Eagles guitarist Joe Walsh has the flu, which forced him to sit out of a show at the Sphere on Jan. 24<\/p>\n<\/li>\n
The show marked the first the Eagles have played without Walsh since 1975<\/p>\n<\/li>\n
Don Henley told the crowd that Walsh is “going to be okay” and “just needs some time”<\/p>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n
The show must go on for the Eagles<\/a> \u2014 even if longstanding member Joe Walsh<\/a> has to take it easy.<\/p>\n The legendary rock band played their first show without Walsh in more than 50 years after the guitarist, 78, came down with the flu ahead of the band\u2019s Saturday, Jan. 24 performance at the Sphere in Las Vegas, according to Rolling Stone<\/a> and the Mercury News<\/a>.<\/p>\n \u201cJoe has come down with a bad case of the flu. We had a choice to make. We could either cancel the whole thing, or we could man up and do the show,\u201d singer Don Henley<\/a> told the crowd, per RS. \u201cSo we came down here this afternoon and had an emergency rehearsal for two hours. And fortunately, in this band, we have a deep bench.\u201d<\/p>\n Henley, 78, also hinted that other members of the band were ailing, too, as he told the audience that music \u201cis medicine.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cAfter the week we\u2019ve had, we could all use some medicine,\u201d he reportedly said. \u201cI\u2019m not going to do much talking. I\u2019m not going to do much jumping around. I\u2019m not going to do any squatting. I\u2019m just going to play the s— out of this guitar. I\u2019ve been playing these songs for you for 53 years now. It\u2019s been a privilege and an honor.\u201d<\/p>\n Kevin Mazur\/Getty<\/p>\n A rep for Walsh did not immediately respond to PEOPLE\u2019s request for comment.<\/p>\n The musician\u2019s parts were handled mostly by Vince Gill<\/a>, who joined the Eagles as a touring member in 2017, and Deacon Frey<\/a>, who joined the band the same year after the death of his father, founding member Glenn Frey<\/a>, in 2016. Instead of performing \u201cFunk #49,\u201d which Walsh usually does, the group played \u201cBest of My Love,\u201d according to Rolling Stone.<\/p>\n During a concert on Jan. 23, Walsh played for most of the show, but spent some songs off stage, and did not take part in the closing bow. Walsh joined the Eagles in 1975, replacing founding member Bernie Leadon.<\/p>\n \u201c[Walsh] was sick last night. But he heroically made it through [most] of the show\u2026 Joe\u2019s going to be okay,\u201d Henley reportedly said. \u201cHe just needs some time. Give him some love.\u201d<\/p>\n Despite the illnesses, it\u2019s been a good week for the Eagles, whose 1976 album Their Greatest Hits 1971-1975 became the first album to ever be certified quadruple diamond<\/a> by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA). The record remains the best-selling album of all time in the U.S., having sold more than 40 million copies.<\/p>\n The group has 10 dates left this year at the Sphere, where they started their residency in September 2024. Their next show is set for Friday, Jan. 30, and it remains unclear if Walsh will be available to play.<\/p>\n \u201cWhen the Eagles play, people come and sit next to each other and everybody gets along. And for two-and-a-half hours, we play, and they know the words better than us,\u201d he told PEOPLE in 2023<\/a> of touring. \u201cThere\u2019s so much love coming at us from the audience that we play our ass off and everybody goes home happier. I\u2019m so blessed to be able to do that at 75 years old. And that\u2019s a gift of sobriety \u2014 I wouldn\u2019t trade it for the world.\u201d<\/p>\n![\"Joe](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/9a34b50af9c22cf92acae38b65285ede.jpeg\"\/)
Joe Walsh (second from right) performs with the Eagles in New York City in 2023. <\/p>\n