This is the final part of a five-part interview with Rock & Roll Hall of Fame member Richie Furay. You can find the first part here, second part here, third part here, and the fourth part here.
The talk turns to politics. Furay is a near-unicorn in that while being a distinguished member of the ‘60s rock scene whose promulgation of far-left societal and political views changed not only its generation but has left indelible stamps on subsequent ones, Furay is an outspoken conservative. He routinely comments on his Facebook page regarding matters concerning the body politic and is an unabashed supporter of President Trump. How did Furay go right when so many of his peers went left?
“Certainly the Bible does. I’m a conservative believer. I’m a conservative political guy. I’m conservative in everything that I do. I don’t know how to answer any other way. Certainly, the Word guides us. It’s our guide. If we read the Word …” Furay pauses before continuing. “I’m gonna say something and we’ll see what happens. I don’t know how a Christian can support liberal politics. There’s liberal theologians … these guys. I’m not even sure they read the same Bible that I do.”
Which attracts greater opposition in the entertainment business: being a believer or being a conservative? “I don’t know. Look at the overall picture of entertainment. It is so liberal that to be a conservative … yeah. I’m thankful for some of my liberal friends that I’m still friends with them, and good friends with them. But it’s tough. I mean, it’s tough. Both of them. They’re both equally offensive to the whole genre of entertainment.
“People are getting so much from — I don’t know what they’re calling the mainstream media now — from that media that you can hear the soundbites (coming from people). You remember when people that you see are saying the same thing. People have really fallen into that. It’s a trap; it’s a conspiracy they have fallen into. They have turned hatred Into their whole message. They don’t have anything to offer as far as I’m concerned, but they hate one man. It’s interesting. They’ve turned their ideology into idolatry. Rather than worshipping an idol, they’ve completely turned that around and turned it into utter hatred.”
“Hatred is a cruel master. It is deceiving the people in my lifetime. As soon as Trump came down the escalator in 2015, I was almost afraid to drive down the street then because things were really crazy. Today? We live in a crazy world, man. This world is turned upside down. Evil is called good and good is called evil, as Isaiah said. And then they tell me, ‘Well, you know, the Bible is just a bunch of fables and fiction. It’s not real.’ Yes, it is, and it’s all falling into place.”
And now it is showtime. The crowd fills the theater, most in attendance obviously awaiting an evening of warm memories sparked by familiar tunes. Furay and ensemble give them what they came for, delivering the goods with the same brio, albeit a tad quieter, that Poco exhibited when it recorded the live album “Deliverin’” in September 1970. Buffalo Springfield, Poco, and Souther-Hillman-Furay Band songs pepper the playlist along with Furay’s solo efforts, all tied together with his easy in-between song banter and storytelling. The audience responds with near-universal enthusiasm when Furay mentions either his faith or political views. Yes, Virginia, and the other 46 contiguous states plus Alaska and Hawaii, there are Christian conservatives in California.
And there you have it. Richie Furay is the lion in autumn, one whose roar comes with just a little bit of magic in the country. His music and testimony are paramount in combating the progressive agenda; living proof that not only does the devil not have all the good music, but he’s destined to lose no matter how insane the world turns.
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