Remember When Three Eagles Helped Richard Marx’s Debut Single Soar in 1987?

Imagine you’re an up-and-coming singer-songwriter, and you’re putting together your debut single.  Could you picture a scenario where three musicians who played in what was once the biggest rock band in the world joined you in the studio?

That’s exactly what happened with Richard Marx. “Don’t Mean Nothing”, released in 1987 as Marx’s first single, included three Eagles, two of whom never played in the band together.

“Nothing” Happening

Richard Marx, like most up-and-coming musicians, understood rejection. Even before he’d found his footing as an artist, he’d placed his songs with top names such as Kenny Rogers. But when he pitched his demo tape around to different record companies, he didn’t get much response from the higher-ups.

Ironically, several of the songs on the demo ended up being huge hits once Marx secured a deal and had the chance to record them. When he finally had his contract in hand, he made the crucial decision to write some new songs instead of relying simply on what was there on the demo.

In fact, he wrote “Don’t Mean Nothing”, the song that he eventually released as his first single, just days after signing his deal. Bruce Gaitsch, a musician he knew from back in his hometown of Chicago, helped Marx with the music. Marx tackled the lyrics. They partly stemmed from some of the wrongs he endured while trying to make it in the music business. Little did he know his studio band would be as accomplished as they came.

Trio of Eagles

In the book Playing Back The 80s: A Decade Of Unstoppable Hits, Marx recounted to this author how he wanted to make a record with old-school instrumental values:

“I always wanted to make an organic band-oriented record. I had this wish list of musicians that I always wanted to work with, all these guys that I saw in the credits of all the records that I loved. The records were always made very organically with men and women in the room playing together.”

Marx and his record company swung for the fences in the instrumental department right off the bat. For “Don’t Mean Nothing”, the players included session aces like Nathan East and Michael Omartian, guys who could boast those standout credits to which Marx was referring.

On top of that, Marx secured the services of three guys who plied their trade with Eagles. Joe Walsh took lead guitar on “Don’t Mean Nothing”. And Randy Meisner and Timothy B. Schmit pitched in with backing vocals.

A Star-Studded Debut

The interesting thing about this lineup is that Meisner and Schmit never actually spent time together in Eagles. When Meisner decided he wanted to move on from the group, Schmit received the call to replace him. (Schmit had also replaced Meisner in Poco many years before that.)

Having these Eagles on the record was fitting. Who better than three guys from the ultimate California group to musically translate “Don’t Mean Nothing”, Richard Marx’s warts-and-all representation of dreamers trying to make it big in the unforgiving wilds of the West Coast?

(Photo by Paul Natkin/Getty Images)

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