Poco 1970 Concerts

Poco spends a good portion of the early part of 1970 in the studio. They manage to get a few more concerts outside California, but they are still seen as a regional success at best. The addition of Tim Schmit brings back some of the vibrant interplay between Messina’s lead guitar and Rusty Young’s steel guitar in their live sets. But Messina’s days with Poco comes to an end late in the year.

DATE	VENUE	LOCATION	OTHER PERFORMERS	NOTES
January 2-3	Terrace Ballroom	Salt Lake City, UT	Lee Michaels
January 10	Lompoc High School	Lompoc, CA	Lee Michaels
January 18	Assembly Center	Tulsa, OK	Vanilla Fudge, Country Joe & The Fish, Tulsa Power Plant, Thunder and Lightnin’	One show at 2:00 p.m. Both Poco and Vanilla Fudge failed to show due to winter conditions canceling their flights.
February 6-7	Fillmore East	New York City, NY	The Chamber Brothers	A poster and tickets exists for this date although these shows were canceled.
February 7	Gymnasium, College Of The Desert	Palm Springs, CA	Lee Michaels, Chapter Power Movement	One show at 7:00 p.m. 2,800 attend the concert.
March 20	Walker Gymnasium, Foothill High School	Tustin, CA	Smokestack Lightning	One show at 8:30 p.m. Show only open to students of Foothill, Tustin and Mission Viejo High Schools.
April 4	Eagles Auditorium	Seattle, WA		Poco cancels this show and The Byrds replace them on the bill.
April 4	Long Beach Arena	Long Beach, CA	Moody Blues (headliner), Steve Miller, Turley Richards	One show at 8:00 p.m.
April 12	Berkeley Community Theater	Berkeley, CA	John Sebastian (headliner)	One show at 8:00 p.m. Members of Schmit’s former band, Glad, are in attendance. When they are accidentally trapped outside, Furay intercedes with security and threatens not to play until they are admitted. New press added.
April 16	Myrum Fieldhouse, Gustavus Adolphus College	St. Peter, MN	Denny Brooks	One show at 8:00 p.m. Booked back in December, Poco was paid $3,500 for this show.
April 17-18	The Depot	Minneapolis, MN		Two shows per night at 8:30 & 11:30 p.m. New advert added.
April 19	Mandel Hall, University Of Chicago	Chicago, IL	John Sebastian	One show at 7:30 p.m.
April 26	Wessell Library, Tufts University	Medford, MA	David Rea
May 1	Nazareth College Arts Center	Rochester, NY	Seals & Crofts, Ian & Sylvia, Bat McGrath and Don Potter	Just received confirmation that Poco definitely canceled this appearance.
April 30-May 2	Boston Tea Party	Boston, MA	Seatrain, John Fahey	An audience tape exists of this show. It carried the date of May 16 but is from one of these Tea Party shows. New press notes Schmit’s arrival as bass player.
May 4-7	Fillmore West	San Francisco, CA	Spirit (headliner), Gypsy	One show each night at 8:30 p.m. New press added
May 23	Storke Plaza, University of California	Santa Barbara, CA		Mike Bowe informed us about this show. A reported 5,000 students attend this unpublicized show.
May 29-30	Mammoth Gardens	Denver, CO	John Sebastian (headliner), Ballin’ Jack Grand Funk Railroad was originally the headliner but canceled.	One show at 8:00 p.m. New press added.
June 6	Birmingham Palladium	Birmingham, MI	All the Lonely People, Savage
June 7	Cincinnati Gardens	Cincinnati, OH	Janis Joplin, Lee Michaels	Joplin cancels her appearance over a billing dispute. New information has come to light that this show did take place with Poco taking over as headliner. Poco also did a live set on WEBN prior to the show.
June 11	A Warehouse	New Orleans, LA	Gypsy was originally booked to open for the Rascals, according to ads, Poco was added the day of the show.	The underground press got the opening act as Pocus!
June 12	Freedom Hall	Louisville, KY	Janis Joplin (headliner), Seatrain	Poco canceled over billing disagreement with Seatrain
June 13	Kiel Auditorium	St. Louis, MO	Janis Joplin (headliner), Seatrain	Show was canceled due to low ticket sales.
June (UD)		Tulsa, OK	Janis Joplin (headliner)	According to Rusty, this was when Janis made a play for Jimmy Messina and was rejected. However, no documentation has surfaced.
June 18-20	Boston Tea Party	Boston, MA	Brethren
June (UD)	The Fens	Boston, MA	Livingston Taylor	A free concert played at a public park area near Fenway Park. Might be 1969.
June 22	Simsbury High School	Simsbury, CT	Ten Wheel Drive, The Legend, Good Grief	One show at 7:00 p.m. This was a benefit concert promoted by four high school girls. According to a concert memory, Poco only played one song before the police shut down the concert. New review added.
June 24	Gym, Rogers High School	Newport, RI		One show at 8:00 p.m. New press added.
June 26-27	The Ark	Alexandria, VA		This 1,000 capacity club dropped its usual ticket price from $4 to $3.75 for these shows. After these shows, Poco remained in the Washington DC area to visit radio stations and promote their new album, POCO. The Ark closed after these shows.
July 1	Woods-Brown Amphitheatre, American University	Washington DC	Claude Jones	A long time coming – confirmed that this was a free show given at American University during summer break. A reported 10,000 attended this show.
July 4	2nd Annual Atlanta Pop Festival, Middle Georgia Raceway	Byron, GA	Jimi Hendrix, Cat Mother, Lee Michaels, Jethro Tull, The Chamber Brothers, Gypsy, Rare Earth, Rotary Connection, Cactus, Bloodrock, Chakra, Handle	Poco recorded live by Columbia Records at this show. Only two cuts from their set were ever released.
July 11	Auditorium, Bullock’s Department Store	Los Angeles, CA	Southwind, Blues Image, Blue Mountain Eagle
July 24-25	Aragon Theater	Chicago, IL	Spirit, Amboy Dukes	Shows were likely canceled due to civic unrest.
July 31	Phoenix Veterans Coliseum	Phoenix, AZ	Ten Years After (headliner), Big Brother & The Holding Co., Cactus, Frigid Pink	One show at 7:30 p.m. Audience tape circulates.
August 1 or 2	Wadena Rock Festival, Clarence Schmitt Farm	Wadena, IA	Flying Burrito Brothers, Everly Brothers, Sons of Champlin, Joan Baez, REO Speedwagon, Lightning	Also on the bill for this three-day festival was the Illinois Speed Press, who played on July 31. Unclear if Poco played August 1 or 2.
August 1	The Back Door	Peru, IL	The Rain, One-Eyed Jacks, 927 Ya Ha Band	Poco fills in at the last minute when the original headliners, Canned Heat cancel due to Al Wilson’s hospitalization. 1,412 attend the show.
August 2	Galina Rock Festival	Galina, IL	Terry Reid, The Everly Brothers, The Guess Who, Gypsy, Luther Allison, Oz, Joe Kelly, Ian & Sylvia, White Lightening, Bloomsbury People	Local officials prevented this festival from taking place and it was moved to Wadena.
August 4-9	Harmonyville 1970 Pop Festival, Walpack Center	Walpack, NJ	Assorted acts – see poster	Festival was canceled when the township obtained a court order to stop the festival.
August 4	Rainy Daze	St. Louis, MO		This small underground club was located on Olive Street and had a very short lifespan.
August 5	The Spectrum	Philadelphia, PA	Rod Stewart and Faces (headliner)	One show at 8:00 p.m.
August 6	Peace Festival, Shea Stadium	Flushing Meadows, NY	Creedence Clearwater Revival, The Rascals, Paul Simon, Steppenwolf, Dionne Warwick, Ten Wheel Drive, Al Kooper, Richie Havens, Sha-Na-Na, Miles Davis	By everyone’s estimation, this was the show that solidified Poco’s hold on New York fans. Poco went on early before a full crowd had arrived and tore the place up. An audience tape exists of Poco’s set.
August 8	Stanley Park Stadium	Toronto, Canada	Procul Harum (headliner), Sha Na Na, Melanie, Icarus	One show at 7:00 p.m.
August 11	Waikiki Shell	Honolulu, HI	John Sebastian	Poco canceled this appearance.
August 13-16	Fillmore West	San Francisco, CA	The Byrds (headliner), Commander Cody	Poco cancels and Big Brother & The Holding Company replaces them.
August 14	Hollywood Bowl	Hollywood, CA	Peter, Paul, & Mary (headliner)	One show at 8:30 p.m. New review added.
(UD) 1970	Something Else, syndicated TV show		Linda Ronstadt, Flying Burrito Brothers	Poco performs ‘You Better Think Twice’ Performance was filmed aboard a boat in Santa Monica Harbor.
September 5	Terrace Ballroom	Salt Lake City, UT	Leon Russell, Fritz	One show at 8:00 p.m.
September 11	Exhibit Hall, Community Concourse	San Diego, CA	Johnny Winters (headliner), Judy Mayhan	One show at 8:00 p.m. Added new review
September 18	Fieldhouse, Assumption College	Worcester, MA	Sugar Creek	Two shows at 6:00 & 10:00 p.m. An interesting review from nearby Worcester Polytechnical’s student newspaper. New press and opening act added.
September 19	Yale University Commons	New Haven, CT		One show at 8:30 p.m.
September 22	Boston Music Hall	Boston, MA	The Moody Blues (headliner)	Two shows at 7:00 & 9:30 p.m. Poco records these sets for a future live album.
September 23	Felt Forum	New York City, NY	The Moody Blues (headliner)	Two shows at 7:30 & 10:00 p.m. Poco records these shows for a future live album. Furay had trouble with his vocals that marred most of these sets for use. An interview between shows revealed that Messina had already announced his pending departure.
September 24	Public Hall	Cleveland, OH	The Moody Blues (headliner)	8,500 attend show
September 25	Palestra, University Of Pennsylvania	Philadelphia, PA	Delaney & Bonnie (headliner), Redbone	One show at 8:00 p.m. Recent concert memory informs us that Poco’s set was shortened when the sound system was so poor that the band walked off stage. A reported $9,000 loss on this show would caused the University to begin working with Electric Factory Promotions in the future.
September 26	Fieldhouse, Albright College	Reading, PA	Wells Fargo	One show at 8:30 p.m. New press added.
October 2	Ritchie Coliseum, University of Maryland	College Park, MD	Clint Holmes	One show at 7:30 p.m.
October 4	McDonogh Gym, Georgetown University	Washington DC	Tractor -later cancelled and replaced by Asleep at the Wheel, Sageworth & Drums	One show at 8:30 p.m.
October 8	Dewey’s Bar and Grill	Madison, WI
October 10	American Bandstand airs on ABC-TV			Poco performs ‘You Better Think Twice,’ ‘C’mon’
October 10	Chicago Auditorium	Chicago, IL	Livingston Taylor	One show at 8:30 p.m. New review added.
October 11	Labor Temple	Minneapolis, MN	Jarreau	Two shows at 7:30 and 10:15 p.m. Check out the less-than-stellar review from a freelance reviewer who didn’t know Kind Woman’s title and a grumpy college reviewer who didn’t appreciate Poco’s attempts at rock.
October (UD)	Men’s Gym, SUNY, Binghampton – Harpur College	Binghampton, NY		Thanks to David K. for letting us know about this show. We will try to confirm details.
October 20	Palais de Arts	Montreal, Quebec, Canada		Show was canceled due to political unrest in Quebec. Poco had originally been booked to replace Melanie, who cancelled due to illness
October 22	Cousens Gym, Tufts University	Medford, MA	Jonathan Edwards	One show at 8:00 p.m.
October 23	Syracuse War Memorial Auditorium	Syracuse, NY	Ten Wheel Drive	One show at 8:30 p.m.
October 24	Wadsworth Gym, Colby College	Waterville, ME		One show at 8:00 p.m. New review added.
October 25	Butova Gym, American International College	Springfield, MA	Joe ‘Steele’ Smith	700 attend the homecoming concert. New press added.
October 29-30	Fillmore West	San Francisco, CA	Procol Harum (headliner), Mungo Jerry	One show each night at 9:00 p.m. October 30th’s show was Messina’s final show. New press added.
October 31-November 1	Fillmore West	San Francisco, CA	Procol Harum (headliner), Mungo Jerry	One show each night at 9:00 p.m. The next night, Neil Young showed up to watch Poco as Paul Cotton took over as the band’s lead guitarist. Messina watched from the audience and flew back to LA the next day. An audience tape of the November 1 show exists.
November 5	American Shakespeare Festival Theatre	Stratford, CT		One show at 8:00 p.m.
November 6	Chapin Hall, Williams College	Williamstown, MA	Rod Stewart & Faces	One show at 8:00 p.m.
November 7	Gym, Stony Brook University	Stony Brook, NY		Two shows at 8:00 & 11:30 p.m.
November 8	Physical Education Center, University Of Hartford	Hartford, CT	Van Morrison (headliner) Sha Na Na	Two shows at 4:00 & 8:00 p.m. Gate-crashers broke down one of the doors prior to the second show, according the local press. Van Morrison did not show due to illness. New press added.
November 12	Thiel College	Greenville, PA	The James Gang, Gravel	Fan recollection
November 13	Wertheimer Fieldhouse, Kenyon College	Gambier, OH		Fan recollection (Mike Yaros). One show at 8:00 p.m.
November 15	Gym, Salem State College	Salem, MA	Travis Shook
Fall (UD), 1970	Memphis Zoo	Memphis, TN		Fan Recollection (Frank Carroll)
November 18	Fillmore Room, State University at Buffalo	Buffalo, NY	Debu Chauphuri	Two shows
November 20	Memorial Gymnasium, Vanderbilt University	Nashville, TN		One show at 8:00 p.m.
November 20	Harrington Auditorium, Worcester Polytechnical Institute	Worcester, MA	Van Morrison, Sha Na Na	Just learned that this show was canceled a few days before the show due to crowd misbehavior at previous shows. They booked the show in Nashville listed above to replace it.
November 21	Cameron Indoor Stadium, Duke University	Durham, NC	The Byrds (headliner)	One show at 8:00 p.m.
November 22	Charleston County Municipal Auditorium	Charleston, SC	Freeway	One show at 6:00 p.m.
November 23	ESBY, Gym, Glassboro State College	Glassboro, NJ	Elton John, Easy Wind	One show at 8:00 p.m. Opening act Elton John was on his first U.S. tour when he crossed paths with Poco.
November 27	Swing Auditorium, Orange Show Grounds	San Bernadino, CA	The Byrds	A preliminary booking that was likely cancelled.
November 30	Pan American Center, New Mexico State University	Las Cruces, NM		One show at 8:00 p.m.
December 4-5	Pirates World	Dania, FL		One show each night at 8:00 p.m.
December 6	Gym, Fairfield University	Fairfield, CT	Buddy Miles	One show at 8:00 p.m. New press added.
December 10-12	Boston Tea Party	Boston, MA	Jo-Mama, David Rea	This was one of the final shows at the Tea Party. By the end of the month, owners of the financially beleaguered venue closed its doors.
December 13	George Washington Hall, Phillips Academy	Andover, MA	Jo-Mama	One show at 1:30 p.m.
December 14	Edwards Auditorium, University Of Rhode Island	Kingston, RI		One show at 8:30 p.m. Dennis Whelan provided the correction on the University’s location. Additional research indicates the show took place at the auditorium, rather than Keany Gym. New press added.
December 16	Playhouse, Hofstra University	Hempstead, NY
December 18-19	Fillmore East	New York City, NY	Gypsy, Savoy Brown – Jo Mama plays on 19th	Two shows at 8:00 & 11:30 p.m. New advert added.
December 19	Civic Auditorium,	Santa Monica, CA		This show was scheduled for roughly 2 months before it was eventually canceled to allow Poco to play the Fillmore dates.
December 31	Maple Leaf Gardens	Toronto, Canada	Rare Earth, Chilliwack, James Gang, Steel River, Sha Na Na, Johnny Winter	Poco cancels their appearance due to customs problems that prevented them from crossing the border. The show went on without them in front of 30,000 fans.

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