Originally a two-LP set,
The Very Best of Poco
was a decent compilation in its time, assembling the group's best-known songs from singles and album cuts in a straightforward order with no particular surprises. It was reissued with upgraded sound in 1999, and for the very casual fan with a budget to consider the latter is adequate, showing their evolution as a band from the first flourish of their birth -- as an offshoot of
the Buffalo Springfield
, with the same sort of vast potential displayed by the latter group (similarly unrealized by constant membership changes) -- into one of the premiere country-rock outfits of the 1970s. Anyone serious about a deep enjoyment of the group, however, will opt for the more extensive and revelatory
The Forgotten Trail
instead, which contains numerous outtakes and -- no pun -- forgotten tracks. [
Beat Goes On
's 2002 edition included two bonus tracks,
"Railroad Days"
and
"Skatin'"
-- which had actually been deleted from the earlier CD reissue due to space constraints.] ~ Bruce Eder