styx tour manager

Red Light Management

Www.styxworld.com/.

Harmony. Chemistry. Balance. Grit. Dexterity. Determination. Solidarity. Terms that describe a Super Bowl champion? Well, almost. These are words that define the core essence of Styx, the multimegamillion-selling rock band that has forged an indelible legacy both on record and onstage.

The six men comprising Styx have committed to rocking the Paradise together with audiences far and wide by entering their second decade of averaging over 100 shows a year, and each one of them is committed to making the next show better than the last. “Every night, we go on that magic carpet ride together,” observes original bassist Chuck Panozzo, who joins the band on tour as often as he can. “The thing I always like the most is the immediate response we get when playing live,” adds guitarist and vocalist James “JY” Young, an integral force of nature in the band since its 1972 inception. I like to say we’re the best-kept secret — but perhaps we’re not anymore.” Notes guitarist, vocalist, and emotional centerpiece Tommy Shaw, “Our live show is like a religious experience where people come to commune and testify. We have a pretty sophisticated audience, and we really respect that. We didn’t used to have people who would come see every show, but now they’re coming back again and again for more. And we owe it to our fans to continually rehearse, prepare, and improve.”

Styx draws from over four decades of barnburning chart hits, joyous singalongs, and hard-driving deep cuts. Like a symphony that builds to a satisfying crescendo, a Styx set covers a wide range of stylistic cornerstones. From the progressively sweeping splendor that is “The Grand Illusion” to the hunker-down fortitude of all that is the “Blue Collar Man,” from the majestic spiritual love for a special “Lady” to the poignant rumination on the fleeting nature of fame in “Miss America,” from an individual yearning for true connection as a “Man in the Wilderness” to a soul-deep quest to achieve what’s at the heart of one’s personal vision in “Crystal Ball,” from the regal reach-for-the-stars bravado of “Come Sail Away” to the grainy all-in gallop of that rugged “Renegade” who had it made, the band draws on an unlimited cache of ways to immerse one’s mind and body in their signature sound.

Styx hit its stride with Tommy’s first LP with the band, 1976’s Crystal Ball , and then they become the first group to score four triple-platinum albums in a row: The Grand Illusion (1977), Pieces of Eight (1978), Cornerstone (1979), and Paradise Theater (1981). Over the ensuing decade, Styx weathered the shifting winds of the public’s musical taste, reconvening for a highly successful 1996 Return to Paradise tour that was expertly documented on both CD and DVD in 1997. With a little help from their many friends in Cleveland’s Contemporary Youth Orchestra, One With Everything (2006) became a hybrid orchestral rock blend for the ages. And on The Grand Illusion / Pieces of Eight Live (2011), the band performed at its peak when tackling every track from a pair of their finest triple-platinum albums back to back. Not only that, but the band re-recorded two discs’ worth of its classic material with much finesse and musculature, aptly known as Regeneration Volume I & II (2011 & 2012). Observes Tommy, “Now you have something you can take home with you and go, ‘Yeah, that’s the band I saw last night.’ ”

After the success of Return to Paradise , JY and Tommy wanted to keep their renewed momentum intact, and that meant continuing to tour. The core of that momentum had already been rooted when the band tapped Chicago session ace Todd Sucherman to take over for founding drummer John Panozzo in 1996, who was too ill to join the team on the road for Return to Paradise (and whom later tragically died that summer). But to keep moving ahead, they had to part ways with founding member Dennis DeYoung — the man behind some of the band’s most indelible hits, including “Lady,” “The Grand Illusion,” and “Come Sail Away” — because the collective chemistry had changed. The next necessary component came to light when, in 1999, the band recruited Canadian keyboard and vocal wizard Lawrence Gowan, who had opened for Styx in Quebec City in 1997 and had drawn a rabidly enthusiastic response to his purely solo one-man, one-piano set. After Glen Burtnik left the clan in 2003, there was only one name that made sense to join the Styx party: bassist/vocalist Ricky Phillips, a skilled multi-instrumentalist who’s handled a number of musical tasks for the likes of the Babys, Ronnie Montrose, and Coverdale Page.

After more than a decade together on the road, this incarnation of Styx is looking forward to performing as many shows as it can as long as it can. “It all comes back to the chemistry,” says Ricky. “The legacy of this band will be that it brought joy to millions of people,” notes Todd. Observes Lawrence, “We’ve always tried to explain why this is this happening. It’s obviously a multitude of factors, but the main one is that our show is really good ! And if it’s really good, they’re going to come to see it again.” Styx hopes it’s a wave that never crests. “Music is this amazing force that comes from a higher place. I’m humbled for this band to have the great success that it has, and I recognize what we have could go away in an instant,” admits JY. “We just want to keep on doing this,” asserts Tommy. “We want to let life take its course and let this music continue to be the soundtrack to it. And this band will continue to evolve as long as we live and play this music.” The jig is up, the news is out: The Esprit de Styx is alive and well, and now it’s time to see for yourself. Welcome to the Grand Evolution.

• Charlie Brusco
• Ashley Majher
• ABC Public Relations
• Amanda Cagan

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Styx contact info

Nashville, TN United States

London, United Kingdom

Los Angeles, CA United States

Styx Manager

Alpharetta, GA United States

Styx Publicist

Sherman Oaks, CA United States

Coming from Chicago, Illinois, Styx is a rock band famous during the ‘70s and ‘80s. The rock band emerged from the Chicago band Tradewinds, with members Chuck and John Panozzo, Dennis DeYoung, James Young, and John Curulewski. They were able to get a recording contract under Wooden Nickel Records in 1972, changing their band name to Styx which means “the land of the dead” in Greek mythology.

Their self-titled album was released in 1972, followed by “Styx II” in 1973. By 1974, their album “The Serpent Is Rising” was released, then a year later, “Man of Miracles” followed. The Styx didn’t get an instant success, but was given a break through the song “Lady” which as well-received via airplay in 1974.

Styx contact information is available for you to look at. We have Styx’s manager information, along with their booking agents info as well. If you want the Styx email address for their management team, or booking agency, we have that available for you to view by signing up. You can find the Styx booking info and booking price here.

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Styx’s Manager Explains Why The Band Won’t Go Back To Dennis DeYoung

Dennis DeYoung live - Just Masters / Youtube

In a revealing conversation on The Bob Lefsetz Podcast, Charlie Brusco, the manager of the renowned rock band Styx, shed light on the departure of Dennis DeYoung, the group’s former lead vocalist until 1999. The split between DeYoung and the band was far from amicable, with profound implications for all involved.

Choosing to Move Forward without Dennis DeYoung

Brusco recalls a critical moment when two key members of Styx, Tommy Shaw and James Young, approached him with a firm decision. They were poised to release a new album and embark on a tour, but DeYoung’s health issues meant he couldn’t join them. The bandmates were adamant about moving forward without him. Brusco shared, “Tommy and J.Y. came to me and said, ‘We got a new album coming out. Dennis can’t tour. We want to go out there without him.’ And I said, ‘Alright, if we do this – it could work, it might not work – but I’m not gonna go backwards. We’re not gonna go do this for six months and then turn around and go back [to DeYoung].'”

The friction within Styx wasn’t solely about DeYoung’s inability to tour. Over time, his relationship with other band members had soured, attributed mainly to differences in attitude and vision. Past pauses in the band’s journey were often due to internal clashes, leading to the difficult decision to let go of their frontman. Brusco, tasked with the unenviable job of informing DeYoung, encountered resistance. DeYoung believed the band would falter without him, a notion Brusco confidently refuted.

  View this post on Instagram   A post shared by Rob’s Music Planet (@robsmusicplanet)

DeYoung’s Side of the Story

Following this significant lineup change, Lawrence Gowan stepped in as Styx’s new lead vocalist. This transition marked a complete severance of ties with DeYoung. As Brusco starkly put it, “I’m pretty sure of this: I don’t think me, Tommy or J.Y. have ever spoken to Dennis since I let him go. I don’t think the three of us have ever had a word with [DeYoung]. A good word or a bad word – nothing.”

DeYoung, on his part, spoke with Rock History Music in 2022, offering his perspective on the split. He attributed his departure to the band’s reaction to his hit song “Babe,” which altered Styx’s musical direction, causing tension within the group. “I got kicked out of the band because ‘Babe’ went number one on the album before because I kinda fooled with the style a little bit. And then the record company thought, the first time, it was gonna be another number one record for us. They wanted to release it, and then Tommy threatened to quit the band if it was released. He threatens a lot on that. And then it was a big brouhaha between all of us. I ended up getting kicked out because I couldn’t take any more, you know.”

Despite the fallout, DeYoung harbors no intentions of rejoining Styx. However, he expressed a desire to embark on one final tour with the band, solely for the fans’ sake. Meanwhile, Styx, with Gowan as their vocalist, continues to perform, with upcoming show dates in the United States scheduled for May.

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Keep on Rollin’: How REO Speedwagon and Styx Scored Best-Yet Grosses on Their 2022 Co-Headlining Tour 

Kevin Cronin, Tommy Shaw and the bands' managers on the four things that made Live and Unzoomed a smash success. 

By Dave Brooks

Dave Brooks

The older some guys get, the more they tend to exaggerate their exploits — and Styx ’s Tommy Shaw and REO Speedwagon ’s Kevin Cronin are no exception. In the promo video created for their Live and Unzoomed North American tour, promoted by Live Nation and booked by CAA, the longtime friends can’t help but oversell how much they’ve accomplished during the pandemic. 

Cronin claims to have become a pyrotechnics expert after the video shows him burning hot dogs on his barbeque, while Shaw brags he’s been keeping himself sharp, only to accidentally send an axe flying at bandmate Lawrence Gowan while the two struggle to assemble IKEA furniture. 

Trending on Billboard

More than 500,000 fans bought tickets for the dual headliner tour, which grossed an impressive $25 million in sales on the 44-date, May 31-Sept. 18 run, their fifth tour together, making it their top-grossing co-headlining tour yet. On average, 11,400 fans came out each night — enough to fill up most amphitheaters and small arenas — landing the tour the No. 30 spot on this month’s Billboard Boxscore Top Tours chart. 

Bad Bunny Enters the Record Books With World’s Hottest Tour

Not bad for two groups with a combined catalog of more than 40 hits, both of which peaked on the Billboard Hot 100 in the 1980s. Rick Franks , Live Nation’s North American president of talent and touring, believes the tour’s success is in part due to their long-term partnership and says Styx and REO Speedwagon have performed more shows together as a package tour than any other groups this century. They have always done so as dual headliners, meaning that they alternate which act performs in the closing slot each night. 

Package tours provide added value for fans, with ticket prices higher than those to see one act but significantly less than those for two. When two acts split production costs, they often can take home more money, too.  

Styx is now led by guitarist Shaw, who joined the band in 1976, while REO Speedwagon is still fronted by founder Cronin. Gone is Styx founder Dennis Deyoung , who wrote many of the group’s hits but left in the late ’90s, as well as REO guitarist Gary Richrath , who died in 2015. 

The two groups first toured together in 2000, but their bond solidified after the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks inspired them to perform a series of charity concerts that raised hundreds of thousands of dollars for the families of first responders and led to the creation of the charity Rock to the Rescue. 

Here are four tips the bands and their managers say made this tour a record-breaking success.  

Pick The Right Opener   

Loverboy , the Canadian band led by Mike Reno whose hits include “Working for the Weekend” and “Turn Me Loose,” was both bands’ pick, but tour promoter Live Nation initially pushed back.  

“Good songs, good band, everyone likes them – what is there push back on?” Styx manager Charlie Brusco says of the early back and forth with Live Nation’s Rick Franks , who relented after an intervention by Red Light Management owner and mega music manager Coran Capshaw .   

“The word got out pretty quick with the fans on how good the Loverboy set was and we start getting reports that the venues were 70% full when the band took the stage at 7 p.m. and 85% full by 7:15,” Brusco says. “The result was three hours straight of great music from beginning to end.”  

Make Everything Equal   

Both REO Speedwagon and Styx hail from Illinois, came up in the late 1970s and 1980s and dominated mainstream rock radio with their ambitious anthems and riff-heavy tunes, often perfectly encapsulating their young fan’s feelings in songs that became instant classics.  

Despite their similarities, the two acts never played together until 2000’s Arch Allies tour, named after the groups’ respectful rivalry with one another.  

“There really isn’t a more accurate description of the relationship between the two bands,” says Brad Bissell , who booked the tour with Rod Essig out of CAA’s Nashville office. “The bands and their teams get along perfectly and there’s a deep mutual respect.”  

The tour worked, REO Speedwagon manager Tom Consolo says, “because each side recognizes the importance of making sure every decision is balanced and equal,” noting that the bands rely on an independent production manager for the co-headline tour (instead of each band’s normal production boss). He continues, “so that if there is a call to be made, it’s not being made by one side,” but by a neutral person looking to do what is best for the tour. 

The tour also works because both bands want the same thing — “a show that our fans are going to enjoy,” Shaw says. “We don’t want them to feel like one of us is favored over the other.”   

Cronin adds, “The band that goes on in the middle slot gets the exact same production and stage space as the band who closes the show.”    

Go On Sale Early    

Brusco says he expected the tour to go on sale in late January, about four months before the May 31 opener at Van Andel Arena in Grand Rapids, Michigan, but Franks insisted tickets go on sale six weeks earlier, during the second week of December.   

“He told me, ‘I think that this way you’ll get a jump on everything else’ and he was right,” Brusco said. Knowing that 2022 was going to be packed after a two-year break, going on sale before the market flooded with competing options would give the tour an edge.    

“December was perfect because so many people bought tickets for Christmas presents,” Brusco says, “and by this point in the pandemic, people were very certain that these shows were gonna happen.” 

The lengthened sales window, coupled with the selection of Loverboy and buzz around the tour, led to big increases in attendance, as much as 40% for some shows. In 2017, the tour grossed $311,000 in ticket sales from 10,000 fans at Syracuse’s Lakeview Amphitheatre; this year, the tour grossed $520,000 from the venue with 14,000 tickets sold. The tour closer at Darling’s Waterfront Pavilion in Bangor, Maine grossed $241,000 on 4,900 tickets sold in 2017, while this year it grossed $462,000 with more than 8,000 tickets sold.     

“At the urging of Rick Franks we announced and went on sale in early December 2021,” Bissell tells Billboard.  “(Live Nation’s) Erik Kammerer , who many at our company believe is a rising star, paid close attention to ticket pricing in real time and that made a big difference for everyone involved.”

Don’t Take Yourself Too Seriously    

It’s been more than 20 years since Styx split with band founder and songwriter Dennis Deyoung, and Shaw said he’s now at peace with the breakup. The Deyoung-penned “Mr. Roboto,” the song that tore the band apart in the mid-1980s, has even been integrated back into their set list. The lead single from the group’s 1983 album K ilroy Was Here , “Mr. Roboto” was a commercial success but a divisive directional shift that pushed the band in a conceptual direction that Shaw and many other Styx fans felt was simply too weird for the 1980s rock scene.

That changed with the passage of time, and after a decade of streaming, a new fan base discovered the song and began requesting that it be added to the set list.    

“We just disliked what [the song] did to the chemistry of the band,” Shaw says — and Styx never played it after [Shaw] rejoined in the 1990s. But as the song climbed Styx’s Spotify page (today it’s the second most listened to song behind “Renegade”), Shaw began to kick around the idea of bringing it back for the band’s 2018 tour. 

“But we had no idea how to play it live,” says Shaw. Looking for ideas, he logged into Spotify and found a rock cover of the song by The Protomen . Shaw said it was the band’s rock-centric approach to the song on their excellent 2010 covers album The Cover Up that laid the groundwork for Styx’s new approach to the song. 

“As soon as I heard that, I said, ‘That’s how we play it,’” Shaw says, “and we’ve been playing it like that ever since.”    

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Started In 1999- The Tour That Never Ends... STYX!

• Feb 23, 2015

Many classic rock-era bands have found second lives and extended careers by taking their shows on the road, but Styx not only survived the departure of two key members – Dennis DeYoung and Tommy Shaw – but reformed and thrived.

Styx became a year-round touring act in 1999 and in the intervening years has created a well-oiled machine and learned the fine art of balancing personalities, crew schedules and creating opportunities to keep the performances and music fresh. It’s a model that could be unique in the concert business.

Certainly, it could be emulated by any artist hoping to have a career last decades. Moderator Danny Zelisko, whom the band credits with being one of the promoters who unfailingly believed in it over the course of some 40 years, led the discussion with Styx manager Charlie Brusco of Red Light Management, agent Rod Essig of Creative Artists Agency, tour manager George Packer and band members John “JY” Young, Shaw (who returned to the band 20 years ago), and Lawrence Gowan.

Styx had its greatest success in the late 1970s and early ‘80s, but had been inactive for some time when its record label decided to issue a greatest hits album but couldn’t get permission to add “Lady” to the record. Young called Shaw, who had just wrapped a tour with Damn Yankees, to see if he’d be interested in re-recording the track for the album.

Read more at   PollStarPro.com !

By: Deborah Speer

Photo By: Jason Powell

• Jun 11, 2024

PICTURE DISC AND LIMITED-EDITION INDIVIDUALLY NUMBERED SILVER VINYL AVAILABLE AT ALL TOUR STOPS STARTING JUNE 11 AND SELECT RETAIL JULY 12

“Cold As Ice,” “Too Much Time On My Hands,” “Juke Box Hero,” “Renegade” and more! Nothing sounds more like the soundtrack of summer than STYX’s and FOREIGNER’s biggest hits. Recently announced as inductees to the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame, FOREIGNER hits the road in June co-headlining the “Renegades & Juke Box Heroes” trek with STYX and special guest John Waite. Adding to the excitement, STYX and FOREIGNER announce RENEGADES & JUKE BOX HEROES , a very special limited-edition companion album, available exclusively at tour stops starting June 11 and at select retail on July 12. This must-have collector’s album, available as a picture disc or in elegant silver vinyl, features both bands’ greatest hits and was mastered for vinyl by Ted Jensen at Sterling Sound with lacquers cut by Joe Nino-Hernes. Tracks include FOREIGNER’s most beloved hits including “Feels Like The First Time,” “Cold As Ice”, and the worldwide #1 hit, “I Want To Know What Love Is,” alongside STYX massive hits “Blue Collar Man (Long Nights),” “Come Sail Away” and “Renegade,” and more. Just 1,000 copies of the picture disc and only 5,000 individually numbered copies of the silver edition are available. With many tour dates already selling out, demand is sure to be high. When they are gone, they’re gone for good! A 13-track CD featuring all three artists and including the vinyl tracks is also available. The songs are available on all digital outlets. The picture disc will be available at https://foreigner.merchmadeeasy.com/products/renegades-jukebox-heroes-picture-disc and the silver edition will be available on Amazon on July 12. The “Renegades & Juke Box Heroes” tour is set to launch June 11 in Grand Rapids, MI at the Van Andel Arena. John Waite’s #1 songs, “Missing You” and “When I See You Smile” will help ensure a summer evening of feel-good anthems. Tickets are going fast, available at LiveNation.com . For more information, please visit www.foreigneronline.com or www.styxworld.com .

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STYX has just  released a video for its classic hit  "Too Much Time On My Hands" , filmed from the band's home studios in support of the Pittsburgh #SteelersNation and their game against the  Baltimore Ravens .

Check it out below!

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White Castle®, America's first fast-food hamburger chain, has been an inspiration to artists and bands for decades. The home of The Original Slider ®  celebrated titans of the music industry by inducting three extraordinary Cravers into its exclusive Cravers Hall of Fame.

STYX singer/guitarist Tommy Shaw, renowned concert promoter Danny Zelisko, and the late singer-songwriter John Prine join fellow legends in the Castle halls of Crave. John Prine very sadly passed away in April 2020 due to complications caused by COVID-19.

Reserved for the most devout fans, White Castle's  Cravers Hall of Fame   has been inducting legends from main street to the main stage for nearly 20 years. Among the well-known honorees are rock icon Alice Cooper, the late comic pioneer Stan Lee, and the stars of "Harold & Kumar Go to White Castle," John Cho and Kal Penn.

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The Real Reason Dennis DeYoung Left Styx

The legendary 1970s-1980s band Styx has been around a block or six, and their music has been surprisingly multifaceted. They've done the kind of hard-rocking fare you'd expect from a band called Styx, and prog-rock that, to be honest, you'd also expect from a band called Styx. Yet, two of their best-known songs include the famed synth-pop tune "Mr. Roboto," and the chart-topping soft rock ballad, "Babe." Of course, you have to look at the guy who wrote and sang those particular songs and many others, keyboardist-singer Dennis DeYoung: The talented musician's pop sensibilities may have brought the band some huge hits , but after he left the group, Styx utterly refused to play "Mr. Roboto" live until very recent years.

But why did DeYoung leave the group in 1999, in the first place? It seems like "artistic differences" might be a pretty sure bet in this particular scenario, or maybe some remaining animosity from the band's first break-up way back in 1984. As is so often the case, the truth is more complicated. Here's the real reason Dennis DeYoung left Styx.

Touring troubles

In a 2018 appearance on  The Big Interview (Via ABC News Radio ), Styx members James Young, Tommy Shaw and Lawrence Gowan noted that their problems with Dennis DeYoung stemmed from the singer's refusal to tour at a time when the band wasn't selling albums, and had to rely on live show revenue. To be fair, DeYoung quoted medical reasons for his reluctance to hit the road, so he wasn't just feeling lazy.

Young says things came to a head when the band started considering a replacement for DeYoung, with the man himself stepping onstage whenever he felt up to it. Unfortunately, the idea proved unpopular with DeYoung. "He said, 'I don't want you to do that,'" Young says. "And I said, 'Well, we're going with you or without you.'" The band eventually went with the "without DeYoung" option, and DeYoung proceeded to sue them for the band's name. The case was settled out of court, and ... that was that, really. 

 Though Andy Greene of Rolling Stone notes that fans have been clamoring for DeYoung and Styx to reunite, this seems unlikely. DeYoung himself could possibly be persuaded to make a comeback, though. In an appearance on  Rock Talk With Mitch Lafon  (via Ultimate Classic Rock ), he said: "I believed [...] and still believe, the magic was when we were together. So, becoming a solo artist is nothing I ever aspired to. I don't wanna be a solo artist. I wanna be in Styx."

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Styx tour dates 2024

Styx is currently touring across 1 country and has 22 upcoming concerts.

Their next tour date is at Veterans United Home Loans Amphitheater in Virginia Beach, after that they'll be at Coastal Credit Union Music Park at Walnut Creek in Raleigh.

Currently touring across

Upcoming concerts (22) See nearest concert

Veterans United Home Loans Amphitheater

Coastal Credit Union Music Park at Walnut Creek

Riverbend Music Center

Credit Union 1 Amphitheatre

CHI Health Center Omaha

Denny Sanford PREMIER Center

Scheels Arena

Prairie Knights Casino & Resort

Hershey Theatre

F&M Bank Arena

Radians Amphitheater

Cable Dahmer Arena

Alliant Energy Powerhouse

Resch Center

Orpheum Theatre

Humphreys Concerts by the Bay

Tucson Music Hall

Findlay Toyota Center

Yaamava' Resort & Casino at San Manuel

Choctaw Grand Theater

Past concerts

Orion Amphitheater

Amphitheater at The Wharf

Bank of New Hampshire Pavilion

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Recent tour reviews

We experienced the guys in Murphys, California on a near full moon. This is the eleventh time for me in nearly forty years and the fifth time with this lineup. Though there are songs and moments we all expect in a Styx show, there were also some nice surprises and successful road-testing of their more recent material this evening.

As always, they put on a spirited, highly professional show. The sound mix was clear and plenty loud, though a little too muddy in the bottom end for me - this might have been an issue with the house sound.

Singer-keyboardist Lawrence Gowan has emerged as the showman of the group, with Tommy Shaw is a steady yet passionate frontman. Gowan spun his keyboard, pranced about when not providing keyboard support and stood on his stool with his other foot planted on the keyboard for "Come Sail Away". The rhythm section of Ricky Phillips on bass and Todd Sucherman on drums was steady and unassailably in the pocket with the rest of the band. Their vocal harmonies and arrangements were spot-on. Founding member Chuck Panozzo took the stage for a short duet with Gowan on the brand-new "Lost at Sea". Chuck remained on stage for the later classics, including Renegade and Mr. Roboto. Most of the songs we all know rocked: The Grand Illusion, Lady, Fooling Yourself and Blue Collar Man.

They opened with the first song on their new album, "The Fight of Our Lives" and soared later in the set with "Sound The Alarm". The uplift it provided was only boosted by the rest of the songs. Also onstage with an electric guitar was Will Evankovich, who co-wrote a lot of the material from 2017's The Mission and this year's Crash of the Crown. He was curiously underused here, as the group did not play any songs that would have benefited from another set of strings. "The Red Storm", "Our Wonderful Lives" or even "Boat on a River" come to mind.

Which leads to my only quibble: The set was way too short. REO Speedwagon, the opener, played for at least ninety minutes; Styx performed for a little over an hour. They have such a great body of work and energy to spare - why didn't they play a few more songs tonight?

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As always Styx was phenomenal. Celebrity theater doesn’t have a bad seat in the house. They haven’t lost a step. They still sound like they did in the seventies. Great stage show and fan friendly. They reach out to the crowd and fist bump high five. Each song takes you back when rock was rock. Phoenix loves Styx so much they sell out back to back shows every time. Going to the second show tonight. If you get a chance to see them don’t miss it. They are the best.

What an amazing show! The opening act for United We Rock was Don Felder and wow! He sounded great and he played all of the Eagles massive hits.

Then Styx came out and the crowd went nuts! They started off with their new hit song "Gone, Gone, Gone" and their set just kept getting better as they went on! I've seen several Styx shows and each time I cant imagine they getting better, but they do! Tommy Shaw apologized that he had had a cold, but honestly, you couldn't prove it by me. His voice was just as strong and true as ever! The applause was thunderous when they ended and they came out for an encore of the best version I've ever heard of "Paradise Theater"and their signature end of show "Renegade".

The last was REO Speedwagon. They were wonderful as well. I am a massive Styx fan so I didn't know as many of REO's songs I did enjoy it very much.

The only thing I would have changed was that Styx would have been the headliner. People seemed to be leaving a third of the way through REO's set. Of course it could have been that the concert was on a Tuesday night and I'm sure not everyone was able to take the next day off and it did take almost 30 minutes to get out of the parking lot.

All in all this was an epic show and I will certainly attend more Styx shows!

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Veterans United Home Loans Amphitheater at Virginia Beach | Virginia Beach, VA

Foreigner & styx with john waite - renegades and juke box heroes tour.

• VIP Club Access: Foreigner & Styx (Not a Concert Ticket)
• Fast Lane Access: Foreigner & Styx (Not a Concert Ticket)
• Lawn Chair Rental: Foreigner & Styx (Not a Concert Ticket)
• Flight Deck Access: Foreigner & Styx (Not a Concert Ticket)
• Lawn Blanket: Foreigner & Styx (Not a Concert Ticket)

Coastal Credit Union Music Park at Walnut Creek | Raleigh, NC

Styx & foreigner with john waite - renegades and juke box heroes tour.

• Premier Parking - Styx (NOT A CONCERT TICKET)
• VIP Club - Styx (NOT A CONCERT TICKET)
• Coastal Fast Lane - Styx (NOT A CONCERT TICKET)
• Lawn Chair Rental - Styx (NOT A CONCERT TICKET)
• Live Nation Blanket - Styx (Not a Concert Ticket)
• Early Parking - Styx (NOT A CONCERT TICKET)

Riverbend Music Center | Cincinnati, OH

Credit union 1 amphitheatre | tinley park, il.

• Premier Parking: Styx & Foreigner (Not a Concert Ticket)
• Citi VIP Club: Styx & Foreigner (Not a Concert Ticket)
• Stage Left Lounge: Styx & Foreigner (Not a Concert Ticket)
• Deck Access: Styx & Foreigner (Not a Concert Ticket)
• Fast Lane Access: Styx & Foreigner (Not a Concert Ticket)
• Lawn Chair Rental: Styx & Foreigner (Not a Concert Ticket)
• Concert Concierge - Styx & Foreigner - Not a Concert Ticket

CHI Health Center Omaha | Omaha, NE

Denny sanford premier center | sioux falls, sd, styx & foreigner with john waite: renegades and juke box heroes tour, scheels arena | fargo, nd, the lyric | baltimore, md, hershey theatre | hershey, pa, f&m bank arena | clarksville, tn.

• Styx White Claw Lounge Access

Cable Dahmer Arena | Independence, MO

• Styx - Parking Only

Alliant Energy PowerHouse | Cedar Rapids, IA

Orpheum theatre | minneapolis, mn, humphreys concerts by the bay | san diego, ca, linda ronstadt music hall | tucson, az, findlay toyota center | prescott valley, az, choctaw grand theater | durant, ok, alabama theatre | birmingham, al, latest setlist, styx on august 4, 2024.

Renegades & Juke Box Heroes

Bank of New Hampshire Pavilion at Meadowbrook, Gilford, New Hampshire

Complete List Of Styx Band Members

Feature Photo: Brandon Nagy / Shutterstock.com

Our Complete List Of Styx Band Members looks at a rock band originating from Chicago, Illinois.  Formed in 1972, the band initially comprised brothers Chuck and John Panozzo, along with Dennis DeYoung. They gained their first taste of national fame with their self-titled debut album, which was soon followed by “Styx II,” featuring the hit “Lady,” pushing them into the spotlight.

In 1975, the band saw a significant shift in their lineup with the arrival of Tommy Shaw. His inclusion brought a new dynamism to the group’s sound and stage performance, contributing to their escalating commercial success. Albums such as “The Grand Illusion” (1977) and “Pieces of Eight” (1978) cemented Styx’s place as one of the leading bands of the era, each selling millions of copies and spawning hits like “Come Sail Away” and “Renegade.”

Styx continued to enjoy considerable fame into the early 1980s with albums like “Cornerstone” (1979) and “Paradise Theatre” (1981), which showcased their ability to blend rock with more theatrical and conceptual elements. However, tensions within the band, primarily between Shaw and DeYoung, started to surface. Styx released “Kilroy Was Here” in 1983, a concept album that featured the hit “Mr. Roboto,” but also led to a division in the band’s musical direction.

After a period of disbandment, the group reunited in the early ’90s, albeit without Shaw, who was busy with his other project, Damn Yankees. Glen Burtnik filled his shoes during this period. The reunion was not long-lived, as the band members soon went their separate ways to focus on solo projects and other collaborations.

Another significant change came in 1999 when Lawrence Gowan replaced Dennis DeYoung. With Gowan on keyboards and vocals, and Todd Sucherman replacing the late John Panozzo on drums, the new lineup released “Cyclorama” in 2003. This album signaled a departure from their earlier sound but was received favorably by a new generation of Styx fans. In 2017, they released “The Mission,” their first concept album in decades, which was well-received by both critics and fans alike.

Through lineup changes and shifts in musical styles, Styx has managed to remain relevant for over four decades. Their impact on rock and roll is indisputable, characterized by a unique blend of rock, pop, and theatrical elements. With a rich discography and a reputation for electrifying live performances, Styx’s legacy is one of enduring artistry and commercial success.

John “J.C.” Curulewski

John “J.C.” Curulewski was one of the original members of Styx, having joined the band in 1970. He contributed to the band’s first four albums, which includes their 1972 self-titled debut, “Styx II,” “The Serpent Is Rising,” and “Man of Miracles.” Curulewski played guitar and provided vocals, and his contributions helped shape the early sound of Styx. He left the band in 1975 just before they gained significant commercial success. Outside of Styx, Curulewski remained relatively low-profile in the music industry, although he did release a solo album in 1979 called “Airborne.”

Dennis DeYoung

Dennis DeYoung was a founding member of Styx and was with the band from its inception in 1972 until 1999, although he did return for a brief period between 1995-1999. DeYoung contributed keyboards and vocals and was also one of the band’s primary songwriters. His song “Lady,” from the “Styx II” album, became the band’s first hit, and he was a crucial part of their most successful albums like “The Grand Illusion,” “Pieces of Eight,” and “Paradise Theatre.” After his departure from Styx, DeYoung embarked on a successful solo career and even ventured into musical theatre.

John Panozzo

John Panozzo was the original drummer for Styx , having joined the band along with his twin brother, Chuck, in 1972. He remained with the band until his health forced him to step away in the mid-’90s. Panozzo’s drumming can be heard on all of the band’s classic albums, including hits like “Renegade” and “Come Sail Away.” Unfortunately, Panozzo passed away in 1996, but his musical legacy lives on through the numerous albums and hits he contributed to. Outside of Styx, Panozzo didn’t have much of a career as he was primarily focused on the band until his health declined.

James “J.Y.” Young

James “J.Y.” Young is a guitarist and vocalist who has been with Styx since its early years. Joining in 1970, Young played a pivotal role in shaping the band’s rock-oriented sound. He has been a consistent member of the band, contributing to nearly all of their albums, including classics like “Crystal Ball,” “Equinox,” and “Kilroy Was Here.” His guitar work and songwriting have been key elements in the band’s long-lasting success. Outside of Styx, Young has also released some solo work but has remained mostly committed to the band.

Chuck Panozzo

Chuck Panozzo is the original bassist for Styx and joined the band alongside his twin brother, John Panozzo, in 1972. He played on all of the band’s iconic albums, including “The Grand Illusion,” “Pieces of Eight,” and “Paradise Theatre.” Chuck has been in and out of the band due to health issues but still occasionally performs with them. Unlike his brother John, Chuck has not ventured much into other musical projects and has mainly focused on his work with Styx.

Tommy Shaw joined Styx in 1975, replacing original guitarist John Curulewski. His entry into the band marked a significant turning point in their sound and commercial success. Shaw contributed to hits like “Renegade” and “Blue Collar Man,” and his presence was vital on albums such as “Crystal Ball” and “Cornerstone.” Apart from Styx, Shaw has had a successful solo career and has also been a part of other groups like Damn Yankees.

Todd Sucherman

Todd Sucherman became Styx’s drummer in 1996, following the departure and subsequent death of original drummer John Panozzo. Sucherman has since been a key part of the band’s sound, contributing to albums like “Cyclorama” and “The Mission.” Outside of Styx, he has had an extensive session career and is highly regarded in the drumming community.

Lawrence Gowan

Lawrence Gowan replaced Dennis DeYoung as the band’s keyboardist and vocalist in 1999. The Canadian musician had a successful solo career in his home country before joining Styx. Gowan has been featured on recent Styx albums like “Cyclorama” and “The Mission” and has helped keep the band’s legacy alive through extensive touring.

Ricky Phillips

Ricky Phillips joined Styx in 2003 as a bassist, sharing duties with original bassist Chuck Panozzo. Before Styx, Phillips had played with other notable bands such as The Babys and Bad English. He has been featured on the band’s latest studio efforts and continues to tour with them.

Glen Burtnik

Glen Burtnik was with Styx from 1990 to 1992 and again from 1995 to 2003. He initially replaced Tommy Shaw on guitar and vocals, and later returned to replace Chuck Panozzo on bass. Burtnik contributed to albums like “Edge of the Century” and has had a varied solo career outside of the band.

Will Evankovich

Will Evankovich joined Styx as a guitarist and backing vocalist in 2018. Though relatively new to the band, he had a long-standing working relationship with Tommy Shaw and even co-produced Styx’s “The Mission” album. Evankovich also has a history of work with other acts and is a member of the rock band The Guess Who.

Complete List Of Styx Band Members article published on Classic RockHistory.com© 2023

Classicrockhistory.com claims ownership of all its original content and Intellectual property under United States Copyright laws and those of all other foreign countries. No one person, business, or organization is allowed to re-publish any of our original content anywhere on the web or in print without our permission. All photos used are either public domain Creative Commons photos or licensed officially from Shutterstock under license with ClassicRockHistory.com. All photo credits have been placed at the end of the article. Album Cover Photos are affiliate links and the property of Amazon and are stored on the Amazon server. Any theft of our content will be met with swift legal action against the infringing websites.

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Janey Roberts lives in Chelsea, London. She has worked for various British musical publications writing album and concert reviews. Originally from Balboa Park, San Diego, Janey brings an international cross cultural perspective to rock journalism.

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Foreigner and Styx Launch 2024 Summer Tour: Video and Set Lists

Styx , Foreigner and John Waite kicked off their Renegades & Juke Box Heroes tour Tuesday night at Van Andel Arena in Grand Rapids, Michigan.

You can see the complete set list for all three acts, as well as fan-shot video of Styx and Foreigner below.

John Waite opened the show with an eight-song set, half of which was dedicated to his time in the Babys . He also delivered his 1984 solo smash "Missing You" and "When I See You Smile," the 1989 chart-topper he sang for Bad English.

Foreigner took the stage next, offering a hit-packed set that began with the title track to 1978's Double Vision album and concluded with an encore of "I Want to Know What Love Is" and "Hot Blooded."

Read More: Styx and Foreigner Announce Tour Companion Live Album

Styx headlined the evening with a 13-song set dominated by songs from 1977's The Grand Illusion and 1981's Paradise Theatre . With his brother Terry behind him as the band's new bass player Lawrence Gowan delivered strong vocals on "Come Sail Away" and "Lady," while the seemingly ageless Tommy Shaw took over for rockers such as "Renegade" and "Blue Collar Man."

Watch Styx Perform 'Come Sail Away"

Watch Foreigner Perform 'Juke Box Hero'

Styx, Foreigner and John Waite's Renegades & Juke Box Heroes tour continues Tuesday night (June 12) at Blossom Music Center in Cuyahoga Falls, Ohio. The tour is currently set to conclude on Aug. 28 in Sioux Falls, South Dakota.

Watch Foreigner Perform 'Waiting for a Girl Like You'

Watch Styx Perform 'Blue Collar Man'

Styx June 11, 2024 Van Andel Arena, Grand Rapids Set List 1. “The Grand Illusion” 2. “Too Much Time on My Hands” 3. “Lady” 4. “Lorelei” 5. “Crash of the Crown” 6. “Miss America” 7. “Rockin’ the Paradise” 8. “Blue Collar Man” 9. “The Best of Times” 10. “Fooling Yourself (The Angry Young Man)” 11. “Come Sail Away” 12. “Mr. Roboto” 13. “Renegade”

Foreigner June 11, 2024 Van Andel Arena, Grand Rapids Set List 1. “Double Vision” 2. “Head Games” 3. “Cold as Ice” 4. “Waiting for a Girl Like You” 5. “Dirty White Boy” 6. “Feels Like the First Time” 7. “Urgent” 8. “Juke Box Hero” 9. “I Want to Know What Love Is” 10. “Hot Blooded”

John Waite June 11, 2024 Van Andel Arena, Grand Rapids Set List 1. “Midnight Rendezvous” 2. “Change” 3. “When I See You Smile” 4. “Missing You” 5. “Every Time I Think of You” 6. “Head First” 7. “Back on My Feet Again” 8. “Whole Lotta Love” / “Let Me Love You Baby”

Why 40 of Rock's Biggest Reunions Haven't Happened

Gallery Credit: Matthew Wilkening, except as noted below.

More From Ultimate Classic Rock

Styx Manager Shares Details on Dennis DeYoung’s Firing and How the Band Hasn’t Spoken to Him Since

Chris Piner

Updated: 

While producing iconic songs like “Come Sail Away”, “Renegade”, and “Mr. Roboto”, Styx , like many rock bands of the time, found themselves going through numerous growing pains over the decades. Since forming in 1972, the band watched as their fanbase grew. Although excited about their success, the band also watched as members eventually left the group. Again, this is nothing new to rock bands as personalities often clash between rockstars. But according to the Styx manager, Charlie Brusco, nothing compared to when he had to fire Dennis DeYoung. 

Appearing on The Bob Lefsetz Podcast , Brusco took fans on a trip back to 1999 when the band decided to fire DeYoung. He said, “Tommy (Shaw) and J.Y. (James Young) came to me and said, ‘We got a new album coming out. Dennis can’t tour. We want to go out there without him. ‘And I said, ‘Alright, if we do this – it could work, it might not work – but I’m not gonna go backwards. We’re not gonna go do this for six months and then turn around and go back [to DeYoung].”

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Styx manager recalls having to fire dennis deyoung over the phone.

Coming to an agreement, Brusco added how the members of Styx grew irritated with DeYoung and his dominating personality. “Dennis likes to be in control of everything.” Having no control over what was about to happen, Brusco had the task of firing DeYoung. Deciding to do it over the phone, it went as well as he thought it would. “I called him on the phone and told him, and the reaction was not good. And he said to me, ‘You know that no one will come to see them without me.’ And I go, ‘We’ll see. We’ll find out.’”

[RELATED: Styx Bassist Ricky Phillips Announces His Departure From the Band After Two Decades]

While upset about the decision, DeYoung’s comments about nobody coming to watch Styx were wrong as they continued to perform. Replacing him with Lawrence Gowan, Brusco explained how the decision to fire DeYoung caused a rift that continues today. “I’m pretty sure of this: I don’t think me, Tommy or J.Y. have ever spoken to Dennis since I let him go. I don’t think the three of us have ever had a word with [DeYoung]. A good word or a bad word – nothing.”

(Photo by Frazer Harrison/Getty Images for for York Sisters, LLC)

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Styx Concert Setlists & Tour Dates

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Renegades & Juke Box Heroes Tour

Upcoming shows.

• Date and Venue Doors Scheduled
• Aug 26 2024 CHI Health Center Omaha Omaha, NE, USA  –  Find tickets Add time Tickets Add time Add times
• Aug 28 2024 Denny Sanford Premier Center Sioux Falls, SD, USA  –  Find tickets Add time Tickets Add time Add times

Styx at Veterans United Home Loans Amphitheater at Virginia Beach, Virginia Beach, VA, USA

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Styx at The Orion Amphitheater, Huntsville, AL, USA

• The Grand Illusion
• Too Much Time on My Hands
• Crash of the Crown
• Miss America
• Rockin' the Paradise
• Blue Collar Man (Long Nights)
• The Best of Times
• Fooling Yourself (The Angry Young Man)
• Come Sail Away

Styx at The Wharf Amphitheater, Orange Beach, AL, USA

Styx at bank of new hampshire pavilion at meadowbrook, gilford, nh, usa, styx at maine savings amphitheater, bangor, me, usa, styx at xfinity center, mansfield, ma, usa.

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Styx at The Pavilion at Star Lake, Burgettstown, PA, USA

Styx at saratoga performing arts center, saratoga springs, ny, usa, styx at freedom mortgage pavilion, camden, nj, usa, styx at ruoff music center, noblesville, in, usa.

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Most played songs

• Come Sail Away ( 1585 )
• Renegade ( 1518 )
• Blue Collar Man (Long Nights) ( 1508 )
• Fooling Yourself (The Angry Young Man) ( 1507 )
• Too Much Time on My Hands ( 1476 )

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70s Rock Parade Jarkko Ahola American Idol Ensemble Jimi Anderson’s Legends of A.O.R. Anthem The Aquabats! Arch Allies Arınç, Atlas, Bora, Deniz, Ömer Barenaked Ladies Best of Times - A Tribute to Styx Better Than Ezra Big Something The Blenders Blind Passengers Blue Tattoo Borrowed Time: A Tribute to Styx Bostyx Jon Brion Elkie Brooks Glen Burtnik Arison Cain Marian Call Captain Black Beard Captured! by Robots Dolph Chaney Gregory Charles Chris Hawkey Eric Church Sylvain Cossette Counting Crows Da Vinci’s Notebook Damn Yankees Chris Daughtry Tommy DeCarlo DeLorean Rising Dennis DeYoung Dopapod DV8 Emir Hot Evandale Ezra Ray Hart The Fabulous Armadillos Fiddler’s Green Frame 42 Paul Gilbert The Good Gowan Kevin Griffin Daryl Hall Hammerhead

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The Allman Brothers Band Leroy Anderson & His Pops Orchestra Nickolas Ashford Bad English The Beatles Chuck Berry Blind Faith David Bowie James Brown Robert Burns Ray Charles Leonard Cohen Stompin’ Tom Connors Aaron Copland Cream The Crickets Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young Damn Yankees Derek and the Dominos Ramin Djawadi Eagles Free Genesis Gowan Vince Guaraldi Trio Slim Harpo Richie Havens Roy Hawkins Heart Neal Hefti The Jimi Hendrix Experience Mildred J. Hill & Patty Hill i‐Ten Elton John Robert Johnson Scott Joplin Kansas Led Zeppelin Jerry Lee Lewis Gordon Lightfoot Little Richard Loverboy The Lovin’ Spoonful Lynyrd Skynyrd Ricky Martin Joni Mitchell Van Morrison Ted Nugent The Outsiders Buck Owens and His Buckaroos

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7,549 people have seen Styx live.

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Dennis DeYoung: ‘I Was Begging for My Life and Job’ With Styx

Dennis DeYoung has been out of Styx for 25 years. The band chose to replace him as they prepared to tour in support of 1999’s Brave New World . The singer, as he shares, found himself unexpectedly ill and unable to go on the road immediately, felt helpless.

“I was begging for my life and for my job when this happened,” he tells UCR now. “As sick as I was, I didn’t really feel I could fight back.”

Both sides eventually carried on with their separate careers. But when Styx began performing “The Best of Times” earlier this year for the first time since 2007, DeYoung felt a fresh twinge of pain and wrote about it on his Facebook page. In the first part of a long conversation, the songwriter expanded on his initial thoughts. He tells Ultimate Classic Rock Nights host Matt Wardlaw why he’s upset — and his feelings that all of this could have been avoided.

Dennis, seeing your recent Facebook post was a bit of a surprise. You’ve been pretty quiet lately. I had been kind out of the loop and I hadn’t posted much on my Facebook page. Because I’m not touring, I don’t have any albums. What am I going to do, annoy the public? I don’t need to do that. But I have friends in the music business who send me stuff. I happened to see via your website that Styx had begun to play “The Best of Times.” I didn’t know it, because it’s not my life’s work to follow that. I looked and I watched and I thought, “Oh, okay.” I had to [process] that and try to figure out what reaction do I have to that? I wrote something on Facebook and you guys covered that and I thought it was okay.

But regarding “The Best of Times,” I try to do my very best to take the attitude of “live and let live.” There’s a couple of occurrences in the last, I guess, six or seven years, have forced me out of just being complacent about it all. For the last 25 years, J.Y. [Styx guitarist and vocalist James Young ], mostly, but Tommy [Shaw] too, have been clear about their feelings about some of the songs I’d written. Most especially, the ballads. And of course, the lightning rod for all Styx fans is “Mr. Roboto.” I know it’s all untrue, everything that was said and has been said, It was a story they decided to tell back in 1999 when they replaced me when I was sick. Because the story they should have told was, “Well, we replaced the sick colleague, because we really wanted to go on the road and make some money and didn’t want to wait for him to get better.” That’s what really happened. But that’s not a good story to tell. So they began to tell this story that it was really about my ballads and the Kilroy Was Here project, which is a good story to tell, except that was 17 years earlier.

READ MORE: Why Dennis DeYoung Never Wanted ‘Mr. Roboto’ to Be a Styx Single

Watch Styx’s Video For ‘Mr. Roboto’

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It had no bearing on the fact that we had huge comeback tours in 1996 and 1997, initiated by me. I got sick in the beginning of 1998, in January, and we started recording Brave New World later that year. It was during the recording of that album that the tour was contemplated. I said, “Yeah, I’m in. Just give me six more months to recover from this thing.” Matt, I can now say this, it’s like long COVID. I had something like that in 1998. The upper respiratory virus that I caught had weakened my immune system and made my eyes sensitive to light. The light sensitivity always made me feel fatigued and tired and I couldn’t really perform like I wanted to. I asked for those six months to recover. That’s what happened. They replaced me and then for a year and a half, they traveled the country and toured using the Styx name and they didn’t pay me any money at all for the use of the name. We had no deal worked out. Then, they went on VH1’s Behind the Music and said some rather pointed, what I felt, were uncalled for things about me and the music that we had created together. I’ve said this a million times to you: Those Styx albums, if you like them, had to do with the five guys who created the music.

READ MORE: Underrated Styx:The Most Overlooked Song From Each Album

The songwriters wrote songs, but the records that were made from those songs, that was really a collective group effort. I mean, we all contributed mightily to each other’s songs and to the success of the band. That’s what happened. Nobody was standing in there and saying, “This is how this goes.” All you need to do is look at how the songs were divided up on every album. It was almost the same. X amount to me, X amount to Tommy and X amount to J.Y. As I say on my Facebook page, “Mr. Roboto” was a creation by the band. I wrote the song, and you know, as Tommy pointed out – he brought in the Vocoder to the band, not me. It was a positive. We were doing things and having fun doing it.

So I wrote that Facebook post, to say, “Why did you do this?” Why did you say these things, all of these years, about music that you know full well that we created together? None of it could have been created in the same way. It could have never been as good without all of us sitting in those rooms. I just don’t understand why that needed to be done. It’s been hurtful to the whole idea of whatever Styx was and what they stood for, for all of their fans. So my Facebook page was my way of saying, okay, now 25 years later, you say nice things about “The Best of Times,” which I appreciate. And you play “Mr. Roboto” every night in the first encore spot to adoring fans. I just think that it was so unnecessary to do all of that.

Watch Styx’s Video For ‘The Best of Times’

Styx is such a big part of your legacy of work. So I can understand why it remains a sensitive topic for you. The most hurtful part about all of this to me is what it did to easily one of the most loyal fanbases in classic rock history. To this day, people will be at odds with each other on social media arguing about this point, 25 years later. That’s just the worst part for me. Because the fact that a Styx fan would disparage any of us — and they do, depending on their point of view, is hurtful to me. That’s the last thing I wanted. I wanted them to all come together and enjoy what we created.

The band’s manager, Charlie Brusco, said recently that he and Tommy and J.Y. haven’t spoken to you in 25 years. Have you tried to reach out?

I did it through back channels. I’ve been doing this for, I think, the last seven or eight years. I was trying to get one last tour. I don’t want to go back into the band. I wanted one last tour for the fans. Charlie Brusco, I did read some of the things and I did listen to that, but [it’s not true]. He said that I said the band would never be able to be successful without me. I never said anything like that. When they decided to give me an ultimatum about showing up for the first day of rehearsal for a tour, when they knew I was sick, I called up J.Y. and Tommy and begged them not to do that. The caricature of me as some sort of bullying tyrant is absolutely crazy. As I said, all you need to do is look at how the albums [were credited]. Everyone is represented as songwriters. It’s beyond silly. But they made that story up. I never said anything like that.

I was begging for my life and for my job when this happened. As sick as I was, I didn’t really feel I could fight back. A sticking point with the guys is that I ended up suing them. But like I said, it was [after] almost a year and a half of touring. We hadn’t ever come to an agreement about what I should receive for my ownership of the name. But when I saw the Behind the Music thing, that was the thing. That was just like, “Oh my God.” It was devastating to me, to think that these guys that I had worked with so closely and made so many people happy — and their selves, the joy of what we created. For that to be turned into a display [like that], I defy anyone to see anywhere where I’ve ever given an interview where I said anything bad about anybody else’s music in this band. I’ve said things about my own songs that I didn’t like. But I’ve never said one bad word about Tommy’s music or J.Y.’s music. It’s simple for me — because I don’t feel that way. I love what we created together. I love some things more than others.

But I could never look and say, “Oh, that song, why is that on there?” Because I know the schedule we were on, we made albums [nearly every year] and toured. What we were creating from a songwriting perspective, was the best that we could in the time allotted. It wasn’t like somebody was flaking. We were giving the best we could to what we did. The songs that were brought in were the songs that were recorded. There was only one song in all of that time that was brought in that was turned down. One song. It was turned down by the band, which caused J.Y. to go back and reevaluate a song he’d written called “Shame Me Down,” for The Grand Illusion . He went back and wrote “Miss America.” Now, that was a good outcome. My love for this band and still, for those guys, I just find it difficult to reconcile why any of us would be villains in the minds of fans.

Listen to Styx Perform ‘Miss America’

READ MORE: How ‘Lady’ Belatedly Saved Styx

You’ve gone through back channels, but you picked up the phone to call me. Do you still have a way, similarly, to reach Tommy and J.Y.?

I probably could, yes. I’ve never done that. And neither have they. Because they’ve made it quite clear that they’re happy without me. When people publicly say the same things over and over again for 25 years, you might be well-advised to pay attention to it. I just thought, the promoters, it’s a small business. We all know each other’s business. The money that was available — which is something that’s very important to them — for a reunion tour, we are probably the last band who has not done that. There’s been a lot of bands where they don’t like each other and they do get together. It’s not for the money. I don’t need money, Matt.

[It’s about] the [chance to say] farewell to those fans that gave me a life that fulfilled the dream. We can say thank you. This is what we did, here’s the three guys — you know, for the most part, it’s Moe, Larry and Curly, here we are. We appreciate what you did. I could just disappear. That was my intention. No, unequivocally, I’ve never reached out personally to call any of them. But we have business managers and publishers where we have communicated through third parties. As far as any farewell tour — for me, not the band — they can go on as long as they want to. I’m not interested in harming them or stopping them. In fact, I’m thrilled that they’re playing “The Best of Times” and “Mr. Roboto,” because it makes total sense for the fans. Because they want to hear it. But my point, I guess was, for 25 years, they’ve always wanted to hear those songs. That’s it. They want to hear those songs.

Okay, so if a Styx farewell tour with you is off the table, what do you still want from the guys?

I don’t want anything from the guys. I really don’t.

Would you like to restore the friendship that was once there?

Of course. I never wanted it to go the way it did. I was sick. This is the fact that just keeps getting overlooked. I was sick. I wasn’t doing anything else. I didn’t do anything. You can look. I didn’t do anything because I was too ill. And then, in January of 2000, as predicted, I played a solo show in Chicago. It was exactly when I said I’d be able to perform [with Styx]. Did I want to play solo? I never wanted to do that. I never wanted to do a solo album. I only did it because Tommy quit the band in ’83. I only made [ Desert Moon ] because he quit. For no other reason. Our plans were, J.Y. and I, for [his] support of the Kilroy project — he supported it and he had a ball being Dr. Righteous. He only asked one thing of me. He wanted to do a stadium tour in 1984.

I said, “Absolutely.” We’ll do a live album from Kilroy and we’ll go out and play a stadium tour in ’84 and then Tommy quit. J.Y. and the Panozzos, they still wanted to [carry on with Styx]. They wanted me to replace Tommy and go out in ’84 and do that stadium tour. I couldn’t understand how they thought that would work. Tommy was too valuable to the band to stick someone else in his place. I know there were some very hard feelings that for five years, I would not replace Tommy in the band. J.Y. would call me periodically, wanting me to replace Tommy. I just wouldn’t. Because I believed that Styx was Tommy Shaw, Dennis DeYoung, James Young and the Panozzos. I based it all on my love for the Beatles . When they broke up, I hated it and I didn’t buy their solo albums. The first album I bought was [ Paul McCartney and Wings ‘] Band on the Run . But you know, when a band that has a fanbase that is that dedicated, when you pull back the curtain and you see the wizard, you can’t unsee it. What was done [with Styx] was unnecessary. What gets me is when I see “The Best of Times” now being lauded by Tommy and the same thing with “Mr. Roboto,” I think, well, why [has there been] all of the negativity? Who does that serve? Who does that help? That’s my opinion.

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