Eagles Flying High … Into the Sunset
After 55 years, the Eagles have never been bigger.
As the band prepares to wrap its record-breaking 58-night residency at Sphere in Las Vegas on April 11, its iconic 1976 best-of, Their Greatest Hits (1971-1975), has been declared the best-selling album in U.S. history, with 40 million units sold.
Featuring such hits as “Already Gone” and “Peaceful Easy Feeling” (both written by Encinitas songwriter Jack Tempchin), the quadruple diamond collection celebrates its 50th anniversary this month.
So why is Don Henley eyeing an exit in 2026?
In a recent interview with “CBS Sunday Morning,” the band’s co-founder said, “I think this year will probably be it. I’ve said things like that before, but I feel like we’re getting toward the end, and that will be fine, too. I’m okay with that.”
Unlike the band’s 14-year hiatus, sparked by tensions between Henley and the late Glenn Frey, this potential farewell appears driven more by age and health. The three surviving members of the Eagles’ classic-era lineup — Henley, Joe Walsh and Timothy B. Schmit — are all 78 and facing various health challenges.
Henley has also cited simpler aspirations: reading, tending his garden, spending more time with family and revisiting favorite destinations without the grind of a tour schedule.
Fans hoping to catch what could be the band’s final bow may want to circle May 2, when the Eagles are scheduled to perform at the New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival.
“We’ve had a great run … I’ll be fine when that’s done.” — Don Henley
If this truly is the Eagles’ swan song, Henley accepts that.
“We’ve had a great run, an extraordinary run, and left people with a lot of good memories, and some good music,” he said. “I’ll be fine when that’s done.”
If You Build it, They Will Come
If you missed Mission Bayfest last October, you’re in luck. Many of the same reggae and Cali-rock acts are returning June 13 for the inaugural Field of Dreamz Festival at Petco Park.
Like the Closer to the Sun destination event in Riviera Maya, Mexico, the festival was created and curated by Slightly Stoopid co-founders Miles Doughty and Kyle McDonald. The single-day celebration will unfold across two stages and feature performances by the Ocean Beach-based reggae-rock band as well as Sublime, Stephen Marley, The Elovaters, Pepper, DENM, Z-Trip, Band of Gringos and Boostive.
Originally signed by Sublime’s Bradley Nowell in 1995, Slightly Stoopid recently dropped three new singles — “Step into the Sun,” “The Upside Down” and “Shine for You” with G. Love — and plans to release a full album later this year.
“Partnering with the Padres and creating our own festival on that field is truly a dream come true,” Slightly Stoopid said in a statement. “It’s our way of bringing it all back to the community that raised us.”
Tickets are available here.
The Gordon Gekko of Glam Metal
“Greed is good.”
That infamous credo from Gordon Gekko, the ruthless corporate raider played by Michael Douglas in the 1987 film Wall Street, has echoed through pop culture for decades. Now, a metalhead named Michaels has adopted the mantra and it’s turned into, well, a thorny situation.
As Poison mulled plans for a 40th anniversary tour this year, frontman Bret Michaels reportedly requested 600 percent more money than his three bandmates. Guitarist C.C. DeVille, bassist Bobby Dall and drummer Rikki Rockett balked, and the tour was scrapped.
In an interview with The New York Post, Rockett said he wasn’t angry at Michaels, but the new math simply didn’t add up.
“It’s like $6 to every one of our dollars. You just can’t work that way.”
— Rikki Rockett on Bret Michaels’ payout demands.
“Bret wanted the lion’s share of the money, to the point where it makes it not possible to even do it,” Rockett said. “It’s like $6 to every one of our dollars. You just can’t work that way.”
Rather than let the milestone pass quietly, Rockett plans to celebrate the glam-metal group’s anniversary by touring with his side band, Rockett Mafia, performing Poison’s 1986 debut, Look What the Cat Dragged In, in full.
No word yet on whether Michaels intends to pursue a parallel anniversary trek with BMB (Bret Michaels Band), but he seemingly alluded to the rift on social media, posting “Onward & upward and let’s all focus on the positive in 2026, and the potential of a future reunion.”
Mars in Ascension
It’s early in 2026, but Bruno Mars is already showing his star power is on the rise.
The multi-platinum singer-songwriter recently became the first artist in Spotify history to have five songs with more than 3 billion streams each: “Just the Way You Are,” “Locked Out of Heaven,” “That’s What I Like,” “When I Was Your Man” and the biggest of the batch, “Die With a Smile,” his duet with Lady Gaga.
The milestone comes as Mars readies The Romantic, due Feb. 27, his first solo album in nearly a decade. Its lead single, the disco-tinged “I Just Might,” finds him leaning into the sleek, retro-funk groove that has defined his sound since he broke onto the scene in 2010.
With his long-running Las Vegas residency behind him, Mars will take The Romantic Tour on the road for 70 dates across North America, Europe and the U.K. It’s his first global headline stadium tour, and ticket sales have been shattering records. He’s not currently scheduled to play San Diego’s Petco Park, but his itinerary includes four nights at SoFi Stadium in Los Angeles (Oct. 2-3 and 6-7).