Glenn Frey, who has died aged 67 from stomach problems, was a founding member, singer, guitarist and driving force of the 1970's Californian country-rock band the Eagles, co-writing most of their biggest hits and taking part in a journey which saw a group of smiling young troubadours morph into drug-addled superstar burn-outs, before reuniting in later life as seasoned old pros. The Eagles were founded in Los Angeles in 1971 by Frey and his songwriting partner, the drummer and singer Don Henley. Over the next decade they became the most popular group in the world, Frey and Henley turning out hits, often with Frey as lead singer, including 'Tequila Sunrise', 'Lyin’ Eyes', 'Heartache Tonight' and of course 'Hotel California'. Their 'Greatest Hits' became the biggest-selling album of all time (29 million units in its original 1975 form plus 11 million when it was repackaged in 1982 to include later hits), above even Michael Jackson’s 'Thriller'. Altogether the Eagles sold more than 120 million albums worldwide while Frey won six Grammy Awards and five American Music Awards. The band’s success was built on recording techniques which smoothed out any grit, producing a sort of shiny, all-American homogeneity. Even their darkest material was full of easy-on-the-ear harmonies, leading critics to accuse them of killing Rock and Roll with synthetic kitsch and creating a template for singer-songwriters such as Elton John. Behind the scenes, however, the Eagles conformed to a more traditional Rock and Roll stereotype. The title track of their classic 1976 album, 'Hotel California', evoked a musty, claustrophobic decadence: “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 check out any time you like but you can never leave’. ” Frey once described their career in the 1970's as “got crazy, got drunk, got high, had girls, played music and made money’’. He might have added “fought like cats and dogs”. “The Eagles talked about breaking up from the day I met them,” as their manager, Irving Azoff, recalled. Of their original four-man line-up, guitarist Bernie Leadon and bassist Randy Meisner departed, in 1975 and 1977 respectively, after disagreements with Frey, Leadon famously announcing his departure by pouring a can of beer over Frey’s head. Relations among the replacement line up of Frey and Henley, with Don Felder, Timothy Schmit and Joe Walsh, deteriorated during the making of their 1979 album, 'The Long Run', which took 18 months to produce. In 1978 Walsh caused $20,000 worth of damage to a Chicago hotel room with a chain saw. The following year Henley was arrested after a naked 16-year-old prostitute suffered a drug overdose during a party at his home in Los Angeles. Police seized cocaine, marijuana and quaaludes and Henley was subsequently charged for contributing to the delinquency of a minor, fined and put on probation. The last straw came at their final concert, a Democratic Party fundraiser in July 1980 at the Long Beach Arena. During an evening later referred to as “Long Night at Wrong Beach”, the Eagles broke up in drug-fuelled rancour, with band members threatening to beat each other up. Although Frey played his part in the hellraising, he was always the most businesslike of the group. After the break-up, he went on to forge a successful solo career, his debut solo album, 'No Fun Aloud' (1982, in part a collaboration with the songwriter Jack Tempchin), going gold and spawning several hit singles, including 'The One You Love'. His single 'The Heat Is On' went and reached No. 2 in the Billboard charts (No. 12 in Britain) after it featured as a soundtrack in the 1984 film Beverly Hills Cop. Frey also embarked on a career as an actor, becoming the first rock star to appear (as a drug dealer) on Miami Vice (for which he wrote and performed the song 'You Belong to the City', which reached No. 2 in the US charts), doing a Pepsi commercial, starring with Robert Duvall and Gary Busey in the film Let’s Get Harry (1986) and taking a small role in the 1996 film Jerry Maguire. In the mid-1980's he embarked on a self-administered “detox” programme, which was so successful that in 1989 the Health and Tennis Corporation of America signed him up as a spokesman. After the Eagles’ break-up Frey ruled out the possibility of reuniting “for a Lost Youth and Greed tour”, while Don Henley claimed that the group would only get back together again “when hell freezes over”!! Fourteen years later, however, in 1994 they came together for a massively successful “Hell Freezes Over” tour, and they continued to perform together until last year, drawing big crowds and earning big bucks, and releasing five compilation albums, a live album and, in 2007, 'Long Road Out of Eden', the first Eagles album of new material since 'The Long Run' in 1979. The following year they were inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. Mrs. WTS and myself saw the Eagles for the only time at the 02 Arena in London in June 2014 and for me, few bands were better at distilling the vibe of Los Angeles in the 1970's than the Eagles, and as its singer and guitarist, Glenn Frey served as a sort of mellow ambassador of LA. Just as Liverpool is forever associated with the Beatles, Seattle claims Nirvana and Bruce Springsteen owns New Jersey, the Eagles embodied the bell-bottomed, feather-haired flair of Southern California. Frey may be gone, but those sun-baked, Southern California ballads, many sung with exquisite tenderness, will endure forever... He is a fallen Eagle whose legacy will last for the long run... Wrinkly the Silver

Following on from Wednesday nights excellent 'An Evening With Russ Ballard' we now have a photo gallery available here plus we also have a new Vid Of The Day - Russ performing 'I Don't Believe In Miracles'. Photos from the Leicester Square Theatre, London, also include interviewer Mike Read plus the ex-Argent vocalist/guitarist Special Guests Brian May, Kerry Ellis, Rick Wakeman and Bob Henrit!

Not a great start to 2016 for WRC member Chris Painter who resides in Chaniá, Greece! "Disaster! Hey guys, my membership card went badly through the wash, can you pop another in the post please? Cheers, Chris." Of a course a replacement card will shortly be winging its way to Greece - but in the meantime if you have still not joined the WRC FREE for life - then why not a make a New Year's resolution and join up here. We'll consequently send you a WRC members card (kindly modelled by Keith Howe of Blacktop Deluxe) which you can use to benefit from the current members offers which we also hope to add to in the future.

It's day 3 of our 2015 WRC Award announcements and we are delighted to reveal that King Crimson have won our Best Prog Performance award! KC beat off the strong challenge of both Steven Wilson (who the WRC are off to see again on Wednesday 27th January) and The Pineapple Thief who we saw at Ramblin' Man in July. Fully deserved after their Hackney Empire gig in September - please check out our King Crimson Vid Of The Day!

Canadian hard-rockin’ juggernaut Monster Truck, will release their new album 'Sittin’ Heavy' on 19th February 2016 via their new home of Mascot Records/Mascot Label Group for Europe and Dine Alone Records for the rest of the World. 'Sittin’ Heavy' is 11 tracks of high-octane, foot to the floor, raucous rock that picks up from where 2013's incredible Juno Award nominated 'Furiosity' left off. For the past two years since the debut dropped they have been hell-bent on putting Hamilton, Ontario, on the rock ‘n’ roll map as they have, in true road warrior style, relentlessly been tearing through Europe, the US and Canada opening for the mighty Guns N' Roses, Slash, Alice in Chains, ZZ Top, Buckcherry, Rival Sons and Vista Chino as well as stepping up for blistering sets at the UK's Hammerfest and Download Festival. Anyway check out their Vid Of The Day!

Walter Trout's return to the music scene with his great new album 'Battle Scars' - follows a long period in hospital with liver disease - with his fans uncertain as to whether he would survive, let alone ever get the chance to see him play again. But, as you will hear on today's Track Of The Day interview with Rory Auskerry - Walter is back and he's rockin'. Don't forget also to tune into Rory's Route 66 show here tonight at 6pm.

Despite the closure of North Greenwich Underground Station on Thursday night due to a security incident (you couldn't make it up) - it was well worth battling all the way through the travel disruption to the O2 Arena to see Nickelback again supported by the awesome Monster Truck. Anyway, with a review from Wrinkly The Silver to come check out our Photo Gallery here which, be warned, includes a few silly pics taken in Sky Backstage beforehand!

Birmingham Rock and Blues band Broken Witt Rebels headlined a WRC Promotions gig at the Proud, Camden last Thursday night with support from the Kris Barras Band. Today check out today's Vid Of The Day, an initial photo gallery here plus a review here.

"An unexpected but excellent opening steel-string instrumental arrangement of Simon and Garfunkel's classic 'Mrs. Robinson' is trumped by Johnson's piano and vocals on his next track, the beautiful 'Water Under The Bridge'. Of course, better known for his guitar playing, Johnson gets out his prized 1980 Martin D-45 acoustic guitar - a gift from his late father - on 'Wonder' - another great vocal by Johnson - doing his dad proud. It's back to piano for Johnson on 'Wrapped in a Cloud', a neatly constructed vocal ensemble track with cellist John Hagen, longtime Johnson accompanists Tommy Taylor and Wayne Salzmann on drums and Roscoe Beck and Chris Maresh on acoustic bass. And he's back playing the steel-string on the explosive instrumental 'Once Upon a Time in Texas' - very reminiscent of Townshend's acoustic guitar in the masterpiece that is 'Tommy'. The second cover on 'EJ' is Johnson's vocal rearrangement of Hendrix's 'One Rainy Wish' for guitar and piano, capping the performance with a jazz-inflected piano solo plus haunting backing vocals." Read the rest of AJ's Eric Johnson CD review here plus check out our Vid Of The Day.

Today's Vid Of The Day is 'Heavy' - the hot new single from Glenn Hughes - the first radio single taken from Glenn's forthcoming album 'Resonate' - released by Frontiers Music Srl on Friday 4th November. The single features Hughes on lead vocals and bass guitar, the Red Hot Chili Peppers’ Chad Smith (drums), plus Lachy Doley (keyboards) and Soren Anderson (guitar). Hughes and Anderson also produced the album at Medley Studios in Copenhagen. Glenn will also tour the UK in November with special guests Living Colour.

British Southern Blues Rock group Bad Touch have premiered the official video for their new single '99%' which is today's Vid Of The Day. It’s taken from their new studio album 'Truth Be Told' which is due to be released on Friday 2nd December. The 5-piece rock band from Norfolk, who recently supported the Kentucky Headhunters on their critically acclaimed sell-out UK tour, will embark on a UK co-headline tour on Saturday 19th November 19th with Australian Rock band Massive. The new album sees Bad Touch celebrating Classic Rock with Southern boogie influences, supported with heavy guitar riffs and an iron-clad, tight rhythm section, in the great tradition of Black Crowes, Lynyrd Skynyrd and Led Zeppelin.

American Blues singer-songwriter Sari Schorr is Route 66's special guest on this week's Track Of The Day as host Rory Auskerry chats to Sari about her debut album, 'A Force Of Nature'. Also on the show, there are new tracks from Aynsley Lister, Joe Bonamassa, Cornerstone , Blacklist Union (pictured), Gary Clark Jr. and Devon Allman plus classic tracks from Humble Pie, Queen, The Rolling Stones and more!