On July 6th, 1975, the Eagles, along with Trapeze and Montrose, opened for the Rolling Stones at the Cotton Bowl in Dallas. The Stones were on their legendary Tour Of The Americas.
Dallas Morning News, July 6, 1975
With temperatures in the upper 90s, it was a hot afternoon in Dallas. The Eagles hit the stage around 5:00pm. In keeping with previous outdoor concerts on the Stones’ Tour of the Americas, the bands performed under a tent-like dome (see Kansas City and Milwaukee).
Photo via Rockin’ Houston.
The Eagles’ set lasted for a little over an hour. They kicked it off with “Take It Easy,” and ran through a string of hits, including “Witchy Woman” and “Desperado.” They closed with encores of Chuck Berry’s “Carol” and “Best Of My Love.” Although Randy’s lead-singing performances were not mentioned in any review, it’s likely that he performed “Midnight Flyer” and “Too Many Hands,” which were part of the Eagles’ setlist in the Summer of 1975.
Randy at the Cotton Bowl.
Most reviews of the Dallas concert focused on the Rolling Stones since they were not only the headliners, but one of the most popular bands in the world in 1975. The Houston Post review below did the best job at detailing at least a few of the songs that the Eagles performed (see second column).
The Eagles played two sold-out nights at Nassau Coliseum in Uniondale, New York. It was the second stop on the first leg of the 1977 Hotel California tour. Jimmy Buffett was the opening act.
Newsday (Nassau), February 13, 1977
The two shows at Nassau Coliseum were the first of four concerts in New York. The Eagles’ next two stops were at Madison Square Garden on the 18th, then the War Memorial Auditorium in Rochester on the 19th The band made the Drake Hotel in Manhattan their home base for their entire New York visit until March 21st, when they departed for Washington, DC. (see itinerary below):
Band itinerary on the right:
Don Henley, Glenn Frey, Irving Azoff, and road manager, Richie Fernandez outside the Drake Hotel, March 21st, 1977.
Photos exist for both Uniondale concerts, however I’m not sure which photos are from which show. Glenn Frey wore a New York Islanders jersey both nights. The Islanders are a hockey team from nearby Elmont, NY. In the 1970s, Nassau Coliseum was their home base.
Glenn in his Islanders jersey:
In this first set of photos, Randy is wearing a blue hoodie, possibly the same blue jacket from the Tour of the Pacific from January-February 1976:
Photo by Stuart Liben
Photo by Stuart Liben
In this second set of photos, Randy is wearing a gray sweatshirt. Glenn is once again in the Islanders jersey.
Eagles’ Tour Of The Pacific January- February 1976
Eagles January-February, 197 In January 1976, the Eagles embarked on a tour of New Zealand, Australia, and Japan, with a final stop in Hawaii. It was their first major tour with new member, Joe Walsh. Read more about each of the dates below:
Following the four-night stand at the Wembley Empire Pool, plus two shows at the Apollo in Glasgow, the Eagles ended the first leg of the 1977 European tour with two sold-out shows at Bingley Hall in Stafford. Valerie Carter opened. One thing the band set out to prove was that they were no longer a laid-back, easy-going country-rock band:
“Any doubts about whether their sweet-sounding California dreaming songs might turn out to be monotonous and dirge-like when performed live were swiftly dispelled by their gig in Stafford. The difference between the country-rock outfit I saw…in 1973, and The Eagles as they are today, lies In their Extra Added Ingredients.
The blend has been enriched by the addition of guitarist Don Felder, a late arrival for the On The Border LP, who stamped his mark on One Of These Nights.
But it Is the newest member, Joe Walsh, who has really transformed the group into a world-beating act. His credentials are envious–a period with the James Gang followed by a series of solo albums–a man rated as one of the best guitarists in the world by Eric Clapton and Pete Townshend.”
North Wales Weekly News, May 12th, 1977
Valerie Carter replaced Dan Fogelberg as the opening act.
Melody Maker, May 7, 1977
The Stafford audience was treated to two-hours of “non-stop exhilaration”:
“There wasn’t a bad number in the whole set. No lull in the proceedings, Just a series of highlights…
The first was ‘Doolin-Dalton,’ the opening track from Desperado, which struck home early in the set. Then it was Walsh’s thumping rendition of ‘Turn To Stone,’ ending in a slide-guitar crescendo, all perfectly controlled.
North Wales Weekly News, May 12th, 1977
Praise for Randy’s performance of “Take It To The Limit”:
“Then it was Randy Meisner’s ‘Take It To The Limit’ from One Of These Nights, which showed off another of their assets, those harmonies, to the full. In whichever department you look, The Eagles are either competent, good or brilliant.” (North Wales Weekly News, May 12th, 1977)
“Bass guitarist Randy Meisner, together with his super voice on”Take It To The Limit,” provided the 12,000 plus crowd with the perfect foil for the rest of the band.” (Coleshill (England)Chronicle, May 13, 1977)
Reviews
Read the full-length reviews quoted in this section here:
Coleshill (England) Chronicle, May 13th, 1977
Click to read full article. North Wales Weekly, May 12, 1977
Signatures from Don Felder, Randy, and Glenn Frey obtained by an employee of Bingley Hall. Source.
The Eagles took a three-day break before their week-long tour of Germany on May 7th.
On May 11th, 1977, the Eagles kicked off a three-night stand at the Ahoy Rotterdam, as part of their 1977 European tour. Valerie Carter was the opening act, replacing Dan Fogelberg.
The three nights at the Ahoy, originally scheduled for April, were inserted between the Dusseldorf and Hamburg dates of the German tour.
The Eagles stayed at the Hilton in Amsterdam.
Eagles itinerary. Courtesy of Kathy Kurasch/Valerie Carter Estate
May 11, 1977
Prior to their opening night on May 11th, the band was presented with an award from their record company, WEA (Warner-Elektra-Atlantic), for exceeding half a million in record sales in the Netherlands. Posing with the band in the photographs is Stance Oort, whose company, Golden Design, created the award. In 1973, Oort presented the band with silver Eagles pins prior to their show at the Concertbegouw in Amsterdam.
The band (minus Joe) with their award and its designer, Stance Oort. Oort was also a press promoter with the Dutch label, EMI Bovema.
Translation (De Telegraaf, May 13th, 1977):
Bullion For Eagles
The Eagles were awarded by their record company WEA for the sale of more than half a million LPs in the Netherlands . Director Ben Bunders presented The Eagles with a very special gold and platinum record made by Stance Oort and her husband Aat from Beverwijk, who have become world famous in the past five months for the special designs that they are able to create with such precious metal. They have previously produced records for Fleetwood Mac, Bryan Ferry, Queen and Fats Domino. For her friends The Eagles (Stance also made the now famous silver Eagles brooch), 3 gold, 2 platinum and 1 diamond LP in a perspex plate.
The Eagles sold out all 8,000 seats of the Ahoy for three nights in a row. According to Dutch journalist Constant Meijers, “the first [concert] was the most interesting, the second the best, and the third the coziest.” 1
Excerpt from a review of the May 11th show from the Dutch paper, Het Parool (translated):
“After singer Valerie Carter, the stage darkens around a quarter past nine. The dimmed lights also hide the speakers suspended high in the sky, which guarantee a crystal-clear reproduction. Cheers, shouts and applause mingle with the intro sounds of ‘Hotel California.’ The light is soft green as drummer Don Henley’s unsurpassed lead vocals slowly flow into swirling unison guitar riffs from both guitarists Don Felder and Joe Wash. A great start. A series of twinkling gems will follow….After ‘Lyin ‘Eyes,’ bassist Randy Meisner comes into the picture as lead singer of ‘Take it to the Limit.’ A delight thanks to his high-pitched falsetto screams and Glenn Frey’s assistance at the grand piano.”
Hotel California Walk Away Victim Of Love Lyin’ Eyes Take It To The Limit New Kid In Town One Of These Nights Doolin-Dalton Desperado (reprise) Already Gone Turn To Stone Seven Bridges Road Life In The Fast Lane Rocky Mountain Way Witchy Woman James Dean Best Of My Love Take It Easy Carol
Randy & Joe duck walk across the stage most likely during the finale of Chuck Berry’s “Carol.”
The Eagles played Blaisdell Arena in Honolulu on February 12th, 1976. See photos and rare home movie footage from the Meisner’s Super 8 video camera, shared here exclusively.
The Eagles played the Iowa State Fairgrounds on July 27th, 1975. The Ozark Mountain Daredevils, Dan Fogelberg and J.D. Souther also performed.
Des Moines Register, July 25, 1975
With temperatures in the 90s, Randy’s first wife, Jennifer, remembered shopping with Randy to find a visor to wear onstage:
“It was so hot, we were running all over town to find Randy a sun visor. I remember sitting in the hotel room looking through the yellow pages, which I always did everywhere we went.”
Also in attendance that day were Jennifer’s cousins, Connie and Mike Hall, from Missouri. Connie recalled that they got to sit on the stage as the band performed and ride in the limo with Randy and Jennifer after the show. The photo below was taken at the hotel.
L-R: Jennifer, Randy, Connie, and Mike. Do not share without permission.
Concert Review
Des Moines Tribune, July 28, 1975Des Moines Register, July 28, 1975
The next night, the Eagles played the Civic Auditorium Arena in Omaha, NE. According to Jennifer, Randy wanted to drive instead of taking the limo:
“Randy decided he didn’t want to take a limo to Omaha, so he rented a car and the two of us really enjoyed the drive, stopping at a little drive-in to eat, like the A&W back then. Two of our high school friends, Pam and Dave, who lived in Omaha, came to the concert and back to the hotel.”
All quotes from Jennifer Meisner via personal correspondence.
The Eagles opened for Yes and Edgar Winter at Denver Coliseum on August 3rd, 1972. Several members of Randy’s family traveled from Scottsbluff to attend the concert. Many thanks to Jennifer Meisner for the photos and remembrances.
Denver Post, August 1, 1972
Bernie Leadon and Randy Meisner back stage (man on right unknown). Photo by Jennifer Meisner.
Jennifer Meisner:
“It was a strange show. Everyone around us smoking pot, passing a joint around. Randy’s mom and dad were there. His sister, Carol, and husband Art with daughter Jana, his cousin Jodene, her husband Doug and daughter Cori Chappell, my sister Ann, husband Bob and kids, Bobbi and Doug, his aunt Lydia and daughters Nan Jill and Normanda, my mom, etc. The audience was there to see Yes and Edgar Winter. Horrible rainy night .”
The Eagles pose with Randy’s cousin, Nan Jill, at the Travelodge hotel in Denver.
Randy with his aunt, Lydia Ohlund, sister of his mother, Emilie.
Another group shot with Randy’s son, niece, and cousin. In front (L-R), Randy’s eldest son, Dana (with Glenn’s hands on his head and arm), his niece, Jana, and cousin, Cori.
Randy with his son, Dana, his mother, Emilie, and father, Herman, at the hotel in Denver. Randy is wearing a “Carlo Sound” t-shirt. Carlo Sound was a Nashville sound company, who worked on some of the Eagles’ early tours.
Review from the Straight Creek Journal (Denver), August 10, 1972. The writer thought the Eagles were the best act of the evening.
