Poco were an American country rock band from Los Angeles, California. Formed in July 1968, the group originally consisted of lead vocalist and rhythm guitarist Richie Furay, lead guitarist and vocalist Jim Messina, steel guitarist Norman "Rusty" Young, bassist and vocalist Randy Meisner, and drummer and vocalist George Grantham. The band disbanded following Young's death in April 2021 – the final lineup was Young alongside bassist and vocalist Jack Sundrud (1985–1987, 1990–1991, and since 2000), drummer Rick Lonow (since 2016), and guitarist and vocalist Tom Hampton (since 2020).
Poco was formed in July 1968 by Buffalo Springfield members Richie Furay, Jim Messina and session contributor Rusty Young, with former Poor bassist Randy Meisner and Young's former bandmate George Grantham completing the initial lineup.[1] Shortly after the recording of the group's debut album Pickin' Up the Pieces in early 1969, Meisner left and was replaced by Timothy B. Schmit.[2] A self-titled second album followed in May 1970, before Messina left in October to focus on record production.[3] He was replaced by Paul Cotton.[4] After three albums in three years – From the Inside (1971), A Good Feelin' to Know (1972) and Crazy Eyes (1973) – Furay left in October 1973 and the remaining members opted to continue as a four-piece.[5] Following Furay's departure, Poco was led by Cotton and Young.[6]
The four-piece of Cotton, Young, Schmit and Grantham remained stable for almost four years, before Schmit left to join the Eagles in September 1977, coincidentally replacing Randy Meisner again after taking over his position in Poco eight years prior.[7] With the group taking a brief hiatus, Grantham left in January 1978, leaving Young as the sole remaining original member.[1] Within a few months, Cotton and Young had enlisted bassist Charlie Harrison and drummer Steve Chapman to record Legend, which was released that November.[8] The following month, the group added Kim Bullard as its first keyboardist to become a five-piece again.[9]
After a string of releases, Bullard left Poco following the tour in promotion of 1982's Ghost Town, joining Stephen Stills' solo band in the summer of 1983.[10] Following the release of Inamorata the following year, Bullard and bassist Harrison were replaced by Rick Seratte and Jeff Steele, respectively.[11] By early 1985, George Grantham had returned on drums and Jack Sundrud had joined on bass.[12] The next year, Grantham backed out again and Chapman returned in his place.[13] Poco continued touring until the summer of 1987.[14]
Since 1988
In 1988 the original lineup of Poco reunited, marking the first return of lead guitarist Jim Messina since 1970.
In late 1988, the original Poco lineup of Richie Furay, Jim Messina, Rusty Young, Randy Meisner and George Grantham reformed and recorded Legacy.[15] After the album's 1989 release, the band returned to touring from January 1990, joined by keyboardist David Vanacore; for later shows starting in June, Furay backed out to return to his career as a church minister, with former bassist Jack Sundrud taking his place on rhythm guitar and the remaining members sharing vocal duties.[16]
During early 1991, Poco toured as an acoustic trio featuring Messina, Young and Meisner, before Gary Mallaber joined on drums for a Japanese tour in the summer.[17] Later in the year, Messina and Meisner left Poco again, at which point Young rebuilt the group with former lead guitarist Paul Cotton and new members Richard Neville on bass and Tim Smith on drums.[18] This lineup remained constant for almost nine years, but did not record any new material – in early 2000, Neville and Smith were replaced by returning members Sundrud and Grantham.[19] This lineup released Running Horse, the group's first studio album in 13 years, in November 2002.[20]
Shortly after recording the live album Keeping the Legend Alive, Grantham was forced to temporarily stop touring with Poco after suffering a stroke; he was replaced by stand-in George Lawrence, who later became an official member of the band when Grantham was unable to return.[21]
In early 2010, Cotton was replaced by Michael Webb, who primarily focused on keyboards in the group's lineup.[22][23] The new lineup released All Fired Up in 2013.[24] At the end of 2013, Rusty Young announced his retirement; a few shows were booked into 2014, including three farewell shows in Florida. One of those shows was a performance in a recording studio in front of a live audience for a DVD documentary of the band's live show. Young said there could be some one-off concerts in the future after that, but the band would not be actively touring as before. Young and Sundrud wrote and recorded music for children's story videos as the "Session Cats". Lawrence, Sundrud, and Webb continued to write, record, and play on their own projects and to do freelance work with other artists in Nashville. Young continued to do guest performances with former members of Poco and other country rock artists.
Poco was inducted into the Colorado Music Hall of Fame (CMHOF) with the CMHOF induction ceremony which took place at the Paramount Theatre (Denver, Colorado) on January 9, 2015, and included a one-off reunion performance with a lineup of Rusty Young and former members Richie Furay, Timothy B. Schmit, and Paul Cotton.[25]
From 2015 through 2021, though not touring full-time, Poco played isolated dates around the US. In 2016, drummer Lawrence was replaced by Rick Lonow (formerly of The Flying Burrito Brothers).[26] Lex Browning, Jack Sundrud's former bandmate in Great Plains, replaced Michael Webb on mandolin, fiddle, and guitar in October 2018.[27]
By January 2020, Poco friend and fan Tom Hampton was brought in by Sundrud to replace Browning for tour dates, but touring was suddenly halted in March due to the COVID-19 pandemic.[28][29]
Rusty Young died on April 14, 2021, at his home in Davisville, Missouri, from a heart attack. He was 75.[30][31] Poco split after Young's death.
Three and a half months after Rusty Young's April 2021 death, his former partner in the band, Paul Cotton, died at his summer home in Eugene, Oregon at age 78 on August 1, 2021.[32]
Fans and surviving band members released the tribute album My Friend: A Tribute To Rusty Young in March 2022 and there was a reunion/tribute "Poconut" concert on October 8, 2022, in Steelville, Missouri, near Young's home, where Jack Sundrud, Tom Hampton, and Rick Lonow, the surviving members of the band's final lineup, were joined by original drummer George Grantham, who guested on harmony vocals, and Michael Kelsh.[33][34] It is unclear if this is considered the final performance by Poco or if that technically occurred prior to Rusty Young's death in April 2021.
Norman Russell Young was an American guitarist, vocalist and songwriter, best known as one of the frontmen in the influential country rock and Americana band Poco.
Poco was an American country rock band originally formed in 1968 after the demise of Buffalo Springfield. Guitarists Richie Furay and Jim Messina, former members of Buffalo Springfield, were joined by multi-instrumentalist Rusty Young, bassist Randy Meisner and drummer George Grantham. Meisner quit the band while they were recording their first album, Pickin' Up the Pieces, though his bass and backing vocal parts were kept in the final mix. He was replaced by Timothy B. Schmit in 1969, and Messina left in 1970 to be replaced by Paul Cotton. The line-up would change numerous times over the next several decades, with Rusty Young being the only constant member. A reunion of the founding members occurred in the late 1980s-early 1990s, and the band continued in some form through 2021, though they retired from active touring in 2013, with Young citing health concerns as the primary cause of his retirement. Young died from a heart attack in April 2021.
Paul Richard Furay is an American musician and Rock & Roll Hall of Fame member. He is best known for forming the bands Buffalo Springfield with Stephen Stills, Neil Young, Bruce Palmer, and Dewey Martin, and Poco with Jim Messina, Timothy B. Schmit, Rusty Young, George Grantham and Randy Meisner. His best known song was "Kind Woman," which he wrote for his wife, Nancy.
Pickin' Up the Pieces is the debut album by country rock band Poco, released in 1969. It was one of the earliest examples of the emerging genre of country rock. Several of the songs date back to Richie Furay's days in Buffalo Springfield. An early version of "What a Day" was included on the Buffalo Springfield box set in 2001.
Poco is the second album by American country rock band Poco. This is the band's first album to feature Timothy B. Schmit who replaced Randy Meisner on electric bass. The Messina-penned "You Better Think Twice" became a signature song for the band. A copy of this album hangs in the Poco exhibit in the Country Music Hall of Fame in Nashville along with the jacket Rusty Young wears on the back cover. The album was dedicated to David Geffen who "picked up the pieces".
From the Inside is the third studio album by the American country rock band Poco. The band was reportedly unhappy with it following its release. This album was the first to include new member Paul Cotton as lead guitarist, who replaced Jim Messina. Messina would go on to form his partnership with Kenny Loggins.
Crazy Eyes is the fifth studio album released by the American country rock band Poco. Released in 1973, Crazy Eyes was the band's final album with founding member Richie Furay during his original tenure in Poco.
Inamorata is the sixteenth studio album by the country rock band Poco, released in 1984. Featuring guest spots by former members Timothy B. Schmitt, Richie Furay and George Grantham, this would be the last album that the band would record for Atlantic Records. After this the original line up would reform for the 1989 release Legacy.
Legacy is a studio album by the American country rock band Poco, released in 1989. The album reunited the five original members of the group; they had never recorded together. It contained two top-40 singles, "Call It Love" and "Nothin' to Hide".
The Last Roundup is the 21st album, and third live album, by the country rock band Poco.
Keeping the Legend Alive is the 22nd album and 4th live album by the country rock band Poco. It was re-released in 2006 under the title "Alive In The Heart Of The Night." It includes original members Richie Furay, *George Grantham and Rusty Young, Paul Cotton who replaced Jim Messina in 1970 and Jack Sundrud a member since the 1990s.
The first in a long line of compilation albums, The Very Best of Poco features highlights from the band's career from 1969–1974. When released on CD in the late 1980s, the album omits two tracks originally on the album, "Railroad Days" and "Skatin" for space reasons. Both were reinstated for the remastered BGO import edition released in 1998.
Poco: The Songs of Richie Furay is a compilation album consisting of songs by Richie Furay during his tenure with the band Poco, released in 1980.
The Best Of is a Spanish compilation of the American band Poco, released in 1980.
The Forgotten Trail (1969–74) is a 2-CD collection of the greatest hits of Poco recorded during the group's work for Epic Records, which included their first eight albums.
The Very Best of Poco is a 1999 compilation album of songs by the band Poco.
The Ultimate Collection is a compilation album by the American band Poco, released in 1998.
The Essential Poco is a compilation album of recordings by the band Poco released in 2005 as part of Sony BMG's Essential series.
"Crazy Love" is a 1979 hit single for the country rock group Poco introduced on the 1978 album Legend. Written by founding group member Rusty Young, "Crazy Love" was the first single by Poco to reach the Top 40 and remained the group's biggest hit, with a special impact as an Adult Contemporary hit, being ranked by Billboard as the #1 AC song for the year 1979.
George Grantham is an American drummer and vocalist best known for his work with pioneering country rock band Poco.
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