When “Hotel California” was famous, Joe Walsh joined the Eagles in 1975. He developed a robust and enduring career as the band’s guitarist and keyboardist.
However, the guitarist had the worst experience a person could have before staying in the band for a long time.
He had a daughter named Emma while he married Stefany Rhodes from 1971 to 1978. The first year of their marriage saw the birth of Emma.
When Emma was killed in a car accident while driving her daughter to their favourite playground, North Boulder Park, she was only three years old. The toddler, who was three years old, suffered severe head injuries due to the careless driver’s failure to stop at the stop sign.
Emma’s life support was turned off the next evening after she sustained a severe head injury that day. Her parents began to go through the trauma that would last a lifetime as her organs were donated. The news that Walsh would never see his daughter again came as he left a tour.
This tragedy brought on the couple’s eventual separation and divorce. They both experienced loss and experienced grief in various ways. But Walsh’s suffering was hidden until he started writing songs about his feelings and looking for answers inside his head.
In 1974, he published “Song For Emma” to pay tribute to his daughter. The musician discussed his feelings after Emma died and how they relate to this song in a 2016 Rolling Stone interview. Indifferent to his own life, he was enraged at God.
He said these things.
I had recently gotten married and was residing in Boulder. My wife was driving our four-year-old daughter to school when a woman ran a stop sign and crashed into our vehicle. I also misplaced my daughter. And it was all covered in blood. “.
“My wife and I divorced and separated because we lacked the strength to get through the depressing events of the following year. But I did meet a girl there, and “Help Me Through the Night” was my song asking her to be there for me. She came because she realized I was in a mess and needed time to grieve Emma. ”.
These two songs are on my upcoming album, “So What,” which I named because I belonged to the “so what” school of thought. I was enraged. With God, I was furious. And I thought it was an excellent justification for drinking. “.
God bless you. By God’s will, I lost my daughter. I started thinking that this was the worst thing that had ever happened. I don’t think it matters. Only to support the idea that making mistakes was acceptable. “.
Walsh started to develop bad habits and looked to drugs and alcohol for solace. He still felt for her and erected a fountain in North Boulder Park in her honour.
He took Stevie Nicks there when they first started dating, and they grew close over their loss. He inspired Nick’s song “Has Anyone Ever Written Anything for You,” which was about a relationship built on drug and alcohol abuse.
The couple ended their marriage because, despite knowing better, they continued to support one another’s addictions. Nicks and Walsh spent the day together at the fountain, and Nicks referred to Walsh as the only man she truly believed she could marry and the love of her life.
