"Life's Been Good" is a song by American singer-songwriter and multi-instrumentalist

Joe Walsh Joseph Fidler Walsh (born Joseph Woodward Fidler; November 20, 1947) is an American guitarist, singer, and songwriter. Best known as a member of the rock band Eagles (band), Eagles, his five-decade career includes solo work and stints in other ...

that first appeared on the

soundtrack A soundtrack is a recorded audio signal accompanying and synchronised to the images of a book, drama, motion picture, radio program, television show, television program, or video game; colloquially, a commercially released soundtrack album of m ...

to the 1978 film '' FM''. The original eight-minute version was released on Walsh's fourth studio album '' But Seriously, Folks...'' (1978), and an edited four-minute single version peaked at No. 12 on the US ''Billboard'' Hot 100, remaining his biggest solo hit. In the song, Walsh satirically reflects on the antics and excesses of the era's rock stars, with nods to drummer

Keith Moon Keith John Moon (23 August 1946 – 7 September 1978) was an English musician who was the drummer for the rock band the Who. Regarded as one of the greatest drummers in the history of rock music, he was noted for his unique style of playing and ...

the Who The Who are an English Rock music, rock band formed in London in 1964. Their classic lineup (1964–1978) consisted of lead vocalist Roger Daltrey, guitarist Pete Townshend, bassist John Entwistle and drummer Keith Moon. Considered one of th ...

and others: "I live in hotels, tear out the walls/I have accountants pay for it all", and "My

Maserati Maserati S.p.A. () is an Italian luxury vehicle manufacturer. Established on 1 December 1914 in Bologna, Italy, the company's headquarters are now in Modena, and its emblem is a trident. The company has been owned by Stellantis since 2021. Ma ...

does one-eighty-five/I lost my license, now I don't drive", based on his own experience. The 1979 '' Rolling Stone Record Guide'' called it "riotous", and "(maybe) the most important statement on rock stardom anyone has made in the late Seventies".

Content

"Life's Been Good" has a mid-tempo,

reggae Reggae () is a music genre that originated in Jamaica during the late 1960s. The term also denotes the modern popular music of Jamaica and its Jamaican diaspora, diaspora. A 1968 single by Toots and the Maytals, "Do the Reggay", was the first ...

-like groove marked by bedrock guitar

riff A riff is a short, repeated motif or figure in the melody or accompaniment of a musical composition. Riffs are most often found in rock music, punk, heavy metal music, Latin, funk, and jazz, although classical music is also sometimes based ...

s, synthesizers, and humorous lyrics. According to ''

Billboard A billboard (also called a hoarding in the UK and many other parts of the world) is a large outdoor advertising structure (a billing board), typically found in high-traffic areas such as alongside busy roads. Billboards present large advertis ...

'', the lyrics are at least partially autobiographical. Walsh's

ARP Odyssey The ARP Odyssey is an analog circuit, analog synthesizer introduced by ARP Instruments in 1972. History ARP developed the Odyssey as a direct competitor to the Minimoog, Moog Minimoog and an answer to the demand for more affordable, portable, a ...

synthesizer riff accompanies the lead guitar in the middle of the song. The lead guitar in the outro is accompanied by the main riff.

Bill Szymczyk William Frank Szymczyk (; born February 13, 1943) is an American music producer and recording engineer best known for working with rock and blues musicians, most notably the Eagles in the 1970s. He produced many top albums and singles of the ...

and Jody Boyer perform the backing vocals. The pre-chorus section on the second and third verses uses a

call and response Call and response is a form of interaction between a speaker and an audience in which the speaker's statements ("calls") are punctuated by responses from the listeners. This form is also used in music, where it falls under the general category of ...

pattern. :Joe Walsh: "Lucky I'm sane after all I've been through" :Call: Bill Szymczyk: "Everybody say I'm cool" :Response: Jody Boyer: "He's cool" :Joe Walsh: "They say I'm lazy but it takes all my time" :Call: Bill Szymczyk: "Everybody say, "Oh, yeah"" :Response: Jody Boyer: "Oh, yeah!" ''

Record World ''Record World'' magazine was one of three major weekly music industry trade magazines in the United States, with ''Billboard'' and '' Cashbox''. It was founded in 1946 as ''Music Vendor''. In 1964, it was changed to ''Record World'' under the ...

'' said that the song "blends alsh'ssignature guitar work with a touch of

" and that "the lyrics touch on a number of topics, all treated with a light irony." At the end of the LP, there is a clip of an

in-joke An in-joke, also known as an inside joke or a private joke, is a joke with humour that is understandable only to members of an ingroup; that is, people who are ''in'' a particular social group, occupation, or other community of shared interest ...

stating "uh-oh, here comes a flock of wah wahs", recorded from inside the studio. After the music has faded away into silence, there's a 10-second gap before the inside joke. That inside joke would also be included at the end of disc one of the

Eagles Eagle is the common name for the golden eagle, bald eagle, and other birds of prey in the family of the Accipitridae. Eagles belong to several groups of Genus, genera, some of which are closely related. True eagles comprise the genus ''Aquila ( ...

' box set, '' Selected Works: 1972–1999'' (2000). Made after Walsh had joined the Eagles, "Life's Been Good" was incorporated into that group's concert repertoire, appearing in shows at the time as well as reunion tours. It remains a staple of

classic rock Classic rock is a radio format that developed from the album-oriented rock (AOR) format in the early 1980s. In the United States, it comprises rock music ranging generally from the mid-1960s through the early-1990s, primarily focusing on comm ...

radio playlists. A live version of the song with the Eagles appears on the 1980 album '' Eagles Live'', where some of the lyrics are changed.

Inspiration

In a 2012 concert at the

Troubadour A troubadour (, ; ) was a composer and performer of Old Occitan lyric poetry during the High Middle Ages (1100–1350). Since the word ''troubadour'' is etymologically masculine, a female equivalent is usually called a ''trobairitz''. The tr ...

West Hollywood, California West Hollywood is a city in Los Angeles County, California, United States. Incorporated in 1984, it is home to the Sunset Strip. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 U.S. Census, its population was 35,757. History Most historical writing ...

, Walsh explained that the song's lyrics were largely true. He purchased a home in

Santa Barbara, California Santa Barbara (, meaning ) is a coastal city in Santa Barbara County, California, of which it is also the county seat. Situated on a south-facing section of coastline, the longest such section on the West Coast of the United States excepting A ...

, shortly before he joined the Eagles, then spent the next two years touring or recording and mostly living in hotels. He preferred a suite: if a hotel did not have one available, he would rent two adjacent rooms, "tearing out a wall" to create one. He owned a

and did often ride in

limousine A limousine ( or ), or limo () for short, is a large, chauffeur-driven luxury vehicle with a partition between the driver compartment and the passenger compartment which can be operated mechanically by hand or by a button electronically. A luxu ...

s. His driving license was lost, not because it was confiscated but because he lost his wallet with it in. He had an office he never visited with gold records on the wall and an answering machine. Walsh often stayed late at parties. Once, when he attempted to leave in the early morning hours, instead of finding the front door, he walked into a closet by mistake.

Personnel

Sourced from Mixonline *

– lead and backing vocals, electric and acoustic lead and rhythm guitars,

* Jay Ferguson –

Hammond organ The Hammond organ is an electric organ invented by Laurens Hammond and John M. Hanert, first manufactured in 1935. Multiple models have been produced, most of which use sliding #Drawbars, drawbars to vary sounds. Until 1975, sound was created ...

* Joe Vitale – backing vocals, ARP Odyssey, grand piano, drums, percussion * Joey Murcia – electric rhythm guitar *

Willie Weeks Willie Weeks (born August 5, 1947) is an American bass guitarist. He has gained fame performing with famous musicians in a wide variety of genres. He has been one of the most in-demand session musicians throughout his career. Weeks has also ga ...

– bass guitar *

– backing vocals * Jody Boyer – backing vocals

Chart performance

Weekly charts

Year-end charts

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Life's Been Good 1978 singles Joe Walsh songs Songs written by Joe Walsh Song recordings produced by Bill Szymczyk Blues rock songs 1978 songs Asylum Records singles