"Take It Easy" - A musical analysis of an Eagles song
When you are sitting around with friends on a hot summer day enjoying a
barbeque and the sun is shining bright in the sky, there is music usually
playing that goes along with the occasion of visiting, laughing, and the
enjoyment of freshly grilled food while soaking up the nice summer weather. I
like to relax and absorb all the great energy that is around me and drive on
the open river carefree periodically. On a playlist that I frequently
use for these types of occasions comes a song called Take It Easy by
the Eagles. Written by Glen Frey and Jackson Browne. The
song was released in 1972 in America. This blog music analysis will be on
3 elements. They include lyrics, chords, and rhythm.
Eagles - Take It Easy (1972) -America
Lyrics
These lyrics resonate with my personality. I reflect on the story
of this song and a person going down the open path of life with charge and
determination to make it to the next leg of the journey, with
happiness and success. To me these lyrics make me want to dance right away when
I hear the song. The days of the week and love, along with letting go of the
small stuff in life flash through my mind for me. I am running down the
road trying to loosen my load I got seven women on my
mind. The chorus, take it easy, and the simple yet powerful advice for people
through many generations and social classes in life make this one of
my all-time favorite songs.
The verse introduces the song's point, that, despite troubles, one
should "take it easy." All those women on his mind notwithstanding, a
lover "who won't blow my cover" is hard to find, so he keeps on the
road, knowing that "we may lose and we may win, but we will never be here
again."
Chords
The chord progression goes beyond the typical 3 or 4 chords used in most
songs. When Glenn Frey was playing the acoustic guitar strumming the chords
with the upbeat danceable rhythm, one can imagine how it was to listen to the
amazing chord progression live in concert. The intro to the song has a unique
accent of the G C and D chords. This sets the emotion of the whole song as
lively. The verse has 5 chords consisting of G C D Em and Am. Using these
major and minor chords in time with the rest of the band is just an amazing
piece of music.
In 1972, Bud Scoppa wrote in Rolling Stone in his review of the
Eagles' "Take it Easy" "simply the best-sounding rock single to
come out so far this year. The first time through, you could tell it had
everything."
Rhythm
The rhythm of this song blends together country and rock genres
styles with a fast upbeat tempo that is remarkably entertaining. The intro
rhythm to the music is tricky. The strumming sometimes has a down rhythm.
Keeping up and down 4/4 measure throughout the song makes me tap my foot to
keep the rhythm along with the song and I want to sing along too. With the
blend of drums: bass, lead, and rhythm guitar, the feeling takes me back to a
lot of memories out on the open road.
Sources:
Scoppa, Bud. "Review of the Eagles." Rolling Stone, 22 Jun. 1972.
"Song Review by William Ruhlmann." All Music, www.billboard.com/music/rock/eagles-songs-best-hits-list-7998887/.
"Eagles Take It Easy." Justin Guitar, 2 Feb. 2022,
music.stackexchange.com/questions/11994/whats-the-rock-rhythm-like.
Thankfully I have many videos of you singing this song. Good job!
ReplyDeleteAwesome analysis! I agree that this song a very entertaining rhythm with lyrics that make you want to sing along to.
ReplyDeleteOne thing I wanted to add is the simple harmonies throughout the song that repeat the lyrics or say "Ooh" adds a nice layer to the music. It makes the song more dynamic in my opinion. Speaking of dynamics, I noticed that there is not much silence/pauses throughout the song.
This song and "Hotel California" are very popular and memorable songs by the Eagles today!
Joseph, thank you for sharing. This is one of my favorite sings that instantly brings me back to my childhood. I remember hearing it quite often when we would go on road trips either to Anchorage or really any where else in Alaska when we were on our way to go camping. I really agree with your take on the lyrics as well. I find this song very easy to follow along with. I enjoyed your take on the rhythm as well. I never considered the Eagles to be rock though, DUH! That makes perfect sense. I just grew up listening to country and never gave it any other thought even though I often times find myself listening to classic rock these days. Overall I enjoyed reading your blog post this week. It instantly brought back great memories which I feel is perfect for going in to this weekend! Positive mindset.
ReplyDeleteWow, Joseph! I love your connection to this piece. I find it so amazing how the composition of the chords in the introduction can set the theme for the entire piece. I also liked how you explained that the rhythm in the piece creates a sound that makes the listener just want to dance!
ReplyDeleteThank you for this analysis, Joseph. I've never heard the song before, but I thoroughly enjoyed it and it certainly does remind me of being out on the open road. I can tell you put a lot of thought into this post, and I especially liked your take on the lyrics. The melody and harmonic texture were both key elements to "Take It Easy" as well, my favorite melody being, well, "take it easy." It truly sounds like it's the only way those words were meant to be sang. The accompanying harmonies, too, worked well with the overall energy of the song.
ReplyDeleteThis song certainly reminds me of the type of music I used to listen to growing up. Personally, I enjoyed how the solo broke up the song, then the resolution at the end coming back to the main melody and rhythm of the song. The minor chords do contribute a different tone to the song that three chord songs lack, but the extra chords don't a lot to the musicality of the song in my case. However, they do fit the theme of taking it easy nicely.
ReplyDelete