Bassist Timothy B. Schmit says that beyond the two upcoming Classic West/East shows this summer -- the Eagles may carry on. During a chat with BestClassicBands.com, Schmit explained how the group came to the decision to perform without its leader, the late-Glenn Frey, and include his son, musician Deacon Frey: "It’s all timing with decisions of that type. At first we said this is completely over, that we can’t do this without Glenn. But then we decided if we approach it with the understanding that Glenn is irreplaceable -- that nobody is going to take his place, and that we’ll use guests to supplement it all -- then that’s the way to do it. The other factor is that people still want to hear that music. So we’re going to try this out."
Schmit, who's recently been on the road supporting his latest solo album, Leap Of Faith, went on to say, "Deacon will be one of the guests for our two summer shows. In fact, Joe (Walsh), Don (Henley), and I had already gotten together with him shortly before we all got busy again with our solo shows. He has been diligent in studying what needs to be done, and we’re confident this will work out nicely. In fact, before we started playing a note, I asked him directly if he was up to the task, and he replied that he was. As far as other participants? I’m still not at liberty to talk about this. I assume all will be revealed soon enough."
- When pressed about whether the band is eying more shows beyond the July stadium shows, Schmit said: "That’s yet to be determined. No one’s ruling it out -- we’ll see what happens."
- Despite still being "the new guy" in the organization, next year will mark Timothy B. Schmit's 40th anniversary of taking over bass duties from founding member Randy Meisner. We asked Schmit to recall his first gig as an Eagle: ["We did a lot of rehearsing and I did go on in '78. The summer of '78 I went to Canada (which) was my first gig. I went onstage, unbeknownst to. . . the audience didn't know. I mean, the majority didn't know. People that weren't fanatics didn't know that they weren't going to see Randy -- they saw me. It was a little bit strange, but I was so prepared. I knew my situation. There wasn't any big announcement, I just went onstage. What's not to like about being asked to join one of the biggest band in the world? And so when I finally got onstage, it was quite an accomplishment for me."]
The Eagles tour dates (subject to change):July 15 - Los Angeles, CA - Classic West at Dodger Stadium (with Steely Dan & The Doobie Brothers)July 30 - New York, BY - Classic East at CitiField (with Steely Dan & The Doobie Brothers)
READ: Full Timothy B. Schmit interview: http://bit.ly/2pZ7ZiA
FAST FACTS
- Poco co-founder Randy Meisner left the band prior to the recording of their debut album in order to join Ricky Nelson's Stone Canyon Band in 1970. Poco replaced him with Timothy B. Schmit. When Meisner left the Eagles in 1978, Schmit once again replaced him.
- Schmit first appeared on 1979's The Long Run, which featured his co-written star turn, "I Can't Tell You Why."
- He sang on Firefall's 1977 hit "Just Remember I Love You" and also served as a studio musician for Steely Dan. Schmit also sang on Crosby, Stills & Nash's 1982 hit, "Southern Cross"
- Oakland-born Schmit is the only member of the Eagles to have actually been born and raised in California.
- Timothy B. Schmit, Joe Walsh, and Randy Meisner -- all appeared on Richard Marx's 1987 Top Three debut single, "Don't Mean Nothing."
CHECK IT OUT: Timothy B. Schmit on January 8th, 2017 performing "Peaceful Easy Feeling" in tribute to Glenn Frey in Agoura Hills, California: