Theater Watch: Country Rockin'

Country rock rules the week at Count Basie, when three “pioneers of the genre”—Pure Prairie League, Poco, and Firefall-- hit the stage for one night of rockin’ fun on Thursday, August 4^th.

Pure Prairie League has been making hits for decades. They enjoyed success throughout the 1970’s and 1980’s, and then went on career hiatus. 

In the late 1990's they enjoyed a career resurrection when they returned to the music scence with new sounds and hits. It was only a matter of time before another break was needed, however, and the band went their seperate ways until reuniting in 2004.

The group is known for their memorable hits such as Amie, Two Lane Highway, I Can’t Stop the Feelin’, and Let Me Love You Tonight.

Poco is a country rock band that formed in the late 1960’s by Richie Furay and Jim Messina after the breakup of the band Buffalo Springfield.

Their first album Picking Up the Pieces, was a hit with the critics, but failed to find success in the commercial market.  They kept cranking out music, however, and it eventually paid off. Their albumDeliverin’ hit the Top 40.

In 1978, after a short break, the band released their most successful album, Legend. The album included the hits Crazy Love and Heart of the Night.

Firefall is a country rock band that began in Boulder, Colorado in 1974. Their first album was produced in a record one month time, and became Atlantic Records quickest album to reach gold status.  This album includes such hits as Livin’ Ain’t Livin’, You Are the Woman, and Cinderella.

The band continued to enjoy commercial success, although tension between members began to grow. Members slowly began to disperse, and eventually everyone went their separate ways in 1981.

In 1983, the band regrouped with some new members and once again hit the road touring. The band toured with such music legends as The Beach Boys, Little River Band and Bob Segar and the Silver Bullet Band.

For more information, and to grab tickets to see this exciting lineup, visithttp://www.countbasietheatre.org/

• Thursday, August 4^th, 2011: Pure Prairie, Poco and Firefall, 8pm