Wor d s of
Wisdom
R& R
36 | Rolling Stone | RollingStoneAus.com
Joe Walsh
On surviving his wild years, advice from a Buddhist monk,
and why the Eagles were a ‘democratic dictatorship’What are the best and worst parts of success?
Well, I never had to work in a factory, so that’s a blessing. The
worst part is the distractions: money, women, partying. When
you’re young it’s easy to lose your perspective. I started believing I
was who everybody thought I was, which was a crazy rock star. You
know, “Life’s Been Good”, that whole story. It took me away from
working at my craft. Me and a lot of the guys I ran with, we were
party monsters. It was a real challenge just to stay alive.
So many of your friends from that era – Keith Moon, John Belushi –
didn’t make it. How did you survive?
I wonder every day. People ask me if I believe in God, and I kinda
have to because I’m still here. I had not planned on living this long.
What are the most important rules you live by?
Family comes fi rst. I spent years as a loner. It was me against
the world, but now I have this family, which takes care of
me, and I take care of them. I’ve also learned not to let my
emotions own me. Don’t write e-mails when you’re pissed
off. You can write them, but don’t send them. Because the
next day you’re gonna go, “Oh, man, I did it again. What
an asshole I am.”
What’s the best advice you ever got?
A Buddhist monk told me to be aware of
every breath I take. He said, “If you do that,
you will stay in the moment. This will save
you wasted time digging something up
from the past or going into the future
and writing a script about the day
after tomorrow.” I also medi-
tate. Man, being in the mo-
ment is where it’s at.
Who are your heroes?
Les Paul was one of the
coolest people on the planet.
He invented the Les Paul
guitar, and he invented
modern recording as we
know it. He was in a
car accident, and they
said, “You’ll never play
again”, because he
broke his arm in four
diff erent places. He sat
down and started play-
ing and said, “All right,
set my arm like this. Put the
cast on now.”
What advice do you wish you received
about the music industry before you
began your career?
I wish somebody would’ve told
me, “Look, this is a business.” I just
thought it was an art form. The way
you define honesty in the music
industry is the guy that’s steal-
ing the least from you is honest.
Also, don’t sign anything. I’m
still sucking eggs from stuff I
signed when I was 23. Somebody should’ve sat me down and said,
“Look, it’s OK to be an idiot, but be a smart idiot.”
What’s the most indulgent purchase you ever made?
I always had this fantasy: “I’m gonna get some land and live off
the grid. I’m gonna hunt like Ted Nugent and chop my own wood.”
So when I got a nice royalty cheque from the Eagles, I found this
farm in Vermont with a lake and almost 800 acres. But then I had
to live on it, and it was hard. I had to get up at 5 a.m. because there
was so much to do. Chopping your own wood ain’t fun. The win-
ters ain’t fun. I couldn’t fi nd anybody to take care of the place, so I
sold it. Some things are better off being a
fantasy.
What’s your favourite book of all
time?
The Illustrated Man, by Ray
Bradbury. I was about 10 or 11
when I read that. Oh, my God,
it’s the most amazing book be-
cause it sucks you in. Inside the
book is about eight other books,
and each one of them is about
one of the guy’s tattoos and the
tattoos move around at night and
shit. Imagination and a book full
of books, what a concept.
You’re playing some shows with
the Eagles this year. It must be bitter-
sweet to be playing without Glenn Frey.
There’s all kinds of feelings mixed in,
but I think we’re gonna be really good.
Glenn’s son Deacon is joining the band.
How’s he doing?
He’s great. He has no attitude what-
soever. He just shows up and does it. I
wish more of us could be like that.
You described the Eagles as a “democ-
racy with two dictators”. Was that hard on
your ego?
Well, I joined their band. I would say that it
was a democratic dictatorship. How’s
that? We all got to vote and then
[Frey and Don Henley] did
whatever they wanted.
You famously ran for president
back in 1980. If you won, do you
think you would have done a bet-
ter job than Trump?
Yeah. That’s because of common sense.
I don’t think Trump really knows how
the government works, and I don’t
think he cares. Therefore, he’s not
gonna get much done. I think I know
how it works. I know how to live in
a complex decision-making organisa-
tion. For example, the band. We got stuff
done!
INTERVIEW BY ANDY GREENEIllustration by Mark Summers