The Eagles released a song dedicated to which famous American actor in 1974?

"James Dean" is a song written by Don Henley, Glenn Frey, Jackson Browne, and J. D. Souther, and released by the American rock band, The Eagles, for their 1974 album, "On the Border", being the second single released on the album, reaching number 77 on the U.S. pop singles chart that year.

The song is about iconic American actor James Dean (1931-1955) who starred in a handful of films, such as Rebel Without a Cause, Giant, and East of Eden. The lyrics, "too fast to live, too young to die" refer to the life and sudden death of Dean in a car crash in 1955. Bernie Leadon played the guitar solo.

Billboard described "James Dean" as "good solid rocker" with "fine vocal harmonies" whose instrumentation is reminiscent of Jackson Browne's 1973 song "Redneck Friend," on which Eagles guitarist Glenn Frey provided backup vocals.