The most beautiful moments in the Las Vegas Residency

Is there a bigger show than opening a concert with your own hit? Some fans might have expected the title track from their 1976 Hot 100-topping album to be played later in the concert, or perhaps even as a final encore, but as the countdown reached zero just after 8:30 p.m. PT, the familiar strains of the 6-minute-plus radio classic blared through the Sphere. The visual effects set the tone for the evening, starting with headlights sweeping down the infamous “dark desert highway” before opening into the haunted halls of the hotel, filled with faceless figures at a long dining table and white masks looming menacingly from the ceiling.

Glenn Frey's 31-year-old son Deacon first played with the band at the 2017 Classic West concert, stepping in after his father died in 2016 at age 67. Now, more than seven years later, Deacon is a full-fledged member of the group, harmonizing seamlessly with peerless vocalists like Henley, Gill and Schmit and confidently taking the lead on Glenn's beloved signature songs, including “Peaceful Easy Feeling,” “Already Gone” and “Take It Easy.” Most telling, Deacon's willingness to spice up his father's hackneyed tunes to put his own spin on the classics shows how comfortable he is onstage with a band full of legends.

The Eagles took a moment on opening night to pay tribute to fallen friends in two ways: They began with Henley's solo hit “The Boys of Summer” for the late summer king Jimmy Buffett, who passed away in September 2023 at age 76. Then they went with “Heartache Tonight” to remember the song's co-writer JD Souther, who died Tuesday at age 78. “I would be remiss if I didn't acknowledge a couple of people, one of whom we lost a year ago this month, Mr. Jimmy Buffett,” Henley began his tribute. “It is to him that we dedicate this next song. And with the song that we play after this next song, I want to thank the co-writer of this song, who we lost three days ago, Mr. JD Souther. JD, as some of you may know, played a crucial role in the Eagles. He wasn't in the band, but he certainly co-wrote some of our biggest hits, including “Best of My Love,” “New Kid in Town,” and the song we're going to play after the next song, “Heartache Tonight.” So those songs go out to the guys, Mr. Buffett and Mr. Souther. Sing them so they can hear you.”

The way the Sphere screen really envelops the stage allows it to take the crowd along both musically and visually, and the Eagles' show took a journey from under the sea to above the clouds (with a few stops on Earth along the way). Some of the most impressive visual performances included a couple's beautiful underwater choreography for “The Boys of Summer,” a towering cityscape that grew above the crowd before crashing into the ground for “In the City,” and a bus that went all the way into the cosmos and into a meteor shower for “Take It to the Limit.”

During “Lyin' Eyes,” one of the Eagles' purest country songs, the giant screen focused on the story of the song by isolating each lyric line by line and raining the words down on the crowd. The focus was also on the lyrics later in the evening, when two lines appeared that seemed to fit perfectly with this once-in-a-lifetime performance: “We will never be here again” from “Take It Easy” and “This night is gonna last forever” from the final song of the evening, “Heartache Tonight.”

Like U2 and Dead & Company before them, Eagles concertgoers will also be treated to a fan experience at the adjacent Venetian Resort – recreating the famous Troubadour Club in West Hollywood where Henley and Frey began their careers in the early '70s. Created by Vibee, the Third Encore fan experience will feature many special treats, including Henley's very first drum kit from his childhood (emblazoned with the name of his teenage band Felicity), as well as jerseys, posters and other memorabilia from the band's personal collection and exclusive merchandise only available at the pop-up.

Hotel California
One of those nights
Lying eyes
Push yourself to the limit
Witch woman
Peaceful, relaxed feeling
Tequila Sunrise
In the city
I can't tell you why
The new guy in town
Seven Bridges Street
These shoes
Life was good (Joe Walsh)
Already gone
The Boys of Summer (Don Henley)
Life in the fast lane

ADDITION
Just take it
Rocky Mountain Way (Joe Walsh)
Desperado
Heartache tonight

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