Eagles
Seattle Kingdome
August 6th, 1976

The Eagles played the Seattle Kingdome on August 6th, 1976. Linda Ronstadt and J.D. Souther opened.

The concert was attended by more than 50,000 fans. It was only the second concert in the newly-built Kingdome. The first was Paul McCartney & Wings in June.

_{Original concert poster}

The sound was terrible in the giant venue unless you were seated directly in front of the stage. Fans who came to hear the Eagles’ perfect harmonies couldn’t hear them unless they were near the front. Patrick McDonald of the Seattle Times, noted that due to the size of the Kingdome and the number of people in attendance, the show resembled an “indoor Woodstock” with people milling around and friends sitting together passing pipes and joints. However, unlike Woodstock, the Kingdome was equipped with a giant video screen that hung near the stage:

“One major difference was the big screen, which did give everybody a good view of what was going on on stage. They were doing different things with than at the Wings show – split screen, dissolves, extreme close-ups, etc. It was like watching In Concert on a giant TV screen except the sound is better on TV.”
Patrick McDonald, Seattle Times, August 8, 1976

Footage

This video screen footage of the Seattle concert exists as a bootleg. Below I have included the footage of Randy’s two lead-singing performances, “Take It To The Limit” and “Midnight Flyer.” I have also included “One Of These Nights” and rare footage of “Seven Bridges Road.” The entire concert is also available at the bottom.

“Take It To The Limit”

Listen to the end to hear Glenn Frey say “That was Randy Meisner, our bass player, hitting the high notes there. We love it every night.” Then Joe Walsh pipes in: “He can sing higher than that if he needs to.” (@2:36) Unfortunately, the footage starts in the middle of the song.

“Midnight Flyer”

“One Of These Nights”

“Seven Bridges Road”

Full Concert

Reviews

“It should be mentioned that the Eagles’ singing was almost flawless throughout. Bassist Randy Meisner’s incredibly breathtaking vocal on ‘Take It To The Limit’ prompted Glenn Frey to remark, ‘The highest voice in the business…and he can sing higher,too.’ Their superb vocal harmonies were featured in a beautiful acoustic version of ‘Seven Bridges Road’ with drummer Don Henley stepping down to sing with the other four. It was reminiscent of Crosby, Stills, Nash and Young.” (Nathaniel Koch, Cooper Point Journal, Evergreen State College, August 12, 1976)

*Cooper Point Journal,* Evergreen State College, August 12, 1976

The Kingdome show was the Eagles’ second to last concert on their 1976 summer tour. Their last stop was Mile High Stadium in Denver on August 8th, 1976. Several members of Randy’s family traveled from Scottsbluff, Nebraska to see the show. Read more about it below.

Eagles In Denver, 1976: A Family Affair

Author

Jessica Buxton

1976, Midnight Flyer, One Of These Nights, Seattle, Seven Bridges Road, Take It To The Limit, Video, Washington

Eagles
University Of Cincinnati Fieldhouse
May 8, 1975

Dan Fogelberg opened.

This was the Eagles’ third visit to the “Queen City” (and Randy’s fourth).

Eagles at UC Fieldhouse. Photo by Tom Kistner.

Before the show, the Eagles were presented with the key to the city by Vice-Mayor William Chenault.
Eight years later, Randy, along with his mom, Emilie, was presented the key to the city during a concert in Omaha, NE at Pogo’s Electric Cowboy.

1975, Eagles, Ohio

Eagles
Olympia Stadium, Detroit
July 20th, 1976

The Eagles played Olympia Stadium in Detroit on July 20th, 1976. J.D. Souther opened.

Both Glenn Frey and the concert’s opening act, J.D. Souther, were born in Detroit. In 1964, Glenn’s aunt Virginia took him to see the Beatles at Olympia Stadium, when he was 15-years-old.

_{The Eagles perform “Seven Bridges Road” at Olympia Stadium.}

Randy sang lead on “Midnight Flyer” and “Take It To The Limit.”

Author

Jessica Buxton

1976, Eagles, Glenn Frey, Michigan

Eagles
Freedom Hall, Louisville, KY
July 21st, 1976

The J.D. Souther opened.

Louisville Courier-Journal, July 21, 1976

The opening of the following review refers to the Elton John concert which took place the night before.

Billy Reed, columnist for the Courier-Journal, noted that all but Randy had either a beard or mustache:

“…everybody had either a beard or mustache except bass guitarist Randy Meisner, who looked downright clean in his Prince Valiant haircut. Meisner proved he was in the right place when he sang lead on ‘Take It To The Limit,” one of the Eagles’ smash hits.

The Eagles at Freedom Hall:

Courier-Journal, August 29, 1976. Photo: Bill Strode

1976, Eagles, Kentucky

Eagles
Arrowhead Stadium
Kansas City, MO, June 6, 1975

The Eagles opened for the Rolling Stones at Arrowhead Stadium in Kansas City, Missouri. Joe Walsh, who was not billed, joined them as their guest. The Stones were on their legendary 1975 “Tour Of The Americas.” Opening along with the Eagles were The Gap Band and Rufus featuring Chaka Khan.

_{Tour poster, 1975.
Keyboardist Billy Preston and guitarist Ron Wood appeared as part of the Rolling Stones’ touring band. Wood was not yet an official member of the group.}

The bands performed under a tent-like dome on the stage.

_{The Stones performing at Arrowhead, June 6, 1975. Photo ©Dann E. Haworth.}

Following The Gap Band and Rufus, the Eagles hit the stage at 5:30. They performed an hour-long set before the massive sold-out crowd.

Randy’s stage pass/badge for the Arrowhead stadium concert still exists with his family. The badge was pinned to his jeans in the photo on the right. Photo of the badge courtesy of Jennifer Meisner.

Below: Joe Walsh made a surprise appearance with the Eagles for a version of his own “Rocky Mountain Way.” Notice that Randy, who normally plucked his bass with his fingers, is using a pick for this song. Other songs on which he used a pick were “Good Day In Hell” and “Lovin’ You Every Minute” by Poco.

Joe Walsh backstage. Randy’s wife, Jennifer, at right with their son Dana hiding behind her.

Photos

Roadie Tommy Nixon is in both photos wearing a hat and red shirt.

The Eagles exit the stage. Randy is behind Eagles manager, Irving Azoff.

Roadie, Tommy Nixon, hands Don Henley a towel. Behind Henley is another roadie, Tony Taibi, in the Eagles shirt.

This was the Eagles’ first time opening for the Rolling Stones. In his memoir, Don Felder recalled the Eagles’ road manager, Richie Fernandez, setting up a meeting with the Stones in their hotel room the night before the concert. Felder claims it was the first time he’d ever seen heroin. He’d also hoped to meet Keith Richards, but he was nowhere in sight. He was later found motionless in the bathroom. Felder thought he was “a goner.” (Excerpt from Heaven And Hell: My Life With The Eagles by Don Felder).

Mick Jagger and Keith Richards (alive and well) onstage in Kansas City, June 6, 1975

REVIEWS

_{Lawrence Journal World, June 7, 1975}

_{Manhattan Mercury, June 8, 1975}

Author

Jessica Buxton

1975, Bernie Leadon, Don Felder, Don Henley, Glenn Frey, Joe Walsh, Missouri, Rolling Stones

Eagles
Roosevelt Stadium, Jersey City, NJ
July 19th, 1975

The Eagles’ guests were Seals & Crofts and Poco.

Seals & Crofts (left) and Poco at Roosevelt Stadium

Jessica Buxton

1975, New Jersey

EAGLES
Milwaukee County Stadium
June 8, 1975

The Eagles and Rufus opened for the Rolling Stones during their 1975 Tour Of The Americas. Joe Walsh joined the Eagles as their guest.

Author

Jessica Buxton

1975, Bernie Leadon, Don Felder, Don Henley, Glenn Frey, Joe Walsh, Rolling Stones, Wisconsin

EAGLES
Mississippi River Festival, Edwardsville, IL
July 29th, 1975

J.D. Souther was also on the bill. The Eagles drew the second largest crowd ever at the festival, which was sponsored by Southern Illinois University/Edwardsville (SIUE), with 29,700 attending. The Who drew the largest in 1971 with 31,000.

The show was not without problems. Festival officials had only planned for a crowd of 12,000, but twice as many showed up. There were traffic jams, fights, and property damage.

Randy backstage before the show

There were more problems behind-the-scenes. The Eagles’ road manager “threw a tantrum” because the food provided to the group was not what they requested:

“The road manager threw a tantrum because the food furnished for the group was cold cuts, not hot fried chicken. He complained about stage security. The group itself couldn’t decide if they wanted a sound check or not.” (Alton Telegraph, July 30, 1975)

Nevertheless, backstage photos show the band’s dining area with what appears to be fried chicken remnants on the table.

The Eagles during a sound check in Edwardsville. Photo by Ken Regan.

PHOTO SESSION

During the afternoon of the concert, Ken Regan took a series of photos of the band at the local Holiday Inn as well as backstage at the festival site. Note that Randy is wearing a red shirt with a white tornado on the front. The shirt matched the band’s stage passes at the time, which also were also red with a white tornado logo. Randy’s ex Jennifer Meisner and their son Dana recalled that the tornado may have meant “whirlwind” or something similar. Below is one of Randy’s stage passes from 1975:

You can see Henley’s stage pass on his denim shirt in the last photo.

See more photos from this session below:

Photo Archive: Eagles by Ken Regan, July 29th, 1975

CONCERT

Setlist (partial)
Take It Easy
Peaceful, Easy Feeling
Outlaw Man
Desperado
James Dean
Witchy Woman
Already Gone
Best Of My Love

Randy onstage at the Mississippi River Festival:

Review from the Edwardsville Intelligencer:

Author

Jessica Buxton

1975, Bernie Leadon, Don Felder, Don Henley, Eagles, Edwardsville, Glenn Frey, Illinois, Mississippi River Festival

BANDS Eagles One Of These Nights Tour

Tour Of The Pacific: Eagles in Japan, 1976

May 12, 2023February 3, 2026

An overview of the Eagles’ first tour of Japan, including the first known live recording of “Take It To The Limit.”

EAGLES
Carolina Coliseum, Columbia, SC
August 3rd, 1975

Jimmy Buffett opened. Randy sang lead on “Midnight Flyer” and “Too Many Hands.”

When Buffett inducted the Eagles into the Rock & Roll Hall Of Fame in 1998, he recalled that he met the band for the first time backstage at this show.

SETLIST:

Take It Easy
Outlaw Man
Desperado
One Of These Nights
Train Leaves Here This Morning
Peaceful Easy Feeling
Ol’ 55
Journey Of The Sorceror
Midnight Flyer
Already Gone
Too Many Hands
Good Day In Hell
James Dean
Witchy Woman
Oh Carol (encore)
Best Of My Love (encore)
Tequila Sunrise (encore)

1975, Eagles, Jimmy Buffett, South Carolina

EAGLES
Sunshine Festival, Anaheim, CA
September 28th, 1975

The Eagles played the Sunshine Festival in Anaheim, CA on September 28th, 1975. Also on the bill were Linda Ronstadt and Jackson Browne. The concert was the Eagles’ last tour date of 1975. A live recording of the Eagles’ concert is included on the recently released One Of These Nights Deluxe Edition.

Randy sang “Take It To The Limit” at this show in one of his first-ever performances of the song. He also performed “Midnight Flyer.” The concert also marked Bernie Leadon’s last appearance with the Eagles. He quit the band later that year and was replaced with Joe Walsh.

Reviews

I have included two reviews that mention “Take It To The Limit” being performed.

Los Angeles Times, September 30, 1975

Highlander (UC Riverside), October 2, 1975

Author

Jessica Buxton

1975, Bernie Leadon, California, Eagles, Take It To The Limit

EAGLES
Red Rocks Amphitheater, Morrison, CO
August 18-19, 1975

The Eagles played two nights at Red Rocks Amphitheater in Morrison, CO on August 18th and 19th, 1975. Dan Fogelberg and Tom Waits were the warmup acts.

Straight Creek Journal (Boulder), August 14, 1975

An early ad for the show listing only Tom Waits as the opener. It also included the original dates of the concerts: August 19th and 20th.

The Eagles’ previous album, On The Border, featured a song, “Ol’ 55,” that was written by fellow Asylum artist, Tom Waits, who opened the show. According to an audience account, Waits was booed off the stage before he completed his set on the first night:

“Unfortunately Tom was booed off the stage before he could do a whole set, presumably because the Eagles fans were more accustomed to sweet than dour. The headliners were not pleased, and made a big point of emphasizing the identity of the composer of ‘Ol 55’ when the time came.” (Ken Langford, Tom Waits Library)

It’s interesting that Waits would perform at this show since he disliked the Eagles version of his song and said so publicly in early 1975:

“It’s one of the first songs I wrote so I felt like it was kind of flattering that somebody wanted to do your song but at the same time I thought their version was a little antiseptic.” (WAMU interview, Washington DC, 1975)

The next year his comments about the band were even more harsh when he told the British music magazine, New Musical Express, that their albums were only good for “keeping the dust off your turntable.” One can’t help but wonder if getting booed at this concert added to his contempt for the band.

Author

Jessica Buxton

1975, Colorado, Dan Fogelberg, Eagles, Ol’ 55, Red Rocks, Tom Waits

EAGLES
Day On The Green, Oakland Coliseum
June 29, 1975

The Doobie Brothers, Commander Cody, and Kingfish also performed.
Elton John joined the Eagles onstage as a guest.

During their first encore, surprise guest, Elton John, joined the Eagles for a version of Chuck Berry’s “Oh Carol.”
A week earlier, on June 21st, the Eagles performed at Elton’s Mid-Summer Music Concert at Wembley Stadium in London.

The review below has a nice description of the Eagles’ set:

Elton and Glenn Frey backstage. The woman in the photos is Connie Pappas (later Connie Pappas Hillman), who worked for John Reid Enterprises, who managed Elton. ¹

Neal Preston took a series of photos of the group backstage.
See more photos here: Eagles by Neal Preston – Day On The Green, Oakland, CA, June 29th, 1975

Promoter Bill Graham gave each member of the band a gift for participating in Day On the Green. It was a figure with an eagle head made of iron on a wooden bass with a metal plaque. Randy’s eagle head currently resides with his son, Dana. The inscription on Randy’s plaque reads: “Randy, Cheers and thanks. Bill & the F.M. Family, June 29, 1975.” The “F.M.” refers to FM Productions, a company founded by Graham that mostly handled concert promotions.

_{Photo courtesy of Jennifer Meisner}

Meisner family friend and former nanny, Janice Heilbrun, later worked for Connie Pappas Hillman and John Reid at John Reid Enterprises. I hope Connie doesn’t mind if I tell the following story. Last year, she contacted me after seeing my blog post about Elton John’s Mid-Summer Music. In the post, I had mentioned how Janice had been suffering from Parkinson’s Disease the last few years. Connie asked if I would pass along a message to Janice wishing her the best, which I did via Jennifer Meisner. But I couldn’t end my correspondence with Connie without mentioning how much Randy had admired her husband Chris Hillman. I told her that Randy had said in interviews that he was in “awe” of Hillman and thought he was one of the best bass players he’d ever seen. This is what Connie told me in her response: “Chris was very moved when I relayed Randy’s sentiments about him….very, very sweet.” ↩︎

Author

Jessica Buxton

1975, Day On The Green, Eagles, Elton John, Neal Preston, Oakland

EAGLES
Balboa Stadium, San Diego, CA
September 27, 1975

The Eagles headlined the “One Of These Days” concert at Balboa Stadium in San Diego. Jackson Browne and Linda Ronstadt also performed.

The show was filmed and portions of it were shown on Saturday Night Live With Howard Cosell (not to be confused with long-running NBC show).

The following review is not the most positive, but provides a good description of the show and the songs that were played.

The round stage pass attached to the leg of Randy’s jeans was preserved in his wife Jennifer’s scrapbook. His yellow shirt, with the hand-embroidered design from On The Border, was a gift from a fan named Terri “Woody” Smith. The family still has this shirt. Smith also gave Randy a blue shirt with a hand-embroidered eagle pattern (see it here).

Author

Jessica Buxton

1975, California, Jackson Browne, Linda Ronstadt, San Diego