WATCH: The Eagles Play First Concert Without Joe Walsh in 51 Years

The Eagles just played their first show without guitarist Joe Walsh.

Walsh came down with the flu ahead of their concert at the Sphere in Las Vegas on January 24th, which meant the band played their first show without him since he joined the band in 1975.

“We had a choice to make,” Don Henley told the crowd (as per Rolling Stone). “We could either cancel the whole thing, or we could man up and do the show. So we came down here this afternoon and had an emergency rehearsal for two hours. And fortunately, in this band, we have a deep bench.”

Walsh’s parts were mostly handled by Deacon Frey and Vince Gill.

The former became a member of the band in 2017 following his father's death the previous year. He took on Walsh's iconic "Hotel California" guitar solo alongside new guitarist Chris Holt at the Sphere.

Gill sang lead on “In the City", “Life’s Been Good”, and “Rocky Mountain Way”.

[embed]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PD4OQUP67VI[/embed]

"Funk #49" was the only song cut from the set in Walsh's absence, with "Best of My Love" taking its place.

The concert was the band's 46th show at the Sphere since kicking off their residency at the Las Vegas venue in September 2024.

The setlist has been largely locked in because of the complex visuals they created for each song.

“It’s good to be in the room with you tonight,” Henley said. “We can all be on the same page tonight because music is a universal language and music is medicine.

"After the week we’ve had, we could all use some medicine. I’m not going to do much talking. I’m nothing to do much jumping around. I’m not going to do any squatting. I’m just going to play the shit out of this guitar. I’ve been playing these songs for you for 53 years now. It’s been a privilege and an honor.”