Bloggerhythms

Poco's new concert album,  One Night In Nashville, is not dedicated to long time member, Paul Cotton, or group co-founder, Rusty Young - the only member to participate in every Poco studio album - but it should be. Those two kept the band going for decades long after most of the other important members departed. Both passed away in 2021. There are some excellent performances on the sixteen song record, but buyers need to beware. The country-rock pioneers previously released this concert on CD back in 2007 with an accompanying DVD under the name Keeping The Legend Alive . It's now out of print and can only be purchased as an overpriced collector's item, so if you already own that disc there is no reason to purchase this new one. But, if you don't have it fans of the band should add this superb set to your collection. The show was recorded at Nashville's Belcourt Theater on May 20, 2004 and reunites most of Poco's "classic" lineup of Richie Furay , drumm...

Very early Poco. L to R: Jim Messina, George Grantham, Richie Furay, & Rusty Young I'm not sure I've ever posted anything on this blog two days in a row before today, but some unfortunate news broke yesterday that is forcing my hand. Even though it's another sad day for earthbound, classic rock fans Rock 'n Roll Heaven just added another member to its all-star band. Poco's Rusty Young passed away on April 14, 2021 at age 75. Young was one of the founding members of Poco, along with Richie Furay and Jim Messina. The latter two asked him to join their new band following the demise of Buffalo Springfield after the steel guitar virtuoso assisted them on the last Springfield album.   Young was the only member of the country-rock pioneers who played on every single Poco record. He was best known for composing two of the group's best known songs, "Rose of Cimarron" (#94 on the Billboard Hot 100) and "Crazy Love" (#17). Almost all of Young's ...

None of the five members of Poco were commercially successful when Richie Furay exited the band in 1973 and without their acknowledged leader no one expected anything to change. In fact, at that point it wouldn't have been surprising if the band simply dissolved. They didn't, and when one of their many different lineups finally charted two big hit singles, "Crazy Love" and "Heart Of The Night," from their 1978 album, Legend , most of the world was surprised to learn the long player became a certified gold record. Poco's 1976 album, Rose of Cimarron (#89 on Billboard's Hot 100), featured the remaining quartet of Rusty Young, Paul Cotton, Timothy B. Schmit, and George Grantham. Their streak of commercial disappointments remained in tact but fortunately, with Furay gone, everyone except drummer Grantham, proved they could write. When you add in the band's always pleasant vocals and their excellent musicianship (supplemente...

Poco has never released a box set but there are some nice compilations out there that need to be scooped up. The best one is the superlative double disc, The Forgotten Trail (1969 - 1974) . It's not only for the casual fans or curiosity seekers. This is a collection for true Poco aficionados. The package's thirty-eight songs span Poco's formative and glory years with Epic Records. Included are most of the best songs from their first eight albums plus eleven other previously unreleased tracks from 1969 to 1974. Then the quartet left Epic for MCA where Paul Cotton and Rusty Young finally led them to some much deserved commercial success. In addition to all of the band's "hits" (and I use that term both lovingly and jokingly) there are some fantastic rarities. Among them are Richie Furay's single "My Kind of Love" backed with Timothy B. Schmidt's "Hard Luck." Both appear on an album for the first time. Young's pedal steel ...

Left to right: Richie Furay, Jesse Furay Lynch, and Aaron Sellen On Sunday, August 30, 2009, The Richie Furay Band played live at the Sellersville Theater , in Sellersville, PA. Furay took the stage with his current band who, not coincidentally, are all parishioners of the church he leads in Broomfield, CO. Furay played acoustic and electric guitar and handled lead vocals while his indispensable sideman, Scott Sellen, contributed lead guitar, banjo, pedal steel, keyboards, plus harmony and background vocals. Furay's daughter, Jesse Furay Lynch , contributed harmonies and played percussion, Sellen's son, Aaron, was the bassist, and Alan Lemke, Aaron's best man at his recent wedding over which Furay presided, was the drummer. Don't let the lineup fool you. This band could really play. Sellen is one of those consummate, multi-talented sidemen who can shift gears and change instruments at the d...

No, this blog is not turning into an "all Poco all the time" publication. It's totally coincidental that June has turned into Poco month. Rest assured that July is going to be completely different as more contemporary fare will be discussed. In the meantime, as promised last week, Poco's former leader and founder, Richie Furay, agreed to participate in an email interview for Bloggerhythms. For those of you unfamiliar with Furay's biography this post will have more meaning for you if you read part one first. I asked Furay for the interview because I believe he is a very fascinating individual who is an unusually positive example from the world of music. I thank you, Richie, for your time and cooperation. ____________________________________ CR: Until very recently I assumed you had retired from public performance. I had no idea you ever made another recording after Legacy , the CD released by the original Poco lineup in 1989. So, I would like to ask what mad...

You know the freeway most rock stars travel. They race full speed up the on-ramp labeled "sex, drugs & rock 'n roll." Fortunately, in most cases maturity and real life eventually kick in and they stop using harmful and illegal substances, settle down with their trophy wives, have a second batch of kids that they won't ignore this time around, get paunchy, and start looking like middle aged accountants. The ones who don't find the exit ramp eventually burnout or become another fatal statistic. A few may even get out of the business and move on to other lives. Two who did are Cat Stevens and Richie Furay. The controversial path of Stevens, now known as Yusef Islam, has been well documented over the decades. He only recently took up music again many years after converting to the religion whose name he now uses as his own. Not as well known is the story of Furay, a member of the Rock n' Roll Hall of Fame and co-founder of two legendary bands, Buffalo Spri...

Every Sunday evening during Summer the Philadelphia suburb of Upper Merion Township hosts an outdoor concert series they call Concerts Under the Stars . The promoter brings folkies and many singer-songwriters such as John Gorka, Karla Bonoff, and Michelle Shocked to its stage. Occasionally they slip in somebody more famous such as Roger McQuinn who wowed the crowd a few years ago with a solo, electric, 12-string performance. This year the series opened with a bang. One of my all-time favorite bands, Poco , took the stage as a trio Sunday night for what was billed as an all acoustic show. Poco's only remaining founding member, Rusty Young, is still in the lineup. So is Paul Cotton, who replaced original member Jim Messina very early in their career after leaving the little known Illinois Speed Press . The band's two veterans were joined by bassist Jack Sundrud who has previously worked with Vince Gill and Dickey Betts. Despite the advertisement the set wasn't a tota...