Fans got a first sampling of what to expect on the Eagles‘ The Long Goodbye farewell tour, which kicked off on Thursday (September 7) at Madison Square Garden in New York City.
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Celebrating the band’s 50-plus year career, the 23-song setlist spanned the Eagles hits, including “Witchy Woman,” “Tequila Sunrise,” “Take It Easy,” and “Heartache Tonight.”
By the fourth song, the band dedicated “Take It to the Limit,” off their breakthrough 1975 album, One of These Nights, to their late bassist Randy Meisner, who died on July 26, 2023, at age 77. Written by Meisner, late guitarist Glenn Frey, who died in 2016 at the age of 67, and Don Henley, “Take It to the Limit” went to No. 4 on the Billboard Hot 100.
More than halfway into their set, the band also paid tribute to late friend and collaborator Jimmy Buffett, who died on Friday (September 1) at 76. The Eagles first met Buffett in 1975 when he opened for them with his Coral Reefer Band. Buffett later joined them on their Hotel California Tour in 1977 and sang backing vocals on “The Greeks Don’t Want No Freaks,” off the Eagles’ 1979 album The Long Run. In 1998, Buffett also inducted the Eagles into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame.
“Jimmy Buffett is now sailing on that cosmic ocean, having that cheeseburger with Glenn [Frey] and Randy [Meisner],” said Henley in reference to Buffett’s 1978 hit “Cheeseburger in Paradise,” and his late Eagles bandmates Frey and Meisner.
More About the Charity Single and “War Pigs”
Judas Priest and Osbourne’s “War Pigs” charity single is available now as a digital download and via streaming services. In addition, a CD single will be released on October 31, and can be pre-ordered at Judas Priest’s online store.
The original version of “War Pigs” was lead track of Black Sabbath’s second album, Paranoid. The song has served as the walk-on music at Judas Priest concerts for many years.
Judas Priest’s Upcoming Tour Plans
Judas Priest recently launched a joint U.S. tour with Alice Cooper. The trek kicked off on September 16 in Biloxi, Mississippi, and is plotted out through an October 26 show in The Woodlands, Texas. The group’s next concert takes place September 26 in Holmdel, New Jersey.
Judas Priest also is scheduled to perform at the 2026 Bloodstock Open Air festival in Burton Upon Trent, U.K.
