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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hawk_er_8
07-31-2005

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The Vietnamese war was destressing to hear about and would have been destressing to be in. Thats what alot of bands found when they were under attack from the superficial and cold media.

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hawk_er_8
07-31-2005

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The Vietnamese war was destressing to hear about and would have been destressing to be in. Thats what alot of bands found when they were under attack from the superficial and cold media.

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hawk_er_8
07-31-2005

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The songs make a lot more sence than most people say they do. And on that topic, theres not some secret code that you have to disipher to understand it. Pretty straight forward. It's about comparisons with success of bands with Vietnam, if you could understand. Alot of bands wanted to make it big at that time, and still do, but record companies exploit them and use and practically control the direction of the band. The critics, the drugs 'to remember, to forget'. Once you've made it in the bigtime, 'you can check out anytime you like, but you can never leave!' Don Henly explained it in an interview. You have to understand, or at least imagine the stress and pressure of bands.

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Gothy_Bura
07-27-2005

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Hm, thanks TheSyndicate88 on your incredible meaning behind the song. ha ha.

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TheSyndicate88
07-27-2005

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hey Gothy_Bura....uh...no...that's really not it at all

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Gothy_Bura
07-27-2005

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The actual line is "Her mind is Tiffany-twisted, she got the Mercedes bends" Bends... as in SCUBA diving bends, it gives a totally different meaning to the line.
The song to me is about, Sex, Drugs and Rock and Roll. Being trapped in the Rock and roll lifestyle of the 70's.

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21matchsticks
07-26-2005

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i dont really care what it is actually written for because that kinda takes away from the artistic aspect of it. i think it is great that its so interpretive. i like to think of it as a song about addictions. it has helped me in dealing with my addiction. there are alot of drug references in it, most have been mentioned (cant kill the beast, the mirrors, lighting up, living it up in the hotel, etc.) i really enjoy the part "you can check out any time you like, but you can never leave." it helps me remember that i can quit using drugs any time i like, but i will always be an addict. i like to listen to this song to remind me of the bad times of using so i can really enjoy my clean time now.

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ChesterX7
07-16-2005

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I live in Cali and people around here say that "Hotel California" is an old run down mental hospital, and kids go there in hopes to get spoked out by some old lingering ghosts. Now, I highly doubt that the Eagles were talking about this specific place, but lots of teenagers go the and return with scary stories. My sister went to this hospital and she said she was scared crapless because you have to park your car and walk through a field for like a mile and a half and thats more freaky than the hospital itself. I want to go to it but I dont know where it is and my sister doesnt want to go back. Back to the meaning of the song, I think the LA music business one is most likely to be true, but I think the church storie is cooler. Hey does anybody know what im talking about with the hospital thing?

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waldo013
07-14-2005

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ok.this song isnt about a cult or drug addictions or a satanic church or a normal church. "Hotel California" is actually a sanitorium."Mirrors on the ceiling", that reffers to one of the rooms in the sanitorium."you can check out any time you like but you can never leave," well if your crazy, then you can check out but you can never really leave, your there for good because thats where you belong, ur nuts." we are all just prisoners here, of our own deivce", another reference to being crazy.hearing vioces on corridors, not for the sane." bring your alibis" crazy people cant admit they are insane, they always have their excuses.this is the truth.its not about a church, a cult, a drug addiction, or satan, its about crazy people, probly who believe most of the junk written about the meaning of this song.

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Migs
07-12-2005

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I heard that Hotel California is a reference to the church of satan which is located in a building that used to be a hotel in LA.

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trouble37
07-03-2005

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Most people have no idea the song refers to the Church of Satan, which happens to be located in a converted HOTEL on CALIFORNIA street! On the inside of the album cover, looking down on the festivities, is Anton Lavey, the founder of the Church of Satan and author of the Satanic Bible! The Eagles manager, Larry Salter, admitted in the Waco Tribune-Herald, (Feb. 28, 1982) that the Eagles were involved with the Church of Satan.

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sparticus150
07-03-2005

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california rocks...dont be hatin on my state.

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ch0och
07-02-2005

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its about killing someone, or murder.

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LifeIsMusic
06-28-2005

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This is one of those songs... you know which ones... in my mind, this song is just about California in general. It's fun, and dangerous, exciting and forbidden, and once you're in, it's harder to really leave than you thought.

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baby_grace
06-25-2005

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it's about hell... and Satanism

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Dukefan
06-21-2005

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I personally have always thought the song was about being sucked into a satanic cult.

But I also think that daffyb's explanation from a few pages back fits just as well.

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demolitionlover
06-13-2005

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Oh oh oh the live version with Clapton... hmmm beautiful!

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Ryman
06-10-2005

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ur all wrong, its all about hell, and the church of satan, the hotel cailfornia is the church of satan, if u look on the cover of the cd of the hotel thats where the church of satan is at, if u look at every line its all about hell and not being able to leave

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psychophysics
06-04-2005

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-heavy_metal_28001 on 06-18-2002 @ 12:15:48 AM
This song is about a whore house..example:

"they stab them with the steely knives but they just cant kill the beast"(the knives are there peckers and the beast is the woman.its saying no matter whaty they cant please her enough)

"the warm smell of colitas"(you tell me)


Who ever you are, you're a sexist idiot. People go into prostitution for mayn reasons and are unhappy people who need societies help, not just girls with a large libido.

Also you can stop taking drugs and stop being addicted, you can leave so either the song lyrics are wrong or the drug theory is wrong. Theres very few things or metaphorical places you can never leave. I have still to hear or read an interpretation that doesnt have any holes it and where ALL the metaphors can be realistically intrepretted to the same meaning.

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unoriginalname16
05-21-2005

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4G- you serious bout dat backwards stuff? crazy.

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ch3l
05-13-2005

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ahhaahh 4G, hilarious!!
good one, esp about listening to the song backwards. hhaha..

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4G
04-30-2005

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>>>plus if you think about it...if someone did admit to being a satanist do you think that they would have as many fans?!?!?!?!?!

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4G
04-30-2005

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yeah and if you LISTEN to the song BACKWARDS it says "yeah,satan, he started his own religion"

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4G
04-30-2005

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yeah its about Anton LeVey who started the Satainist church and yeah but it wasn't a church that he bought it was a HOTEL in CALIFORNIA!!!!and yes Anton LeVey introduced it in 1969!

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brain_stew
04-17-2005

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I've heard many interpretations, and these three are my personal favorites...

1. The Hotel California is addiction, one might say. Once you enter, you can never leave, and it all seems so extravagant from the inside, until suddenly you realize that you need to get out, but can't. The drug is just too comforting, too extravagant, and you can try to kill it if you want, but you never ever can.

2. Another one I've heard that I like is that the Hotel California is California itself. Once you get in, you sort of know it's wrong. There are no morals, there is no goodness, everything is just fun and partying and drugs and stuff like that. And you sort of know it's wrong the whole time you're there, but you can never leave.

3. However, my personal favorite is one that is much more of a story if you will. A man who needs a place to stay the night stops off at a hotel called the hotel california. The Hotel California is a church that was abandoned and taken by satanists in the year 1969. The man realizes that he is in a place of evil, low morale, and satan, and wants to leave. But now he never can. Kind of fun, don'tcha think?

I'm not sure who's to say what the real meaning is, but I think those 3 are best.

Adieu.

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