Lyrics for Hotel California as interpreted by Demau Senae

Hotel California Lyrics
On a dark desert highway, cool wind in my hair
Warm smell of colitas, rising up through the air
Up ahead in the distance, I saw a shimmering light
My head grew heavy and my sight grew dim
I had to stop for the night
There she stood in the doorway;
I heard the mission bell
And I was thinking to myself,
'This could be Heaven or this could be Hell'
Then she lit up a candle and she showed me the way
There were voices down the corridor,
I thought I heard them say...

Welcome to the Hotel California
Such a lovely place
Such a lovely face
Plenty of room at the Hotel California
Any time of year, you can find it here

Her mind is Tiffany-twisted, she got the Mercedes-Benz
She got a lot of pretty, pretty boys, that she calls friends
How they dance in the courtyard, sweet summer sweat.
Some dance to remember, some dance to forget

So I called up the Captain,
'Please bring me my wine'
He said, 'We haven't had that spirit here
Since nineteen sixty nine'
And still those voices are calling from far away,
Wake you up in the middle of the night
Just to hear them say...

Welcome to the Hotel California
Such a lovely place
Such a lovely face
They livin' it up at the Hotel California
What a nice surprise, bring your alibis

Mirrors on the ceiling,
The pink champagne on ice
And she said 'We are all just prisoners here, of our own device
And in the master's chambers,
They gathered for the feast
The stab it with their steely knives
But they just can't kill the beast

Last thing I remember, I was
Running for the door
I had to find the passage back
To the place I was before
'Relax,' said the night man,
We are programmed to receive.
You can checkout any time you like,
but you can never leave!

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veitchy_88
08-02-2006

Rated 0 
the whole hotel california album was meant to be about america. no prizes for guesing what part of the country this songs about. it is infact about the california of the 60s and 70s with all the partying, drugs ect.

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Soldier1288
08-03-2006

Rated 0 
guys, this song is about guy or giys going to a whore house or brothel, whatever you wanna call it, and they just make it poetical w/ one of the best guitar solos of all time. and my source for this was rolloing stone in a tribute they did for the eagles.

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thezigg
08-07-2006

Rated 0 
I had always hear this was about the Satanic church in California. I like that meaning and am going to stick with it. The drug argument is good to but the satanic church seems to fit in every single line of the song.

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destinytomorrow
08-12-2006

Rated 0 
This song is NOT about drugs, it's about the insane asylum known as Hotel California. Geez.

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destinytomorrow
08-12-2006

Rated 0 
This song is NOT about drugs, it's about the insane asylum known as Hotel California. Geez.

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Icemagic
08-27-2006

Rated 0 
i love this song, its one of the greatest songs out there!!

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Icemagic
08-27-2006

Rated 0 
i love this song, its one of the greatest songs out there!!

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Tronfo
08-30-2006

Rated 0 
To clear any confusion up: this song is NOT about a cult. One of my teachers has an autographed copy of the lyrics, and on the autograph, he says that the song has no occult meaning. Just so y'know.

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localfire
09-02-2006

Rated 0 
I've read that "Hotel California" is a metapher for the church of satanism which stands in California. I remember that this church is shown on the cover of the cd.
So the song is about satanism and how stanists want to win more people to their religion.
They give you the feeling that everything is fine and unsolicited. But the truth is different. The longer you stay with them, the more complicated is it to get rid of them.

(I'm sorry for my bad English)

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The_Drummers_Angel
09-04-2006

Rated 0 
Not sure if anyone has said this yet, but Hotel California is also slang for death according to deathslang.com

(and as a side note, no matter what this song is about, I love it)

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novaleigh
09-12-2006

Rated 0 
I know for a fact that this song is not about a cult or drugs. This song is about L.A. I know this b/c I read an article which interviewed the band about the meaning of hotel california. There is one drug reference, "warm smell of colitas", Colitas is spanish for little buds, and therefore is a reference to pot. Also they did say in the interview that they realize that "hotel california" has a lot of urban legends about devil worshiped churches, cults, etc, but really "hotel california" is just the bands interpretation of high life in L.A. Also "stab it with their steely knives but they just cant kill the beast", is not a reference to cocaine it is a reference to a fellow song artist, Steely Dan. The song explores the underbelly of success, and the darker side of paradise, NOT, drugs or cults, or whatever other nonsense.

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Hatz
09-18-2006

Rated 0 
I'm sure it's already been said but here we go:

The Hotel California represents the self indulgence of the mid 70's culture in LA, California and much of the US. You have to remember that Henley is heavy into literature and symbolism.

The people are trapped by their endless desires for more. They've found everything they've wanted and now it has them rather than them possessing those desires.

"She's got the Mercedes Benz" "Mirrors on the Ceiling, Pink Champagne on ice." All of these describe the decadence and emptiness of what they've found.

As they try to run away they find that they can't (either because they aren't able or the lure is too great to get away) "We are programmed to receive. You can check out any time you want, but you can never leave."


BTW the 1969 lyric has to do with the era change. Many see that as the quintessential year that the Love, Hippie, Cause era ended (symbolically) and the era of greed, excess and "ME" began. While '69 gave us Woodstock (the ultimate 3 days of the Counterculture vision) it also gave us a few months later the disaster at Altamont, CA and the Hell's Angels knifing the guy in front of the Rolling Stone's Concert Stage.

"Bring me my wine. We haven't had that spirit here since 1969."

The Spirit was gone and what was left was self-indulgence.

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novaleigh
09-22-2006

Rated 0 
I agree with you Hatz.I just dont understand why people come up with the ideas like "hotel california is slang for death at deathslayer.com", I mean really, listen too the music, and appreciate it before you jump to the conclusions about cults and garbage.
Listening to hotel california right now.

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:)4thecamera
10-19-2006

Rated 0 
the guy from the eagles said that it was about life in hollywood and other places like that in california (at least i saw that on the internet which we all know can lie) :)

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Shindu
11-05-2006

Rated 0 
err,it may be a typo, but on the lyrics of my vinyl single, it says "Mercedes bends" not "Mercedes-Benz"

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Web Rydr
11-07-2006

Rated 0 
Well, I've read all 11 pages of posts about my favorite song of all time, number one in my "100 list." It's amazing!!!

I see sex, drugs and rock & roll, satan's church, prison, mental institutions, sanitoriums, alcohol, California the State and the state of mind, greed, murder, suicide, weed, coke, heroin, crack, love, religion, prostitution, despair, the music industry, fame, and so many more I can't recall them all.

Everyone has a theory about what the song "REALLY" means.

We got quotes from the band, quotes from those who know or knew the band, quotes from wannabes, quotes from folks who don't know diddly, and quotes from those who just THINK they know.

ELEVEN pages of it!

Bottom line, the song means whatever one wishes it to mean. For me...it means Madrid, Spain. I was living there the first time I heard it. Knew right away this was gonna be a classic for the ages. The song says so much without saying anything at all, and that is usually the mark of a cleverly written song. Lets the masses read into it what they wish, hope, fear, aspire to, run from, embrace or abhor.

Be talkin' to you................Web Rydr

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katie_b
12-07-2006

Rated 0 
I have read somewhere that this song is about drinking addicts and if you read carefully you should agree with me! It must be about a rehabilitation clinic which such people get in.
Great song anyway!
Thanx for the lyrics!:)

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tunemaster30
12-09-2006

Rated 0 
its a metaphor for excess of all types, and the realization that they all lead to the same place ie. drugs,materialism, fame--all leads to emptiness and imprisonment and ultimately death.
stop arguin because you are ALL right!!!

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FulciFan
12-22-2006

Rated 0 
wow some of you guys are way off its about the first church of satan

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madanica
12-29-2006

Rated 0 
My husband actually heard on a radio talk show interview w/the band that it's about marriage. I don't know if somebody already said that I don't feel like going through all 200+ interpretations. It really does make sense if you think about it.

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collaroy
01-03-2007

Rated 0 
Probably one of the most discussed songs ever. I think the safest bet is it's about drugs ('You can check out any time you want but you can never leave'- even if you stop you'll always be a junkie), but there are other possibilities as well. Just goes to show how people can listen to the same song and still interpret it differently, depending on their own feelings and experiences. Nobody's wrong.

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mrsE
01-07-2007

Rated 0 
Based on the interviews with the band, this is how I interpet the song:

On a dark desert highway, cool wind in my hair
(Coming from nowhere)
Warm smell of colitas, rising up through the air
(Senses the California drug culture)
Up ahead in the distance, I saw a shimmering light
(there it is, LA in the distance)
My head grew heavy and my sight grew dim
I had to stop for the night
(Finally there. Made it!)
There she stood in the doorway;
I heard the mission bell
And I was thinking to myself,
'This could be Heaven or this could be Hell'
(Greated by the culture he also hears the warning bell)
Then she lit up a candle and she showed me the way
(But after being led in to the decandence you let go of the fears)
There were voices down the corridor,
I thought I heard them say...

Welcome to the Hotel California
Such a lovely place
Such a lovely face
Plenty of room at the Hotel California
Any time of year, you can find it here
(There is always a party going on in LA)

Her mind is Tiffany-twisted, she got the Mercedes-Benz
(Obvious reference to Janis Joplin)
She got a lot of pretty, pretty boys, that she calls friends
(A lot of free love, also sounds like a gay reference)
How they dance in the courtyard, sweet summer sweat.
Some dance to remember, some dance to forget
(different reasons for always parting)

So I called up the Captain,
'Please bring me my wine'
He said, 'We haven't had that spirit here
Since nineteen sixty nine'
(A reference to the fact that the whole scene peaked in 1969)
And still those voices are calling from far away,
Wake you up in the middle of the night
Just to hear them say...
(it is always niggling at the back of your mind, the slight anxiety of the decadent lifestyle)

Welcome to the Hotel California
Such a lovely place
Such a lovely face
They livin' it up at the Hotel California
What a nice surprise, bring your alibis
(everyone has excuses for this lifestyle)

Mirrors on the ceiling,
The pink champagne on ice
(again references to extravagant life with sexual trimmings)
And she said 'We are all just prisoners here, of our own device
(we only brought this on our selves)
And in the master's chambers,
They gathered for the feast
The stab it with their steely knives
But they just can't kill the beast
(people hang around leaders and share drugs but the anxiety still doesn’t go away)

Last thing I remember, I was
Running for the door
I had to find the passage back
To the place I was before
(Trying to leave the whole industry, going back to being a normal nobody)
'Relax,' said the night man,
We are programmed to receive.
You can checkout any time you like,
but you can never leave!
(you can physically leave but you will always be a part of it and it will always be a part of you)

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JuntoBrown
01-09-2007

Rated 0 
***THC*** am I the only one who noticed this the line is welcome to The Hotel California. kind of like imulating The Beatles Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds(LSD) but for pot.

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vulc5n
01-16-2007

Rated 0 
I heard that Hotel California was about marriage. Now I don't know if this is true or not but although it seems like a rather pessimistic view of marriage, it does make sense.

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nwrider32
01-25-2007

Rated 0 
"You can checkout any time you like, but you can never leave!"
makes me think this song is about acid because even if you do quit traces of it are left in your spine

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