Eagles achieved their first US No. 1 single in 1974 with the gentle ballad “Best Of My Love”, despite having been trying to move towards a harder rock sound. The song’s success mattered because it showed the band that its country-rock and close-harmony roots remained commercially powerful, influencing how it balanced styles thereafter.

The track was written by Don Henley and Glenn Frey with JD Souther, and came from sessions overseen by original producer Glyn Johns. Johns was dismissed during the troubled making of On the Border after disagreements over the band’s direction, with Bill Szymczyk taking over; earlier singles “Already Gone” reached only the lower end of the Top 40, while “James Dean” failed to chart strongly.