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Bernard Matthew Leadon III ( ; born July 19, 1947) is an American singer, musician, songwriter, and founding member of the Eagles, for which he was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1998. Prior to the Eagles, he was a member of three country rock bands: Hearts & Flowers, Dillard & Clark, and the Flying Burrito Brothers. He is a multi-instrumentalist (guitar, banjo, mandolin, steel guitar, dobro) coming from a Bluegrass music background. He introduced elements of this music to a mainstream audience during his tenure with the Eagles.
Leadon's solo career since leaving the Eagles has been sporadic, resulting in two albums under his name (the first being a collaborative project with Michael Georgiades) with a gap of 27 years in between. However, Leadon appeared on many other artists' records as a session musician.
He later met future Eagles lead guitarist Don Felder, whose band, the Continentals, had just lost guitarist Stephen Stills.
A call from ex-Squirrel Barker Larry Murray in 1967 to join his fledgling psychedelic country-folk group Hearts & Flowers brought Leadon to California, where he became involved with the burgeoning L.A. folk/country rock scene. Leadon recorded one album with the band, its second release, Of Horses, Kids, and Forgotten Women, for Capitol Records. The record was a local hit but failed to make much of a dent on the national album charts. Discouraged, the group disbanded the following year.
Upon the release of their debut album, Eagles, the group met with near instant success, due largely to the strength of their hit singles "Take It Easy", "Peaceful Easy Feeling" and "Witchy Woman" (the latter co-written by Leadon and Henley), all of which highlighted Leadon's multi-instrumental talent and harmony vocals. Their follow-up, Desperado, was another strong country-rock venture highlighted by the classics "Tequila Sunrise" and the title track. Leadon had a prominent role on the album but it was met by surprisingly lukewarm reviews and lackluster sales. As a result, the band attempted to distance itself from the "country rock" label for their third album On the Border. In doing so, Leadon encouraged the group to recruit his old friend, guitarist Don Felder, to the band. The result was the guitar-heavy top 40 hit "Already Gone". The album also included "My Man", Leadon's touching tribute to his old bandmate and friend Gram Parsons, who had died of a drug overdose the year prior at Joshua Tree National Monument in southeastern California.
With the wild success of On the Border and its follow-up smash, One of These Nights, tension within the band grew with some sources saying Leadon grew increasingly frustrated by the band's direction away from his beloved country and bluegrass toward album-oriented stadium rock. He famously quit the band in 1975 by pouring a beer over Glenn Frey's head.Eliot, Marc (2005). To the Limit: The Untold Story of the Eagles, p. 131. Da Capo Press. He later cited a need to get healthy and break the vicious cycle of touring, recording and heavy drug use that was rampant within the band.
Upon Leadon's departure, Asylum Records released Their Greatest Hits (1971–1975), which highlighted the band's Leadon years and went on to become the best-selling album in United States history, with sales in excess of 38 million units. He was replaced by former James Gang guitarist and singer Joe Walsh.
Although it has long been believed that he left because he was dissatisfied with the band moving into rock and roll, Leadon denies it and said in 2013, "That's an oversimplification, it implies that I had no interest in rock or blues or anything but country rock. That's just not the case. I didn't just play Fender Telecaster. I played a Gibson Les Paul and I enjoyed rock & roll. That's evident from the early albums."
In 1985, he recorded an album of bluegrass and gospel favorites under the name Ever Call Ready, featuring Chris Hillman and Al Perkins. He also had a short stint with the Nitty Gritty Dirt Band in the late 1980s.
In 1993, he became a member of Run C&W, a novelty group singing Motown hit "bluegrass style", recording two albums for MCA Records.
In 1998, Leadon reunited with the Eagles in New York City for the band's induction into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. All seven current and former Eagles members performed together on "Take It Easy" and "Hotel California".
In 2004, he released his second solo effort in 27 years (and his first under solely his name), Mirror.
Leadon toured with the Eagles from 2013 through 2015 during their History of the Eagles Tour In 2015, Leadon appeared on producer Ethan Johns' third solo album, Silver Liner.
In February 2016, Leadon appeared at the Grammy Awards ceremony with Jackson Browne and the surviving Eagles members - Don Henley, Joe Walsh, and Timothy B. Schmit - performing "Take it Easy", in tribute to Glenn Frey who had died a month earlier.
His younger brother, Tom Leadon, was a founding member of Mudcrutch.
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