Eagles to bid farewell — again

Spencer Patterson

Friday, Aug. 8, 2003 | 8:19 a.m.

Nearly a decade after hell froze over, the Eagles have reunited again to start saying farewell to their fans.

The band's "Farewell I" tour lands at the MGM Grand Garden Arena Saturday night at 8 for the fourth West Coast date of 2003.

When the Eagles initially split up in 1982, vocalist/drummer Don Henley said the band would get back together only when "hell freezes over." But in 1994 Henley and ex-bandmates Glenn Frey, Timothy B. Schmit and Joe Walsh were back onstage to kick off a wildly successful worldwide comeback tour.

Since then the Eagles have continued to poke fun at their propensity for insisting their next tour will be their last.

"Farewell I" is expected to be followed by "Farewell II." Beyond that, who knows?

Along with the four longtime Eagles, the band's road lineup features eight backing musicians, including a four-piece horn section and two keyboards.

In addition to well-known tunes such as "Hotel California," "Take it Easy" and "Heartache Tonight," the Eagles have been performing one new song, "Hole in the World."

The single, released on CD and DVD on July 15, touches on political themes, including terrorism, and is expected to be on the band's next studio album.

Who: The Eagles.

Where: MGM Grand Garden Arena.

When: 8 p.m. Saturday.

Tickets: $75, $175, $250.

Call: 891-7777.

Opening act: None.

Personnel: Don Henley (drums, vocals), Glenn Frey (guitar, vocals), Timothy B. Schmit (bass, vocals), Joe Walsh (guitar, vocals).

Additional Musicians: Bill Armstrong (horns), Scott Crago (drums, percussion), Al Garth (horns), Will Hollis (keyboard), Chris Mostert (horns), Greg Smith (horns), Steuart Smith (guitar), Mike Thompson (keyboard).

Latest release: "Selected Works: 1972-1999" (four-disc box set) (Elektra, 2000).

Album feedback: "The overall result is a nearly four-hour long collection that is something of a hodgepodge. There are enough rarities to bait the hook for hardcore Eagles fans, but not really satisfy them, and casual fans will probably be better off with the two single-disc hits collections." (All Music Guide, 4 stars).

Essential releases: "Their Greatest Hits (1971-1975)" (1976), "The Eagles Greatest Hits, Vol. 2" (1982).

What to expect: An hourlong first set, a 90-minute second set and three encores. The Eagles play most of their greatest hits, a smattering of deep album cuts and several of the best-known solo hits by Henley, Frey and Walsh.

Recent set list: Boardwalk Hall, Atlantic City, N.J., July 25: (First set) "Long Run," "New Kid in Town," "Wasted Time," "Peaceful, Easy Feeling," "Hole in the World," "Love Will Keep Us Alive," "Boys of Summer," "Take it to the Limit," "Already Gone," "In the City," "One of These Nights." (Second set) "James Dean," "Lyin' Eyes," "I Can't Tell You Why," "Walk Away," "Tequila Sunrise," "Sunset Grill," "Turn to Stone," "You Belong to the City," "Life's Been Good," "Dirty Laundry," "Funk #49," "Heartache Tonight," "Life in the Fast Lane." (First encore) "Hotel California." (Second encore) "Rocky Mountain Way," "All She Wants to Do is Dance." (Third encore) "Take it Easy," "Desperado." (from fansite eaglesfans.com).

Tour feedback: "Ticket prices topped $150, but fans were treated to a sparkling, nearly three-hour retrospective of the players' collective and individual catalogs, rendered with precise, polished musicianship and voices remarkably free of wear and tear." (New Orleans Times-Picayune); "The Eagles have always been perfectionists, and the goal of their current Farewell I tour seems to be to simply recreate their recordings on stage, rather than to attempt to inject any spontaneity into their performances." (Albany Times-Union).

Says Henley: "We operate on kind of an annual basis now. Frankly, I don't think we will be around that much longer. It's not our last tour, but it's getting close to it." (Cincinnati Post, May).