Appreciation: Glenn Frey led Eagles' easy sound

The music world suffered yet another loss Monday, as singer/songwriter/guitarist Glenn Frey, a founding member of the Eagles, died at 67 of complications from rheumatoid arthritis, acute ulcerative colitis and pneumonia.

Frey's voice — not as soulful or fluid as fellow Eagle Don Henley's, but forthright and appealing in its mix of smoothness and grit — was the one Eagles fans heard singing lead on hits such as Take It Easy, Tequila Sunrise, New Kid in Town, Heartache Tonight, Already Gone, Lyin' Eyes and Peaceful Easy Feeling.

Frey also wrote or co-wrote a number of its biggest singles, including Hotel California,One of These Nights and Desperado, three classics he crafted with Henley. (Don Felder wrote the music for Hotel California.)

The Eagles were formed by Frey and Henley, along with bassist Randy Meisner and guitarist Bernie Leadon, in 1971, after the four met as members of Linda Ronstadt's band. The following year, the Eagles released an eponymous debut album that won recognition for its breezy, country-infused sound -- which many fans would become redolent of Calfornia, where Frey had, after moving to Los Angeles in the 1960s, honed his chops alongside the likes of J.D. Souther (Ronstadt's boyfriend for a while) and Jackson Browne (Frey's co-writer on Take It Easy).

The Eagles' success and ambition rose steadily in the years that followed, as the band incorporated both harder textures and more searching themes while sustaining the glistening harmonies and graceful, rootsy foundation that endeared them to both pop and country fans. The lineup evolved, too, as Don Felder and Timothy B. Schmitjoined their ranks, as did Joe Walsh, who replaced Leadon on guitar. (Meisner left as well, in 1977.)

There was friction, and the band broke up in 1980, but reunited in 1994, for an album cheekily titled Hell Freezes Over, consisting of live tracks performed for an MTV special and a few new tracks. The band has toured periodically since, remaining one of rock's most reliably hot tickets. Henley noted, in a statement released after Frey's death was announced, "We brought our two-year History of the Eagles tour to a triumphant close at the end of July and now he is gone."

Frey was hardly idle in his time away from the group, embarking on a successful solo career in the 1980s. His song Smuggler's Blues inspired an episode of Miami Vice, in which Frey made his acting debut. Frey subsequently wrote the light jazz-tinged hitYou Belong to the City for the popular TV series, and had another big single with The Heat Is On, featured on the Beverly Hills Cop soundtrack. Frey contributed to other soundtracks and acted in other series, among them Wiseguy and Nash Bridges.

Frey's most recent album was a collection of other pop songs he loved, 2012's After Hours, which included pre-rock standards and tunes by Brian Wilson, Burt Bacharachand Randy Newman.

"I've written enough contemporary songs and spilled my soul and given my world view. I don't have anything to prove," he told USA TODAY at the time. But he added, "That's not to say that I don't have any songs left to write."

Henley, in his statement, said, "Rest in peace, my brother. You did what you set out to do, and then some.”