This is truly a geat album, especially once you get through the hits.  Okay, "Hotel California" is a deservedly great song in its own right and needs little explanation, but "New Kid in Town" And "Life in the Fast Lane" are simply boring.  The lyrics are kind of interesting but otherwise there's nothing memorable about them.  But once you get to "Wasted Time" and its "Reprise," the Eagles start singing some timeless ballads that are both clearly differentiable from each other and memorable.  True, none of these would have made it as a single, but "Pretty Maids All in a Row," "Try and Love Again," and "The Last Resort" join with "Wasted Time" to make this a seminal album of its generation.  These songs slow down the pace immensely and beautifully illustrate the emptiness of a superficial life with a superficial lifestyle lived in a superficial landscape.  The pathos tugs at the heartstrings.