Bird & Animal Names In Rock & Roll History- part five

As we continue our series of “bird” and “animal” names in rock & roll history, let’s explore some more famous groups and names that contain “birds.”

In the early 1960's, Missouri native Billy Swan wrote a hit single for Clyde McPhatter called “Lover Please” and spent the rest of the decade working as a roadie, engineer’s assistant and songwriter, writing material for Conway Twitty, Waylon Jennings and Mel Tillis.

After moving to Memphis to continue writing songs and later relocating to Nashville, Swan supported himself as a recording assistant, but quit the job during the recording of Bob Dylan’s album “Blonde On Blonde” and gave his job to Kris Kristofferson. Swan went on to produce Tony Joe White’s hit single “Polk Salad Annie.” He also toured and played with Kris Kristofferson.

But Swan’s main claim to fame is his number one hit in 1974 called “I Can Help,” a song he wrote after receiving a little RMI organ as a wedding present from Kristofferson and then wife, Rita Coolidge. It went to number one on both the pop and country charts in 1974, and the accompanying album of the same name also topped the country list. After a few years, Swan returned to Kristofferson’s band and played with them until 1992.

However, taking time out from his still-active career as a session and backup musician, Swan recorded a new album at the original Sun studios, “Like Elvis Used to Do,” in 2000. In 2002, he teamed up with the Eagles’ Randy Meisner and Alan Rich, on a self-titled album from the aptly named Meisner, Swan & Rich.

One of the most successful rock groups of the 70's, the Eagles blended country, folk and rock into a stellar career that produced five number one Billboard hits. The group’s original members, Glenn Frey, Bernie Leadon, Randy Meisner and Don Henley were all session players and group veterans (Leadon had been with the Flying Burrito Brothers and Meisner founded the band Poco) and were assembled as back up musicians for Linda Ronstadt’s album “Silk Purse.”

Signed by Asylum Records, the Eagles released a self-titled album in 1972 which included the hit singles “Take It Easy” (written by Jackson Browne and Glenn Frey), “Witchy Woman” and “Peaceful Easy Feeling” and brought the “California sound” to the world. With their passionate, articulate harmonies, superstardom awaited, as fans clamored for more.

The second Eagles album, “Desperado” (1973) emphasized an “outlaw” image, but was not as successful as the first release. They added guitarist Don Felder on the third album, “On The Border” which went gold in three months and produced the number one Billboard hit “Best Of My Love.”

In 1975, the Eagles released “One Of These Nights,” a breakthrough album that mixed sappy, yet fulfilling ballads with pure rock and pop. The public loved the music, evidenced by the hit singles “Lyin’ Eyes,” “Take It To the Limit” and of course the title track, which peaked at number one on the Billboard charts.

In 1976, the Eagles released a “Greatest Hits” album that has sold well over fifteen million copies, but suffered the loss of guitarist Leadon, who was replaced by former James Gang leader, Joe Walsh. In 1977, the Eagles released the powerful and expressive LP, “Hotel California,” which added the title song as a number one hit to their already impressive resume. In 1977, Meisner left the group and was replaced by Timothy B. Schmit, but it took the group almost two years to complete their next album, “The Long Run.” The wait paid off, as the Eagles scored another number one hit, “Heartache Tonight” and top ten hits, the ballad “I Can’t Tell You Why” as well as the title track. They followed this with a live tour and release, but the group disbanded in 1981 and swore they would get back together “when hell freezes over”.

But that is not the end of the story, because hell must have frozen over and the group reformed and released the aptly named LP “Hell Freezes Over” in 1994. The album rehashed all their earlier hits and also included a new song called “Get Over It,” which reached the Billboard Top 40 and was well received by adoring Eagles fans.

In the next article, we will again explore “bird” names, but this time we will focus on the “Crows” of the rock and roll era.