The Eagles - Take It Easy

I am not a huge fan of the Eagles. I have nothing against the group, I just don't own any of their records and would prefer to never play Hotel California again. But to those who would dismiss them as banal adult contemporary elevator music, I would argue that they are undoubtably a great classic rock band with solid musicians. In a time when most popular music is made on a computer by a lone engineer, I have a soft spot for competent singer-songwriters. And the closer I look at the Eagles, the more there is to like.

"Take It Easy" seems to offer, at a glance, what the title implies: a no-frills, laid back, medium tempo country rock song in 4/4. But, as usual, there are subtle nuances that give it character. The first of them comes on the first beat.

Have you ever heard a song wrong? That is, have you realized that you heard the beat in the wrong place? I have to admit that I never realized I was hearing the intro to Take It Easy incorrectly just now as I started writing this post. I think I sensed that something was off, but never looked closer than that.

I always heard the opening chord, and the ensuing chords, to be on the downbeats. Everybody hits them together and the guitar rhythm supports this. The problem arrives when the full band comes in at 00:13. If you count very strictly, you'll realize that there is an extra 8th note. What? Is there a measure of 9/8 in there?

If you look for some sheet music online, you'll find that the extra 8th note is not there. Take a look at this chart:

This is how I've always heard the song - accents on the downbeats with two 8th notes in the bass to set it up. To be fair to whomever wrote this chart, it is possible that they deliberately simplified the piece. It is not uncommon for sheet music to be sanitized for popular consumption. There are other signs of sloppiness in this chart, though; the Am7/G chord should have a D in it and no E, so a D7sus/G would be more accurate. Also, the last notes in measure 5 need a stem. (oops!)

But I am getting off track - what is up with that extra 8th note? Is it possible that the entire intro is actually an 8th note earlier, so that all of the accents are anticipated? YES. This is exactly what is happening. That means the guitar rhythm is completely different, too. It took a while to wrap my head around it, but this ukulele chart gets it right (with the more-accurate Dsus chord, too):

Note that, even though the rest of the band squares things up as the song gets going, the rhythm guitar (way back in the mix) keeps playing the anticipations, confirming that this is the intended rhythm. Near the end of the song, at 2:38, the band hits these anticipations together, in a nice call back to the intro.

So that solves the mystery of the extra beat. But that was not why I wanted to write about this song. There are many other little gems to enjoy, starting with:

THE BANJO! Most people don't think of or notice the banjo in this song, but it's there! The busy, 16th note-heavy part comes in at the guitar solo and keeps cranking until the end, picking it up after the "save me" break. The impressive banjoist appears to be Bernie Leadon, and a cursory glance at his bio suggests that he was a driving force behind the band's success. The busyness (like the anticipations in the rhythm guitar) completely belies the song's laid-back message. Couple that with some dark minor chords scattered throughout the song and I think you could make the case that this song is more than a Buffett-esque call to chillax.

Speaking of harmony, there are some moments that I particularly enjoy. I like that the bassist stays on E as the band (or at least the vocals) move to a D in the chorus, making a kind of Em11 chord. More strikingly, there is a moment that gets me every time: on the last verse, at 2:15, over "world of trouble on my mind," the band goes to an Am7 chord instead of C, as they do in the rest of the song. It's a very subtle touch, and while most people don't notice, it really adds weight to that line. It's amazing how a simple change from the IV chord to the ii can make the song palpably sad in that moment. That is one of the reasons that I believe harmony is such an important part of songwriting. The chords are everything!

If I have not already made my case that this is not a Jimmy Buffett song, the final chord in the relative minor key seals it; this is a song full of agitations and pensiveness, there for those who look closely enough. I could come around on the Eagles.

Bonus tidbit: the chorus in the middle of this song has completely different lyrics than the first and last chorus. Unusual!