In conjunction with the 40th anniversary of the Eagles' formation, former Rolling Stone editor Ben Fong-Torres takes an eye-opening and revealing romp through the history of this classic rock band. Though Torres hasn't conducted any of his own interviews--many of the quotes here are taken from articles previously published in Rolling Stone--he does put into perspective the phenomenon of the band and explains why and how they became so successful.

Covered here are observations of:

• The band's beginnings and how they started out as Linda Ronstandt's backup
• How Glenn Frey and Don Henley wrote the hits
• Adding Don Felder and later Joe Walsh to the mix
• The band's demise
• Solo careers
• The Hell Freezes Over reunion tour