Also on the bill were Bachman Turner Overdrive and Dan Fogelberg.
The review below includes a very brief interview with Glenn Frey, who said he was at a “low emotional ebb” after performing five nights in a row. It also has a couple of misprints, including the ages of the band members (“23 and 24”). At the time of the concert, Randy was the oldest at 27, Don Henley and Bernie Leadon were 26, and Glenn Frey was 25. Randy’s “Tryin'” is listed as “Keep On Moving” and “Sun’s Come Up” is “Ol’ 55.” The latter would appear on their not-yet-released album, On The Border in April 1974. Another song intended for the album, “Don’t Be Mean To Your Bad Man,” written by J.D. Souther and Glenn Frey, was also performed, but did not end up on the album. It later appeared as just “Bad Man” on Randy’s self-titled debut in 1978.
Randy wore the yellow Morehead jersey he purchased in the bookstore at Morehead State University when the band played a concert there the week before. He’ll wear it again in early 1974 during the taping of Don Kirshner’s Rock Concert.
The Eagles performed two nights in a row at the Tarrant County Convention Center in Fort Worth, Texas on July 7-8, 1977. These shows marked the next to last concert appearances of Randy Meisner with the band.
Randy’s “Take It To The Limit” was “really well-performed and the crowd reaction was instantaneous, long and loud–so long, in fact, that he told the crowd it was embarrassing him, and he looked as if it were.”
Before the show, Randy, Don Felder, and J.D. Souther were spotted grabbing a bite at the Burger King down the street from Market Square Arena.
Don Felder, Randy Meisner and a 3rd guy I believe was JD Souther walked into the Burger King I was managing 2 blocks from old Market Square Arena in Indianapolis the afternoon of their local Hotel California tour concert at MSA. Saw them in the same clothes on stage that night. https://t.co/lShQwTBtdI
Randy’s performance of “Take It To The Limit” was the highlight of the evening and earned him a standing ovation.
“The man who stole the show, perhaps, was bass player Randy Meisner, who sang lead only once. The number was last winter’s giant hit, “Take It To The Limit.” Meisner had ’em cheering long before the finish of the song. His clean, crisp high vocals earned him the only standing ovation for an individual performance.”
Zach Dunkin, Indianapolis News, November 23, 1976
Review from Indianapolis News, November 23, 1976. Joe Walsh is incorrectly identified in the photo as Don Felder.
A week before the show on November 11th, the band was interviewed by radio host, Gary Bridges, for an Eagles special on WDBG.
Minneapolis Star, November 11, 1976
According to the review, the truck transporting the band’s sound system was involved in a serious accident in Des Moines, IA the day before the show, so the band had to rent less-than-ideal sound equipment for a large arena.
Sadly, no mention of Randy in the review (the only band member not mentioned).
Randy wore a shirt with the logo for Randy’s Rodeo in San Antonio, TX. He was also playing his newly acquired Music Man Stingray bass, which were just introduced that year.
According to the review, Randy’s soprano on “Take It To The Limit” sent the audience into a “frenzy,” and “Midnight Flyer” brought out the cowboys in the crowd.
In the photos, Randy is playing a Music Man Stingray bass, which had just been introduced that year.
J.D. Souther opened the show and later joined the band onstage for “Best Of My Love,” which he co-wrote with Don Henley & Glenn Frey.
Houston Daily Cougar, November 9, 1976
The Summit had a four-sided video screen called a “Telscreen” which hung from the ceiling. Any band who came in to perform paid a flat fee for use of the Telscreen and received a videotape of the concert in return. These Telscreen performances were often bootlegged, hence the existing footage of the Eagles Summit show, which has never been released officially.
According to a March 5th, 1978 article in the Houston Chronicle, the Summit’s Telscreen production crew were known to add graphics to their video footage as it was happening. During concerts, they focused mainly on whoever was singing. This explains the footage of the Summit show, which included graphics between songs and very few camera angles.
At the show, Randy and Joe both wore white t-shirts bearing the logo for Criteria Studios in Miami where the band was finishing up Hotel California at the time. In fact, the previous night’s show in Baton Rouge was held up for two hours because the band was late arriving from Miami.
In 2006, Randy recalled the grueling touring and recording schedule from this period:
“We had to go out on the road while we were doing that album and then go back to Criteria Studios in Florida to finish it…We went back and forth a lot…wanted to get the tracks right and mixed right. We knew the album was special.“
Interview with Ken Sharp, 2006
Below are Randy’s two lead-singing performances from the show:
The band arrived two hours late from Miami where they were putting the finishing touches on Hotel California.
Opening the show was J.D. Souther. Randy performed “Midnight Flyer” and “Take It To The Limit.”
Below: a new (to me) photo by concertgoer Debbie Ray:
According to a description of the show in LSU’s 1977 Gumbo yearbook, someone in the audience threw an object at Randy during “Tequila Sunrise” hitting him on the side of the head:
“As the group was arrayed across the stage singing, ‘Tequila Sunrise,’ someone threw an object from the side of the stage which hit bass player Randy Meisner on the side of his head. He grimaced but continued playing until the song’s conclusion when he picked up the object and hurled it back in the general direction from which it had come. Dropping his bass with an amplified thud he stalked off stage in a huff as the rest of the group received the applause oblivious to the whole incident.” (Gumbo yearbook, 1977, Louisiana State University)
All photos from LSU’s Gumbo yearbook (1977):
According to the review in LSU’s Daily Reveille, Randy’s solo on “Take It To The Limit” was a highlight (5th paragraph).
Daily Reveille, November 9, 1976
The band’s late arrival is mentioned in the Baton Rouge Advocate review, November 6, 1976:
Although not billed, Tom Waits performed at the August 18th show, much to the displeasure of the audience:
“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 (read more here). The next year his comments about the band were even more harsh when he told a reporter that their albums were only good for “keeping dust off your turntable.” One can’t help but wonder if getting booed at this concert added to his contempt for the band.
