Honky Tonk Downstairs

Stereo: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CpCjy_DUHps&fmt=18

Buck Norris sings "Honky Tonk Downstairs" by Poco and George Strait. An earlier Country artist also did this song in the 50's but I am not sure which one.
One of the first and longest-lasting country-rock groups, Poco had their roots in the dying embers of Buffalo Springfield. After Neil Young and Stephen Stills, the co-founders of that group, exited in the spring of 1968, only guitarist/singer Richie Furay and bassist Jim Messina remained to complete the group's swan song, Last Time Around. The final Springfield track, "Kind Woman," included only Furay and Messina, with a guest appearance on steel guitar by Rusty Young -- at the time, he was something of a rarity as a talented lap-steel guitarist who was comfortable working in a rock idiom, and had previously belonged to a folk-rock-turned-psychedelic band called Boenzee Cryque. Young stuck with Furay and Messina, in the process skipping a scheduled audition for a new group that ex-Byrds member Gram Parsons was putting together. Auditions followed before the fledgling group reached out, at Young's urging, to ex-Boenzee Cryque drummer/vocalist George Grantham, and also to bassist/singer Randy Meisner, who had previously played with a band called the Poor. This lineup rehearsed for four months before making their debut at the Troubadour in Los Angeles, in November of 1968. A month later, they made their first appearance at the Fillmore West on a bill with the Steve Miller Band and Sly & the Family Stone.

At the time, they were using the name Pogo, but that didn't last. Walt Kelly, the creator of the comic strip Pogo, from which they'd freely admitted borrowing the name, didn't appreciate the group's choice and filed a lawsuit. Not wanting to lose all of the recognition and goodwill they'd built up locally over the previous five months, the result was a change of just one consonant, to Poco. They impressed everyone who heard them, but getting them a recording contract was itself a difficult proposition -- Meisner, Young, and Grantham weren't a problem, as they were essentially unsigned to any label, but Messina and Furay, as members of Buffalo Springfield, were most definitely tied to Atlantic Records. As it happened, Columbia Records was interested in the group -- and hovering somewhere around this situation was David Geffen, then a young talent agent who was fast on his feet and persuasive in his manner. He, in turn, was trying to sort out the contractual situation surrounding ex-Springfield guitarist/singer Stephen Stills, and his new association with ex-Byrds singer/guitarist David Crosby, and Graham Nash, formerly of the Hollies, who wanted to record together but had the reverse problem; Stills was signed to Atlantic by way of Buffalo Springfield (which very much wanted Crosby, Stills & Nash), while Crosby and Nash, through their previous memberships in the Byrds and the Hollies, respectively, were both tied contractually to Columbia Records. With Geffen acting as catalyst between Atlantic chief Ahmet Ertegun and Columbia president Clive Davis, Messina and Furay had their contracts traded to Columbia in exchange for Crosby and Nash going to Atlantic.

The group's lineup problems, which proved to be perennial, started almost immediately after Poco was signed to Columbia Records' Epic label in early 1969. During the recording of their debut album, Meisner suddenly left the band -- accounts vary as to precisely when this took place; he left either at the outset of the recording, or after finishing the album. But the basic disagreement concerned the fact that Messina, who had experience as both an engineer and producer, would not permit Meisner (or anyone else) to participate in the mixing of the album. Whatever the circumstances, Meisner went on to play with Rick Nelson for a few months before gravitating to a country-rock outfit that eventually christened themselves the Eagles. Poco ended up recording their debut album, Pickin' Up the Pieces, as a quartet, with Messina handling the bass parts. The album was issued in June of 1969 to enthusiastic reviews but not overwhelming sales, a pattern that would follow the band for most of its history. Poco was back to being a quintet in 1970 with the addition of bassist/vocalist Timothy B. Schmit, whose arrival coincided with the recording of their second album, Poco, on which he had two co-writing credits. The album showed the group pushing its range and received even better reviews at the time than its predecessor, but failed to generate a hit single or climb above the lower reaches of the charts.

Category:

Music

Tags:

• Buck
• Norris
• Classic
• Country
• Poco

[JOHNDEEBANK]

Hey Buck, I found it. Great writing.  Made all the difference. Poor Mamma.

John, Canada.

[bucknorrismusic]

@JOHNDEEBANK LOL, I would say poor son. Or daughter in law.

[sherrywine1941]

Hi Buck..That 2nd verse was a good one..LOL

Thats called getting all the right elements into a country song. (5*) Hugs Sherry

[bucknorrismusic]

Thanks Sherry, got to pack it all in there. LOL

[ilovemaniototo]

Loved the second verse your very clever. Great song. Carol x

[bucknorrismusic]

Thanks Carol, I even laugh when I sing it. LOL

[VideosToEnjoy]

Excellent.

Lloyd.

[bucknorrismusic]

Thanks Robert.

[bucknorrismusic]

Thanks Frank, got the idea for that verse one day driving down the road (I practice a lot of song driving, LOL) it kind of wrote itself.

[allshookup77]

Great job Buck and your 2nd verse made it the perfect country and western song! (lol) Well done, I enjoyed it... FrAnK (5*****)

[torontoteddy62]

Buck what a great old song by George Strait your friend Robert.