This Weeks Forgotten Gem of the 80s Don Henleys You Cant Make Love

Although Eagles legend Don Henley has probably endured in the nearly three decades since its release more than a few titters and barbs from folks expecting this song to be about erectile dysfunction or similar middle-age male struggles, it's actually a great pop song with a strong romantic conceit typical of the artist. As a deep album track from Henley's 1984 smash sophomore solo LP Building the Perfect Beast, this tune received far too little attention during the '80s. Overshadowed by that record's generally deserving hit singles, this is a song that almost perfectly encapsulates Henley's transition from a major member of The Eagles, one of country rock's most important bands, to a solo artist interested in tweaking and perfecting the modern pop song.

Armed with perhaps a few too many toys and gadgets in the immediate aftermath of new wave's surprising popularity, Henley and his cast of famous and pedigreed supporting players were anything but shy about implementing layers of strings and synthesizers. Nevertheless, in his capable songwriting hands such possible sources of dilution don't reduce the potency of Henley's melodic sense. It's never been particularly hip for a music listener to profess admiration for heart-on-sleeve pop music like this (and hip I certainly wasn't when I was driving around in my 1979 Malibu Classic blaring this album on cassette during the late '80s), but Henley's singular gift has a knack for taking one's will away. That's a compliment even if it doesn't sound like it, and ultimately several of Henley's compositions and performances - including this one - manage to stand up remarkably well to the ravages of time. Alternate interpretations of this song's lyrics notwithstanding.

• Sample or download "You Can't Make Love" here.
• Compare prices on Don Henley CDs here.
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Album Cover Image Courtesy of Geffen