The Eagles played Tampa Stadium on May 31st, 1975. Opening the show were Linda Ronstadt, Seals and Crofts, the Charlie Daniels Band and Michael Stanley. Listen to an audience recording of the Eagles’ set below.
Randy sang lead on “Midnight Flyer” and “Too Many Hands.”
The Eagles played the Tangerine Bowl in Orlando, FL on July 3rd, 1977. Jimmy Buffett and Andrew Gold opened.
A year later, on August 7th, 1978, Randy was scheduled to play Rock Super Bowl V as a solo act, but cancelled. He was replaced by local band Southpaw.
See more dates on the Hotel California Tour below:
Leon Russell was the headlining act at Holiday Jam ’74 at the Orange Bowl on July 7th, 1974. The Band, The Eagles, Lynyrd Skynyrd and Sons of Champlin also performed. It was the first rock concert ever at the Orange Bowl.
The photos below were taken by John Gellman, who recalled attending the festival:
“The Eagles were the highlight of the day. They just killed. I remember their final encore song was Out Of Control, which they dedicated to President Richard Nixon, who resigned from office less than a month later. After the Eagles played, Alan Walden, Lynyrd Skynyrd’s manager, was extremely upset backstage yelling, ‘I’m NEVER gonna let one of my bands follow that band ever again!’ Alan was right to be upset. Following the Eagles onstage was not a good place to be. The Eagles left the Orange Bowl field with a 3 touchdown lead. Skynyrd played well, but never even got close. I enjoyed the Band’s set, but did not think they played nearly as well as they did earlier in the year when I saw them with Bob Dylan. I do not remember a single thing about Leon Russell. After a hot July day in the Miami sun, I was fried by the time he hit the stage. Or maybe it was the refreshments.”
-John Gellman, “Random rock shots – The Eagles in 1974,” jgphoto.com, December 22, 2012
Photo ©John Gellman.
Photo ©John Gellman
Jimmy Buffett and Andrew Gold opened.
Photo by Cindy Garcia White.
Miami Herald review, July 3rd, 1977
Florida Today writer, Billy Cox, attended the show. He had seen the Eagles back in 1975 at Greensboro (NC) Coliseum. He’d paid $10 (a lot of money in those days) for a seat behind the stage in the “nosebleed section.” But he didn’t complain. “We were lucky just to get in.” Now, seven years later, he was seeing Randy Meisner, one of the original foursome, at a Cocoa Beach nightclub.
Cox:
“It was strange to see him so close, and at only $5 a head. Not that he looked any different from the album covers, but here was some genuine symbolism. Randy Meisner, one of the Eagles’ original foursome (along with Don Henley, Glenn Frey and Bernie Leadon), had wound up at Brassy’s nightclub in Cocoa Beach.
“His soprano rang with soaring conviction, and when he performed his two trademark songs, which established him on creative parallel with main songwriters Henley and Frey –“Take It To The Limit” and “Try And Love Again” –the old magic was clearly at work here.”
After the show, Cox interviewed Randy backstage, where he unloaded, in uncharacteristic fashion, about his former Eagles bandmates, Don Henley and Glenn Frey. “I’m tired of covering up for those guys,” he said. He was angry and didn’t care who knew it.
“You bet I’m (angry). I may get sued for this but I really don’t care. I’m tired of covering up for those guys…I’ve been protecting the scoop and I want the truth to come out. You want a story, you got one.”
Randy’s show was plagued with sound problems, especially on “Deep Inside My Heart” and “Never Been In Love.” Nevertheless, he remained friendly and pleasant onstage, even with his crew, who had to turn off a spotlight that was burning the side of his face. Both reviews below include portions of a backstage interview with Randy, who talked about his future plans, including an upcoming tour of Japan (“for some reason they love me “), as well as recording and producing a new album the next year in Dallas with live sound engineer Buford Jones. This album ended up as the Dallas LP, which was recorded at Nick’s Uptown Theater and released in Japan in 1983. It was reissued on CD in the U.S. as Live In Dallas in 2003.
This was a free concert. The show started almost two hours late due to rain and temperatures in the 50s.
The preview of the concert below features a nice little write-up about Randy. The only inaccuracy is that it states that the first Poco album, Pickin’ Up The Pieces, made no mention of Randy. He is acknowledged in the credits, but not pictured.
Below, a couple tries to stay warm waiting for the concert to begin.
The Eagles played Tampa Stadium on July 4th, 1976. The concert was called “4th Of July Jubilation.” Fleetwood Mac and Loggins & Messina also performed.
The Eagles played Curtis Hixon Hall in Tampa, Florida on June 7th, 1973. REO Speedwagon opened. See photos, reviews, and listen to an audience recording.
