, Frey, Walsh, Souther) – 5:35
   • Lead vocal by Don Henley
   • Guitar solo by Don Felder
   • Alto saxophone by David Sanborn

Personnel

• Don Felder: electric guitar, acoustic guitar, slide guitar, organ, vocals
• Glenn Frey: electric guitar, synthesizer, keyboards, vocals
• Don Henley: drums, percussion, vocals
• Timothy B. Schmit: bass guitar, vocals
• Joe Walsh: electric guitars, slide guitar, keyboards, vocals

Additional personnel

• Jimmy Buffett - vocals, backing vocals
• The Monstertones - backing vocals
• David Sanborn - alto saxophone
• Bob Seger - backing vocals "Heartache Tonight" (not credited in liner notes)

Production

• Producer: Bill Szymczyk, The Eagles
• Engineers: Ed Mashal, Bill Szymczyk
• Assistant engineers: David Crowther, Mark Curry, Bob Stringer, Bob Winder
• Mastering and remastering: Ted Jensen
• Art direction: Kosh
• Design: Kosh
• Photography: Jim Shea

Singles

• "Heartache Tonight"/"Teenage Jail" - Asylum 46545; released September 18, 1979
• "The Long Run"/"Disco Strangler" - Asylum 46569; released November 27, 1979
• "I Can't Tell You Why"/"The Greeks Don't Want No Freaks" - Asylum 46608; released February 4, 1980

Charts

Album - Billboard (North America)

Album - Kent Music Report (Australia)

Singles - Billboard (North America)

Awards

Grammy Awards

Miscellaneous

Lists of miscellaneous information should be avoided. Please relocate any relevant information into appropriate sections or articles. (August 2008)

• The custom picture labels were grey with white and black writing on side one and black with white and grey writing on side two.
• The intro bass line and drums from "Those Shoes" was sampled for the song " High Plains Drifter" on Beastie Boys landmark album Paul's Boutique.
• Original pressings of this record had text engraved in the carry-out grooves on each side:
  • Side One: "Never Let Your Monster Lay Down"
  • Side Two: "From the Polack who Sailed North"
• LP copies came with a lyric poster.