Formed back in 1971, the Eagles quickly became an iconic band thanks to hits like “Take It Easy”, “Wasted Time”, “Lyin’ Eyes”, and of course “Hotel California.” Throughout their time on stage, the band sold over 200 million albums, becoming one of the world’s best-selling bands. And to add to their already growing success, they also won six Grammy Awards. One of those Grammys came thanks to Hotel California, which won Record of the Year in 1978. With “Hotel California” one of their most memorable songs, it appears that 13 pages of Don Henley’s handwritten notes and lyrics could bring $700,000 at auction. But there is one catch.
Decades ago, author Ed Sanders received the opportunity to write an official biography about the Eagles. With full access to the band’s past and documents, apparently the writer got his hands on some original notes from the Hotel California era. Looking to sell the coveted items, Craig Inciardi, Edward Kosinski, and Glenn Horowitz found themselves at the center of a court case overlooked by the New York Supreme Court. While Sanders had the papers in his possession, the court now has to decide if he had the authorization to sell them.
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Back in 2016, the prestigious auction house Christie’s was approached by Inciardi, who was looking to sell the items. At the time, executive Tom Lecky described the documents as being in “good” condition. He said, “It was a great early version [of the song], working out ideas. It was very exciting.” Investigating how Inciardi came to have the 13 pages, Lecky discovered he and Kosinki purchased them from Sanders. But having no idea if Sanders had permission to sell the documents, Christie’s decided to decline to sell them.
Former Manager Of The Eagles Labels Band “Pampered Rock Star”
While writing the book for the Eagles, their manager Irving Azoff discussed how the book caused some controversy among the group since they didn’t like what was being written. Playing a recording in court, the manager said, “Ed, you’ve been wonderful. The book is going to come out – it’s just that I have a pampered rock star here… It’s going to come out when God Henley says it can. Now it’s up to God.”
When pressed about which musician was the “pampered rock star”, Azoff admitted, “Probably all of them!” With the papers currently in court, it seems that the future of the Hotel California papers is currently in limbo.
(Photo by Rick Diamond/Getty Images)