Before writing songs for the Eagles and others, Jack Tempchin lived on Spencer and Park in San Diego, frequently playing at Mission Beach watering hole the Heritage (where, for a time, the doorman was Tom Waits). In 1971, Tempchin was managing SDSU's Backdoor Theater.

Then, one day, he was eating lunch at Der Wienerschnitzel on Washington and First when he got the idea to write the song "Peaceful Easy Feeling." His inspiration came in the form of two pretty girls walking by; he wrote the lyrics on the back of a concert flyer.

Tempchin made friends with future Eagles member Glenn Frey, who brought "Peaceful Easy Feeling" to the band in 1972. They also recorded Tempchin's song "Already Gone," and Frey had a hit with Tempchin's "You Belong to the City."

Every time the Eagles rerelease "Peaceful Easy Feeling" and "Already Gone" (on "best of" or live albums), Tempchin earns songwriter royalties. The Eagles' Their Greatest Hits 1971-1975 sold 27 million copies, making it one of the ten best-selling albums ever, according to the Recording Industry Association of America.

Last year, the Eagles used two of his songs, "Somebody" and "It's Your World Now," for Long Road Out of Eden, their first studio album in 28 years. The record debuted at number one on Billboard's Top 200 album chart when it was released in November 2007.

Tempchin says the legal protections for songwriters have made him a good living. "It's been a bonanza over and over and over again."

In 2002, he and fellow songwriters Jackson Browne and J.D. Souther sued the music-publishing company Warner-Chappell Music for underpayment of royalties they said they were due for four tracks used on the '71--'75 compilation. The suit asked for $10 million. When the case was settled out of court, Tempchin said he was "satisfied" with the confidential settlement.