So that’s some back story on where I’m going with all of this, now let’s talk about the song itself, particularly its ominous sound and lyrics… He came across very well, I felt, and there was a moment at the end when he began to cry in reminiscing about the band and what happened to him, and while some might see that as phony or whatever, I didn’t see it that way. But for now, what my bro and I felt was interesting was that Felder was included in the documentary with not a few clips of him being interviewed about the band’s history. Fair enough, and we will consider all of this a little further on in this piece. The implication was that he was being selfish, not a team player. To make a long, involved story shorter, after much bickering to the point of almost even physical fighting, Don Felder ended up being fired from the Eagles in 2000, apparently for asking Henley and Frey for more money than they felt he was entitled to. So the point is that Felder actually wrote a good portion of what most feel to be the Eagles greatest song, their swan song you might say, not to mention one of the greatest rock songs ever, definitely up there with Stairway to Heaven and with a similar theme (getting to that). Henley and Frey right away saw the potential in the track of what was to be Hotel California, and they interestingly called it “Mexican Reggae” because it has a Spanish guitar sound and Felder apparently mixed in a reggae drum beat with it. He recorded it along with some other songs onto a mix tape which he then sent to Don Henleyand Glenn Frey for possible use on their next album. Quick summary: Don Felder actually wrote most of the guitar parts for Hotel California while relaxing at a beach rental home on Malibu one day in 1976. And in all of those 3 hours, there was just one thing that really stood out for both me and my bro and which we discussed at some length and that was the whole Don Felder thing. Really good documentary btw if you haven’t seen it yet, very well done, worth 3 hours of your time. It all started with watching the Eagles documentary, History of the Eagles, on Netflix with my fraternal twin brother. It’s just that things have finally come to a head. Yet the song is so pervasive and has such a lasting impact on the psyche that I am also never not thinking about it on some level. I have been musing a lot about the Eagles and Hotel Californiaover the past month, and that’s what has brought me to actually write this right now. If you are interested in hearing why I say that, read on… Not any more or less satanic than you are. The simple answer to the question posed in the title of this piece is this:

Is Hotel California Satanic? (It’s About Forgiveness)

Hotel california cover