1976 Hit Ranked the Second Best ‘American Rock Song’ of All Time Almost Had a Different Name

The Eagles’ “Hotel California” has been ranked the second best “American Rock Song” of all time by Ultimate Classic Rock.

The 1976 hit was the second single off of the Eagles’ 1976 album with the same name. Said album is one of the top 10 best selling albums of all time, according to BBC News.

Some people would argue that the iconic single is the best Eagles song of all time, as it sold more than 16 million copies in the U.S. alone. “Hotel California” was written by the late great Glenn Frey. Band members Don Henley and Don Felder also got writing credits for the track. The official music video for the song has more than 795 million views to date.

As for what the song is about, different people have different interpretations.

“It’s basically a song about the dark underbelly of the American dream and about excess in America, which is something we knew a lot about,” Henley said in a 2002 interview with 60 Minutes via ABC News. “We were all middle class kids from the Midwest. ‘Hotel California’ was our interpretation of the high life in L.A.”

Interestingly, “Hotel California” was initially titled “Mexican Reggae,” according to ABC News.

“Hotel California” isn’t the only Don Henley tune to make Ultimate Classic Rock’s list, either. “The Boys of Summer” is in the No. 15 spot. The track was recorded by Henley while the Eagles were disbanded. It was written by Henley and Mike Campbell. As it turns out, Campbell had Tom Petty demo the track, but, as the story goes, Petty wasn’t impressed with the “heavy use of synthesizers,” so he passed on it, per American Songwriter.