Keep on Tryin'

Poco was packed with talented songwriters and vocalists. This one was written by their bass player, Timothy B. Schmit, who also sang lead with Paul Cotton, Rusty Young and George Grantham on harmony. Schmit, who joined the Eagles two years later, said in his Songfacts interview: "I must have been going through something likely with a relationship, to where it gave me pause to think about a lot of things. I do remember that song was written fairly quickly, which is unlike me, and I really like that. I wish that would happen more often. It's a song about hope."

This song finds Schmit separated from his loved one, but there is no desperation or yearning, just optimism. Even though he admits that alcohol is an issue ("I've been drinkin' now, just a little too much"), he still seems sure that they will reconnect. He's certainly going to keep trying.

In Spanish, the word "poco" means small, and in musical notation it means to a slight degree. But neither of these definitions have anything to do with the band name. They were using different names for different gigs while they tried to find one that stuck, and one night when they played the Troubadour in Los Angeles, they played as Pogo, the name of a comic strip their manager liked. A rep from Epic Records was in a audience and showed interest in the band, so they were stuck with that name because it was the one the label recognized. Just one problem: Walt Kelly, who drew the Pogo comic strip, found out and threatened to sue them, so the band made a slight adjustment to Poco and stuck with that.