Building the Perfect Beast by Don Henley

Building the Perfect Beast is the second solo studio album by Don Henley. The album was released on November 19, 1984 on the Geffen label. A commercial and critical success, it is generally regarded as the culmination of the smoother, more adult-oriented sound of Henley's solo work. For the album, Henley collaborated with members of the then line-up of Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers, who contributed to the writing of the songs: guitarist Mike Campbell, keyboardist Benmont Tench and drummer Stan Lynch, the last of which would later collaborate with Henley in composing the Eagles' song "Learn to Be Still", which was released on their live album Hell Freezes Over. The album also features contributions from Fleetwood Mac's guitarist, Lindsey Buckingham, The Go-Go's lead vocalist Belinda Carlisle, and features contributions from Randy Newman, Jim Keltner, Waddy Wachtel, Pino Palladino, Steve Porcaro, and Ian Wallace. The album reached #13 on the Billboard 200 and was certified 3x Platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA). The album spawned four singles which all reached the top forty on the Billboard Hot 100, including "The Boys of Summer", which would become one of Henley's most popular songs and win him numerous awards, including a Grammy Award and four MTV Video Music Awards. In 1989, the album was ranked No. 73 on the Rolling Stone magazine's list of "The 100 Greatest Albums of the 1980s".