The Story Behind the Eagles Song Glenn Frey Wrote for His Daughter During a Difficult Time

After reuniting in 1994 and touring again during the early 2000s, the Eagles started working on their seventh release. Their first double album, Long Road Out of Eden, was also the band’s first new release in nearly 30 years since The Long Run and their final one with Glenn Frey.

For the album, Frey and Don Henley took their respective songwriting spots, co-writing the title track, “Busy Being Fabulous,” “What Do I Do with My Heart?,” “Fast Company,” “Frail Grasp on the Big Picture,” and “Center of the Universe.” Frey also penned several more tracks, including “It’s Your World Now” with Jack Tempchin and three more, solo, which would become some of the final songs he wrote for the Eagles before he died in 2016.

Released October 30, 2007, Long Road Out of Eden went to No. 1 on the Billboard 200, Country, and Rock charts. Several years later, Frey released his fifth and final solo album, After Hours, in 2012 and continued touring with the Eagles through 2015.

Along with “I Dreamed There Was No War” and “No More Cloudy Days,” two of the three tracks Frey wrote on his own for Long Road Out of Eden, the third was a more personal one for him.

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“You Are Not Alone”

When Frey welcomed his firstborn child, Taylor, in 1991 with his second wife, Cindy Millican, he was 42; the couple had two more children together, including Deacon in 1993, and Otis in 2002. Fatherhood opened Frey up to newer narratives when writing, including the disconnect and connection with a child.

“You Are Not Alone” was written for Taylor, who was going through a difficult time. Frey’s lyrics are written as a letter from a father to his child.

In it, Frey sings lead on the track and emphasizes his presence during her hardship.

Say goodbye to all your pain and sorrow
Say goodbye to all those lonely nights
Say goodbye to all your blue tomorrows
Now you’re standing in the light

I know sometimes you feel so helpless
Sometimes you feel like you can’t win
Sometimes you feel so isolated
You’ll never have to feel that way again

You are not alone
You’re not alone

Never thought I’d find the road to freedom
Never thought I’d see you smile again
Never thought I’d have the chance to tell you
That I will always be your friend

“[My teenage daughter Taylor] was going through a tough patch, and sometimes you can say in a song what you can’t in a sit-down conversation,” said Frey of the song. “I was thinking about how alienated and isolated a lot of kids feel.”

Photo: Brian Rasic/Getty Images