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Repair Windows errors before they cause bigger problemsFix Now →Scan for outdated or missing drivers - takes under a minuteDriver Scan →Clear out junk files and repair common Windows errorsFree Scan →After watching History of the Eagles, follow the band’s story in release order: begin with the country-rock harmonies of Eagles and Desperado, move through the tougher sound and major albums of the mid-to-late 1970s, then sample the live reunion era and the later studio chapter. The route below is an editorial listening guide, not an official band-prescribed sequence.
How to follow the film with the music
Universal Music Canada described History of the Eagles as a two-part film. Part One follows the group’s creation and rise through its 1980 breakup; Part Two covers the years apart, the 1994 reunion and the later resurgence in recording and performance. A chronological listen makes those turning points easier to hear: the early albums establish the vocal blend and country-rock foundation, while the later records show the band moving into a broader, harder-edged rock sound.
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Complete Greatest Hits | $16.72 | Buy on Amazon |
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The Eagles - Their Greatest Hi | $8.67 | Buy on Amazon |
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![Eagles: Their Greatest Hits Vols. 1 & 2 [CD Box Set]](https://m.media-amazon.com/images/I/41v7VwlnqtL._SL160_.jpg)
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Eagles: Their Greatest Hits Vols. 1 & 2 [CD Box Set] | $29.95 | Buy on Amazon |
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The Complete Greatest Hits (2CD) | $19.97 | Buy on Amazon |
The Eagles’ official catalogue dates the core studio albums from 1972 through 2007. The sequence here follows those release years, with live albums added where they help connect the film’s timeline to the music. For each studio album, start with the suggested tracks, then hear the full record if you want the development rather than only the best-known songs.
There are a few useful ways to approach the list. If you want the clearest parallel to the documentary, play the albums in order and use the live releases as bridges between the breakup and reunion chapters. If you want a quicker introduction, skip to the 10-song sampler below. And if you would rather have one broad collection than assemble albums individually, the band’s 2024 To The Limit: The Essential Collection spans studio and live recordings. Each approach answers a different question: full albums give you context, a sampler gets you to familiar songs quickly, and a career collection covers more periods in one place.
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Start with the early country-rock sound
Eagles (1972)
Begin with “Take It Easy,” “Peaceful Easy Feeling” and “Witchy Woman.” Together they introduce the band’s mix of country-rock textures, accessible melodies and close vocal harmonies. The Library of Congress’s National Recording Registry essay discusses the debut’s country-rock character and its singles, while the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame includes all three among the band’s defining hits. The official catalogue lists Eagles as a 1972 release.
Starting here is especially helpful if you have mostly encountered the group through later hits: it gives you a reference point for the early blend before the listening route moves into subsequent albums. The Hall of Fame’s overview names “Peaceful Easy Feeling” alongside “Take It Easy” and “Witchy Woman,” so these are not merely deep cuts chosen to fill out the sequence; they are part of the institution’s concise summary of the band’s best-known work.
Desperado (1973)
Continue with “Desperado,” “Tequila Sunrise” and “Doolin-Dalton.” The first two are among the songs highlighted in the Hall of Fame’s Eagles overview; the official To The Limit: The Essential Collection track list also includes all three. This album keeps the early melodic and country-inflected character in view while giving the listening route a clear next step after the debut.
For a short listen, the title song and “Tequila Sunrise” make a natural pair because both are recognized in the Rock Hall overview. Add “Doolin-Dalton” if you are following the album rather than only moving from one familiar hit to the next; its inclusion in the career-spanning collection confirms it as part of the selected catalogue represented there.
Hear the sound broaden and the breakthrough arrive
On the Border (1974)
Try “Already Gone,” “The Best of My Love” and “Good Day in Hell.” The official catalogue dates the album to 1974, and its track list offers a useful bridge before the 1975 breakthrough. These songs give you a sense of the varied directions within the band’s mid-decade material rather than treating the early records as one unchanging sound.
This is a good point to listen for transition rather than expect a single, clean dividing line between eras. The editorial route places On the Border between the country-rock foundations of the first records and the later albums that helped define the group’s breakthrough period. “The Best of My Love” is also named in the Rock Hall’s list of hits, while “Already Gone” and “Good Day in Hell” are present in the official collection’s track list.
One of These Nights (1975)
Listen to the title song, “Lyin’ Eyes” and “Take It to the Limit.” All three appear on the band’s official career-spanning collection, and the Hall of Fame names “Lyin’ Eyes” among the group’s signature hits. This is a natural point to notice how the band’s range and profile have expanded since the first two albums.
Use the three-track sequence as a compact sample before deciding whether to play the album in full. The title track provides a route into the record itself, and the two other selections give you recognizable points of reference for the mid-1970s chapter. The aim is not to claim that these three songs tell the whole story, but to give the listener a practical entry point at the moment the film’s early rise gives way to major success.
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Hotel California (1976)
Play “Hotel California,” “New Kid in Town” and “Life in the Fast Lane.” The official collection includes all three. The Rock & Roll Hall of Fame specifically notes “Hotel California” as the song performed for the band’s 1998 induction, making it an especially fitting point of connection between the documentary’s history and the group’s place in rock history.
The Hall of Fame records the Eagles’ induction in 1998. That date gives you a useful historical marker after hearing the 1976 album: the song that anchors the record also became the selection associated with the group’s induction performance. If you are listening by album rather than playlist, keep the full record in the sequence; the three suggested tracks are a starting sample, not a substitute for the album’s place in the chronology.
The Long Run (1979)
Close the original studio run with “The Long Run” and “I Can’t Tell You Why.” The official catalogue dates the album to 1979, and both songs are included in the band’s broader career collection. From here, the chronology reaches the breakup period that closes Part One of the film.
These two tracks provide a brief final stop before the live records. If you want a more compact path, you can move directly from them to the 1994 reunion-era release; if you want to keep the timeline more complete, the 1980 live album makes a period-appropriate next listen.
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Bridge the breakup and reunion with live recordings
Eagles Live (1980)
The official catalogue dates Eagles Live to 1980. Use it as an early live document after the studio sequence: it lets you hear the band’s songs in performance context at the point the film’s first part reaches the breakup era.
Live recordings are useful here because they let you compare performance settings without changing the chronological frame. The band’s later collection explicitly draws from both studio albums and live recordings, and it identifies selected live material from venues and events across multiple years. You can choose to pause at this 1980 release as the end of the original run, then resume with the reunion period.
Hell Freezes Over (1994)
Then turn to Hell Freezes Over, dated 1994 in the official catalogue. It offers a reunion-era live counterpart to the earlier live release and aligns with Part Two’s account of the group’s return. Hearing the two live albums in sequence is useful if you want to focus on performance context rather than move directly from the 1970s studio records to the later catalogue.
The contrast is principally a matter of where the albums sit in the story: one belongs at the end of the first part’s timeline, and the other is tied to the reunion year that begins the second part’s arc. The documentary’s announced story covers not only the reunion but also the later recording and performance resurgence, so these releases help turn that narrative transition into a listening sequence.
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Finish with the later studio chapter
Long Road Out of Eden (2007)
Use Long Road Out of Eden as the final studio-era epilogue. The official catalogue lists it as a 2007 release, and Universal Music Canada’s documentary announcement places it within the group’s post-reunion recording period. It completes a route that begins with the 1972 debut and follows the band well beyond the original run.
For readers whose main interest is the original rise and breakup, this last album is optional rather than required: the first six studio records already trace the main 1970s arc. For a broader career listen, however, ending here makes sense because it places a later studio release after the reunion-era live chapter instead of stopping at the band’s first period.
Prefer a shorter song sampler?
If you are not ready to play full albums, use this 10-song route in order: “Take It Easy,” “Witchy Woman,” “Desperado,” “Tequila Sunrise,” “The Best of My Love,” “Lyin’ Eyes,” “One of These Nights,” “Hotel California,” “New Kid in Town” and “The Long Run.” The Rock Hall’s historical overview and the band’s 2024 collection support these selections. To extend the sampler, add “Take It to the Limit” or “Life in the Fast Lane.”
This sampler is intentionally weighted toward the songs that make a short, recognizable path through the catalogue; it does not cover every album evenly or include the reunion and later studio chapters. If you want the abbreviated route to reach a little further into the mid-1970s, add “Take It to the Limit.” If you want another selection from the Hotel California period, add “Life in the Fast Lane.” For the most complete picture, return to the full album order above.
Compare studio versions with live performances
The documentary’s DVD and Blu-ray announcement described a bonus selection from the Eagles’ 1977 Capital Centre performance. Its listed songs include “Hotel California,” “New Kid in Town,” “Take It to the Limit,” “One of These Nights,” “Lyin’ Eyes,” “Rocky Mountain Way,” “Best of My Love” and “Take It Easy.” That concert selection makes a focused companion listen for comparing live arrangements with the studio versions.
The band’s official collection also includes selected live recordings from the Forum (1976), Santa Monica Civic Auditorium (1980), MTV (1994), Staples Center (1999) and the Forum (2018). These examples span several performance periods, so you can pick a live version tied to a particular stage of the story rather than treating “live Eagles” as one uniform sound. One practical comparison is to choose a song that appears in both a studio context and a live selection, then listen for differences in performance setting. The listed collection examples establish the available time-and-place range; they do not imply that every title above appears at every venue.
Independent reader supportYour contribution helps us test, update, and keep practical guides available for everyone.Choose a format for the next listen
The simplest route is to play the albums in the sequence above through your preferred music service. For a single physical overview, the Eagles’ 2024 announcement described To The Limit: The Essential Collection as a 51-song set drawing on studio albums and live recordings released between 1972 and 2020. The announced formats were a 3-CD set, a 6-LP 180-gram vinyl set and a digital release. That collection is a broad career sampler; it is not a substitute for hearing landmark albums as complete records.
If you want one physical music pick after watching the documentary, this collection is the most direct overview supported by the band’s announcement: it covers a long span, makes room for live recordings as well as studio material, and was announced in multiple formats. Choose digital for a non-physical route, CD for the announced three-disc set, or vinyl for the six-LP version. The announcement describes the formats and scope, not current stock or prices, so check a current retailer listing before deciding what is available or comparing costs.
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The official releases catalogue also lists Their Greatest Hits 1971–1975, a focused option for listeners chiefly interested in the early hit period. The precise edition and present-day stock can vary by seller, so check the listing before buying. This narrower compilation is a better match if your priority is the earlier run of hits rather than a collection spanning later years and live recordings; for full-album context, return to the chronological route.
If you want to revisit the film itself, Universal Music Canada’s 2013 announcement described DVD and Blu-ray editions, including a deluxe three-disc configuration with both documentary parts, a 1977 Capital Centre concert disc and a 40-page hardback book. Those are announced edition details, not confirmation that every configuration remains available now. Check the particular edition’s listing to confirm what it includes before buying, especially if the concert footage or book is the reason you want it. Netflix’s title page lists the documentary as a 2013 film, but streaming availability and plan details vary by country and can change; check local service listings.
The Rock & Roll Hall of Fame’s overview offers a concise summary of the songs that frame this listening route. Its historical essay, credited to Parke Puterbaugh, says: “This Southern California country rock band gave rock a litany of hits: ‘Take It Easy,’ ‘Peaceful Easy Feeling,’ ‘Witchy Woman,’ ‘Tequila Sunrise,’ ‘The Best of My Love,’ ‘Lyin’ Eyes,’ ‘Desperado,’ ‘Hotel California’ and we could go on.” Treat that as the Rock Hall essay’s overview, not a quotation from an Eagles member.
Sources and listening context
- Eagles official releases catalogue for album titles, catalogue years and release listings.
- Eagles’ official announcement of To The Limit: The Essential Collection for its 51-song scope, formats and live/studio coverage.
- Rock & Roll Hall of Fame Eagles overview for the 1998 induction and historical hit-song context.
- Universal Music Canada’s 2013 announcement for the film’s two-part structure and announced home-video configurations.
- Library of Congress National Recording Registry essay on the Eagles for context on the early catalogue’s country-rock character.
- Netflix title page for the film’s listing; local availability may differ.
Frequently Asked Questions
What order should I listen to Eagles albums after watching History of the Eagles?
Follow the release chronology: Eagles (1972), Desperado (1973), On the Border (1974), One of These Nights (1975), Hotel California (1976), and The Long Run (1979). Then use Eagles Live (1980) and Hell Freezes Over (1994) to bridge the breakup and reunion chapters, and finish with Long Road Out of Eden (2007) for a later studio-era epilogue.
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1Scan for outdated or missing drivers - takes under a minute2Clear out junk files and repair common Windows errors3Fix the driver behind crashes, sound loss and screen glitchesWhat is a good short Eagles playlist if I do not have time for the full albums?
Try “Take It Easy,” “Witchy Woman,” “Desperado,” “Tequila Sunrise,” “The Best of My Love,” “Lyin’ Eyes,” “One of These Nights,” “Hotel California,” “New Kid in Town” and “The Long Run.” Add “Take It to the Limit” or “Life in the Fast Lane” for a longer sampler.
Which Eagles compilation covers the most eras?
The band’s 2024 announcement describes To The Limit: The Essential Collection as 51 songs drawn from studio albums and live recordings released between 1972 and 2020. It was announced in digital, 3-CD and 6-LP 180-gram vinyl formats. Check current listings for availability and price; the announcement does not establish present stock.
Is Their Greatest Hits 1971–1975 a good choice after the documentary?
It is a focused option if you mainly want the early hit period. For broader career coverage, including later years and live material, the 2024 To The Limit collection or the album-by-album route is a better fit.
Where can I watch History of the Eagles now?
Netflix has a title page listing the documentary as a 2013 film, but streaming catalogues vary by country and change over time. Check your local service listings rather than assuming it is currently available everywhere.
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For the fullest follow-up, listen to the studio albums in release order, then compare Eagles Live with Hell Freezes Over before ending with Long Road Out of Eden. If you want a faster path, use the 10-song sampler; if you want one broad collection, check current editions of the 51-song To The Limit: The Essential Collection.
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