''The End of the Innocence'' is the third solo studio album by Don Henley, the co-lead vocalist and drummer for the

Eagles Eagle is the common name for many large birds of prey of the family Accipitridae. Eagles belong to several groups of genera, some of which are closely related. Most of the 68 species of eagle are from Eurasia and Africa. Outside this area, jus ...

. The album was released in 1989, on

Geffen Records Geffen Records is an American record label established by David Geffen and owned by Universal Music Group through its Interscope Geffen A&M Records imprint. Founded in 1980, Geffen Records has been a part of Interscope Geffen A&M since 1999 and h ...

, and was his last release on that label. It was also his last solo album of the 1980s and it would be eleven years before he released another solo project, 2000's ''

Inside Job An insider threat is a malicious threat to an organization that comes from people within the organization, such as employees, former employees, contractors or business associates, who have inside information concerning the organization's security ...

''. The album is Henley's best selling release, moving over 6 million copies in the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territori ...

alone, peaking at No. 8. The album featured three Top 40 singles " The End of the Innocence", "

The Heart of the Matter ''The Heart of the Matter'' (1948) is a novel by English author Graham Greene. The book details a life-changing moral crisis for Henry Scobie. Greene, a former British intelligence officer in Freetown, British Sierra Leone, drew on his expe ...

", and "

The Last Worthless Evening "The Last Worthless Evening" is a song written by John Corey, Don Henley, and Stan Lynch. It was a single recorded by Henley in 1989 that reached #21 on the US chart. The song was included on Henley's third album '' The End of the Innocence'' ...

". Those singles reached No. 8, No. 21, and No. 21 respectively. The album also featured " New York Minute" which reached No. 48 on the charts and was recorded by Henley and the

for their live album ''

Hell Freezes Over ''Hell Freezes Over'' is the second live album by the Eagles, released in 1994. The album is the first to be released after the Eagles had reformed following a fourteen-year-long break up. The band's lineup was that of the ''Long Run'' era: Gle ...

'' in 1994. Henley won another Grammy and an MTV Video Music Award nomination for the title track. In 2012, the album was ranked at number 389 on the ''

Rolling Stone ''Rolling Stone'' is an American monthly magazine that focuses on music, politics, and popular culture. It was founded in San Francisco, California, in 1967 by Jann Wenner, and the music critic Ralph J. Gleason. It was first known for its ...

'' magazine's list of

the 500 greatest albums of all time "The 500 Greatest Albums of All Time" is a recurring opinion survey and music ranking of the finest albums in history, compiled by the American magazine ''Rolling Stone''. It is based on weighted votes from selected musicians, critics, and indust ...

. The song "I Will Not Go Quietly" features harmony vocals by Guns N' Roses singer

Axl Rose W. Axl Rose (born William Bruce Rose Jr.; born February 6, 1962) is an American musician. He is best known for being the lead vocalist and lyricist of the hard rock band Guns N' Roses, and has been the band's sole constant member since its incep ...

, who at the time was also on the same label.

Critical reception

'' magazine wrote of the album at the time, "Returning to the theme of "

Desperado Desperado may refer to: * Outlaw, particularly in the American Old West Books * ''Desperadoes'' (comics), a comic book series * ''Desperadoes'' (novel), a 1979 novel by Ron Hansen * Desperado Publishing, an American independent comic book publ ...

," the former Eagle hitched some of his finest melodies (especially on the gentle title track) to sharply focused lyrical studies of men in troubled transition – from youth to adulthood, innocence to responsibility." Reviewing retrospectively for

AllMusic AllMusic (previously known as All Music Guide and AMG) is an American online music database. It catalogs more than three million album entries and 30 million tracks, as well as information on musicians and bands. Initiated in 1991, the databa ...

, critic Vik Iyengar has written of the album, "Henley took some time before completing his highly anticipated third album, ''The End of the Innocence''. Although he manages to duplicate much of the magic of his previous album, Henley has backed off of the synthesizers and expanded his musical palette." They also add that "Throughout the album, he manages to balance being cynical yet hopeful, and his great melodies allow his poignant lyrics to penetrate. This album is highly recommended for those who like their pop music with a message."

Track listing

Personnel

* Don Henley – lead vocals, drums (1, 4), backing vocals (6, 9), harmony vocals (6, 7) *

Bruce Hornsby Bruce Randall Hornsby (born November 23, 1954) is an American singer-songwriter and pianist. His music draws from folk rock, jazz, bluegrass, folk, Southern rock, country rock, jam band, rock, heartland rock, and blues rock musical traditions ...

– acoustic piano (1), additional keyboards (1) * Jai Winding –

keyboard bass Keyboard bass (shortened to keybass and sometimes referred as a synth-bass) is the use of a smaller, low-pitched keyboard with fewer notes than a regular keyboard or pedal keyboard to substitute for the deep notes of a bass guitar or double bass ...

(1), keyboards (5), additional keyboards (6) * John Corey – keyboards (4), guitars (4, 8), bass guitar (8) * David Paich – acoustic piano (5), string arrangements (5), additional keyboards (7) *

Danny Kortchmar Daniel "Danny Kootch" Kortchmar (born April 6, 1946) is an American guitarist, session musician, producer and songwriter. Kortchmar's work with singer-songwriters such as Linda Ronstadt, James Taylor, David Crosby, Carole King, David Cassidy, Gr ...

– guitars (2, 3, 5-7, 9), bass guitar (2, 3, 9), drums (2, 3, 7, 9), guitar solo (3), keyboards (5-7), lead guitar (8) *

Waddy Wachtel Robert "Waddy" Wachtel (born May 24, 1947) is an American musician, composer and record producer, most notable for his guitar work. Wachtel has worked as session musician for other artists such as Linda Ronstadt, Stevie Nicks, Kim Carnes, Randy ...

– acoustic guitar (3) * Mike Campbell – additional guitars (4), keyboards (10), guitars (10) *

Bob Glaub Bob Glaub (born May 10, 1952)Hageman, William (April 29, 2005)."The aces of bass: Five giants of an overshadowed instrument", Knight Ridder Tribune News Service. is an American bass player and session musician. He has played with such artists an ...

– bass guitar (4) *

Pino Palladino Giuseppe Henry "Pino" Palladino (born 17 October 1957) is a Welsh musician, songwriter, and record producer. A prolific session bassist, he has played bass for acts such as The Who, the John Mayer Trio, Nine Inch Nails, Gary Numan, Jeff Beck ...

– bass guitar (5-7) *

Larry Klein Larry Klein (born March 17, 1956) is an American musician, songwriter, and record producer. He is based in Los Angeles. He began his career as a bassist, playing with jazz artists Willie Bobo, Freddie Hubbard, Carmen McRae, Joe Henderson, Bobb ...

– bass guitar (10) *

Jeff Porcaro Jeffrey Thomas Porcaro (; April 1, 1954 – August 5, 1992) was an American drummer, songwriter, and record producer. He is best known for his work with the rock band Toto but is one of the most recorded session musicians in history, working o ...

– drums (5) * Steve Jordan – drums (6), wah wah guitar (6), backing vocals (6) * Michael Fisher – percussion (1) *

Stan Lynch Stanley Joseph "Stan" Lynch (born May 21, 1955) is an American musician, songwriter and record producer. He was the original drummer for Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers for 18 years until his departure in 1994. Early years Lynch was born in ...

– percussion (4, 9, 10), guitars (8), bass (8), drums (8, 10) *

Jim Keltner James Lee Keltner (born April 27, 1942) is an American drummer and percussionist known primarily for his session work. He was characterized by Bob Dylan biographer Howard Sounes as "the leading session drummer in America". Howard Sounes. ''Dow ...

– additional percussion (6) *

Wayne Shorter Wayne Shorter (born August 25, 1933) is an American jazz saxophonist and composer. Shorter came to prominence in the late 1950s as a member of, and eventually primary composer for, Art Blakey's Jazz Messengers. In the 1960s, he joined Miles Dav ...

– soprano sax solo (1) * Steve Madaio – trumpet solo (5) *

Valerie Carter Valerie Gail Zakian Carter (February 5, 1953 – March 4, 2017) was an American singer. Biography Carter began her career singing in coffeehouses as a teenager, and eventually became one-third of the country-folk band Howdy Moon. Though they de ...

– harmony vocals (2) *

Patty Smyth Patricia Smyth (born June 26, 1957) is an American singer and songwriter. She first came into national attention with the rock band Scandal and went on to record and perform as a solo artist. Her distinctive voice and new wave image gained br ...

– harmony vocals (2) *

– harmony vocals (3) *

Take 6 Take 6 is an American a cappella gospel sextet formed in 1980 on the campus of Oakwood College in Huntsville, Alabama. The group integrates jazz with spiritual and inspirational lyrics. Take 6 has received several Grammy Awards as well as Dove ...

– backing vocals (5, 6) *

Charley Drayton Charles Leslie Drayton (born May 9, 1965) is an American multi-instrumentalist and producer, known primarily as a drummer. Artists he has recorded or performed with include The Cult, Keith Richards, The Rolling Stones, Paul Simon, Neil Young, Mi ...

– backing vocals (6) * Ivan Neville – backing vocals (6) *

Edie Brickell Edie Arlisa Brickell (born March 10, 1966) is an American singer-songwriter widely known for 1988's ''Shooting Rubberbands at the Stars'', the debut album by Edie Brickell & New Bohemians, which went to No. 4 on the ''Billboard'' albums chart. ...

– backing vocals (8) *

Melissa Etheridge Melissa Lou Etheridge (born May 29, 1961) is an American singer, songwriter, musician, and guitarist. Her eponymous debut album was released in 1988 and became an underground success. It peaked at No. 22 on the ''Billboard'' 200 and its lead ...

– backing vocals (8) * Sheryl Crow – backing vocals (9) * Gloria Estefan – backing vocals (9) * J.D. Souther – backing vocals (9) * Carmen Twillie – backing vocals (10) * Julia Waters – backing vocals (10) * Maxine Waters – backing vocals (10) Production * Producers – Don Henley (Tracks 1-10); Bruce Hornsby (Track 1); Danny Kortchmar (Tracks 2, 3, 5-7, 9 & 10); John Corey (Tracks 4 & 8); Stan Lynch (Tracks 4 & 8); Mike Campbell (Track 10). * Engineer –

Shelly Yakus Sheldon Gershon "Shelly" Yakus (born November 1945) is an American music engineer and mixer. Formerly chief engineer and vice president of A&M Records, he was nominated for induction into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1999. Yakus is referenced ...

* Basic Track Recording (Tracks 5, 7 & 9) –

Greg Ladanyi Greg Ladanyi (July 6, 1952 – September 29, 2009) was an American record producer and recording engineer of Hungarian descent, known for his work with many musicians, including Jackson Browne, Warren Zevon, The Church, Caifanes, Anna Vi ...

* Assistant Engineer – Brian Scheuble * Additional Engineers – Marc DeSisto, Rob Jacobs, Eddie King, Mark McKenna and Bob Vogt. * Technicians – Dale Asamoto, Stephen Barncard, Bob Borbonus, Fred Bova, Jonathan Little, Lars Lyons, Gary Mannon, Mike Morengell, Gary Myerberg and Mark Opie. * Additional Assistant Technicians – Tom Banghart, Greg Goodman, Ed Goodreau, Randy Staub and Randall Wine. * Mixing – Shelly Yakus and Rob Jacobs * Mix Assistant – Robert "R.J." Jaczko * Mastered By

Stephen Marcussen Stephen Marcussen is the founder and chief mastering engineer at Marcussen Mastering in Hollywood, California, United States. He has been mastering music since 1979. Biography Marcussen's introduction to music recording happened in 1976 when, at ...

at Precision Lacquer (Los Angeles, CA). * Art Direction – Jeri Heiden * Front Cover Photo – Ken Nahoum * Back Cover Photo – Stephen Danelian * Inner Sleeve Photos – Stephen Danelian and Albert Tolot

Charts

Certifications

Awards

Grammy Awards

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:End of the Innocence Don Henley albums 1989 albums Albums produced by Danny Kortchmar Geffen Records albums Grammy Award for Best Male Rock Vocal Performance