27 Facts About Don Henley

1.

Don Henley was the drummer and co-lead vocalist for the Eagles from 1971 until the band broke up in 1980, and has reprised those duties for the group's reunions since 1994.

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2.

Don Henley has released five studio albums, two compilation albums, and one live DVD.

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3.

Don Henley has released seven studio albums with the Eagles and five as a solo artist.

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4.

Don Henley first played the trombone, then in the percussion section.

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5.

Don Henley then attended North Texas State University in Denton, Texas, from 1967 to 1969.

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6.

In Los Angeles, Henley met Glenn Frey as they were both signed to the same label, and they were recruited by John Boylan to be members of Linda Ronstadt's backup band for her tour in 1971.

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7.

On his songwriting in the band, Don Henley stated in a March 2001 interview on Charlie Rose that "rock bands work best as a benevolent dictatorship", with the principal songwriters in a band being the ones that will likely hold the power.

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8.

In 1995, Don Henley released the single "The Garden of Allah" to promote his greatest hits solo album Actual Miles: Don Henley's Greatest Hits.

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9.

In live shows, Don Henley plays drums and sings simultaneously on some Eagles songs.

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10.

Geffen Records claimed that Don Henley was in breach of contract and Don Henley attempted to get out of his contract in 1993 based on a 50-year-old California statute.

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11.

Geffen Records did not want Don Henley signing with any other label, and had an agreement with Sony and EMI that they would not sign Don Henley.

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12.

Don Henley counter-sued Geffen Records, claiming that he was "blackballed" by David Geffen, who had made agreements with other record labels to not sign him.

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13.

Long period without a new recording followed as Don Henley waited out a dispute with his record company while participating in a 1994 Eagles reunion tour and live album.

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14.

In 2002 Don Henley became the head of the Recording Artists' Coalition.

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15.

Don Henley performed songs from the album in a VH1 Storytellers episode during 2000.

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16.

In 2005, Don Henley opened 10 of Stevie Nicks' concerts on her Two Voices Tour.

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17.

In 1990, Don Henley founded the Walden Woods Project to help protect "Walden Woods" from development.

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18.

In 2000, Don Henley co-founded the Recording Artists' Coalition, a group founded to protect musicians' rights against common music industry business practices.

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19.

Don Henley is a member of the CuriosityStream Advisory Board.

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20.

Lifelong supporter of the Democratic Party, Henley has been a generous donor to political campaigns of Democrats.

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21.

In 1974, Don Henley became involved with Loree Rodkin, and the breakup of their relationship was the inspiration for the song "Wasted Time" and parts of the lyrics for "Hotel California".

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22.

Late in 1975, Don Henley started dating Fleetwood Mac singer Stevie Nicks as her relationship with Lindsey Buckingham came to an end.

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23.

Nicks later wrote a song "Sara" that Don Henley claimed was about their unborn child, for which Nicks had an abortion.

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24.

Don Henley's was arrested for prostitution, while a 15-year-old girl found in the house was arrested for being under the influence of drugs.

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25.

In 2012, Don Henley was estimated to be the fourth-wealthiest drummer in the world, behind Ringo Starr, Phil Collins and Dave Grohl, with a $200 million fortune.

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26.

Don Henley has won a number of other awards, such as MTV Music Video Awards for "The Boys Of Summer" in 1985, and "The End of the Innocence" in 1990.

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27.

In May 2012, Henley was awarded an honorary Doctorate of Music from Berklee College of Music along with Timothy B Schmit, Joe Walsh and Glenn Frey.

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