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Eagles’ handwritten Hotel California lyrics ‘stolen by biographer and flogged’

The Eagles - Chris Pizzello/Invision/AP
The Eagles - Chris Pizzello/Invision/AP

Manhattan’s district attorney on Tuesday charged three people with conspiring to illegally possess and sell some 100 pages of handwritten notes and lyrics for the Eagles album, Hotel California.

Glenn Horowitz, Craig Inciardi and Edward Kosinski allegedly knew the documents – collectively valued at more than $1 million (£839,000) – were stolen, but conspired to sell them anyway.

According to court documents, the men manufactured false provenance and lied to auction houses, potential buyers and law enforcement about how they acquired the notes by Don Henley, which included lyrics to the hits Hotel California and Life in the Fast Lane.

A biographer for the band originally stole the manuscripts in the late Seventies, according to the legal filing, eventually selling them to Horowitz, who in turn sold them to Inciardi and Kosinski.

Court documents said that Henley, the Eagles’ founder member, filed police reports upon learning that Inciardi and Kosinski had the pages, allegations the duo fought for years.

Glenn Horowitz, Craig Inciardi, and Edward Kosinski - AP Photo/John Minchillo
Glenn Horowitz, Craig Inciardi, and Edward Kosinski - AP Photo/John Minchillo

“New York is a world-class hub for art and culture, and those who deal cultural artefacts must scrupulously follow the law,” said Alvin Bragg, the Manhattan district attorney.

“These defendants attempted to keep and sell these unique and valuable manuscripts, despite knowing they had no right to do so. They made up stories about the origin of the documents and their right to possess them so they could turn a profit.”

Inciardi, 58, is an “employee with curator responsibilities” at the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in Cleveland, Ohio, the museum confirmed to AFP.

“When we became aware of this matter, we suspended the employee and retained experienced outside counsel to conduct an internal investigation,” the Rock Hall said in a statement, insisting it was not named in the investigation.

Attorneys for the men vowed to “fight these unjustified charges vigorously”.

“The DA’s [district attorney’s] office alleges criminality where none exists and unfairly tarnishes the reputations of well-respected professionals,” they wrote in a statement given to AFP.

The men pleaded not guilty and were released on their own recognisance.