One of the first gold singles by the group and a very poignant one at that is “Take it To The Limit.” It was written right before the Eagle’s greatest hits and “Hotel California” which featured some of their greatest hits to date was to be out to the public. It marked the start of a very creative phase, perhaps the most creative phase for the group before the final fights before the Eagles’ breakup in 1980. It was originally released on the 1975 album entitled “One of These Nights, which also featured the title track (also a hit) and the country twang of “Lyin’ Eyes.”
The song “Take it To The Limit” itself started out as a simple song that hinted at getting old and hitting that old grindstone time and time again, thus the line: Take it to the limit one more time. By the time the song was brought up at a writing session, the other eagles took it and made it into a waltz tempo with crazy vocal acrobatics by Randy Meisner. It was later speculated that the song was more about a love affair in which the lover takes things to the limit. Glenn Frey referred to it as the “Credit Card Song.” The song’s most poignant lines fall at the end of the verses—“The dreams I’ve seen lately, Keep on turning out and burning out, and turning out the same—and “When there’s nothing to believe in, still you’re coming back, you’re running back, you’re coming back for more…” These phrases alone [I believe] symbolize much of many people’s lives. We run and we run and yet still can’t find what we’re looking for.
The song also features high falsetto “pleases” and a final F sharp falsetto note at the end of the song that sends the audiences that hear it into an uproar of vivacious applause. This song and it’s performance made the record the Eagles’ first gold single of many. Take a listen to it. You guys will be in for a treat by one of the greatest American bands in history.
