The Garden Of Allah

Album: Actual Miles: Don Henley's Greatest Hits (1995)
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Songfacts®:

  • Don Henley (from an AOL Chat): "The song is basically about the growing inability of people to recognize evil. It is about the age of Cultural Relativism that we are living in. The title is taken from an old Hollywood apartment/hotel that existed from the late 20's until the late 50's." >>
    Suggestion credit:
    Edward Pearce - Ashford, Kent, England

Comments: 18

  • David from UsaThe actor in question is indeed Kirk Douglas. NOT James Coburn.
  • James from St.louis MoThe person playing the person in the video in the white suit is Michael Douglas’s father actor “Kirk Douglas.”
  • Dave from Mobile,alThe voice sounds like Frank Zappa to me.
  • Mark Flenner from FranceGentlemen, and I use the word loosely, it's James Coburn
  • Michael from Pottsville, PaSounds more like James Earl Jones to me.
  • Domapro from NjOh I love those Bavarians refers to BMW's motorcars
  • Elyse from L.a.Just looked up the devil's voice...
    It's says Kirk Douglas, but I don't know. Doesn't have his speech patterns
  • Brad from Lethbridge, Ab. CanadaThe line, ah I love those Bavarians, so meticulous always struck a chord in me as a reference to the Nazis. Many of the war criminals were found guilty because of the meticulous records they kept. This is only my personal spin on things, food for thought though.
  • Don from Northern HemisphereI've always thought The "Devils Voice" sounds like Wharf (Michael Dorn) from Star Trek : )
  • Michael Barrios from OkcWho is the devils voice?
  • Mark Flenner from FranceHenley wrote this song some years before Andrew Delbanco wrote The Death of Satan. The blur between good and evil resulting in American society's inability to distinguish between the two. Henleys lyrics are a tour de force and emphasises why the Eagles were so successful. A dream team of Glen Frey, Joe Walsh, Timothy Schmidt, Randy Meisner, Don Felder
  • John from Orlando, FlSeeing the comments above about political parties is laughable. This song is a critique on all, regardless of politcal stripe.
  • Mary from Phoenix, AzI guess they don't want to add my songfact, so I'll just comment on it....

    Sheryl Crow does the back up vocals for this song.
  • Leah from Brooklyn, NyChris, Moral Relativism is making up a reason for starting a war out of whole fabric, in order to justify what you really want from the country you're about to attack. I don't think the last administration was Democratic.
  • Jess from St. Louis, MoTaken from eagles fan website: "Calling the song "a tale in which the Devil visits a large western city and finds that he has become obsolete," Henley's wry wit weaves an epic story about a devil in a seersucker suit who "decides to have one last hurrah by appearing as an expert witness at a local trial."

    Henley continues, "The devil sarcastically repeats the credo of the modern age which is not necessarily 'doing the right thing,' but rather 'winning at any cost.' Modern society has almost completely blurred the line between right and wrong."
    May 09

  • Chris from Tulsa, OkDon Henley's a strange one. He's a big supporter of the Democrats - the party of evil, or at least more evil. Yet his music decries the very thing they most stand for: moral relativism. 10-18-8.
  • Ghi ~ from Vancouver, Canada"I will testify for you, I'm a gun for hire, I'm a Saint, I'm a liar. Because there are no facts, there is no truth. Just data to be manipulated..." is a definite reference to the OJ Simpson trial and the notorious cast of lawyers involved with it. i've long thought that this was the underlying inspiration of the song. the "pathetic little circus" being the media frenzy at the LA County Courthouse. "No shame, no solution, no remorse, no retribution" addressing the final outcome. i remember going down to LA just after the trial. i couldn't go anywhere without people voicing their opinions and acute bewilderment. not to mention the BS. i found myself at Mesa Luna talking to the manager there as he divulged his clairvoyant knowledge that something bad was going to happen that fateful night. then i went to my friend's son's hockey game only to discover that one of the other proud parents watching their kid was Robert Shapiro and a key funder of the team. then i ended up at the Rainbow sitting at a table with friends and Ron Shipp, who was the fourth prosecution witness in the trial. LA is a really strange place.
  • Brett from Dallas, TxThis song is about the devil that visits a large western city only to realize that he has become obsolete.
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