Heartache Tonight (1979) 8/12/20

Singer/Songwriter J.D. Souther who we highlighted back on July 1st (see link below), co-wrote a lot of songs for the Eagles, so it shouldn't surprise anyone that he helped Glen Frey and Don Henley write today's “Great Song of the '70s.”

In fact, J.D. And Glen came up with the basic idea for the song during an informal jam session.

But here's where the surprise comes in: After writing the first verse, J.D. And Glen wanted some critical input, so they called their friend Bob Seger and played it for him. Bob not only loved it, he immediately came up with the chorus--right there over the phone!

After that, Don Henley joined the songwriting fun and before long, the song was complete, added to the “The Long Run” album, and released as a single!

In November of 1979, the song went to #1 in both the US and Canada...and, when everything was said and done, it won the 1979 Grammy Award for “Best Rock Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocal.”

But that's not all! Believe it or not, in 1983, country singer Conway Twitty (backed by The Osmonds!) covered the song with great success on the Country Charts: #6 in the US and #3 in Canada! (Unfortunately, due to copyright issues, there are no available links to this version. Darn it.)

“Heartache Tonight” by the Eagles: A “Great Song of the '70s,” thanks in a major way to J.D. Souther and Bob Seger!