Randy Meisner obit

Randy Meisner, Founding Eagles Member, Dies at 77

 

He was not on the list.

Randy Meisner, a founding member, bassist and vocalist of the Eagles, died last night (July 26, 2023) in Los Angeles at age 77, due to complications from Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary disease (COPD). The news of his passing was announced by the band.

From their post: As the original bass player for the pioneering country-rock group, Poco, Randy was at the forefront of the musical revolution that began in Los Angeles in the late 1960s. In 1971, Randy, along with Glenn Frey, Don Henley and Bernie Leadon, formed the Eagles and contributed to the band’s albums Eagles, Desperado, On the Border, One of These Nights and Hotel California. He was inducted with the Eagles into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1998.

“Randy was an integral part of the Eagles and instrumental in the early success of the band. His vocal range was astonishing, as is evident on his signature ballad, ‘Take It to the Limit,’” the Eagles said in their statement. Other tributes are below.

Prior to Poco, he was bassist and vocalist with Rick Nelson’s Stone Canyon Band. Funeral arrangements are pending.

Meisner, who left the Eagles in 1977, was conspicuously absent from the Grammy Awards tribute to Glenn Frey on February 15, 2016. Meisner had made news the previous July when he was placed under 24/7 court-ordered supervision following murder and suicide threats he made earlier in 2015 during a hospital stay.

Meisner, born March 8, 1946, in Scotts Bluff, Nebraska, had rarely been heard from since commenting on Frey’s death in January 2016. “I couldn’t believe he went so quick,” he told New York’s Daily News. “When I heard… I started crying for a long time. You’re like brothers in a band like that. Sometimes we got in arguments, but it was like a marriage, we all loved each other. I sure will miss the guy.

“He was so energetic and full of life. He has his children, I was so happy for him. It’s really sad,” Meisner added.

He had hoped to reunite with his fellow bandmates in December 2015 when they were slated to receive Kennedy Center Honors in Washington. But Frey’s health issues led the band to postpone. “I was looking forward to this one. I was going to go to the Kennedy awards and was thinking, ‘Man, this could be the last time we’ll all be together.’ Now that really hurts my heart that we couldn’t be together one more time,” Meisner lamented.

Several months later, Meisner’s wife, Lana Rae Meisner, was found dead by police from a gunshot to the head on March 6, 2016, at the couple’s Studio City, Calif. home. The Los Angeles Police Department subsequently confirmed her death was accidental.

Later in 2016, the Kennedy Center announced that the band was selected as one of that year’s honorees. Conspicuously missing from the list were former Eagles Don Felder, Meisner and Bernie Leadon.

Kennedy Center President Deborah Rutter wrote, “The Kennedy Center consulted with the Eagles and through that discussion, it was determined that the four band members–Don Henley, the late Glenn Frey, Timothy B. Schmit and Joe Walsh–who ‘carried the torch,’ will be awarded the Honors.”

Her statement went on to note: “This determination does not discredit the contributions of former band members.”

Although it had been decades since Meisner left the group, his former bandmates displayed an impressive loyalty to him when the bass player underwent a lengthy hospitalization in 2013 and 2014. “I aspirated some food into my throat and choked,” he explains. “I was in a coma for a little while, too. They paid for everything, me being in the hospital.”

In November 2018, Meisner attended Richie Furay’s concert at the iconic Los Angeles venue the Troubadour. However, he stayed backstage and did not perform.

Meisner joined “Joe Walsh’s Old Fashioned Rock N’ Roll Radio Show” on November 28, 2020, and talked about the band’s early days. Regrettably, there was no discussion of what the bassist had been doing in recent years.

Walsh posted a tribute to Meisner on July 28. “An honor and privilege to share the stage with, Randy was a great guy with an unforgettable voice. Here’s to always being a dreamer, my friend. RIP.”

Don Felder wrote a tribute to his former Eagles bandmate. “Randy was one of the nicest, sweetest, most talented, and funniest guys I’ve ever known. It breaks my heart to hear of his passing. His voice stirred millions of souls every time he sang ‘Take It To the Limit.’ The crowd would EXPLODE with cheers and applause. We had some wild and wicked fun memories together, brother. God bless you Randy for bringing so many people joy and happiness. RIP, my friend.”

Jim Messina and Meisner were two of Poco’s founding members.

Randy Bachman tweetd out - Sorry to hear #Eagles #musician Randy Meisner has left us. He was an incredible #singer #songwriter and #bassist. Peace to his friends and family. #Takeittothelimit #rip #RandyMeisner

Randall Herman Meisner was born in Scottsbluff, Nebraska, on March 8, 1946, the second child and only son of farmers Herman (1911–1995) and Emilie (née Haun) Meisner (1911–2010). All four of his grandparents were Volga German immigrants. Randy had an older sister, Carol, who died in 2005. He recalled that his mother was always singing around the house. His maternal grandfather, George Haun, was a violin teacher.

Meisner played bass and sang with a local band named The Dynamics (later The Drivin' Dynamics) from 1961 to 1965. Their first paying job was in the dance hall at Little Moon Lake, in Torrington, Wyoming, in December 1961. They played there regularly through 1962. In late 1962, The Drivin' Dynamics released their first record, a 4-song EP with Meisner singing lead vocals on Sam Cooke's "You Send Me". It was pressed locally with only 500 copies released. In August 1965, The Dynamics signed a record deal with Sully Records out of Amarillo, Texas. They recorded three songs, with Meisner singing lead on two: "One Of These Days" and "So Fine". "So Fine" was released as a single and sold well regionally and in the southeastern U.S. Early in 1966, Meisner moved to California with a band named The Soul Survivors, later to be renamed The Poor (because, as Don Felder later said, "that is what they became"). It was a hardscrabble existence, as Meisner later recalled, "I never had a car, I had to walk. I sold the Los Angeles Free Press on Sunset and Highland. I made about five bucks a day." The Poor was managed by Charlie Greene and Brian Stone, who also managed Buffalo Springfield and Sonny & Cher. The band released several singles on Loma, York, and Decca Records in 1966 and 1967, with limited success. Loma Records was a subsidiary of Warner Bros., and had offices in the same building. In February 1967, The Poor recorded "She's Got the Time, She's Got the Changes", written by Tom Shipley (later of Brewer & Shipley fame) while he was a staff writer for A&M Records. Three of the singles were produced by Barry Friedman (aka "Frazier Mohawk") and recorded at Gold Star Studios. The band performed on "Study in Motion #1" which was featured in the 1967 Jack Nicholson film Hell's Angels on Wheels.

In the summer of 1967, The Poor was booked for two weeks at the Salvation Club in New York City, opening for The Jimi Hendrix Experience. Though they did get to play a few times, it was not the opportunity they had hoped it would be, and the band members had to threaten management to get money for plane tickets back to L.A. Rev-Ola released a CD of The Poor's music in 2003, which included one song written by Meisner, "Come Back Baby".

In May 1968, after auditioning alongside Timothy B. Schmit, Meisner joined Poco (originally named Pogo) with former Buffalo Springfield members Richie Furay and Jim Messina. Meisner appears on the group's first album, Pickin' Up the Pieces, but quit the band shortly before the record was released. His exit was the result of his anger at being excluded from participation in the final mix playback sessions for the album, as only Messina and Furay were to complete production. His image was removed from the painting on the album's cover and replaced with a dog. His bass parts and backing vocals were left in the final mix, but his lead vocals were removed, and new versions were sung by George Grantham.

In April 1969, Meisner joined Rick Nelson's Stone Canyon Band, and persuaded Nelson and producer John Boylan to hire his former bandmates from The Poor, Allen Kemp (guitar) and Pat Shanahan (drums). Meanwhile, the pedal steel guitarist Tom Brumley, previously of Buck Owens' band, completed the group. Meisner appears on In Concert at the Troubadour, 1969 and Rudy The Fifth. He is also featured in Easy to Be Free, a documentary of the Stone Canyon Band's 1969 tour, directed by Rick Nelson's brother David. The film was eventually broadcast on U.S. television in 1973. Meisner co-produced "In Concert at the Troubadour" with Rick Nelson. Although he did not perform on Nelson's Garden Party, he did co-author one of the album's tracks, "I Wanna Be With You". Meisner continued to support himself as a session performer, playing bass on two tracks of James Taylor's Sweet Baby James album ("Country Road" and "Blossom"), recorded in December 1969. That same month, he played bass on several tracks for Waylon Jennings' 1970 album "Singer of Sad Songs", recorded in RCA Victor Studio in Hollywood.