"Take It Easy" is a song written by Jackson Browne and Glenn Frey, and recorded by the Eagles with Frey singing lead vocals. It was the band's first single, released on May 1, 1972. It peaked at No. 12 on the July 22, 1972, Billboard Hot 100 chart. It also was the opening track on the band's debut album Eagles and it has become one of their signature songs, included on all of their live and compilation albums. It is listed as one of The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame's 500 Songs that Shaped Rock and Roll.
Jackson Browne later recorded the song as the lead track on his second album, For Everyman (1973), and released it as a single as well, although it did not chart. Travis Tritt also covered the song for the 1993 Eagles' tribute album Common Thread: The Songs of the Eagles; the video for Tritt's version is notable for the appearance of all five members of the Eagles together again for the first time in 13 years after their break-up, and it led to the reunion of the band a few months later.
Lyrics
Well I'm runnin' down the road tryin' to loosen my load
I've got seven women on my mind
Four that wanna own me two that wanna
stone me one says she's a friend of mine
Take it easy
Take it easy
Don't let the sound of your own wheels drive you crazy
Lighten up while you still can
Don't even try to understand
Just find a place make your stand
Take it easy
Well I'm a standin' on a corner in Winslow, Arizona
Such a fine sight to see
It's a girl my lord in a flatbed
Ford slowin' down to take a look at me
Come on baby
Don't say maybe
I gotta know if your sweet love is gonna save me
We may lose and we may win
Though we will never be here again
So open up I'm climbin' in
Take it easy
Alright
Well I'm runnin' down the road tryin' to loosen my load
Got a world of trouble on my mind
Lookin' for a lover who won't blow my cover
She's so hard to find
Take it easy
Take it easy
Don't let the sound of them old wheels drive you crazy
Come on baby
Don't say maybe
I gotta know if your sweet love is gonna save me
Ooh-ooh ooh-ooh ooh-ooh
ooh-ooh ooh-ooh ooh-ooh
ooh-ooh ooh-ooh ooh-ooh
ooh-ooh ooh-ooh ooh-ooh
ooh-ooh ooh-ooh ooh-ooh
ooh-ooh
Well you know we got it easy
We oughta take it easy
Yeah
Songwriters: JACKSON BROWNE / GLENN FREY
Take It Easy Lyrics © Sony/ATV Harmony, Swallow Turn Music, SONGS OF UNIVERSAL, INC., MUSIC CORP. OF AMERICA, INC.