Randall Meisner (March 8th, 1946 – July 26th, 2023) an 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 vocalist as a group member and session musician. He co-wrote and sang lead vocal on the Eagles hit song “Take It to the Limit.”
In September 1971, Meisner (with Don Henley, Glenn Frey, and Bernie Leadon) formed the Eagles. The band signed with David Geffen’s then new label, Asylum Records, and released their eponymous debut album in 1972. While he usually played the bass and sang backing vocals for the Eagles, he wrote, co-wrote, and/or sang lead on songs on each of the group’s first five albums, most notably “Take It to the Limit”, the band’s first million-selling single, and the third song released from “One of These Nights”. Other songs he wrote and sang lead on include “Try and Love Again,” “Is it True?,” “Take the Devil,” and “Tryin’.” He wrote “Certain Kind of Fool” with Frey and Henley and sang lead.
Not so surprisingly, that Randy Meisner Songs are dominated by music from his 1971-77 tenure with the Eagles. But Meisner also collaborated with Poco before he joined the Eagles, With various former members of his old bands in a second career that began with great promise in the late ’70s.
Meisner first crossed paths with his future replacement in the Eagles when both he and Timothy B. Schmit auditioned for Poco in the late ’60s. Meisner got the gig, and later played on the band’s debut album, “Pickin’ Up the Pieces”. But Meisner quit the group before the record was released in May 1969, only to find his vocals had been replaced by George Grantham. He wouldn’t get back together with Jim Messina and Richie Furay – both former members of Buffalo Springfield – until Poco reunited for 1989’s “Legacy”.
By then, he’d also worked with James Taylor and Linda Ronstadt, then co-founded the Eagles with Don Henley and Glenn Frey. Over a six-album tenure, Meisner notably took the lead on “Take It to the Limit” – the Eagles’ first million-selling single – before he tired of fame’s white-hot spotlight and departed.
Meisner released a trio of solo albums through 1982, including two self-titled releases, 1980’s “One More Song”. Meisner then returned to sideman work, occasionally touring until health issues forced him off the road in the late ’00s.
This was a make-good moment for Meisner, whose vocals were unceremoniously erased from Poco’s 1969 debut album after an acrimonious split. Twenty years later, he was singing with that same reunited line-up, and they hit the Top 40 with this song, co-written by Richard Marx for what would become Poco’s second gold-selling album.
This was Meisner’s final co-writing credit (and his final lead vocal) with the group he co-founded. “Try and Love Again” is also reportedly the only “Hotel California” cut that’s never been performed live by the Eagles, a sign of things to come. Meisner was always uncomfortable with fame,
Meisner co-wrote the twilit “Saturday Night” along with Don Henley (who sings lead here), and memorably steps forward for his own turn at the mic during the song’s lonesome bridge (“She said tell me; oh, tell me …”). Glenn Frey and Bernie Leadon, who add some lush backing vocals, were are also credited as co-writers. Any hopes Meisner had of staying safely in the shadows ended with “Take It To the Limit” the Eagles‘ highest-charting position at the time, putting additional pressure on him to hit the song’s emotional high note onstage night after night.
Panic apparently began to creep in, and Meisner reportedly asked that the song – despite its massive popularity – be removed from the band’s sets. When the rest of the Eagles refused, Meisner quit. The vocal was later taken over by Glenn Frey.
The Fat Angel Sings 