May 11-13
Ahoy, Rotterdam, Netherlands
Dan Fogelberg was replaced by Valerie Carter as the opening act.
This was the Eagles’ second appearance at the Ahoy Rotterdam. The first was on June 18th, 1975, with Joe Walsh opening for them.
The three nights at the Ahoy, originally scheduled for April, were inserted between the Dusseldorf and Hamburg dates of the German tour.
May 11
Ahoy Rotterdam
Prior to their opening night on May 11th, the band was presented with an award from their record company, WEA (Warner-Elektra-Atlantic), for exceeding half a million in record sales in the Netherlands.
Posing with the band in the photographs is Stance Oort, whose company, Golden Design, created the award. In 1973, Oort presented the band with silver Eagles pins prior to their show at the Concertbegouw in Amsterdam.
Translation (De Telegraaf, May 13th, 1977):
Bullion For Eagles
The Eagles were awarded by their record company WEA for the sale of more than half a million LPs in the Netherlands . Director Ben Bunders presented The Eagles with a very special gold and platinum record made by Stance Oort and her husband Aat from Beverwijk, who have become world famous in the past five months for the special designs that they are able to create with such precious metal. They have previously produced records for Fleetwood Mac, Bryan Ferry, Queen and Fats Domino. For her friends The Eagles (Stance also made the now famous silver Eagles brooch), 3 gold, 2 platinum and 1 diamond LP in a perspex plate.
The Eagles sold out all 8,000 seats of the Ahoy for three nights in a row. According to Dutch journalist Constant Meijers, “the first [concert] was the most interesting, the second the best, and the third the coziest.” 1
Excerpt from a review of the May 11th show from the Dutch paper, Het Parool (translated):
“After singer Valerie Carter, the stage darkens around a quarter past nine. The dimmed lights also hide the box blocks suspended high in the sky, which guarantee a crystal-clear reproduction. Cheers, shouts and applause mingle with the intro sounds of ‘Hotel California.’ The light is soft green as drummer Don Henley’s unsurpassed lead vocals slowly flow into swirling unison guitar riffs from both guitarists Don Felder and Joe Wash. A great start. A series of twinkling gems will follow. It is no coincidence that they belong to those rare groups that live up to the class of their records during a performance. ‘Seems to me,’ (‘Walk Away’) with yet another portion of double guitar violence follows, but is surpassed by ‘Victim of Love,’ in which Henley’s thin vocals are interspersed with slide guitar playing. The five-fold vocals and the fitted frame sound so cool that it almost seems smooth. A mistake. It’s pure perfection….After ‘Lyin ‘Eyes,’ bassist Randy Meisner comes into the picture as lead singer of ‘Take it to the Limit.’ A delight thanks to his high-pitched falsetto screams and Glenn Frey’s assistance at the grand piano.”
Het Parool (Amsterdam), May 12, 1977
Setlist for May 11, Ahoy Rotterdam:
Hotel California
Walk Away
Victim Of Love
Lyin’ Eyes
Take It To The Limit
New Kid In Town
One Of These Nights
Doolin-Dalton
Desperado (reprise)
Already Gone
Turn To Stone
Seven Bridges Road
Life In The Fast Lane
Rocky Mountain Way
Witchy Woman
James Dean
Best Of My Love
Take It Easy
Oh Carol
Note that the guys are wearing the same clothes they wore while receiving their award earlier in the day.
May 12
Ahoy Rotterdam
Setlist
Hotel California
Victim Of Love
Lyin’ Eyes
Take It To The Limit
New Kid In Town
One Of These Nights
Desperado
Already Gone
Turn To Stone
Life In The Fast Lane
Rocky Mountain Way
Witchy Woman
James Dean
Best Of My Love
Take It Easy
Oh Carol
May 13
Ahoy Rotterdam
Setlist
Hotel California
Victim Of Love
Lyin’ Eyes
Take It To The Limit
New Kid In Town
One Of These Nights
Turn To Stone
Already Gone
Life In The Fast Lane
Rocky Mountain Way
James Dean
Best Of My Love
Take It Easy
Randy is once again wearing his Harley-Davidson “Great American Freedom Machines” t-shirt (he also wore the shirt in London and Frankfurt). These shirts had the name of a Harley-Davidson dealer on the back. In the photo with Don Felder at right, you can catch a partial glimpse of the back of Randy’s shirt, which seems to have the name of a Nebraska shop (the letters NEBR can be seen).
Photo © Klaas L. Wijchman
Photo © Klaas L. Wijchman
May 17-18
Sweden
The Eagles arrived in Sweden following their appearance in Hamburg on May 15th (which I covered here). At some point between Hamburg and Stockholm, Randy got a haircut, which you will notice in the photos below.
May 17
Gröna Lund, Stockholm
The Eagles performed their first Scandinavian show at the Gröna Lund amusement park in Stockholm. It was windy and cold, as noted by the long sleeves (and Randy’s turtleneck).
(Text was too blurry to translate)
The Eagles onstage in Stockholm, May 17th, 1977:
May 18
Stadium Nya Ullevi, Gothenburg
This show was their final gig of the tour.
Setlist
Hotel California
Walk Away
Victim Of Love
Lyin’ Eyes
Take It To The Limit
New Kid In Town
Desperado
One Of These Nights
Turn To Stone
Already Gone
Life In The Fast Lane
Rocky Mountain Way
Witchy Woman
James Dean
Randy performing “Take It To The Limit” in Gothenburg, May 18th, 1977. The audio is a bit sluggish, but Randy’s stunning performance of the song is the perfect coda for their European tour.
