What makes The End of the Innocence so fascinating is the wild, star-studded lineup Don Henley pulled into the studio. He basically assembled a musical dream team to shape the record's sound.
Take the title track, for instance. It was actually co-written and co-produced by Bruce Hornsby. You can instantly recognize his signature, beautifully melancholy piano work driving the whole thing. Hornsby had mailed Henley a demo tape of that piano track, and Henley was so inspired by the nostalgic vibe of the music that he sat down and wrote those incredible lyrics to match it.
The rest of the guest list is just as crazy because it bridges completely different musical worlds. If you crank up the volume on the heavy-rocking track "I Will Not Go Quietly," that is actually Axl Rose from Guns N' Roses wailing away on background vocals. Then, flip to the complete opposite end of the spectrum on "New York Minute," and you'll hear jazz titan Wayne Shorter delivering that haunting, unforgettable soprano saxophone solo.
By weaving together threads of rock, pop, jazz, and country, Henley managed to build a multi-platinum masterpiece that perfectly captured the uneasy, shifting mood of the world as the 1980s came to a close.
Phil Collins hanging out at a snooker table, October 1981. Photo by Belgian photographer Gie Knaeps.
Phil was running hot on the heels of his debut solo album, Face Value, which had dropped earlier that year and completely shocked the music world with the success of In the Air Tonight. At the exact same time, he was still working around the clock with Genesis, getting ready to release their hit album Abacab. Knaeps caught this great, intense perspective of Phil taking a quick breather, staring right into the lens.
Elton John posing at his grand piano during the album cover shoot for his legendary Greatest Hits compilation, 1974. Photo by Terry O'Neill.
Did you or do you have this album?👇️
Stevie Nicks and Christine McVie sharing a warm moment at the percussion rig during a sold-out Fleetwood Mac show at Atlanta's Omni Coliseum, June 1, 1977. Photo by Rick Diamond.
Early on, Stevie and Christine made a pact that they would always stick together and protect one another in a male-dominated rock scene. While the guys in the band were barely speaking to each other off-stage, these two were each other's anchor.
Was anyone lucky enought to see the Rumours tour live?👇️
David Bowie rocking his legendary flame hair and rose-tinted shades on location in 1975 for The Man Who Fell to Earth. Captured by his close friend and photographer Geoff MacCormack.
Bowie was completely defining his own look for the character of Thomas Jerome Newton, picking out the exact bright orange hair dyes and rocking those incredible rose-tinted shades. He later admitted that he was so mentally and physically fragile during this exact month that he didn't even feel like he was acting; he just showed up as himself and it perfectly fit the role of a stranded alien.
Have you seen The Man Who Fell to Earth movie?
Did you know that the Beatles and the Rolling Stones regularly coordinated release dates to avoid competing on the charts? They even helped each other out in the studio. Here is Paul McCartney dropping in on Keith Richards and Stash Klossowski de Rola at Olympic Sound Studios in July 1967 to lay down backing vocals for We Love You.
Talarico: Every bar has that one guy. He’s loud, he’s obnoxious, he makes all the women in the bar feel uncomfortable. He hears you say your name to the bartender and then adds his drink to your tab when you’re not looking.
That’s Ken Paxton.
And I don’t know about y’all, but I’m done picking up his tab.
🚨Mayor Mamdani just kicked off pool season by jumping in the pool with kids from Harlem.
This is the guy MAGA and Trump are spending all of their energy trying to make voters fear.
It isn’t working.
Edward Norton: “Trump is worse than Nixon and McNamara by far, Trump and Hegseth. We’re in a level of incompetency and grift and corruption that is unprecedented in the history of this country”
🚨 BREAKING:
The United Nations has officially declared Gaza a genocide zone, stating that Israel is deliberately targeting children and infants.
It took them three full years to reach this conclusion.
@RpsAgainstTrump@AveryBa68752542 The Trump campaign paid $2 million dollars to 2 separate forensic investigative firms specializing in election fraud to investigate the 2020 election… neither firm found any fraud. One firm’s CEO even wrote a book about the process…
Trump is a scumbag.. Trump is a liar
.
@RpsAgainstTrump Throughout modern history, dictators have routinely claimed "election fraud." Undermining trust in democratic institutions is a core mechanism of fascist movements, like MAGA.