A Gathering Of The Clan - The Fred Walecki Benefit Concert

I just posted a link to this concert in a Randy Meisner thread, sorta off topic. I think it deserves a topic of it's own. Bernie Leadon and Glynn Johns helped to organise it, indeed Bernie's in the house band. I didn't realise there were actually two concerts. Randy opens both shows, Henley's last on before the, every body on stage finale.

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Proceeds from the concert went to Fred Walecki and his family. Walecki, longtime proprietor of Westwood Music guitar shop, had recent surgery for throat cancer. He has two young children and had incurred many medical expenses not covered by insurance.
Along with building custom instruments for many popular artists, Walecki has been a friend of the Los Angeles musicians' community for more than 30 years. Westwood Music has been a gathering place for many musicians who have gone on to have very successful careers, including those performing at the benefit.

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You can listen to and download mp3 files of both concerts at the wonderful Sugarmegs.org website. If you put Randy's name in the search box both concerts will come up in the search results.
Randy opens the concert with Take It Easy and Take It To The Limit the first night, Already Gone and Take It To The Limit the second. Henley sings The Boys Of Summer, My Thanksgiving and Desperado. The whole show is a procession of the top LA music acts of the 70s, plus Spinal Tap who feature a special guest appearance, on 4th bass, by Timothy B Schmit.

I don't think I can post a direct link to the show but the sugarmegs link is;
http://tela.sugarmegs.org/

I don't think Bernie is playing Take It Easy guitar solo :unimpressed:

Don Henley was there too? Hmph. So there was Randy, Tim, Bernie and the Henster.

Thank you very much for the link, Mr. Funk.

Thank you for the info, Funk 50. I didn't know there were 2 concerts either. I remember in Heaven and Hell, Don F expresses disappointment and hurt that he wasn't invited to participate. Was it b/c he didn't have a real connection to Glyn Johns or was it due to his then-recent firing and Henley's objections? Or maybe they just didn't think of him.:shrug:

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Originally Posted by NightMistBlue

Don Henley was there too? Hmph. So there was Randy, Tim, Bernie and the Henster.

Thank you very much for the link, Mr. Funk.

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I believe this was the incident where Randy's wife asked for a picture of Randy and Don H together, and Don turned away and walked off without a word. :headshake:

Oh, I thought that was the R&R Hall of Fame? And that she wanted a photo with Henley.

This from page 313 in Heaven and Hell while discussing the benefit concert:

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Bernie stayed onstage most of the night as a backup musician, but [Randy, Bernie and Don] never all played together. Randy's wife, who wanted a photograph of her husband with Don Henley, approached him with her camera and asked him if he'd mind posing. Without saying a word, Don turned on his heel and walked away.

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Apparently I was wrong when I said the concert occurred after Felder got fired. It was during all the negotiations and inquiries into the finances that preceded the firing.

Ahh OK, thanks D. Man, I got that all screwed up.

Wow, I had not heard of the incident between Henley, Randy and his wife...That's just sad. Must have been a pretty bad riff to not take a picture with someone.

I do have Felder's book, I just have not read it yet. I did just finish To The Limit though.

Remember that Felder wasn't there and therefore his statement about Henley and Randy's wife is just gossip.

It sounds like this was a great event with Bernie and Glyn Johns attracting many great artists to play for the benefit of a man who helped many musicians through the years. It's not about Don Felder.

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Originally Posted by UndertheWire

Remember that Felder wasn't there and therefore his statement about Henley and Randy's wife is just gossip.

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It surely came from Randy and/or Lana directly though, no? We don't know that for sure, but seeing as Randy and Felder have remained friends, it's a safe bet.

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Originally Posted by UndertheWire

Remember that Felder wasn't there and therefore his statement about Henley and Randy's wife is just gossip.

It sounds like this was a great event with Bernie and Glyn Johns attracting many great artists to play for the benefit of a man who helped many musicians through the years. It's not about Don Felder.

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I was under the impression that Don F and Randy were in contact during that time, and I assumed Felder heard it first-hand from Randy, although Randy probably never intended it to become public. Why do you think it's gossip?

I listened to the mp3 of some of the concert and I've enjoyed it so far. It does sound like a great event. But still I can't help but be reminded of the Randy-Don Henley incident. If it's indeed just a rumor, then I would definitely feel better about it.

I'm going to rephrase this.

The only source I have seen for the alleged Randy-Henley incident is in Felder's book and we know Felder wasn't there. That means it is second-hand information at best and is subject to possible misunderstandings and distortions. So I question why Felder would include such hearsay in his account and conclude that he repeated it because it showed Henley in a bad light. I consider that to be malicious gossip.

I think everyone should be able to appreciate these concerts which were for the benefit of Fred Walecki without getting distracted by unrelated and petty issues.

I was aware of the Randy-Henley incident, I almost mentioned it in my initial post, and I haven't read Heaven And Hell. I'd say there was an earlier source. I'm surprised it was included in Felder's book. I wouldn't list it as part of Felder's experiences as an Eagle.

As far as I know, Felder and Meisner parted company in 1977 and never reconnected. I suggest that Felder wasn't invited to the A Gathering Of The Clan because Henley didn't want it to become an Eagles reunion show rather than a tribute to Fred Walecki, which would also, partly explain Henley's reaction to the requested photograph with Randy.

I believe that Randy and his wife joined a queue of fans lining up for autographs off Don (pre- selfies). I'm not surprised that Don beat a hasty retreat when he spotted a reunion with Randy being manufactured. Don has said that he had a perfectly amiable meeting with Leadon at the show but didn't mention meeting Randy.

My opinion is that Randy's wife scared Don off before he even saw or heard Randy. You wouldn't expect to meet an old band mate in a queue of autograph hunters would you? :shrug:

It was wonderful that a group of musicians were able to help an old friend who has been such a help and good friend to them when they were starting their careers.
Funk - Don F. said a lot of things in his book regarding incidents when he was not there.

I don't consider how Randy and his wife were treated as "petty" in part b/c it's another indicator of what I suspect is some kind of beef Henley had with Randy long ago (and this is not the only incident I've read about). I brought it up before and the idea was dismissed, just as my opinion that Henley appeared to be changing his mind about continuing the Eagles and including Deacon was dismissed.

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Originally Posted by Funk 50

I was aware of the Randy-Henley incident, I almost mentioned it in my initial post, and I haven't read Heaven And Hell. I'd say there was an earlier source. I'm surprised it was included in Felder's book. I wouldn't list it as part of Felder's experiences as an Eagle.

As far as I know, Felder and Meisner parted company in 1977 and never reconnected.

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Per Heaven and Hell, page 330 Felder himself says,

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When I'm not enjoying my new life with Kathrin, I spend my spare time having lunch or playing golf with friends like Randy Meisner, living a very low-key life in L.A. I travel to Europe as much as possible. I enjoy the time I have with my grandchildren and look forward to having more.

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I'm aware there is a contingent of Eagles fans who find anything Felder says or does as suspect, but I have no reason to believe this is untrue.

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Originally Posted by Funk 50

I suggest that Felder wasn't invited to the A Gathering Of The Clan because Henley didn't want it to become an Eagles reunion show rather than a tribute to Fred Walecki, which would also, partly explain Henley's reaction to the requested photograph with Randy.

I believe that Randy and his wife joined a queue of fans lining up for autographs off Don (pre- selfies). I'm not surprised that Don beat a hasty retreat when he spotted a reunion with Randy being manufactured. Don has said that he had a perfectly amiable meeting with Leadon at the show but didn't mention meeting Randy.

My opinion is that Randy's wife scared Don off before he even saw or heard Randy. You wouldn't expect to meet an old band mate in a queue of autograph hunters would you? :shrug:

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Between this and UTW's hearsay-is-equivalent-to-gossip theory, I'm not even sure how to respond. Is there a basis for these assertions or are you just speculating?

How would Felder being there make it an Eagles reunion show? Apparently the ones that were there didn't even perform together. At that time, (probably) relatively few people were even aware Felder was an Eagle. This was pre-book and pre-documentary.

Even more puzzling is how on earth would a personal keepsake pic of Randy and Henley together be construed as some kind of Eagles reunion? And who was "manufacturing" this reunion? It seems odd to me that Henley would be signing autographs for a line of fans and then suddenly take off in front of all those people b/c Mrs. Meisner asked for a photo. Of course we don't know if there was even a line or if Henley knew who she was to become "scared off."

What did these guys sing? Did they play with the house band or bring their own? Were there any interesting combinations?

Some articles on the benefit:
http://www.rollingstone.com/music/ne...-show-20000809
http://articles.latimes.com/2000/aug/07/news/cl-35 (the byline is by Patti Davis - would that be Bernie's ex?).
https://usatoday30.usatoday.com/life...r/lhdoc212.htm

Andy Fairweather-Low was in the house band along with Bernie, Ry Cooder and Ethan Johns (and Jennifer Condos who I'm not familiar with).

It seems that 17 years later, Fred Walecki is still around so the cancer treatment was successful.

Answering my opening question, Randy sang Already Gone and Take it To the Limit. Don sang Boys of Summer, My Thanksgiving and Desperado. And a Byrds reunion!

Presumably, Randy and Don were both on stage for the Finale.

Glyn Johns has a short chapter on the benefit in his book although that doesn't have much that hasn't already been covered. Bernie introduced Glyn Johns to Fred Walecki in the 1970s. Bernie called him in the summer of 2000 to tell him of Walecki's cancer.

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Bernie and I decided to put on a concert to raise the substantial amount of money his treatment would cost. This proved really simple to do as he was known and loved by so mant artists and muscians who he had gone out of his way to help over the years.

Pretty soon we had a star-studded cast of thousands: Warren Zevon, Jackson Browne, Crosby and Nash, Bonnie Raitt, Colin Hay from Men at Work, the amazing actor Jeff Bridges (who went to school with Fred), Chris Hillman and Herb Pedersen, Emmylou Harris, Linda Ronstadt, Randy Meisner, Spinal Tap and Don Henley. The solo artists were supported by a house band consisting of Ry Cooder, Jennifer Condos, Ethan Johns, Albert Lee, Andy Fairweather Low, Paul "Wix" Wickens, and Bernie. There are few individuals who could summon such a response from so many to a call for help, and it is a fair testament to the man, who may be the only true Christian soul I have ever come across.

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Thanks for posting the links and the Glynn John's quote UndertheWire.

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Originally Posted by Delilah

How would Felder being there make it an Eagles reunion show? Apparently the ones that were there didn't even perform together. At that time, (probably) relatively few people were even aware Felder was an Eagle. This was pre-book and pre-documentary.

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I'm pretty sure that Felder would have expected to play an Eagles track... with somebody else singing of course, and there were two Eagles bassists there, and a second guitarist in the house band. Their must have been a conscious decision to keep all the Eagles apart.

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Originally Posted by Delilah

Even more puzzling is how on earth would a personal keepsake pic of Randy and Henley together be construed as some kind of Eagles reunion? And who was "manufacturing" this reunion? It seems odd to me that Henley would be signing autographs for a line of fans and then suddenly take off in front of all those people b/c Mrs. Meisner asked for a photo. Of course we don't know if there was even a line or if Henley knew who she was to become "scared off."

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What you perceive as a personal keepsake pic Delilah, could be perceived as a piece of valuable Eagles memorabilia that's worth a bob or two. I don't see why Randy didn't approach Don privately backstage unless he was too reticent or shy.

Referring to Felder's friendship with Randy and Bernie. I can see the value of Felder associating himself with them as the 3rd ex-Eagle. I'd like to hear Meisner and Leadon describe their, post Eagles relationship with Felder before I believe there is any great substance to it.

A pic of Felder and Meisner together would help, something like Randy and Joe shared a month or two ago.

Back to the A Gathering Of The Clan - The Fred Walecki Benefit Concert. I'm betting that Henley wasn't on stage for the finale. It's something he says he tries to avoid and he'd just finished his own set. I'm not sure if Meisner would stick around for it either after being first act on.

Here's a report on the show from the LA Times: http://articles.latimes.com/2000/aug...inment/ca-1910

I believe that Glynn Johns had a big say in who was asked to be in the house band. He'd worked with Ry Cooder at least since 1969 (he even brought him in on a Rolling Stones session to improve the sound), Bernie and Andy Fairweather-Low were two of his go-to session musicians and there's his son, Ethan. I'd be suprised if he didn't have similar relationships with the rest of that band.

The "name" artists were mostly singer-songwriters who were backed by the house band. Other benefits have featured famous guitarist such as Eric Clapton, but that doesn't seem to be what they were going for with this.

Some of the artists seemed to do a lot of benefits - Jackson Browne, David Crosby, Graham Nash, Don Henley and others - and my guess is that once you've done one, you get approached for others.

Felder just doesn't look like a good fit - he never worked with Glyn Johns, didn't sing and didn't do benefits. If he also had a reputation for being difficult, why would they bother?

I had wondered why Glenn wasn't involved but now I realise what a big part Glyn Johns played, I'm not surprised in the least!

Thank you for all the info, UTW, and for addressing my questions, Funk 50. I do remember reading about Glyn Johns meeting Fred Walecki in Sound Man.

I'm really grateful that Randy's cover of "Already Gone" is included here b/c it's not available anywhere else (it's not in the World Classic Rockers cd and the YT video doesn't show a full-length version).

It's commendable that Bernie, Randy and Don H stepped up to the plate to help their old friend out.

I know he's a luthier now, but he also seems to have set up a by-appointment music shop as well: https://www.facebook.com/malibumusicshop/

In Malibu, mind. He's doing well. :applause: