Why the Eagles’ Joe Walsh relates so closely to Gold Star families
Joe Walsh joined the Eagles as a guitarist and keyboardist in 1975.
Since then, he has achieved a level of fame and wealth that he didn’t think possible while he was a youth in Wichita, Kansas. The perks of becoming a world-renowned musician are not lost on the 78-year-old Walsh, but they don’t insulate him from the realities of losing a loved one.
Walsh was only 20 months old when his father, Army Air Corps Lt. Robert Newton Fidler, died in a midair collision over Okinawa, Japan, on July 22, 1949. While Walsh was too young to form any lasting memories of his dad, he considers Fidler his guardian angel. Walsh strove for nothing more than to make his late father proud.
That is particularly poignant, with Gold Star Mothers and Families Day approaching on Sunday, September 27, 2026.
“There was no Gold Star designation [when my dad died],” Walsh said to Wichita’s National Public Radio’s station, KMUW, in 2025. “That was just too bad as far as the government was concerned: ‘Oh, that’s a real shame. Here’s a flag to put on his coffin.’ It was really hard. Everybody had a dad, and I didn’t.”
Growing up without Fidler’s guidance and wisdom impacted Walsh greatly. It also gave him an undying appreciation for what military families endure in service to their country. Walsh doesn’t just express the respect he has for the men and women in uniform, as well as their families. He puts those words into action through VetsAid. It’s a nonprofit organization that he and his wife, Marjorie Bach, founded in 2017.
Family Connections and Kent State
Walsh didn’t come to value the military community so highly just because of his father’s tragic death. The military connections in his family run much deeper. Walsh’s grandfather served in the Army during World War I, and the singer’s stepfather, George Walsh, saw time during the Second World War. He arrived in Hiroshima shortly after the United States bombed the Japanese city on August 6, 1945.
“He never talked about it, and I talked to other people’s parents who were in World War II,” Walsh said of his stepfather during a visit to Joint Base Lewis-McChord in Washington state several years ago. “Our fathers never talked about it, and they never liked war movies.”
After graduating from high school in New Jersey, Walsh attended Kent State University in Ohio. He was a student there during a highly volatile time. Walsh was an undergraduate on May 4, 1970, when the Ohio National Guard shot and killed four unarmed students protesting the United States’ involvement in the Vietnam War. Nine other students sustained wounds.
After that experience, Walsh dropped out of school and began his career as a musician.
Making His Mark in Music
After serving as Linda Ronstadt’s backup band, Glenn Frey, Don Henley, Randy Meisner, and Bernie Leadon formed the Eagles in 1971. Walsh joined the group four years later, replacing Leadon. His addition produced immediate results the following year when the Eagles released their “Hotel California” album.
The record produced a slew of favorable reviews and three hit singles: the title track; “Life in the Fast Lane,” which featured Walsh’s distinctive opening guitar riff; and “New Kid in Town.” While the Eagles had several hit songs before Walsh’s arrival, “Hotel California” propelled their careers to another level. Rolling Stone named it one of the greatest albums ever.
Walsh was an established name in the music industry before joining the Eagles. In the early 1970s, he came out with “Rocky Mountain Way” and “Turn to Stone”—which Walsh wrote about Americans’ frustration over how their government handled the Vietnam War. Walsh later released his biggest solo song, “Life’s Been Good (to Me So Far).”
As a member of the Eagles, Walsh earned five Grammy Awards, including one in 2009 for Best Pop Instrumental Performance for “I Dreamed There Was No War.” All in all, Walsh has enjoyed a fabulous career, and it’s still going. The Eagles will appear in residency at the Sphere in Las Vegas through at least January 2027.
Notwithstanding his other obligations, Walsh squeezed in time to advocate for veterans causes.
The VetsAid Concerts
If Walsh is in the vicinity of a military base and his schedule is clear, he probably will spend some time with service members. Walsh is known to pop into a Department of Veterans Affairs medical center too and has given free guitar lessons to patients at Walter Reed National Military Medical Center.
Then there is VetsAid, which has raised approximately $4 million for various veterans groups since its inception. Along with other musicians, Walsh has performed live at VetsAid concerts every year since 2017. The only exceptions were during the pandemic in 2020, when they played virtually, and 2024, when it was supposed to be in Elmont, New York, but was canceled. That cancellation did not stop VetsAid from distributing $400,000 in grants to previously announced recipients, Billboard magazine reported.
As of publication, Walsh nor VetsAid has announced a date or location for this year’s concert. Regardless, he has no plans to stop being squarely behind veterans and their families.
“War is hell for everyone involved,” Walsh said on the VetsAid website. “I lost my father when I was a baby, before I could even make a memory of him. I stopped counting the number of friends I lost in the Vietnam War or that came home forever scarred mentally or physically or both….
“… Seeing as though rock ‘n’ roll seems to be what I do best, it’s also the least I could do for those who have served and continue to serve our country.”
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