Vince Gill Rocks ‘Heartache Tonight’ at the Eagles’ Sphere Debut

The Eagles debuted their residency at the Sphere in Las Vegas on Friday night (Sept. 20), and Vince Gill provided one of the highlights of the evening.

Gill has been in the band since 2017, and he took over the vocals on many of the late Glenn Frey’s songs in the set, splitting the vocal duties with Frey’s son, Deacon.

Gill’s songs in the set include “Heartache Tonight.” He performed the song during the group’s first night of their residency, which is set to run through January of 2025, and he revealed a rock edge to his voice that fans of his country work might not have heard before.

Most of the other songs Gill sings in the Eagles’ live shows are better suited to his natural angelic tenor, including “New Kid in Town,” “Lyin’ Eyes” and “Take It to the Limit,” but he performs “Heartache Tonight” surprisingly well in the fan-shot video below, forcing a grittier edge to his upper range as he belts out the song just as Frey himself did on the studio recording from 1979’s The Long Run.

Frey and Don Henley co-wrote “Heartache Tonight” with Bob Seger and the late J.D Souther, and the song scored the Eagles their final No. 1 hit when they released it as the first single from The Long Run. The group also won a Grammy Award for Best Rock Performance by a Duo or Group With Vocal.

Souther died just days before the Eagles took the stage for their Sphere debut, and Henley took the opportunity to tribute him before the band performed “Heartache Tonight.”

“I want to acknowledge the co-writer of that song who we lost three days ago, Mr. J.D. Souther,” Henley told the crowd. “J.D. is someone you may know played a pivotal role in the Eagles. He wasn’t in the band, but he certainly co-wrote some of our biggest hits.”

See the Eagles perform “Heartache Tonight” with Vince Gill in the clip below, and scroll through the photos to see highlights of the group’s Sphere debut.

Eagles Sphere Las Vegas, Opening Night, Sept. 20, 2024

Band began Las Vegas residency in resounding fashion.

Gallery Credit: Corey Irwin

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Gallery Credit: Sterling Whitaker

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Gallery Credit: Sterling Whitaker

Sterling Whitaker is a Senior Writer and Senior Editor for Taste of Country. He focuses on celebrity real estate, as well as coverage of Yellowstone and related shows like 1883 and 1923. He’s interviewed cast members including Cole Hauser, Kelly Reilly, Sam Elliott and Harrison Ford, and Whitaker is also known for his in-depth interviews with country legends including Don Henley, Rodney Crowell, Trace Adkins, Ronnie Milsap, Ricky Skaggs and more.