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CGI Business Solutions dot com wmnh Ripthobles. When when I was a boy,
all, I mean got all this one of the stuny that I was.
When I was a kid, I got my face up and not a biless
the geese. I wasn't always a stool, but when I I was a
dump, I always look hands, I need store and go fill us.
I remember all the bands and big member. It feels like someone that stop
me and say fuck one of my r ry your mass side away, no
scene down the Bomby Road. Alive you side go way, No same down
the Bomy Road up. And when I was at school then my good grades.
I was, yes, still be no fool when I was still young
and all I care about round was girls. But sadly my mantles used the
beast, I just don't move before dance, cry on the floor. They
used to ray and me up my milk honey taken. When I was goin
up. I remember man said Amada mel fly someone in the stuff. Ain't
not say my God, I got you as side called when saing down the
bomb all alive your mess side go when no same? Don mom you oh
you know. When I was a boy, my father used to look down
at me and say, what don hell are there? Go outside and cut
some grass. Why don't you go kids? A girl? You stolen loser?
Down your nast side, call away, no scene, you won't a
line down your nast side, Go away, scene down. If you're listening
to, don't luminate before I come in. God, don't get so greenly
died madself. Good morning everyone as we enter our number two Newmarrow dose of
Matt Connorton Unleashed and we are live from the studios of w m n H
ninety five point three FM Inglorious of Manchester, New Hampshire, and of course
you can stream us online. Go to Matt Connorton dot com slash live for
all your live streaming options, social media links, contact and POSHO archives,
et cetera, et cetera. It is Saturday, March nine, twenty twenty
four. Jenny is here as well, President and accounted for and thank you
again to Eric from a Temple Mountain. I'm not even going to attempt his
actual last name because I can't remember how to say it. But but he
goes by Temple Mountain because it is it is much easier. And boy,
he's amazing. What of what a voice. I'm the great songwriter and just
an incredible voice and really good guitar player too, absolutely, but his I
love his voice. I love his songs and great stuff. Will he doesn't
use a pick on any of his songs. He's all about yep, his
fingers. Yeah, that's always impressive to me because you know, I'm a
bass player and I play with a pick, and you know most bass players
don't. Some do, Geene Simmons does, for example, But I play
with a pick. Hey, why would you copy him? But but you
know, when I when I see a guitar player who can play without a
pick, the most impressive example of it to me being Lindsey Buckingham from Fleewood
Mac some of the solos to be able to play those without a pick is
truly remarkable to me. I've always been amazed by that. Quite nice,
yes, yes, But and of course we've got a great, great talented
musician coming in the third hour today too, in the eleven am hour,
we will be joined in studio by Casey Darren and his project Soda, which
is s O T A H. So people don't go style soda. Yeah,
I like it. So that'll be that'll be coming up today in the
third hour. In the meantime, if you have any anything for us,
if you'd like to give us a call, the studio line is open six
O three two five O six oh seven six O three two five O six
oh seven. You can also text us at six one seven nine one seven
four four seven six. I'm on social media at Matt Connorton. You can
email me Matt at Matt connorton dot com. You can interact end o Pine
in the Facebook live chat and we appreciate everybody in there. And now also
you can go to Matt connorton dot com slash live. We have a separate
chat room there uh and you can direct message me during the show on that
page as well. Matt connorton dot com slash live, so you also have
that as an option. But the best thing to do so that we can
here it enjoy your dulcid tones is give us a call at six O three
two five O six oh seven six O three two five o six oh seven.
Uh. And by the way, if you're wondering, no classic film
review this week from our friend Eric Pilcher. He's been dealing with some stuff,
so he's got a run of some some bad luck unfortunately. But we
love Eric, so he'll he'll probably be back with us next week with another
great film review. So there is that. But uh, there is a
drama in the music world. Is there never not drama in the music world?
Well, you know there are certain It's funny if I were to I
didn't even know about this until he brought it to my attention this morning.
But if I were to say to you, who are some of the bands
off the top of your head, who are some of the bands if I
if I mentioned if I say the word drama, who are some of the
the legendary bands that have had the most drama happen within them? Kiss?
Okay, kiss comes to mind, right, yep, yep. And I
mentioned Fleetwood Mac a few moments ago. Yeah, yep, yep, yep.
That's another one. And of course has another band that has had Motley
oh lots of drama there. Yet we've talked about that on the show.
Lots of drama there. There's a whole book about it called The Dirt about
all the Motley Crue drama. Metallica some drama there. They have a great
documentary which Eric review Journey one week on the show. Uh, some kind
of monster about Metallica Journey. Yep, they've had some legal drive. I
don't even think they talked about last couple of ye. I know they share
the stage, but don't actually speak to each other. Jonathan Kane. I
think they talked about their lawyers or something bizarre like that. Jonathan Kane and
Neil Sean. Yeah, I don't think they actually speak to each other.
They just uh the play, which I've always thought that that's gonna be so
weird, like being in a band with someone and not even speaking to them.
I remember seeing a documentary once about the Beach Boys, and there was
a period where the band had essentially split. And this was like at their
commercial peak. The band had essentially split into two factions. One was the
Mike Love faction and the other was the Brian Wilson faction. And and and
they would actually enter the stage from opposite sides because they didn't want to,
Like, how does a band even function that way? It's always been fascinating
to me, like, how do you how do you write a set list?
Maybe you have one person who's in charge of writing a set list.
You can't all have input. If you can't even have a conversation through the
lawyers, you know, they just pass it around and agree to know,
we're not going to do this after that or whatever. Maybe the two All
of those dramas, though, are within bands that we've brought up. This
is not a drama within the band, well there is, so of course
we're talking about the Eagles, and the Eagles so much drama historically in that
band that when they did their reunion in the mid nineties, they called it
hell Freeze Is Over. I think it was ninety four, and they did
the Hell Freezes Over tour, and then of course that wasn't the end of
the drama. There ended up being more drama with Don Felder getting fired from
the band and so forth, so it never truly ends. Also, some
intense personalities and Don Henley, about whom this latest bit of drama seems to
center around, known for having a particularly intense personality by the way, are
you an Eagles fan? Because Eagles I always did like the Eagles me too,
But they're one of those bands that people who don't like, well,
they're kind of like kissing this sense, you know how, you know how
with kiss, like people who don't like kiss really don't like kiss, like
really hate them. Like. I've never met anyone who simply doesn't like kiss
they like like, I've only met people who either really like kiss or really
hate kiss. I feel like the Eagles is like that too, Like people
who don't like the Eagles really hate the Eagles. You've seen the Big Lebowski,
right, Yes, yeah, you know, and there's a whole thing
in there about how much he hates the Eagles. Yeah, I personally I
love the Eagles. I'm a dudast priest. What do you mean? Oh,
yes, from the Sorry that took me a second. Took me a
second. Still, I used to doing this in the morning. My brain
isn't but it's different. This is not within the band. Yeah. Oh,
by the way, we have to say hello to Chris Porri or our
friend Chrispy, who's a Facebook live chat Hello, buddy, he's he's isn't
he supposed to be coming on the show at some point. He will yes,
good, good, good, when he's ready, I'm bringing them in.
Last time we saw him was at an event at the hopknot that's true.
That's true. So, yeah, there's some weird legal drama involving Don
Henley. And uh, this is uh this story is from Billboard dot com.
Uh. And again, I didn't know this was going on until because
apparently this has been going on for a little while. But there's a new
wrinkle. But I this had completely gotten past me until you brought it to
my attention this morning. I wouldn't call it a wrinkle. I'd call it
a bit of a crater. Yeah. So, uh, Eagles. This
is the article Eagles Stolen Notes trial ends suddenly after judge says Don Henley manipulated
prosecutors. Yes, I we got to spill the T. Yeah, spill
the t. That is what the young people say, Yes, it says.
The abrupt end came after prosecutors revealed the newly disclosed evidence from Henley cast
out on whether the Eagles notes had been stolen in the first place. Now,
and I'm just getting familiar with this story. We're we're just getting familiar
with this story. Uh as well, because Jenny didn't know it. You
didn't know until this morning that any of this was going on either right now.
No, that's not true. I actually knew about the case being dropped,
but I didn't know why. And now that I know the why,
it's like, really, yeah, you can't. You can't trust that dastardly
done Henley. I like the judge it monished them. I like the Eagles,
but I've never trusted them. See, and everybody goes to Hotel California,
and I was already not that I don't like Hotel California, but my
go to song was always Desperado. Yeah, I never liked a Desperado.
I liked that, and uh, Hotel California. I liked it when I
was a kid, but after the seven millionth time of hearing it, I
was over it. I can't tell you why is my favorite Eagles song?
Why can't you tell me? I can't tell you why that's my favorite Eagles
song? What song? I can't tell you? Why won't you tell me?
I can't tell you why? That's not nice? I want to.
I know I can't tell you why, but that is my favorite Eagles song.
So I can't tell you why. Manhattan prosecutors made the stunning decision Wednesday,
March sixth to drop a criminal case against three men accused of trying to
sell stolen notes linked to the eagles nineteen seventy six album Hotel California, with
a judge saying Don Henley had manipulated prosecutors. At a hearing Wednesday, a
New York judge dismissed the charges after prosecutors alerted him that newly uncovered evidence cast
out on whether Henley's notes had been stolen in the first place. The court
offense advanced by Glenn Horowitz, Craig In INCRTI, and Edward Kazinski. The
disclosures came midway through a closely watched criminal trial against the three men, in
which Henley and longtime Eagles manager Irving Azoff, who's a legend in the music
industry or Irving as Off, had already testified. The proceedings had already run
more than two weeks and had been expected to keep going until at least next
week. The sudden reversal was sparked by Henley producing new evidence that had previously
had been previously withheld under attorney client privilege. The new materials touched on whether
a journalist tired in the nineteen seventies to write a book about the Eagles Ed
Sanders had legitimately come into possession of Henley's notes. At a hearing in open
court on Wednesday, Justice Curtis Farber sharply criticized Henley and Azof's conduct. Quote
it is now clear that both witnesses and their lawyers used the privilege to obfuscate
and hide information that they believed would be damaging to their position that the lyric
sheets were stolen unquote. The judge said he was also troubled that prosecutors had
been quote manipulated into bringing the charges. In questioned why they had not more
thoroughly vetted the accusations and the evidence, but he praised them for dropping the
case once new evidence had come to light. Now, by the way,
is it possible that, uh, there was no manipulation here, but the
prosecutors were merely big fans of the Eagles now or perhaps Don Henley's solo work.
Uh uh, you know, Building the Perfect Beasts is a great album,
and that was in case. They wouldn't have dropped the case. They
would keep going because I have to tell you, like if I were,
if I were some sort of prosecutor and Gene Simmons came to me and said,
hey, I gotta, I gotta, I want to press charges,
I'd be like, whatever you want to do, dude, let's do it.
Stop is Gene Simmons of kiss of Kiss? Maybe you'll call in one
of these mornings, stop it one of these morning. No, see,
now I'm mixing. This is an interesting situation because it's not often that you
see prosecutors pulling their own case and going, oh no, we're not going
to prosecute anymore. Yeah, so you know, it's pretty damning. And
this is information that Henley and his attorneys kept from prosecutors, kept from the
court, and that information was damning to them, which is why the judge
was admonishing them. You're not supposed to do that, not supposed to hide
stuff. No, they used the attorney client privilege as their foundation to keep
these documents private. But apparently something happened that I don't know if it forced
their hand to whatever, that they had to give these documents over and the
prosecutors are going, oh, wait a minute, here, if this is
right. Nobody ever sold anything it says you're. In a statement to Billboard
following Wednesday's hearing, Henley's attorney Dan Petrocelli said, quote, the attorney client
privilege is a foundational guardrail in our justice system and rarely, if ever,
should you have to forsake it to prosecute or defend a case. As the
victim in this case, mister Henley has once again been victimized by this unjust
outcome. He will pursue all his rights in the civil courts unquote. The
Manhattan DIA's office declined to comment. Horowitz, a rare book dealer in Siarti,
a curator at the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, and Kazinski,
a memorabilia auctioneer, were all charged in twenty twenty two with conspiracy over accusations
that they tried to resell and hide the origin of the handwritten notes penned by
Henley during the creation of Hotel California. Manhattan DA attorney Alvin Bragg, we've
heard his name and connection with other cases. We won't talk about it,
you have said. The trio had quote made up stories about the origin of
the documents, and they're right to possess them so they could turn a profit
unquote. But the three men always maintained that they had done nothing wrong their
core argument. Okay, so now we're getting into the heart of the matter.
You see what I did there, Yeah, trying to get down to
the heart of the matter. That's one of my favorite Don Henley songs.
See, I'm telling you. If I were a prosecutor and Don Henley came
to me, I'd be like, let's let's get these guys. You shouldn't
be one, that's right, you know, people have like these rights things.
I know, but I'd be more interested in my fandom of Don Henley
and the Eagles. Apparently we see that selfishness in you. I would not
have the discipline to uh not uh will you don't have a discipline. We
know this now if Joe Walsh came to be. If Joe Walsh came to
be, I'd be a little bit more suspicious because, uh that song Life's
been good. I never cared for it. Wow. Yeah, that's why
you're judge. If Joe Walsh wanted to bring charges against somebody, I'd be
like, uh no, you're terrible, We're not doing that. Go go
get me, Don Henley, that's why are you judgemental? Well, it's
uh, you know, we are talking about legal matters. Oh is that
change your perspective? Yes? So, so their core argument that the alleged
theft Sanders said legally obtained them. This is their core argument. Sanders legally
obtained them in the nineteen seventies in the process of writing a never released book
about the Eagles. If the notes were never stolen, the three argued,
how could they be charged with re selling stolen property? Okay? So in
other words, so, if I understand this correctly, In other words,
if Don Henley willingly gave the notes here, yeah, to take these because
you're going to write this book. Yes, although that means they're not stolen
because you hand them over, And if you never sell them to anybody else,
then how can you be criminally prosecuted for selling stolen property? Is that's
what the charge is. It does seem like it would be unethical though,
if maybe not illegal, But and there's more of this, we'll get to
it. But just as we're going through it, well, but if they
tried to if they tried to sell the documents they had, because the thing
is, if somebody. So if somebody gives you something for the purpose of
writing a book, and then you never write the book, and then you
say, well, I'm just gonna take these and sell them, that that
seems really that that would be, that would be I would think criminal.
Well, I don't think it's I wouldn't think it would be criminal. In
other words, words, if Henley gave him the documents and said here these
are so you can write your book, and the book never gets written,
but Henley gave that property to that author or prospective author, and then so
he gave that so they're now the property of the author. If Henley gave
them then gave them the author, I argue that they are not the profit
property of the author. If the information was given for the expressed purposes that
I'm hiring you to write this book. Here are the documentation and you never
give them back, does it necessarily mean you have the right to sell them.
I would say definitely that that's your argument means to me, it would
be unethical to try to sell those documents, completely unethical, but not necessarily
illegal. If Henley gave If Henley takes his property and said here, I'm
giving this to you so, and that now becomes the property of the author.
That may be where the hang up is. So is it illegal.
I wouldn't think it would be illegal, but I do think it would be
highly unas thickle that well, yeah, something something gonna be unethical, but
not necessarily. You're hired for an express purpose and your given documentation for that
express purpose. I'm assuming there would be a contract there that spells out what
he's doing, you would think. But remember this was during the the process
of doing. That doesn't mean you have the right to and there may there
may not have been any kind of a contract. I mean, remember this
was during the making of Hotel California. These guys were all coked up.
No no, no, no no no no no no no, no,
no no no. This is about not the writing part, but about giving
these documents over to a writer who was hired to write a book. But
the book was never published. Right, That doesn't mean it wasn't written,
doesn't mean it wasn't even finished. Right, could have been totally finished,
ready to go to print, and they pull the plug on it and say
we're not going to do that. That's what he was given. These documents,
which does are yeah, even if that doesn't give him the right to
then sell them. I come to you, you're a cake baker, and
I come in with a photograph. I want this photograph on this cake,
and it's somebody famous, and I want you to copy this picture, but
I don't want you to do anything else. Do you have the right to
take that picture and then sell it and try to profit on it. Doesn't
that picture still belong to me. I've only given it to you for the
purpose of making that picture on that cake. But see, then we get
into and again, by the way, neither of us are legal experts.
Might feel free to chime in, so if anyone is yeah, six O
three two five, six seven, But I would think so in the example
that you just gave again, it would be completely unethical for someone under those
circumstances to then take that property and try to sell it. But is that
is that a criminal matter? Is that really a criminal matter or is it
a civil matter? At that point, it's a criminal matter if you took
something that didn't belong to you and you then sold it, which is what
this case was about, taking those those documents and then selling them to turn
a profit. But that's not what happens. Yeah, in this instance,
they did have it, but they never actually sold it to anyone. So
you can't be convicted of selling stolen property if you never actually sold it.
But they tried, right, I don't know if they tried or not,
because isn't that the whole point they tried to Because if you try, I
mean, you know, you know, trying but not succeeding doesn't doesn't help
you. I mean, you can well just because you out you can.
You can try to rob a bank, but that's without selling. That's still
the you. No, that's different. You can't. You can't put robbing
a bank and conflate that into what I'm just I'm just saying. I'm just
saying if you try, if you try to do something illegal but you don't
succeed, that doesn't get you off the hook and anything. I'm just saying,
you can't get prosecuted for selling stolen property if you never sold the stolen
property. Well, no, but you could get you could get tempting.
Well, yeah, that's that's my point. But in this but they but
but they specifically point out that the reason part of the reason why these charges
were dropped was because the notes were never stolen, They were handed to the
writer and then they never how could they be Okay, oh, maybe I'm
wrong about this now that I'm looking at it and thinking about it. If
the notes were never stolen, then if they did sell them, they wouldn't
be stealing. They wouldn't be selling stolen property. They would simply be stolen
property that was within there. Well that was my point, but that's not
so starting to think you're right and I'm wrong on this. So that to
me is not a criminal matter, but it but it could be a civil
But a civil matter if if Henley says, wait a minute, you're trying
to sell this property that I gave to you for the express purpose of writing
a book that never came out, and now you're trying to sell that,
that would be a civil matter. Right. Henley could then say, well,
I'm going to assue you because you're trying to sell property that I that
I gave you specific purpose, and now you're trying to profit off of that.
Right h Yeah. See, this is why I'm thinking you're pro I
think you're right. I think that because they never they were handed over willingly,
they were never stolen, right and then if it's just happening in nineteen
seventy that those notes were actually handed over, we're now sitting here in twenty
twenty four. Yeah, I mean how far? How long do you have
something in your possession before it becomes yours? Isn't possession nine tenths of the
law anyway, So maybe it's been so long he had it, if he
did sell it, is it even criminal or is it even unethical if he's
had it in nineteen seventy? Yeah, well, there is that. I
mean, yeah, I think it's I think it's unethical to do that regardless
of time. But that, but the mentioning of time does bring up something
else that I'm thinking about too, is and it's it's a similar thought to
excuse me, it's a similar thought to when we were talking about the months
ago the Darryl Hall versus John Oates lawsuit, and we were talking about how,
you know, these guys are in their mid to late seventies, is
this what you know? Is this how they want to end? You know,
Don Henley is seventy six years old. I mean, if I were
seventy six years old and already had more money than I could ever spend I
don't know if I'd want to be spending time in court trying to sue somebody
out of making money off of something I had done. I mean, I
guess maybe it's a matter of pride or principle, but at seventy six,
I you know, just this, Don Henley, Relaxn't this a nefarious side
in the in this as well? When you look at what the judge had
said a review he said, quote A review of these newly discosed materials has
demonstrated a highlight mister Henley and mister asov use of the privilege to shield themselves
from a thorough and complete cross examination was said by Justin farmer So. In
other words, because they withheld this information, the defense didn't get to cross
examine them on it, didn't even get to know about it. So they're
shielding themselves by keeping this close to the chest and not sharing the information when
legally they had the legal what's the word I'm looking for requirement to disclose this
information. They had no right to keep it secret under the guise of client
attorney privilege, which is what they were doing. So the judges can olderly
admonishing them for doing that. Because not only did they prevent important information from
being released, but they also prevented the defense from being able to face their
accuser. Yeah, it says here again. This is from Billboard. The
trial kicked off last month with In's attorney telling the judge the prosecutors had disorted
the history to charge innocent men and the DA's office would be apologizing at the
end of this case. Henley later testified that he had not willingly given away
the notes, saying they were quote something very personal, very private, unquote.
So it sounds to me like Henley and asof and their attorneys are trying
to make it sound like these notes were stolen when actually he sounds like he
gave it to them and forgot and never retrieved them. Well, again,
it's it's an indelicate way of putting it, but but I do think it's
valid. These guys, again, the Eagles during the making of Hotel California.
Who knows what the hell they did or can remember correctly or not.
They were all cooked up. I'm not And and again it's it's an indelicate
way of putting it, but it's just true. But you know what I
mean, you think there's something in those papers that he doesn't want out there.
No, I'm just saying, I'm just saying, who knows what?
Who knows what conversations were had between Don Henley and back at nineteen and with
this and this guy. I mean, who knows you even realized that he
gave it to the writer with it at the time, Right, that's my
I get that, I get that, But no matter what the situation was
in that moment, it sounds like he just left the paperwork with the guy.
Right, They never went back to the writer and said give me back
my notes. Who knows, who knows just kind of shoved it all to
him, write me this book. And then somewhere along the line, dude
goes, I got your book, and he goes, never mind. Yeah,
that sounds like exactly what happened, because it never was actually published,
it says here. On Wednesday's hearing, Justice Curtis said that Henley had recently
handed over more than six thousand new pages of emails and other disclosures that contained
new information about how Sanders came to own the notes. Such jarringly late disclosures
violated Horowitz in CRT and Kazinski's constitutional rights. The judge said, yeah,
six thousand. Come on, it's not like it's a single six thousand documents.
Wow, that's an awful lot to be keeping secret it. Yeah,
especially where obviously it was information that should have been provided under the disclosure of
our rules, it says. An a statement to Billboard, horowitz Is attorney
Jonathan back Bach said, quote, we are glad the DA's office made the
right decision and finally dropped this case. It never should have been brought.
Mister Horowitz looks forward to carrying on with his important work. Unquote well regardless.
I mean again, I'm not any kind of illegal expert. Just as
a layman, it sounds to me like this this was, if anything,
a civil case, not a criminal one. Oh, these guys could have
been facing real jail time. Yeah. Keeping that paperwork is literally put three
people's lives in jeopardy. That's pretty hard, man, that's pretty bad.
Yeah, so you're gonna have a lot of hate in your hat to want
to ruin people's lives like that. I wonder what's in that book. What's
in that never released book? Hmmm, Yes, we'll probably never know.
I was looking to see if there was any kind of other update. But
again it's like, you know, this is the really reason this just happened.
Ye, just this past week was the case officially dismissed. And it's
really it's also very telling when you look at it, because it's not the
judge who dismissed the case. It's the prosecutors themselves who went to the judge
and said, we need to pull back on this. We need to get
rid of the charges. We're not going to prosecute now. I want to
go back. I can't imagine prosecutor is liking to drop criminal charges too much,
so this must have been interesting. Although Alvin Bragg got kind of has
a handsful. I do want to think if you want to go back to
uh. By the way, do you think Don Henley pays his lawyers?
Probably? I might have him confused with somebody else. Anyway. I don't
think he gets the way with not paying lawyers. I think there's only special
class for that. Just for context, I do want to go back to
there's a story here. This is from February twentieth, and this might add
some context to what we're looking at now, which is the latest update.
This is from the AP News. This is from February twentieth, But this
kind of explains the foundation of the trial. Story titled Welcome to the Hotel
California case, the trial over handwritten lyrics to an Eagles classic. It says,
here in the mid seventies, Eagles, we're working on a spooky,
cryptic news song. On a lined yellow pad, Don Henley, with input
from band co founder Glen Fry, jotted thoughts about a dark desert highway and
a lovely place with a luxurious surface and ominous undertones and something on ice,
perhaps caviar or tatinger does that any say that? Or a pink champagne.
The song Hotel California became one of rock's most indelible singles, and nearly half
century later, those handwritten pages of lyrics in the making have become the center
of an unusual criminal trial set to open and on Wednesday. So again,
remember this is from February twentieth. Rare book dealer Glenn Horowitz, former Rock
and Roll Hall of Famer curator Craig mcarti I finally figured out how to say
his name, thank you, and memorabilia seller Edward Kazinski are charged with conspiring
to own and try to sell manuscripts of Hotel California and other Eagles hits without
the right to do so. The three have pleaded not guilty, and their
lawyers have said the men committed no crime with the papers, which they acquired
via a writer who'd worked with the Eagles. But the man okay, so
so they these guys are not the writer. None of these guys are the
writer of the book. They're claiming they got these from the writer. So
we should clarify that because I wasn't clear on that myself. I didn't I
wasn't clear on that either. So none of these three guys are the author
of the book. They're they're they're all saying that they got they they came
into possession of the notes from the writer of the so they have to prove
that the writer didn't steal them. Yeah, all right, now we're getting
Clara. Here we go. But it says but the Manhattan DIA's office says
the defendants connived to obscure the document's disputed ownership despite knowing that Henley said the
pages were stolen. Clashes over valuable collectibles abound, but criminal trials like this
are rare. Many fights are resolved in private, in lawsuits or with agreement.
Surtur in the items like I was saying, like it being a civil
matter, not a criminal one. Right. Travis McDade, a University of
Illinois law professor who studies rare document disputes said quote, if you can avoid
a prosecution by handing over the thing, most people just hand it over unquote.
Of course, the case of the Eagles manuscripts is distinctive in other ways
too. The prosecutor star witnesses. Indeed that Henley is expected to testify between
Eagles tourist stops. The non jury trial could offer a peek into the band's
creative process and life in the fast lane of the seventies of seventies. Stardom
at Issue are over eighty pages of draft lyrics from the blockbuster nineteen seventy six
Hotel California album, including words to the chart topping Grammy winning title cut.
It features one of classic rock's most recognizable riffs, best known solos, and
most oft quoted, arguably over quoted lines you can check out any time you
like, but you can never leave. Henley has said the song is about
the dark underbelly of the American Dream. It's still streamed over two hundred twenty
million times and got one hundred and thirty six thousand radio spins last year in
the US alone. According to the entertainment data company Luminant, the Hotel California
album has sold twenty six million copies nationwide over the years, bested only as
bested only by an Eagle's Greatest Hits disc in Michael Jackson's Thriller. The pages
also include lyrics from songs including Life in the fast Lane and New Kid in
Town. Eagles manager Irving Azoff has called the documents irreplaceable pieces of musical history.
Horrowitz, INCRT, and Kazinski are charged with conspiracy to possess stolen property
and various other offenses. They're not charged with actually stealing documents, nor is
anyone else, but prosecutors will still have to establish that the documents were stolen.
The defense maintains that's not true, and I think that's where the rub
is. How do you prove that the documents were stolen? Much turns on
the Eagles interactions with Okay, this is the context I was looking for.
Much turns on the Eagles interactions with Ed Sanders, a writer who also co
founded the nineteen sixties counterculture rock band The Fogs. Fugs got to be careful
how I say that on the air. He worked in the I don't even
want to pronounce it the way I think it's supposed to be pronounced, because
again, we're on FM radio. He worked in the late seventies and early
eighties on an authorized Eagles biography that was never published. Sanders is not charged
in the case. A phone message seeking comment was left for him. He
sold the pages to Horowitz, who then sold them to INCRTI and Kazinski.
Okay, so the writer ed Sanders. He took those documents and he sold
them to Horowitz, one of the three guys who was charged, who then
sold them to the other two guys who are charged. Horowitz has handled huge
rare book and archive deals, and he's been entangled in some ownership spats before,
one involved papers linked to Gone with the Wind author Margaret Mitchell that was
settled INCIARTI worked on notable exhibitions for the Cleveland based Rock and Roll Hall.
I'm sorry, rock Hall of Fame, not the Rock and Roll Hall of
Fame, the Rock Hall of Fame. Kazinski has been a principal and gotta
have it collectibles known for auctioning celebrities personal possessions, so personal that Madonna unsuccessfully
sued to try to stop a sale that included her latex briefs. If only
we note about that when we did the Madonna segment. Yes, those were
auctioned off apparently, Uh, Henry, well, you know I know what
anybody wait, listen, it's Madonna. She don't care what anybody's used son
to Madonna. It's Madonna, though you don't know that, Yes, I
do not Madonna. She does. Everybody does. How dare you? She
is named after the mother of our Lord. I don't think so. There
is an R E M song about that. I think everybody fus. Henley
told a grand jury that he never gave the biographer of the lyrics, according
to court filings from Kazinski's lawyers, but defense lawyers have signaled that they planned
to probe Henley's memory of the time. We believe that mister Anley voluntarily provided
the lyrics to mister Sanders unquote, Attorney Scott Edelman said in court last week.
Now, by the way, so Henley's not claiming that these three guys
stole anything. He's claiming that the author ed Sanders, is the one who
stole and they have possession of a stolen property. But possessing stolen property is
a crime, and what were they trying to sell it? So were they
trying to sell them? Yeah? Apparently yes, so stolen property, so
they're trying to sell them. So now that we have more context, now
I'm starting to flip back to saying, maybe this I can see why.
I can see why this was considered a criminal case and not civil because if
there is alleged theft involved, right, but he was hiding six thousand ages
of documentation, right. That apparently refutes that and insists that they willingly gave
the documents to the writer intending on having a book about them. Yeah,
and then squshed the book and never took back their documents. Yeah. I
mean, if the charges were probably against these guys until twenty twenty two,
for all we know, there could be something in those emails about, you
know, a conversation they had at Studio fifty four. I don't that they
were emails at Studio fifty four, no, but I'm saying maybe referencing a
conversation they had at Studio fifty four about the lyrics or something that Don Henley
now can't remember something, or previous documents from like long ago that they maybe
from starting the book. Talk because back in the day when poly C and
I used to hang out at Studio fifty four with Share and all that,
I think I remember seeing Don Henley there. That's a little bit inside.
But if you're a if you're a WMNH devote you know reference please Sanders sold
Horowitz in two thousand and five that while working on the Eagles book, he
was sent whatever papers he wanted from Henley's home in Malibu, California. According
to the indictment, Wait a minute, though, Yeah see, yeah,
what do you mean, Wait a minute? What? So he says,
so he was sent whatever he needed for the book. Basically, uh huh.
If I were if I were an author, if I were working on
a book for somebody and they were sending me papers, I wouldn't just assume,
well, these are mine to do whatever I want with. Correct.
But if you've had them in your possession since nineteen seventy, how long in
your possession right until they've become yours and you are able to get rid of
them right or right? Are you ever able to do that right? That's
an interesting conundrum, it says. Then Kazinski's business offered some pages at auction
in twenty twelve. Henley's attorneys came knocking, and Horowitz and Crdy and Sanders,
in varying combinations, began batting around alternate versions of the manuscript's providence.
The indictment says, yeah, interesting, it sounds so, according to the
indictment, they tried to muddy the waters about you know how these doctors by
the way, But once again, though just from Don Henley's perspective, and
I understand pride and principle and all that, but this seventy six year old
man, who's already extremely wealthy, if he gets if he stops this from
happening, what what does he get out of it? Financially? Nothing?
Right, But if somebody else, unless he's looking to regain regain the control
over those papers, get him back and then he can sell them himself for
more money. But he's probably not going to sell him He probably just wants
him back. How do you know that? Well, I don't know that
money out But that's why he's doing the lawsuit. The first one. But
if somebody else can sell him, there might be an Eagles fan who wants
to spend the month. I mean's just what diehard Eagles fan would want to
have, right, So at a certain point, what's it matter? Again?
I'm just saying, why does this guy want to go? Why does
Don Henley want to do all that? Now, by the way, publicity
out of it. I do understand why in one sense. Because I do
understand why in one sense because he is Don Henley, and this is consistent
with everything that we've heard over the years about him as a person. In
his personality has he always been a loss, not necessarily re ligious, but
he's known for having a very prickly personality. I really don't know much about
the man. I just know some of the music. I mean, I'm
a fan of his music. But there have been some pretty consistently some unpleasant
things said about him as a person. He's never been a nice guy as
far as I can tell, just from what people say about him. I'm
trying to think of something nice that someone's ever said about Don Henley, and
nothing leaps to mind. That's terrible as a person, that's terrible. Yeah,
that's just my impression. I don't know, that's just my impression.
It says in one story, Sanders found the pages discarded in a backstage dressing
room. In others, he got them from a stage assistant or while amassing
quote a lot of material related to the Eagles from different people unquote, And
yet another story, he obtained them from Glenn Fry, an account that quote
would make this go away once and for all unquote, Horowitz suggested in twenty
seventeen, but then Glenn Fry died the year before Wow twenty sixteen, Glenfry
died. Quote. He merely needs gentle handling and reassurance that he's not getting
that he's not going to the can unquote. Horrorwitz emailed nclady during a twenty
twelve exchange about getting Sanders explanation shaped into a communication to auctioneers. The indictment
says Sanders supplied or signed off on some of the varying explanations. According to
the indictment, and it's unclear what he may have conveyed verbally, but he
apparently rejected at least the dressing room tale. And by the way, that's
something that's that we've heard you know, like the Beatles, for example.
You know somebody picks up lyrics, handwritten lyrics or notes left behind in a
dressing room or backstage, you know, at a at a concert or in
a recording studio, just somebody leaves something behind, somebody else picks it up.
Who really owns it? At that point? You know? Is it
stealing? If somebody leaves something behind and it doesn't look like they care about
it and you pick it up, is that is that theft? I mean,
it is unethical, I think if you're oh, yeah, but if
in that in that situation. But Kazinski, Uh, I'm gonna skip down.
This gets pretty in depth. But okay, so I'm gonna skip down
a little bit. But Sotheby's listed the Hotel California song lyrics in a twenty
sixteen auction, but withdrew them after learning the ownership wasn't question. Yeah,
because Southeby's doesn't want to end up in any kind of legal He's he apparently
does go after everything. I'm looking at some notations from someone else who's saying
you can rarely find any of the Eagles on his or his solo material on
YouTube. When a video of their music gets uploaded, it's quickly removed.
He's strict about not allowing people to take pictures of videos at Eagle concerts.
Yeah. He also doesn't seem to like people who his music in public places.
Wow. Yeah, he's that's his reputation. That's all consistent with everything
that we know about Don Henley. The worst of the worst examples of him
being overprotective include that one time when he sued because of a hotel in Mexico
that had the name Hotel California. He also sued Deluth Trading Company because of
a T shirt containing the words don Uh Henley and take it Easy, and
even sued a foundation that helps protect Eagles in America because he felt they were
infringing on the band's name. He wasn't happy about Frank ocean sambling Hotel California
and went as far as to call him a cussword and attack him. Despite
his popularity at the time, Eagles shows are also some of the most expensive
ticket wise, Yes, especially for a band that hasn't released a new single
in thirty years. Wow, there was a I guess the reason this came
up. I guess was there was a video some old commercials that were removed
and got copyright strikes issued on YouTube because Henley's song New York Minute was used
for a few seconds in a promo for a TV show, which probably made
up about five percent of the entire video. Yeah. Yeah, apparently he's
quite quite the protective individual, for lack of a better term. Yeah,
and and you know, that's all fine in the sense that, look,
you should protect your intellectual property and so forth. But but at a certain
point, some of it seems a little petty, you know. Yeah,
But yeah, I think it's sad really that he is this protective, because
I think it hurts in the long run, like not having people listening to
your music on YouTube. Yeah, what's why not? Why wouldn't you want
your music to stay alive and in the public eye. Why be that,
Like, do you want it to the best way to fade something away is
to keep it out of the public eye. Yeah, well, I mean
then again, he may look at it as he never asked to worry about
that really, and neither do the Eagles, because look, you could probably
turn on Rock one O one right now and hear an Eagles song, you
know what I mean? Like, because of classic rock, the classic rock
radio format. They never really have to worry about it, and they'll always
be able to charge enormous sums of money for their tours, and so they
do have stuff on YouTube of them though, Yeah he must. He probably
just go finds one and goes after that one person and then finds somebody else.
Maybe that's how he passes his time. I think it's sad though,
I really do, because I mean I would I would think that an artist
would want their their music to never be forgotten and to have it be wide
and far. But I might be wrong. I mean I could be wrong
in this. I think it doesn't sound like anybody stole anything. It sounds
like they turned over stuff for a book and never took it back. Well
who knows, I mean, we don't know exactly what happened there. And
well we know he gave him the stuff in nineteen seventies, and there's no
evidence to prove that he's ever sued or anything to fight to get documents back.
Right, he didn't care about them until they turned up in somebody else's
possession. Yeah, So because you forgot something doesn't make it theft, right,
who's your responsibility to retrieve your belongings. It's not the other person's responsibility
to bring it to you in my opinion. Yeah, I don't know.
I'll be curious to see. So this has been dropped just to kind of
put a button on it. It's been dropped as a criminal matter. But
well that doesn't end it, because he is vowing to sue them civilly.
Yeah. Yeah, So we'll have to stay tuned to see if there's another
court case coming up. Well that's what you do, right, I mean,
if if it doesn't work out criminally, you know, you always have
that option. Yep. All right, Well we are uh, we are
approaching the top of the hour. I think we're gonna play another I'm gonna
play another song from another studio track from Temple Mountain, who was our amazing
guests in the first hour, and we'll take a break, show some love
to our amazing sponsors, and then we have an amazing guest. I assume
that's well, yes, in the waiting room, Casey Darren is here.
He's going to be joining us in the third hour, and is he playing
or excellent? Excellent? So we've got plenty more to come here on Matt
Connorton unleash. We are, of course, live from the studios of WM
and H ninety five point three a FM, which by the way, is
part of down. This is part of downtown Manchester. That's part of downtown.
I even posted from Downtown Manchester. If you don't know what I'm referring
to. We we finally settled that last night on Retrospectrum Radio because a number
of years ago here on WM and H there was there was some some disagreement
over what is down Is downtown Elm Street or is it Elm Street and the
surrounding area, And last night on Retrospectrum Radio, all the years later,
I finally I said, let's answer the question. And I found on the
official website for the city a definition of what is downtown and it was very
specific actually, but yes it does include we are still considered downtown Manchester,
even though we are now on Canal Street, because Canal Street is part of
downtown, not making it sound like it's secondary. Yes it is. We
are still there you go downtown. Still we are not still well, I
say still because if downtown were only Elm Street then we would no longer be
doing We don't move. I don't know what that was anyway, that weird
sound. I think that went out on the air. I hope it did,
because if it didn't, then people are going to think I'm hearing weird
noises and maybe have been saying maybe I'm crazy. All right, let's play.
We're gonna play another track from Schema. Is the name of the album.
The artist is Temple Mountain. This is called Resilience. And then we'll
show some love to our amazing sponsors, and then we'll be back. Who
knows, maybe Don Henley will sue us for something and we'll be back.
Casey Darren is here, it will be joining us, So don't go away.
Plenty more to come. Started with a phone call, hurt by all
the sounds. He claims he's good to you, but we all know the
truth. He's not around. And you think you understand me. You claim
to be so proud, but I see all the stress and brutes far away.
I hear you cry aloud. But there's something more you and I see
it every day. It's not your fault, so they do you just have
to look away away. You were in honest, and that's not alone.
But the one that told you knew how to play with sound. You were
in honest and I swear it's alive because all your mistakes were wit, mystery
or right. So you found yourself a doctor who encourages lies. Now I
found a doctor to and I'm the one who has to take a side.
And I never had respect for the way you look in pride. Now my
eyes are torn and bruised. I'll never truly see a clear outside. But
there's something more you and I see it every day. That's your fault,
they do you just have to look away away. You are no honest and
that's not allowed. For the one that told you you are to play with
sounds, you were an honest and I swear it's a lie because all your
mistakes were when this story arrived. So when I came to you, why
do you run away? And when I mane told you you never try and
stay? Oh, let the fire you nights. I'll still call tonight.
But there's something more you and I see it every day. It's not your
faults, are they do? You just had to look away away. You
weren't honest, and that's not allowed. But the one that told you knew
how to play with sounds, you were honest and that's just a lie because
all your mistakes were witness through your eyes. You weren't honest and that's not
allowed. For the one that told you knew how to play with sounds.
You weren't honest, and I swear that's lie because all your mistakes were witness of your