An Interview with Richie Furay, Who Presents Two NJ Shows in June
By Spotlight Central. Photos by Love Imagery
Richie Furay — credited as one of the founders of country-rock — is coming to the New Jersey area in June, 2022 where he will play shows on June 11 at Alpha Wave Studios in Whippany and on June 12 at SOPAC in South Orange.
Furay is a Rock and Roll Hall of Famer who is known by many as the voice of country rock. In fact, it is said that at an Eagles concert in Denver, band leader Glenn Frey once pointed out Furay in the audience and announced, “If it wasn’t for you, we wouldn’t be here.”
Spotlight Central recently caught up with Furay and asked him about his work with several seminal bands, his new album In the Country, and his upcoming New Jersey shows.
Spotlight Central: You’re one of the founding members — along with Steven Stills and Neil Young — of Buffalo Springfield. Whereas Stills is known for his anthem, “For What It’s Worth,” Young’s early compositions include “Flying on the Ground is Wrong,” “Do I Have to Come Right Out and Say It,” and “Nowadays Clancy Can’t Even Sing” — all songs which you sang lead on. What was it like for you being a part of that band?
Richie Furay: Way back when, it was just so much fun! Stephen and I had been friends in New York in a little folk group back there; I went to New York to be a folksinger and he did, too, and then he went to California. So Stephen and I had a great friendship, and working in that band was a great experience. It gave me the opportunity to play with so many dynamic musicians over the years, and I hope they feel I contributed to their history, as well.
Spotlight Central: Buffalo Springfield recorded several of your original songs including “Kind Woman” and “A Child’s Claim to Fame” — both compositions which are acknowledged to be some of the earliest examples of country-rock music. What are your thoughts on being a pioneer of this genre?
Richie Furay: I think it was something that just came naturally to me. As a kid, my dad made me listen to the radio and that was the kind of music that was played. It had a place in my heart, for sure — especially to have stepped out to pioneer what would become, probably, one of the most significant American musical sounds other than maybe what the Beach Boys were doing. And then the Eagles took this thing that I, along with a couple of others, had pioneered and made it a very popular sound for American music, so I’m very proud of what we did.
Spotlight Central: After Buffalo Springfield, you founded Poco, where you worked with musicians including Jim Messina. Was it a conscious intention on your part to continue exploring this genre of country-rock with that band?
Richie Furay: Yeah, absolutely. Jimmy and I knew that when Buffalo Springfield broke up, we were going to start a new band. As far as I was concerned, as long as Stephen was in the band, I was gonna be in the band, and when he said it was over, we knew it was over. But Jimmy and I had discussed the possibily of putting together a band that had kind of a country-ish flavor.
It’s interesting because as we look back, yes, we did pioneer something new, so to speak, but if you go back in country music and notice people like Carl Perkins and Eddie Cochran and Gene Vincent and Buddy Holly, it was a style of music that was going on way back when and we just kind of picked up on that little part of it and ran with it.
Spotlight Central: It’s interesting you say that because in a 2016 Paul McCartney biography, the author writes that while McCartney was working with Wings back in the ’70s, he was especially influenced by country music’s fusion with rock “through bands like The Eagles and Poco.” Were you aware of that?
Richie Furay: Wow, I was not aware of that. What book is that?
Spotlight Central: It’s called Paul McCartney: The Life, and it’s an extensive biography written by Philip Norman. With that in mind, do you think you might recognize that influence on his music on, say, songs like “Junior’s Farm” or “Listen to What the Man Says”?
Richie Furay: Yeah, you can definitely hear it. It was a music that had an influence on all of us. You know, a lot of people seem to overlook Poco when it comes to actually starting a sound like that, and for him to make that acknowledgment is pretty cool, so I’ll just step back and say, “Thank you very much, Sir Paul!”
Spotlight Central: In addition to Buffalo Springfield and Poco, you worked with J.D. Souther and The Byrds’ Chris Hillman in The Souther-Hillman-Furay Band and, afterwards, became a pioneer of Christian Rock. In 1997, however, you and the other members of Buffalo Springfield were inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. Do you feel the Hall of Fame got it right honoring the contributions of that group, even though Poco has yet to be recognized in that way?
Richie Furay: Yes, I definitely think Buffalo Springfield has a place in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. Stephen Stills and Neil Young obviously went on to be huge, major stars, and when we did our Buffalo Springfield reunion, one of the things I really needed to do was to assure myself that although I was inducted into the Hall of Fame, I didn’t ride in on the coattails of Stephen and Neil. I realized that I did have a valid contribution to the music and that satisfied me there.
But I do think that Poco has been neglected on so many different levels and I do believe that, even though we didn’t have the “hits” that so many other groups have, we pioneered a major sound for rock and roll music. So I really believe that Poco deserves a place in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, for what it’s worth [laughs].
Spotlight Central: Buffalo Springfield pun intended! [Laughs] We know you have a new album coming out in June called In the Country, on which you cover classic country songs like Keith Urban’s “Somebody Like You.” We’ve heard the recording of that particular number and we have to say that the song fits you like a glove, and the production is top-notch, too. What made you decide to select that particular song for your new record?
Richie Furay: Well, all the songs on the album had to have a message. My producer, Val Garay, suggested some of the songs for the album, but “Somebody Like You” is one I chose myself because I loved the lyrical content. I also identified with what Keith did on his recording of it and I think, probably, we had some influence on his music early on, too. But that song had such a freshness to it and it really fit with the kind of music I wanted to do that I think it was a perfect choice to open the album with.
Spotlight Central: Also on In the Country you include such other songs as “I Hope You Dance,” “Take Me Home Country Roads,” “Walking in Memphis,” and “I’m Already There.” Can you tell us about some of these choices?
Richie Furay: I chose “I Hope You Dance” and I also chose “Walking in Memphis,” although Val said, “Hey, that’s not really a country song, but I love it, so let’s just try and do it.” One of the things we decided with this album is we didn’t want to do karaoke. So, for example, on Marc Cohn’s version of “Walking in Memphis,” he’s a piano player so it has a very piano-y vibe, but when we did it, we gave it a guitar vibe. So that’s one of the things we did in trying to make the songs our own and not just do karaoke.
And the project was a lot of fun to do, but there were challenges. After Val and his partner, Michael Miller — a good friend of mine — said, “Do you want to do this project?” Val and I exchanged lists. When Val sent me his list, I saw the first song on it was “Your Love Amazes Me” by John Berry. That was a song that I’ve just loved forever, so I knew we were on to something and we could do it. But the project was a challenge because the songs are all so familiar to country music fans — I mean, the artists are so ingrained. For instance, you just mentioned “I Hope You Dance” by Lee Ann Womack. Well, Steve Nathan, the keyboardist, played on the recording with me and he said, “You know, I played on the original recording of that.”
Spotlight Central: Wow!
Richie Furay: So to have these songs that are so ingrained in people’s minds was a challenge, you know, where we wondered, “Are we going to be able to do these songs, make them our own, and still give them a freshness that people who are so familiar with them won’t look back and say, ‘Oh, man, this isn’t so-and-so’s version’”? You know, I didn’t want comparisons. I just wanted people to take the songs and love them for what they’re worth, because that’s what they are to me — they’re just great, great songs.
Spotlight Central: We were excited to learn that you have two very special shows coming up in our home state of New Jersey. First, you’ll be appearing on June 11, 2022 at Alpha Wave Studios in Whippany. Can you tell us about that event?
Richie Furay: About a year ago, we conducted a little experiment where we did a similar sort of thing and it worked out well. The presentation will be a small, intimate kind of production where only about 80 people will be there. We’re not going to do a really full-blown concert, but we are going to play a few songs. And, along with that, there will be an interview, so we can talk about some of the songs, and people in the audience can even offer up questions. It was a lot of fun doing it the last time — l really enjoyed hearing the questions that people had about me, my life, and my career — so that’s what the Alpha Wave Studios presentation is all about.
Spotlight Central: Will you have a band there playing with you?
Richie Furay: Yes, and the band is really special. When COVID got in the way of everything, the group I’d been playing with for so many years kind of disbanded. But, then, as things lightened up, I did a house concert in San Diego with my daughter, Jesse Lynch, and a good friend, Dan Scarda, and there was a band there that wanted to back me up. I kind of frowned upon it at first, but in preparation I sent them a few songs and they did such a great job I said, “I’m bringing them with me on the road.” And we brought them with us to Drew University when I played there last year, and now I’m going to bring them with me to SOPAC.
Spotlight Central: We understand that you’ll be performing at SOPAC in South Orange on June 12. At that concert, will you be performing tunes from your new album in addition to some old favorites?
Richie Furay: Absolutely. We’ll mix it up, but we’ll definitely play some of the songs off the new album, and “Somebody Like You” will certainly be one of them.
Spotlight Central: Very good! We heard something very exciting — just today, in fact — which is that on June 17, you’re going to be making your very first appearance at Nashville’s Grand Ole Opry?
Richie Furay: [Laughs] I’ve been waiting 50 years for this!
Spotlight Central: Wow! How excited are you about it?
Richie Furay: Oh, man, it’s gonna be the thrill of a lifetime! When Poco started with the country music deal, I always wanted perform at the Grand Ole Opry, so it’s a dream come true.
Spotlight Central: Is there anything else you’d like to add, or anything you’d like to say to your fans — many who’ve been following you from the Buffalo Springfield days all the way through to today?
Richie Furay: I’m just thrilled that there are still people who want to come out and hear me play music at this age, and I’m just excited to see them, greet them, and give them what I have to offer with my musical history.
For information or tickets to see Richie Furay at Alpha Wave Studios on June 11, 2022 in Whippany, NJ, please go to richiefuray.com. For information or tickets to see Richie Furay in concert at SOPAC on June 12, 2022 in South Orange, NJ, please click on sopacnow.org. To pre-order Richie’s new album, In the Country, please go to richiefuray.com/music.
