The Meaning of Hotel California

[Chadj]

Ok, so I brought this up with a friend of mine today, and we got into an argument about it. And then I brought it up on PsiNet, and people there argued a bit. I'm all argued out, but I'm still curious.. What do YOU think the meaning of Hotel California is?

[AnticorRifling]

That it's such a lovely place duh.

[Sylph]

There are MANY Of rooms at the Hotel California.

[HarmNone]

I've always thought the lyrics of Hotel California were talking about the American penchant for excess. We've gotta have the biggest and best and, if necessary, we'll sell our souls to get just that. I think they used California because it tends to epitomize that mindset. :shrug:

[Apotheosis]

it is teh reference to teh 3v1l 666 and t3h d3v1l.

it makes the baby j3sus crie.

Run away!

[CrystalTears]

It's a witch haven.

[Glavenfyre]

Rehab.

[Doyle Hargraves]

It means "Listen to this song and buy my album"

[Chadj]

I've personally always got the song as referring to drug addiction, personally.

[HarmNone]

Originally posted by Chadj
I've personally always got the song as referring to drug addiction, personally.

I think that's ONE of the excesses it targets; although, not necessarily the only one. :)

[Sean of the Thread]

Originally posted by HarmNone

Originally posted by Chadj
I've personally always got the song as referring to drug addiction, personally.

I think that's ONE of the excesses it targets; although, not necessarily the only one. :)

I agree.

[peam]

Fuck the Eagles.

Worst song ever.

[Sean of the Thread]

Originally posted by peam
Fuck the Eagles.

Worst song ever.

I also agree. I'm a Fiddy cent man myself.

Word!

[Edited on 5-10-2005 by Xyelin]

[Bobmuhthol]

Everything is about drugs to you.

I'm inclined to believe that it was about the Camarillo State Hospital.

[Zentoph]

I also also curious about this a month back. Turns out its pointless.


http://www.snopes.com/music/songs/hotel.htm

[Chadj]

I googled it too.

And a lot of sites said that site was full of shit.

[Bobmuhthol]

A lot of sites will also try to tell you the correct answer and not give an unbiased list of possibilities.

[Gan]

You can check out any time you like, but you can never leave...

[ElanthianSiren]

To me Hotel California is about intense introspection, possibly under the influence of some of those "sparkling earrings" and coming to the conclusion that you don't care much for your place in society as a whole; in fact, as HN was saying, the waste of society bothers you to the point of wanting to check out.

You don't care HOW you get out. You are so beyond frustrated that it doesn't matter to you -- you don't care if you have to kill, die, and you keep fighting and stabbing at the beast of all this materialism, but it won't die. The song itself IMO is a dismal commentary and illustration of our society.

Coolest line in the song: Some dance to remember. Some dance to forget.

-Melissa

[Glavenfyre]

Nope... best line..

They stab it with their steely knives, but they just can't kill the beast.

[HarmNone]

Originally posted by Glavenfyre
Nope... best line..

They stab it with their steely knives, but they just can't kill the beast.

There's been some inference, somewhere along the line, that the reference to "steely knives" was sorta a salute to Steely Dan. ;)

[HarmNone]

I knew there had to be something from Henley somewhere. It took some digging, but I found this old interview from the magazine Rolling Stone:

The following interview, "Don Henley," was published in:
Rolling Stone's 20th Anniversary Issue (Issue 512; November 5/December 10, 1987)

Rolling Stone's Mikal Gilmore:
'Hotel California' was widely received as a sharp commentary on Southern California's penchant for superficiality and decadence. Was that your intention?

Don Henley:
"Actually, I was a little disappointed with how the record was taken, because I meant it in a much broader sense than a commentary about California. I was looking at American culture, and when I called that one song "Hotel California, I was simply using California as a microcosm for the rest of America and for the self-indulgence of our entire culture.

It was, to a certain extent, about California, about the excesses out here. But in many instances, as California goes, so goes the nation. Things simply happen out here or in New York first  whether it's with drugs or fashion or artistic movements or economic trends  and then work their way toward the middle of America. And thats what I was trying to get at.

With that record, we reached some sort of creative peak, as all bands do. You can go back and trace any bands career and find that one album that was the zenith of their productivity. That was ours, and we knew it."

The above is from the following website: http://www.eaglesfans.com/info/articles/henley%20RS%2087.html

[Rutilcaper]

Coverup.

Don Henley eats babies.

[ElanthianSiren]

You wanna rack of baby? We got babies on racks!


-Izzard