Songfacts®:

• After the demise of Buffalo Springfield in 1968, members Richie Furay and Jim Messina formed Poco with pedal steel guitar player Rusty Young. "Pickin' Up The Pieces" was the first song they recorded.
• Written by Richie Furay, the blend of elements of country and rock music in "Pickin' Up The Pieces" was instrumental in creating the genre of country-rock. Furay had previously anticipated this new direction with the country-influenced songs he penned for Buffalo Springfield, such as "A Child's Claim To Fame" and "Kind Woman" (Rusty Young played on the latter song).
  
  "Buffalo Springfield was over and Jimmy Messina and I wanted to put together a group that had a country sound to it, but crossing that line from the rock and roll side," Furay recalled to Uncut magazine. "So we started Poco. And picking up the pieces was just kind of reflective of that."
• The song is a commentary on leaving Buffalo Springfield behind, picking up the pieces with Poco and extolling the virtues of country-rock.
  
  Well, there's just a little bit of magic
  In the country music we're singin', so let's begin
  We're bringin' you back down home
• Furay felt Buffalo Springfield was Stephen Stills' band. "He was the heart and soul of Buffalo Springfield," he recalled to Uncut, "so when it got to the point where he was done, I decided to move on too."
• "Pickin' Up the Pieces" is the title track of Poco's debut album. Though critics consider it a landmark in country rock, it performed poorly at the time, peaking at #63 on the Billboard albums chart.