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E
Eagles
Hotel California
505 Comments

Lyrics for Hotel California as interpreted by Demau Senae

Hotel California Lyrics

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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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505 Comments

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redean
05-15-2002

Rated 0

I heard it could also be a Bordelo "hor house" and it stands for Moral values in the USA in the 70's.But I dont Know any thing about it.I thought it sounded good.I also think you are all right in a way of your own.I think it means what you want it to.

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jaydw11
05-14-2002

Rated 0

i agree with daffyb and ramthar. when they say they stab it with theeir steely knoives but they just can't kill the beast they're cutting cocaine but they can't get enough to kill their longing for it.

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bwebb41
05-09-2002

Rated 0

Not sure what the song means, ill jus t take your guys word for it. I just love the guitar solo's in it.

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rocktheearth
05-04-2002

Rated 0

basically, this song tells that drugs are not good.

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Mixiblob
05-04-2002

Rated 0

actually now reading what daffyb wrote i believe him about what it means and what its about .... thanx for explainin bout it daffyb xxxx

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Mixiblob
05-04-2002

Rated 0

i agree with deth about the meaning i think is about drugs..... this song is amazing .. im only 15 and i love it its very very cool..... i thinks its kinda erie too... the lyrics are great xxxxxxx

1 Reply

bobbyheatherkyli
11-12-2008

Rated 0

i think that all you pep are right because it is your intepretation of the song!! so just listnen to it and believe what you want it sounds better that way!! The songs lyrics describe the title establishment as a luxury restort what you can check out anytime you like but you can never leave. On the surface, the song tell you the story of a wary traveler who become trapped in a nightmarish luxury hotel that at first appeared inviting and tempting . The song is generally understood to be a allegory about hedonism and self-destruction in the Southern Califonia music industy of the late 1970's; Don Henley call it "our interpretation of the high life in los angeles" and later reiterated it's basically a song about the dark underbelly of the American dream and about excess in Amerrica, which is something we knew a lot about.

During July 17, 2008 appearance on The Howard Stern Show on Sirius SAtellite Radio, Don Felder described the origins of the lyrics
"Don Henley and Glen wrote most of the words. All of us kind of drove into LA at night. Nobody was from Cali, and if you drive into LA at night... you can just see this glow on the horizon of lights, and the images that start running through your head of Hollywood and all the dreams that you have, and so it was kind of about that... what we started writing the song about. Coming into LA... and form that Life In The Fast Lane came out of it, and wasted Time and a bunch of other songs."

The abstract nature of the lyrics has led listeners to their own interpretation over the years including some claims, spread by words of mouth and internet (here for instance), of satanic aspects. Other rumors suggested taht the "Hotel California" was the camarillo State Mental Hospital, a real hotle run by cannibals, or even a metaphor for cancer, these claims have been consistently ) refuted by the band.

The term "colitas" in the first stanza of the song is a desert flower, also know as antelope sage of clita de rata. Both Don Henley and Don Felder have repeatedly and publicly stated that colitas are "heady desert flowers." Others assert that the "colitas" is a spanish term for "little tails." This is a reference to the buds of the bannabis plant.

The use of the word "steely" in the lyrics (referring to knives) was a playful nod to a band Steely Dan, Who had included the lyric "Turn up the Eagles, the neighbors are listening" in their famous song "Everything You Did", according to Glenn Frey's liner notes for The Very Best of Eagles. That is the truth yall

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drderail
04-29-2002

Rated 0

In 1965 Anton Levy founded the Satanist church in California. "Called up to the captan, please bring me my Wine, we haven't had that spirit here since 1969". Wine is of course associated with cummunion. In 1969 Levy purchased an old church and turned it into the satanists church headquarters. Glenn Frey and a few other band members, I think Henley was one, were known to frequent this church. Anton Levey is pictured standing in the balcony on the inside album cover.

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honestyormystery
04-27-2002

Rated 0

i think its bout a cult, thats all i have to say

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chorts29
04-24-2002

Rated +1

i aslo agree that lyrics (especially from this song) are subject to many different interpetations. That's the beauty of lyrics and poetry in general. However, I heard the "meaning" of this song described once and i thought it was a great interpretation, so im resharing it. I heard it described as "a cynical view of paradise." When you think about it that way it could mean drugs, the entertainment business, or simply a supposed paradise because they all fit people's ideas of paradise. Its a vague interpretation but it allows you to decide what the song means to you, and that (in my opinion) is one of the reasons we listen to music in the first place.

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FELICITY
04-24-2002

Rated 0

I must agree as well with phishman about the whole "subject to individual interpretation" thing. What ultimately matters is what it means to you SurferM or you daffyb or me Felicity. I mean, why else would they use metaphor and then NOT write a book about it themselves? Why leave the book writing and explanations up to other people & "friends"? Maybe they don't even care; it was a song that sold millions of records after all. And the mystery (woooo!!) was part of that success. Kinda like Fleetwood Mac and Stevie Nicks with her black lacy shawls and references to witchcraft. When I was a young and impressionable teenager, I just was so woo-ed by that music. BTW, if you want to read a book written by the artist himself, read Mick Fleetwood's book. Anyway, for me personally, I have always liked how the Eagles painted pictures of that whole LA/California scene with lyrics and music; that's how I see their work anyway. When you go there and hang out, it seems to resonate, and it very interesting to me how they have captured that.

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SurferM
04-24-2002

Rated -1

Actually daffyb my uncle is best friends with the lead singer of the Eagles and that is what he told him. Don said that it is somewhat about drugs but mainly about the church in California. Just to let u know bia!!

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phishman
04-23-2002

Rated -1

you guys wanna know the really cool part about music? is that it is an ART and it is up for the reader to interepet music in their own way...if an artist wanted for a song to have a specific meaning then they wouldnt use metaphors...artists choose to use metaphors because it is then interpreted in many ways by many people...guess what daffy? if you think you know the meaning of a song i got news for ya, you dont know the real meaning of any song! you may know what the artist was feeling when they wrote the song but that doesnt make it the same for everyone. Thats like telling someone how they should feel when they look at the Sistine Chapel or some other brilliant piece of ART!!!!!!!! Appreciate for yourself and "let it be"

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daffyb
04-18-2002

Rated 0

Thanks for the vote of confidence. I have a hard time taking advise from someone called "Surfer" anyway.

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jessecu05
04-18-2002

Rated 0

It was all sarcastic, i agree with you, cuz you cant just read some book and think the author is credible

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daffyb
04-18-2002

Rated 0

So, I'm confused....does that mean you agree with me or disagree with me? The last line suggests agreement.

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jessecu05
04-18-2002

Rated -1

I'm sure that book sold millions of copies becuase the author was so close to the bands he wrote about and personally asked each one what they thought it meant, and that daffyb just likes to make up stories as boring as the one he posted just to sound like he's right....no i'm goin' with daffy on this one

1 Reply

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jessecu05
04-18-2002

Rated 0

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daffyb
04-18-2002

Rated +1

Of course! How stupid of me! A book written by some anonymous yahoo is MUCH more accurate that the drummer from the ACTUAL BAND! What was I thinking?

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SurferM
04-17-2002

Rated -1

For many that dont know this that "Hotel California" is a Satanistic church, that uh worship satan. It could be about drugs to cause some songs have more than one meaning. But my friend has a book about meanings of songs and that is what it said about this song.

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daffyb
04-13-2002

Rated +4

I have a very interesting little story for all of you in regards to this song and it's meaning. About 15 years ago, I was taking an English class in University, and the and the professor of the class had an assignment for us. He handed out a sheet of paper face down to everyone. When we turned it over, we were told to write what we thought the song was about. He added, however, that the song was NOT about a cult so don't even write that. So, basically almost every member of the class then proceeded along the next route....the drugs/addiction metaphors. When we were done, he proceeded to tell us what the song, and the corresponding album were ACTUALLY about. It seems our prof had, at one time, lived in the California area and was very good friends with a certain drummer named Don Henley. Don explained the story behind the song to him, and said he was amused at the wide varieties of interpretations the song had developed over time. According to the source, The "Hotel California" is actually, L.A. itself. The song and album take you on a trip though the music industry in L.A. in the late sixties early seventies, when agents and studios controlled artists like puppets. Back in the late sixties, 1969 to be exact, there was a major onslaught of artists being signed left, right and center, and artisit at the time were often known to basically "sell their soul" to a record company executive in order to get a recording contract. Many times these artists were given little if anything for their music, and thus ended up basically a victom to their love of music. Just imagine the scene at the time, it's late 60's, you are on your way to L.A. to strike it big with dreams of glamour and fame...and you basically are prepared to sell your soul of you have to to attain it. I must admit, when I first heard this explaination, I was a little skeptical...but trust me....listen to the WHOLE album again, start to finish and keep this definition in mind when you do it. Every song ties together in one big story, finishing off with the Last Resort which gives you a clear summery of the whole album and idea. I don't deny that drugs and addiction have a lot to do with the lifestyle and results of the quest for fame. All I ask is to keep an open mind and think of "The Hotel California" as L.A., and you may be surprised.

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FELICITY
04-05-2002

Rated 0

Boy, California sure is one big crazy town. Easy to get lost there, you know? Yes, while I would not be surprised that this song is about a specific cult or addiction, I have always thought the Eagles (which one of them wrote the song, BTW?) were quite astute to put out there a picture of what would happen to anyone who got caught up in that sort of party, escapism lifestyle--organized in the form of a cult or not. I look at their other songs that make this same social commentary--Sunset Grill and Life in the Fast Lane for example. These musicians have probably seen a lot of people get very caught up and miserable when all they were looking for was a good time with "friends". "What would we do without all these jerks, anyway? Besides all our friends are here." I know that's out of Sunset Grill, but isn't it the same thing, sans the drugs?

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jalex
04-05-2002

Rated 0

Though saying that this song is about addiction might not be totally wrong it's a song about a specific cult. The very title reffers to the name/nickname of a temple while in the inside of the album cover you can see a photo of people among which is the leader of this cult.

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Rionative
03-08-2002

Rated -1

It's definitely about drugs addiction, however it's a great song with a lovely rhythm ...

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texankiwi
03-01-2002

Rated 0

"you can check out anytime but you can never leave..." refers to Jackson brownes wife who killed her self

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loser*kid
03-01-2002

Rated 0

I dont care what it means i am just in love with it.

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