Paul Richard Furay (born May 9, 1944) is an American singer, guitarist, songwriter, and

Rock & Roll Hall of Fame The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame (RRHOF), sometimes simply referred to as the Rock Hall, is a museum and hall of fame located in downtown Cleveland, Ohio, United States, on the shore of Lake Erie. The museum documents the history of rock music an ...

member (with Buffalo Springfield). He is best known for forming the bands

Buffalo Springfield Buffalo Springfield was a rock band formed in Los Angeles by Canadian musicians Neil Young, Bruce Palmer and Dewey Martin and American musicians Stephen Stills and Richie Furay. The group, widely known for the song "For What It's Worth", rele ...

with Stephen Stills,

Neil Young Neil Percival Young (born November 12, 1945) is a Canadian-American singer and songwriter. After embarking on a music career in Winnipeg in the 1960s, Young moved to Los Angeles, joining Buffalo Springfield with Stephen Stills, Richie Furay ...

Bruce Palmer Bruce Palmer (September 9, 1946 – October 1, 2004) was a Canadian musician best known as the bassist in the seminal Canadian-American folk rock band Buffalo Springfield, who were inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1997. Early y ...

, and Dewey Martin, and

Poco Poco was an American country rock band originally formed in 1968 after the demise of Buffalo Springfield. Guitarists Richie Furay and Jim Messina, former members of Buffalo Springfield, were joined by multi-instrumentalist Rusty Young, bassi ...

with Jim Messina,

Timothy B. Schmit Timothy Bruce Schmit (born October 30, 1947) is an American musician, singer, and songwriter. He has performed as the bassist and vocalist for Poco and the Eagles (band), Eagles, having replaced bassist and vocalist Randy Meisner in both cases ...

, Rusty Young,

George Grantham George Grantham may refer to: * George Grantham (baseball) * George Grantham (musician) George Grantham (born January 20, 1947) is an American drummer and vocalist best known for his work with pioneering country rock band Poco. Grantham and p ...

and

Randy Meisner Randall Herman Meisner (born March 8, 1946) is a retired American musician, singer, songwriter and founding member of the Eagles. Throughout his professional musical career, Meisner's main role was that of bassist and backing high-harmony vocal ...

. His best known song (originally written during his tenure in Buffalo Springfield, but eventually performed by Poco as well) was "Kind Woman," which he wrote for his wife, Nancy.

Life and career

Early career

Before

, Furay performed with Stills in the nine-member group, the

Au Go Go Singers The Au Go Go Singers were a nine-member folk group formed in New York City in 1964, and best remembered for featuring Stephen Stills and Richie Furay two years before they formed Buffalo Springfield. Career Stills and Furay met while performin ...

(Furay, Roy Michaels, Rick Geiger, Jean Gurney, Michael Scott, Kathy King, Nels Gustafson, Bob Harmelink, and Stills), the house band of the famous

Cafe Au Go Go The Cafe Au Go Go was a Greenwich Village night club located in the basement of the New Andy Warhol Garrick Theatre building in the late 1960s, and located at 152 Bleecker Street in Manhattan, New York City. The club featured many musical groups, ...

in New York City. In the late 1960s, he formed the

country rock Country rock is a genre of music which fuses rock and country. It was developed by rock musicians who began to record country-flavored records in the late 1960s and early 1970s. These musicians recorded rock records using country themes, vocal s ...

band

with Jim Messina (who produced albums and occasionally played bass for Buffalo Springfield) and Rusty Young. This band, while influential to many future country rock acts, experienced uneven commercial success. Furay's best-known songs, "Kind Woman", "Pickin' Up The Pieces", and "Good Feelin' To Know", however, have reached classic status and appear on many country rock compilations. Furay left Poco in 1974 to form the Souther Hillman Furay Band. During this time

Al Perkins Al Perkins (born January 18, 1944) is an American guitarist known primarily for his steel guitar work. The Gibson guitar company called Perkins "the world's most influential dobro player" and began producing an "Al Perkins Signature" Dobro in ...

, the band's

pedal steel guitar The pedal steel guitar is a Console steel guitar, console-type of steel guitar with pedals and knee levers that change the pitch of certain strings to enable playing more varied and complex music than any previous steel guitar design. Like all s ...

player, introduced Furay to Christianity. His newfound faith helped him rebuild his troubled marriage. Although Souther Hillman Furay Band's self-titled first album was certified

Gold Gold is a chemical element with the symbol Au (from la, aurum) and atomic number 79. This makes it one of the higher atomic number elements that occur naturally. It is a bright, slightly orange-yellow, dense, soft, malleable, and ductile met ...

and yielded the top thirty hit with "Fallin' in Love" in 1974, the group could not follow up on that success, and poor record sales eventually led to its demise. After moving from Los Angeles to Sugarloaf Mountain near

Boulder, Colorado Boulder is a home rule city that is the county seat and most populous municipality of Boulder County, Colorado, United States. The city population was 108,250 at the 2020 United States census, making it the 12th most populous city in Color ...

, Furay formed The Richie Furay Band with

Jay Truax Jay Truax (born Lynwood, California) is a bass player and singer with Love Song (band), Love Song, a pioneer Christian rock group. Jay formed a Salt Lake City rock group with John Mehler and Fred Field called Spirit of Creation. Later he joined wi ...

, John Mehler, and Tom Stipe, releasing the album ''I've Got a Reason'' in 1976, which reflected Furay's newfound beliefs. To support the release of this album, Furay formed an alliance with

David Geffen David Lawrence Geffen (born February 21, 1943) is an American business magnate, producer and film studio executive. He co-created Asylum Records in 1971 with Elliot Roberts, Geffen Records in 1980, DGC Records in 1990, and DreamWorks SKG in 199 ...

and

Asylum Records Asylum Records is an American record label, founded in 1971 by David Geffen and partner Elliot Roberts. It was taken over by Warner Communications (now the Warner Music Group) in 1972, and later merged with Elektra Records to become Elektra/As ...

. Furay assured Geffen that his album would be Christian influenced but would not be an attempt to preach his newfound beliefs. ''I've Got a Reason'' did, however, establish Furay as a pioneer in Christian Rock. Overall, his albums charted unsatisfactorily, and, compounded with the strain of touring wearing on him and his family, he retired as a performer to join the ministry. In 1983, Furay became senior pastor of the

Calvary Chapel Calvary Chapel is an association of evangelical churches, maintains a number of radio stations around the world and operates many local Calvary Chapel Bible College programs. Beginning in 1965 in Southern California, this fellowship of chur ...

in Broomfield, Colorado, a non-sectarian Christian church in the

Denver Denver () is a consolidated city and county, the capital, and most populous city of the U.S. state of Colorado. Its population was 715,522 at the 2020 census, a 19.22% increase since 2010. It is the 19th-most populous city in the Unit ...

area. In 1989, Fury reunited with Poco to release an album entitled ''

Legacy In law, a legacy is something held and transferred to someone as their inheritance, as by will and testament. Personal effects, family property, marriage property or collective property gained by will of real property. Legacy or legacies may refer ...

''.

Later career

In 2006 he released his album ''The Heartbeat of Love'', and also toured as an opening act for

America The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...

and

Linda Ronstadt Linda Maria Ronstadt (born July 15, 1946) is a retired American singer who performed and recorded in diverse genres including rock, country, light opera, the Great American Songbook, and Latin. She has earned 11 Grammy Awards, three American ...

. In 2007, he toured with a new formation of the Richie Furay Band. At the Boulder and Bluebird Theatres in Colorado, they recorded a double live album ''ALIVE''. The ''ALIVE'' set covers 29 songs of Furay's career. The Richie Furay band continued to tour through 2008 and 2009. Furay appeared with Poco for several shows in early 2009. At the Stagecoach Festival in

Indio, California Indio (Spanish language, Spanish for "Indian") is a city in Riverside County, California, Riverside County, California, United States, in the Coachella Valley of Southern California's Colorado Desert region. It lies east of Palm Springs, Califo ...

in 2009, Furay and the current Poco lineup were joined onstage by original members Jim Messina and George Grantham and former bass player

. On October 23, 2010, he reunited with surviving Buffalo Springfield bandmates Stephen Stills and

for a set at the 24th annual Bridge School Benefit at Shoreline Amphitheater in

Mountain View, California Mountain View is a city in Santa Clara County, California, United States. Named for its views of the Santa Cruz Mountains, it has a population of 82,376. Mountain View was integral to the early history and growth of Silicon Valley, and is the ...

. The reunion continued in 2011 for a one-month tour of California, headlining 2011

Bonnaroo The Bonnaroo Music and Arts Festival is an American annual four-day music festival developed and founded by Superfly Presents and AC Entertainment. Since its first year in 2002, it has been held at what is now Great Stage Park on a farm in M ...

. In July 2011, Furay announced on his Facebook page that he would be touring with Buffalo Springfield in early 2012, ending speculation there would be a 2011 fall tour with them. In 2011, Furay collaborated with the Piedmont Brothers Band as an occasional back-up vocalist on the album ''PBB III'' (2011). He later appear on the 2013 Carla Olson album, ''Have Harmony, Will Travel''. In 2015, he released the new album ''Hand in Hand'' to positive critical reviews. Furay retired as Pastor of Calvary Chapel in December 2017. On June 13, 2018, the Richie Furay Band began the Deliverin' Tour at the South Orange Performing Arts Center (SOPAC) in New Jersey. The first set consisted of Buffalo Springfield, Poco, Souther, Hillman & Furay Band and solo material, followed by a second set in which the classic 1971 Poco live album ''"DeLIVErin'"'' was performed in its entirety. A single, “I Guess You Made It”, was released on Furay's website (richiefuray.com). The tour continued throughout the year, culminating with a Poco 50th Anniversary Celebration on November 16, 2018 at the Troubadour in Los Angeles, where Poco first performed in 1969. Randy Meisner and Peter Asher were in the audience (Poco bandmate and longtime friend, Timothy B. Schmit performed with Furay.) Furay's Troubadour show was recorded and, in April, 2021, was released in both CD and DVD as ''DeLIVErin' Again (50th Anniversary: Return to the Troubadour)''. That same year, Furay released the single, "America, America" through his website.

Recent years

In mid-2019, Furay announced he would be retiring from headline touring. He embarked on a tour of the west coast in the fall of 2019, sharing the bill with Dave Mason. Furay's “Farewell/76th Birthday Celebration” was originally scheduled to take place at the South Orange Performing Arts Center (SOPAC) in New Jersey in 2020, however due to the

COVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic, also known as the coronavirus pandemic, is an ongoing global pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The novel virus was first identif ...

and storm damage to the SOPAC building, the show was postponed until 2022, so he performed a "Farewell Show" at Drew University in Madison NJ on November 14, 2021 (the date of the originally scheduled SOPAC show.) He has scheduled a few one-off shows in Colorado and California in the spring of 2022, with the SOPAC "Farewell Show" rescheduled for June 2022 at SOPAC, under the direction of his manager, David Stone. He has included "Crazy Love" and "Bad Weather" in his shows, as a tribute to Poco bandmates Rusty Young and Paul Cotton, respectively, who both died in 2021. In June and July 2022, Furay kicked off a mini-tour, beginning in New Jersey, as well as the City Winery's in Nashville, New York City, Washington DC, Philadelphia, and Boston. The shows, being bill as Furay's farewell tour, are in support of his new album ''In the Country'' which includes cover versions of Furay's favorite country songs. ''In the Country'' features a cover of Keith Urban's "Someone Like You", released as a single. The recording also contains songs by John Denver, Garth Brooks, George Strait, Marc Cohn, and Ricky Nelson, as well as a remake of the Poco song "Pickin' Up the Pieces". A documentary, ''Through It All: The Life and Influence of Richie Furay'' is currently in post-production. It is narrated by Cameron Crowe.

Discography

Solo

Studio albums *'' I've Got a Reason'' (1976) (Asylum) (US Billboard # 130) *''Dance a Little Light'' (1978) (Asylum) *''I Still Have Dreams'' (1979) (Asylum) *''Seasons of Change'' (1982) (

Myrrh Records __NOTOC__ Myrrh Records (also known as Myrrh Worship) was an American Christian music record label. According to ''Encyclopedia of American Gospel Music'', the label was instrumental in developing a popular following for contemporary Christian ...

) *''In My Father's House'' (1997) (Calvary Chapel Records) *''I Am Sure'' (2005) (FridayMusic) *''The Heartbeat of Love'' (2006) (Richie Furay and John Macy) *''Hand in Hand'' (2015) (Entertainment One) *''In the Country'' (2022) Live albums *''ALIVE'' (2007) (FridayMusic) * ''DeLIVErin' Again (Return to the Troubadour: 50th Anniversary)'' (2021) (DSDK Productions) Compilation albums *''Songs of Richie Furay'' (1980) (

Epic Records Epic Records is an American record label owned by Sony Music Entertainment, a subsidiary of Sony Corporation of America Sony Corporation of America (SONAM, also known as SCA), is the American arm of the Japanese conglomerate Sony Group ...

) Singles *Richie Furay: " This Magic Moment" / "Bittersweet Love" (1978) (Asylum) (US Billboard #101) *Richie Furay: "I Still Have Dreams" / "Headin' South" (1979) (Asylum) (US Billboard #39)

Band projects

As a member of the Au Go-Go Singers: *''Au Go-Go Singers'' (with Stephen Stills) (1964) (

Roulette Records Roulette Records was an American record company and label founded in 1957 by George Goldner, Joe Kolsky, Morris Levy and Phil Kahl, with creative control given to producers and songwriters Hugo Peretti and Luigi Creatore. Levy was appointed direc ...

) As a member of Buffalo Springfield: *''

'' (1966) (

Atco Atco or ATCO may refer to: Businesses * ATCO, a Canadian diversified company involved in manufacturing, utilities, energy and technologies ** ATCO Electric, a subsidiary of the above company * Atco (British mower company), a mower manufacturing com ...

) *''

Buffalo Springfield Again ''Buffalo Springfield Again'' is the second album by Buffalo Springfield, released on Atco Records in November 1967. It peaked at #44 on the Billboard 200. In 2003, the album was ranked number 188 on ''Rolling Stone'' magazine's list of the 500 gr ...

'' (1967) (Atco) *''

Last Time Around ''Last Time Around'' is the third and final studio album by the Canadian-American folk rock band Buffalo Springfield, released in July 1968. The line-up at the time officially consisted of Neil Young, Stephen Stills, Richie Furay, Dewey Martin, ...

'' (1968) (Atco) As a member of Poco: *'' Pickin' Up the Pieces'' (1969) (Epic) *''

'' (1970) (Epic) *''

Deliverin' ''Deliverin’'' is the third album, and first live album, by the American country rock band Poco. Jim Messina (musician), Jim Messina quit the band in October 1970, prior to the release of the album. WBCN (FM), WBCN DJ Charles Laquidara wrote th ...

'' (1971) (Epic) *'' From the Inside'' (1971) (Epic) *''

A Good Feelin' to Know ''A Good Feelin’ to Know'' is the fourth studio album by the American country rock band Poco. The title track became the band's most recognizable tune from its early days. However, the album did not do as well commercially as expected, discourag ...

'' (1972) (Epic) *''

Crazy Eyes ''Crazy Eyes'' is the fifth studio album (and sixth album overall) released by the American country rock band Poco. Released in 1973, ''Crazy Eyes'' was the album with which founding member Richie Furay ended his original tenure with the group. ...

'' (1973) (Epic) *''

'' (1989) (RCA) As a member of South *=) *'' Trouble in Paradise'' (1975) (Asylum)

References

External links

* *Interview with Richie Furay
part 1
an
part 2
on KDRT-LP 95.7 FM (Davis, Calif.) August 2015 {{DEFAULTSORT:Furay, Richie 1944 births Living people American country singer-songwriters American country rock singers American rock singers American tenors Buffalo Springfield members Poco members Souther–Hillman–Furay Band members American Christian clergy Rhythm guitarists Epic Records artists Myrrh Records artists American country guitarists American rock guitarists American male singer-songwriters American male guitarists Lead guitarists 20th-century American guitarists Guitarists from Ohio Singer-songwriters from Ohio