A number of WRTC hosts will be paying tribute to Poco guitarist Rusty Young who passed away on April 14 at the age of 75.
Saturday’s edition of Greasy Tracks featured a segment of live performances by Poco, the band that Young helped found in 1968.
The April 19 version of The Devo Rock Show and the April 21 Boris Rock Show will include music featuring Young as well as an interview Devo and Boris did with him in 2009 where he discusses how the band was formed. The programs air 9 a.m.-noon.
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Born in Long Beach, Calif., Young grew up in Denver and started playing in local rock bands, eventually recording a regional hit song that led to him being asked to play pedal steel guitar on one of the last recordings by the Buffalo Springfield, a Richie Furay track called “Kind Woman” in 1968. The band had never heard Young play before, but he was recommended by their road manager and duly flown to the coast for the session.
While on the trip, Young auditioned for a group that would become the Flying Burrito Brothers, but ended up joining Poco which was formed following the split of Buffalo Springfield by Springfield members Furay and Jim Messina who recruited bassist Randy Meisner and drummer George Grantham. Meisner would leave the band during sessions for their debut album and was replaced by Timothy B. Schmit.
While adept as a guitarist, Young was renowned for his ability as a pedal steel player and he’s regarded as one of the key people to bring it to the rock world as it was primarily linked with country music. Always an innovator, Young would often play his pedal steel through a Leslie speaker cabinet.
Poco’s lineup would change over time, but Young remained the sole founding member who remained for the band’s 50-year career. He would become a primary songwriter along with guitarist Paul Cotton. Two of Young’s compositions — “Rose of Cimarron” and “Crazy Love” — long remained fan favorites even though vocals were handled by Cotton and Schmit. “Cray Love” became Poco’s biggest hit, going to No. 1 in 1979.
Despite the musical chops of the members of Poco, the band was never able to gain the allure of the slicker, FM radio-friendly Eagles nor did they garner the mystique of the Gram Parson’s-era Flying Burrito Brothers.