Randy Meisner, bassist and co-founder of the Eagles, died July 26. He was 77 and suffered issues from continual obstructive pulmonary illness (COPD).

Born in Scottsbluff, Nebraska, on March 8, 1946, he began taking guitar classes after seeing Elvis Presley on “The Ed Sullivan Present,” then as a high-schooler moved to bass and started enjoying in native bands, impressed by R&B and Motown bassists.

From the early to mid ’60s, Meisner performed in a sequence of teams that toured nationally and signed a recording take care of a small regional label in Texas. In ’66, he moved to California with a band that recorded a handful of singles, none of which charted.

In Might of ’68, Meisner shaped Poco with Buffalo Springfield’s Richie Furay and Jim Messina. He left the group after the discharge of its debut album, briefly performed with Rick Nelson’s Stone Canyon Band, then grew to become a member of Linda Ronstadt’s backing band with Bernie Leadon, Don Henley, and Glenn Frey. In ’71, they parted with Ronstadt and signed to Asylum Information because the Eagles. Meisner spent six years with the band because it recorded 5 albums, concluding with the classic-rock stalwart Resort California.

Within the Eagles, Meisner sang a handful of songs – “Tryin’” (from the 1972 debut), “Sure Type of Idiot” (Desperado), “Midnight Flyer” (On the Border), and “Take it to the Restrict” which he wrote with ending assist from Henley and Frey for 1975’s One among These Nights. Being decidedly uncomfortable within the highlight, Meisner was reluctant to have the group carry out his songs dwell. However, after “Take it to the Restrict” hit #4 on the Billboard Scorching 100, it grew to become a fan favourite through the 1977 Resort California tour. With a dislike of flying/touring and weary of its persona dynamics, Meisner stop the band that August.

Although typically overshadowed by the bigger personalities/egos Henley and Frey, Meisner was a unprecedented vocal and bass expertise. With a greater ear for tonal variation than many bassists, he performed an array of devices starting from requirements equivalent to Fender’s Precision, Jazz, and Telecaster basses, a Rick 4001, and Music Man Stingray to more-obscure fashions equivalent to a Peavey Basis and a Hagstrom II with a purple plastic prime. Its woody tone supplied the low finish on a lot of the Eagles’ early materials, together with the gliss-laden “One among These Nights.”

Meisner’s post-Eagles profession included a number of solo albums, a Poco reunion, a stint within the group Black Tie (with Billy Swan and Bread’s Jimmy Griffin), and the Roberts-Meisner band with Rick Roberts of Flying Burrito Brothers and Firefall fame.

Regardless of the peace of mind Meisner dropped at his music, he led a generally troubled and tragic life. After what he described as being “shunned” for many years by fellow Eagles, they requested him to hitch a reunion tour in 2013, however poor well being stored him from taking part. His remaining efficiency with the band came about 15 years earlier, at its 1998 induction to the Rock and Roll Corridor of Fame.

This text initially appeared in VG’s October 2023 difficulty. All copyrights are by the creator and Classic Guitar journal. Unauthorized replication or use is strictly prohibited.