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Topic: Justin Hayward on Poco |
Mike Bacciarini
From:
Arizona
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Posted 4 Oct 2020 11:59 am |
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Although Poco (early & mid period) has been, is and forever will be, my favorite band on planet earth, I’ve also been a fan of the Moody Blues. Justin Hayward in particular. His song writing, voice and guitar work just strike a chord with me, so when I stumbled on these quotes of his from interviews over the years, the smile that came to my face was so satisfying.
Anyone else have some thoughts?
From interview with Mike Mettler “The Sound Bardâ€
Mettler: Besides the Eagles and Jackson Browne, what other artists made records that sound great to your ear?
Hayward: Well, of course, the kings of that were Steely Dan. Most people would say that. Their stuff was mastered so beautifully, mastered tastefully and not too loud, with the full frequency range. I think the things that were happening in California, a process started by Buffalo Springfield and then Poco, was a really tasteful kind of business.
From interview with Lee Zimmerman “ Goldmine Magazineâ€
Hayward: It was easier then, and when we came to America, radio helped us tremendously. So by the time we finished our first tour for Bill Graham, who brought us over the first time, we were already in with a lot of musicians of the time — Poco and Crosby, Stills and Nash and those kind of groups.
From interview with Matt Wardlaw “Ultimate Classic Rockâ€
Wardlaw: You’ve got a song on here that you wrote with Kenny Loggins. How far back do you go with Kenny?
Hayward: He’s an acquaintance. I wouldn’t say a real friend -- but he is now. [But prior that that I knew him] as an acquaintance. I think we had people in common from the Poco days. We did a tour with Poco in the ‘60s and Jim Messina and through that, I was an acquaintance of Kenny’s.
From interview with Paul Harris “Harris Onlineâ€
Harris: Justin, you’ve been with the Moody Blues so long and you’ve done a lot of solo stuff. Is there another rock and roll band you wish you could have been in, if you couldn’t have been with the Moody Blues?
Hayward: When we first came to America, I think we first came there in 1968, we were very lucky to be one of the few English bands that really made it. I know I used to love playing with all of those bands. We did a tour with a group called It’s A Beautiful Day. They were just so great. But then also a year or so after that we did a tour with some of our heroes which were in a group called Poco. They influenced us right from the Buffalo Springfield times, the guys who came out of Buffalo Springfield and into Poco. I think I’d like to be with them. I’d like to have played with them.
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MCI Arlington S-10 3+5, George L E-66, BJS & Emmons bars, Fender Princeton 65W, Fender Satellite SFX, custom FX rack, 1983 Dobro 60D, SX-8 lap steel, Martin D16GT, Ibanez AS73, 1978 Rickenbacker 4000 custom.
Last edited by Mike Bacciarini on 4 Oct 2020 12:51 pm; edited 1 time in total |
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Jerry Overstreet
From:
Louisville Ky
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Posted 4 Oct 2020 12:18 pm
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| Nice reading those interview quotes. I'm right there with you re: Moody Blues and Justin Hayward in particular. I recently saw a couple airings of the Live Albert Hall performance from 2000. Of course, I remember them from the 60s. Always admired the class of the band and the music. |
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Mike Bacciarini
From:
Arizona
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Posted 4 Oct 2020 12:23 pm
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Hey Jerry,
I think I saw where the Moodies had Richie Furay & band join them on their recent music cruises.
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MCI Arlington S-10 3+5, George L E-66, BJS & Emmons bars, Fender Princeton 65W, Fender Satellite SFX, custom FX rack, 1983 Dobro 60D, SX-8 lap steel, Martin D16GT, Ibanez AS73, 1978 Rickenbacker 4000 custom. |
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Mike Bacciarini
From:
Arizona
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Posted 4 Oct 2020 12:41 pm
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I recall a post about Jimmy leaving Poco, and what if instead of Paul Cotton, Joe Walsh replaced him. Much discussion of: he never would have done it, totally different sound, he wouldn’t have fit in, etc. Paul was a great choice, but I can certainly see Justin fitting in musically and personality-wise.
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MCI Arlington S-10 3+5, George L E-66, BJS & Emmons bars, Fender Princeton 65W, Fender Satellite SFX, custom FX rack, 1983 Dobro 60D, SX-8 lap steel, Martin D16GT, Ibanez AS73, 1978 Rickenbacker 4000 custom. |
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Joachim Kettner
From:
Germany
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Posted 4 Oct 2020 1:29 pm
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There is a song from the Moodies that has a short pedal steel intro. I can not rem ember it right now but I will search for it in my CDs.
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Fender Kingman, Sierra Crown D-10, Evans Amplifier, Soup Cube. |
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Nic Neufeld
From:
Kansas City, Missouri
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Posted 4 Oct 2020 3:05 pm
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Larkin Poe (Rebecca and Megan Lovell...the latter known on here for playing almost exclusively a Ricky Bakelite, kind of rare these days outside of older music styles) just covered "Nights in White Satin" and actually got to interview Justin I think last week or so. They've included the tune on their upcoming album of acoustic covers...
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4nAYNMboWJk
_________________
Waikīkī, at night when the shadows are falling
I hear the rolling surf calling
Calling and calling to me |
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Joachim Kettner
From:
Germany
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Mike Bacciarini
From:
Arizona
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Posted 5 Oct 2020 5:34 am
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Thanks Nic and Joachim..... very cool stuff. Although there’s no steel player listed on A Question of Balance, they clearly liked “that soundâ€. Mike Pinder on his Moog synth or Mellotron maybe?
While the Moodies and Poco were entirely different bands musically, there seems to be a vague “something†that they have in common. I wonder what made him consider Poco as an opening band, “heroes�
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MCI Arlington S-10 3+5, George L E-66, BJS & Emmons bars, Fender Princeton 65W, Fender Satellite SFX, custom FX rack, 1983 Dobro 60D, SX-8 lap steel, Martin D16GT, Ibanez AS73, 1978 Rickenbacker 4000 custom. |
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Fred Treece
From:
California, USA
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Posted 5 Oct 2020 7:07 am
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| Mike Bacciarini wrote: |
While the Moodies and Poco were entirely different bands musically, there seems to be a vague “something†that they have in common. I wonder what made him consider Poco as an opening band, “heroes� |
I like Justin’s description of them as heroes! I would say they were mutually admired contemporaries. The decision to tour together may not have been entirely up to Hayward & Moodies. Poco was always booked as an opening act for hugely popular groups that featured similarly great vocals and well crafted songs, partly because they had the respect of major booking agents like Bill Graham who thought they deserved the exposure even if the music of the lead act was not exactly genre related. Also, Ritchie and Jim and the boys probably jumped after this type of opportunity, since the band was not connecting with big hits, for some reason that remains a mystery to me and you and every other Poco fan.
Thanks for posting the quotes.
Last edited by Fred Treece on 5 Oct 2020 8:11 am; edited 1 time in total |
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Joachim Kettner
From:
Germany
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Posted 5 Oct 2020 7:40 am
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Justin auditioned for Eric Burdon and his New Animals once.
That's my favourite song of his:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MpYyEzL2C1U
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Fender Kingman, Sierra Crown D-10, Evans Amplifier, Soup Cube. |
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Jerry Overstreet
From:
Louisville Ky
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Posted 5 Oct 2020 7:51 am
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Just look at the scope of great music and musicians mentioned in those interviews. This was some of the best stuff ever done in those eras.
I guess I first remember Go Now in the 60s before Justin Hayward was a part of the band and other than this song, most of their other tunes were quite different, more bluesy then.
People may forget that they went through a few different people as most bands do, but they recorded for decades.
Besides Days, some of my favorites are from later Hayward tunes such as I Know you're out There Somewhere and Haunted. |
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Mike Bacciarini
From:
Arizona
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Posted 5 Oct 2020 8:14 am
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Fred and Jerry, I believe you’re right on here. Very sensible observations. Truly an amazing era for music.
Joachim, I heard an interview with Graeme (video called “Legend of a Bandâ€) where he talked about the original Moodies looking for a guitarist when Denny left. He said they got a sack of mail from Burdon that they no longer needed when they found their guitarist. First one they pulled out was Justin!
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MCI Arlington S-10 3+5, George L E-66, BJS & Emmons bars, Fender Princeton 65W, Fender Satellite SFX, custom FX rack, 1983 Dobro 60D, SX-8 lap steel, Martin D16GT, Ibanez AS73, 1978 Rickenbacker 4000 custom. |
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Jerry Overstreet
From:
Louisville Ky
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Posted 5 Oct 2020 8:21 am
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| Not to slight Poco which was in the title of the thread. I have 3 or 4 of their LPs from the day too. Big fan of that band as well as the others mentioned from that era...just great music. |
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Joachim Kettner
From:
Germany
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Posted 5 Oct 2020 8:24 am
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That would have been John Weider and Vic Briggs, Mike. Vic Briggs was very good. In the Larkin Poe interview he mentioned that he wasn't the greatest Blues player. Still I like his solos and his fast right hand like in "Questions".
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Fender Kingman, Sierra Crown D-10, Evans Amplifier, Soup Cube. |
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Jim Cohen
From:
Philadelphia, PA
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Mike Bacciarini
From:
Arizona
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Posted 5 Oct 2020 11:29 am
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Jim thanks for reminding us of your wonderful covers from this era. A great blast from the past.
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MCI Arlington S-10 3+5, George L E-66, BJS & Emmons bars, Fender Princeton 65W, Fender Satellite SFX, custom FX rack, 1983 Dobro 60D, SX-8 lap steel, Martin D16GT, Ibanez AS73, 1978 Rickenbacker 4000 custom. |
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K Maul
From:
Hadley, NY/Hobe Sound, FL
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Posted 5 Oct 2020 12:17 pm
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After Pinder left they did the album LONG DISTANCE VOYAGER. The song IN MY WORLD had pedal steel prominently featured. BJ Cole played very close to Sneaky Pete in style on it. https://youtu.be/o1yCRF16wwk
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Kevin Maul: Airline, Beard, Clinesmith, Decophonic, Evans, Excel, Fender, Fluger, Gibson, Hilton, Ibanez, Justice, K+K, Live Strings, MOYO, National, Oahu, Peterson, Quilter, Rickenbacher, Sho~Bud, Supro, TC, Ultimate, VHT, Williams, X-otic, Yamaha, ZKing.
Last edited by K Maul on 5 Oct 2020 10:23 pm; edited 1 time in total |
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Jerry Overstreet
From:
Louisville Ky
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Posted 5 Oct 2020 1:28 pm
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Thanks for that Kevin. I don't recall ever hearing that tune and I'm sure I would have remembered the steel.
The announcement is the original post reads presented by Thom McAn. Wonder how many people remember who that was? |
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Fred Treece
From:
California, USA
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Posted 5 Oct 2020 8:06 pm
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Jerry, Thom McAn was a shoe maker/seller that was very popular in the Cleveland area.
Further on the useless information front....
WIXY was an AM radio station out of Windsor Canada that came in loud and clear on the school bus I rode to junior high in a far flung little west side burb. I could sing you the damn jingle for the station ID. Public Hall was where I saw my first concert - Leo Kottke and Jesse Colin Young, right around “Ridgetop†time. The Belkin Brothers were the Bill Graham Presents of Northeast Ohio, and were famous for some of their odd parings - which don’t seem so odd now.
Last edited by Fred Treece on 5 Oct 2020 8:27 pm; edited 1 time in total |
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Jerry Overstreet
From:
Louisville Ky
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Posted 5 Oct 2020 8:39 pm
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Yeah, I'm hip to Thom McAn. We had one of the shoe stores in the little town I grew up in. I wore out quite a few pairs of them. There was a silly little saying like "If anybody can, Thom McAn" that some of us used for fun.
I thought the company had gone away, but I understand the name is still in use.
Sorry for the topic diversion will try to do better.  |
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Don R Brown
From:
Rochester, New York, USA
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Posted 6 Oct 2020 5:54 pm
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| Fred Treece wrote: |
WIXY was an AM radio station out of Windsor Canada that came in loud and clear on the school bus I rode to junior high in a far flung little west side burb. |
Fred, might want to double-check the memory bank (mine closed years ago!  ) "WIXY" would have been a US station. Anything out of Windsor Ontario would - as far as I know - have been Canadian, whose call letters would begin with "C"
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Many play better than I do. Nobody has more fun. |
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Joachim Kettner
From:
Germany
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Dave Mudgett
From:
Central Pennsylvania and Gallatin, Tennessee
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Posted 6 Oct 2020 6:37 pm
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| Don R Brown wrote: |
| Fred Treece wrote: |
WIXY was an AM radio station out of Windsor Canada that came in loud and clear on the school bus I rode to junior high in a far flung little west side burb. |
Fred, might want to double-check the memory bank (mine closed years ago! ) "WIXY" would have been a US station. Anything out of Windsor Ontario would - as far as I know - have been Canadian, whose call letters would begin with "C" |
Up to the early 70s, the Clear-Channel Big Kahuna in Windsor, and frankly, Detroit, was CKLW. By the time I got to Detroit, mid-70s, they were a ghost of their former self. FM took over. WRIF, WWWW, and so on.
Like many of us Yankees, Poco was an early gateway drug to country music for me. The commonalities with the Moody Blues were great melodies, great harmony singing, tight instrumentation. Both great. |
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Don R Brown
From:
Rochester, New York, USA
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Posted 6 Oct 2020 6:55 pm
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| Dave Mudgett wrote: |
Like many of us Yankees, Poco was an early gateway drug to country music for me. The commonalities with the Moody Blues were great melodies, great harmony singing, tight instrumentation. Both great. |
I was never fortunate enough to have seen Poco. I did, however, see the MB's in either '68 or '69, just as they started to gain popularity once again. It was in a college gym, floor seating about 10 feet from the stage. The opening act was some kids from that college who stunk the place out and made excuses after every song - acoustics, bad sound system, etc.
The Moody Blues walked on after the break, never said a word, I didn't even see a nod - just suddenly all hit the opening note of their first song together, on key, and their entire performance was just beyond any verbal description I could give then or today.
The next time I saw them, it was at a huge arena, tickets were expensive, and we sat farther away than the farthest corners of that college gym would have been.
(Let me clarify that the "floor seating" was sitting on the floor itself, not chairs set up on the floor. Best location I ever had for seeing a major group)
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Many play better than I do. Nobody has more fun. |
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Fred Treece
From:
California, USA
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Posted 6 Oct 2020 9:18 pm
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Don, I was already second guessing myself when I wrote my comment. Dave’s right, I was thinking of CKLW, out of Windsor, even though their jingle claimed “the motor cityâ€. The rest of my comment is probably all lies too.
I’m sorry you never got to see Poco. I saw them twice post-Richie, and once post-Timothy B. They were always a treat live, but better with Timmy, and definitely better than that with both he and Richie.
Last edited by Fred Treece on 6 Oct 2020 10:37 pm; edited 1 time in total |
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