Geovanny J. Berrios

History

Hotel California is an album released by the rock band Eagles in 1976.

Meaning Hotel California has seen many different

interpretations over the year. The band, more than once, confirmed that the song was about excess and materialism. Don Henley for instance said in the London Daily Mail “It was really about the excesses of American culture and certain girls we knew. But it was also about the uneasy balance between art and commerce”

The underlying theme of the song is the corruption and decadence of the Los Angeles music industry which is described as a prison that artists seek and freely enter [And she said ’we are all just prisoners here, of our own device’] to later discover that they cannot escape it anymore [But you can never leave!]

Colitas is a Spanish word translated to Henley by the Eagles Mexican-American road manager meaning “Little Buds,” and is a reference to marijuana.

What Hotel California does not mean

It is not a reference to Satan or the Church of Satan.

It is not about a real hotel with the (nick)name Hotel California.

Hotel California is not a mental hospital or prison.

Lyrics On a dark desert highway, cool wind

in my hairWarm smell of colitas, rising up through the airUp ahead in the distance, I saw a shimmering lightMy head grew heavy and my sight grew dimI had to stop for the nightThere she stood in the doorway;I heard the mission bellAnd I was thinking to myself,’this could be heaven or this could be hell’Then she lit up a candle and she showed me the wayThere were voices down the corridor,I thought I heard them say...

Welcome to the hotel californiaSuch a lovely placeSuch a lovely facePlenty of room at the hotel californiaAny time of year, you can find it here

Her mind is tiffany-twisted, she got the mercedes bendsShe got a lot of pretty, pretty boys, that she calls friendsHow they dance in the courtyard, sweet summer sweat.Some dance to remember, some dance to forget

So I called up the captain,’please bring me my wine’He said, ’we haven’t had that spirit here since nineteen sixty nine’And still those voices are calling from far away,Wake you up in the middle of the nightJust to hear them say...

Welcome to the hotel californiaSuch a lovely placeSuch a lovely faceThey livin’ it up at the hotel californiaWhat a nice surprise, bring your alibis

Mirrors on the ceiling,The pink champagne on iceAnd she said ’we are all just prisoners here, of our own device’And in the master’s chambers,They gathered for the feastThe stab it with their steely knives,But they just can’t kill the beast

Last thing I remember, I wasRunning for the doorI had to find the passage backTo the place I was before’relax,’ said the night man,We are programmed to receive.You can checkout any time you like,But you can never leave! 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-CyNU81lTJU&feature=related