The Souther, Hillman, Furay Band: Heavenly Fire

In 1973, I had the opportunity to see Poco in concert at the Syria Mosque in Pittsburgh. It was the last tour that Richie Furay performed with the band before he left to form The Souther, Hillman, Furay Band. Furay teamed up with singer/songwriter J.D. Souther and Chris Hillman, a former member of The Byrds and the Flying Burrito Brothers.

In the fall of 1974, the band’s debut single “Fallin’ in Love” debuted and I remember purchasing it at the Sundry Store on Main Street in Grayson, Kentucky. Being a college sophomore on a limited financial budget, I satisfied my musical habits by purchasing singles and not albums and this is one that I bought when I returned to school that fall.

The “B” side was “Heavenly Fire” that was penned by Len Fagen and Chris Hillman. Hillman sings the lead as well as playing bass and mandolin. The pedal steel parts were provided by band member Al Perkins. Souther, Hillman, and Furay all provided harmony vocals.

Their self-titled debut album did quite well by peaking at 11 on the Top 200 Album charts and The Souther, Hillman, Furay Band was touted as a country-rock supergroup. The “A” side, which is a great Richie Furay tune was a mid charter at #27.