Tommy's Road Blog - Exclusive
Posted: Wed May 26, 2010 12:34 pmInteresting............
http://thecomet.com/posts/styx
Styx’ Tommy Shaw Road Blog Exclusive
A guy stopped me the other night and shouted "I've been listening to you since I was in the womb!" We get that a lot.
Why do fans love STYX? Do any of us really know what others see in us? All I know is that night after night on the road we get so much love from long term fans and curious new ones that I know there is something that can be seen and heard from out there that cannot be perceived from where I stand.
I know that we are good at what we do, that our music has survived the test of time, formats, eras, sea changes and economic ups and downs since we hit the road on our first national tour in 1975.
We don't look like male models, we are not shredder guitar players, we don't have tons of top 40 hits, we don't even play all the ones we do have. But our songs are still played every day on radio stations all over the country, our concert tours still rank amazingly in Pollstar Magazine’s top 40 annual concert grosses. I still get recognized in public and treated with such respect that it's sometimes almost more than I can take. What can explain this?
I know we were part of the soundtrack to many people's lives who were around in the mid 70's and 80's. We were the first live concert experience for people in the 70's, 80's, late 90's and that continues today. But how? Why?
We gave up analog recording in 2003, and now use ProTools and other digital programs in the studio. But we don't use them in our live performances. We've never used supplemental samples for our vocals in concert. We play and sing live. As Jack Black once said, "The road is fuckin' hard..." and it's true. It takes it's toll on the body but we've learned how to stay fit enough to maintain our vocal health through all but the worst of situations. When you hear us perform, that's us then and there. When you hear solos, they are performed from our gut. Because it's live and organic it ebbs and flows biometrically depending upon how and what we feel that day. It's maddening sometimes because like you, we are responding to the events of the day. That day can’t help but be reflected in what we sing and play. Our performances are not perfect. Ever. That’s one of the reasons we keep stepping up to the plate.
My friend Myriam Santos, an extraordinary photographer and glorious madwoman, excepted my invitation to sit in the front row the other night at the Gibson Amphitheater with designer Ashton Michael. It was hard to read Myriam's reaction because she was uncharacteristically stoic. It wasn't until afterwards backstage that I got the review from her and Ashton. It was so over the top glowing and positive that I would sound like an egotistical a-hole if I repeated it. Although I've known her for several years, she'd never seen us in concert. It was really something to see how she reacted. It's only now, a week later that she's returning to her take-no-prisoners attitude. Thank goodness!
Our songs tell often tell stories, some happy, some sad, but there's always hope that finds its way into the lyric. That's how we're wired. Maybe that's part of it. Believe it or not, for me it’s a gospel influence from my childhood.
So, okay, we're good singers, but we'd never make it on American Idol. Probably not Jazz Handsy enough, even though we're STYX! Our drummer, Todd Sucherman was voted #1 Rock drummer last year by Modern Drummer Magazine. He's awesome. He's been with us for 15 years. Lawrence Gowan took Dennis DeYoung's place in 1999 and is an amazing musician, singer and front man. He's been loved by our fans since our first show in July of 1999. Ricky Phillips took Glen Burtnik's place in 2003. He's a great bass player, guitarist, vocalist and has played with The Babys, Jimmy Page, Bad English, Ronnie Montrose and many others and still leans into it. Chuck Panozzo, whom we thought was a goner in 1999 when he almost waited too long to get treatment for HIV which had developed into full blown AIDS, fought his way back to health, wrote and published his memoirs, "Love, Lies, and My Life with Styx" after using his return to the stage as his reason to live. He still makes appearances on our stage when it suits his fancy, between appearances all over the world as a humanitarian and motivational role model. JY, who missed his first show ever in 2008 when his wife had to have life saving emergency surgery, has been the heart and soul of the band since he planted his flag here in 1970 before the band was even called STYX. He's still larger than life and continues to grow as a musician and performer. In case you're wondering, he's the tall blond guy.
Is it in any way like seeing Johnny Cash near the end and having that man with his life’s story behind him as he sang one more song? There is not a shred of evidence from Rolling Stone magazine that would support this idea.
We're not young, we have never been the darlings of the media. We're STYX. Maybe it's that simple. Maybe I should just shut the hell up, stop thinking so much about it and simply say, "Thanks for coming."
http://thecomet.com/posts/styx
Styx’ Tommy Shaw Road Blog Exclusive
A guy stopped me the other night and shouted "I've been listening to you since I was in the womb!" We get that a lot.
Why do fans love STYX? Do any of us really know what others see in us? All I know is that night after night on the road we get so much love from long term fans and curious new ones that I know there is something that can be seen and heard from out there that cannot be perceived from where I stand.
I know that we are good at what we do, that our music has survived the test of time, formats, eras, sea changes and economic ups and downs since we hit the road on our first national tour in 1975.
We don't look like male models, we are not shredder guitar players, we don't have tons of top 40 hits, we don't even play all the ones we do have. But our songs are still played every day on radio stations all over the country, our concert tours still rank amazingly in Pollstar Magazine’s top 40 annual concert grosses. I still get recognized in public and treated with such respect that it's sometimes almost more than I can take. What can explain this?
I know we were part of the soundtrack to many people's lives who were around in the mid 70's and 80's. We were the first live concert experience for people in the 70's, 80's, late 90's and that continues today. But how? Why?
We gave up analog recording in 2003, and now use ProTools and other digital programs in the studio. But we don't use them in our live performances. We've never used supplemental samples for our vocals in concert. We play and sing live. As Jack Black once said, "The road is fuckin' hard..." and it's true. It takes it's toll on the body but we've learned how to stay fit enough to maintain our vocal health through all but the worst of situations. When you hear us perform, that's us then and there. When you hear solos, they are performed from our gut. Because it's live and organic it ebbs and flows biometrically depending upon how and what we feel that day. It's maddening sometimes because like you, we are responding to the events of the day. That day can’t help but be reflected in what we sing and play. Our performances are not perfect. Ever. That’s one of the reasons we keep stepping up to the plate.
My friend Myriam Santos, an extraordinary photographer and glorious madwoman, excepted my invitation to sit in the front row the other night at the Gibson Amphitheater with designer Ashton Michael. It was hard to read Myriam's reaction because she was uncharacteristically stoic. It wasn't until afterwards backstage that I got the review from her and Ashton. It was so over the top glowing and positive that I would sound like an egotistical a-hole if I repeated it. Although I've known her for several years, she'd never seen us in concert. It was really something to see how she reacted. It's only now, a week later that she's returning to her take-no-prisoners attitude. Thank goodness!
Our songs tell often tell stories, some happy, some sad, but there's always hope that finds its way into the lyric. That's how we're wired. Maybe that's part of it. Believe it or not, for me it’s a gospel influence from my childhood.
So, okay, we're good singers, but we'd never make it on American Idol. Probably not Jazz Handsy enough, even though we're STYX! Our drummer, Todd Sucherman was voted #1 Rock drummer last year by Modern Drummer Magazine. He's awesome. He's been with us for 15 years. Lawrence Gowan took Dennis DeYoung's place in 1999 and is an amazing musician, singer and front man. He's been loved by our fans since our first show in July of 1999. Ricky Phillips took Glen Burtnik's place in 2003. He's a great bass player, guitarist, vocalist and has played with The Babys, Jimmy Page, Bad English, Ronnie Montrose and many others and still leans into it. Chuck Panozzo, whom we thought was a goner in 1999 when he almost waited too long to get treatment for HIV which had developed into full blown AIDS, fought his way back to health, wrote and published his memoirs, "Love, Lies, and My Life with Styx" after using his return to the stage as his reason to live. He still makes appearances on our stage when it suits his fancy, between appearances all over the world as a humanitarian and motivational role model. JY, who missed his first show ever in 2008 when his wife had to have life saving emergency surgery, has been the heart and soul of the band since he planted his flag here in 1970 before the band was even called STYX. He's still larger than life and continues to grow as a musician and performer. In case you're wondering, he's the tall blond guy.
Is it in any way like seeing Johnny Cash near the end and having that man with his life’s story behind him as he sang one more song? There is not a shred of evidence from Rolling Stone magazine that would support this idea.
We're not young, we have never been the darlings of the media. We're STYX. Maybe it's that simple. Maybe I should just shut the hell up, stop thinking so much about it and simply say, "Thanks for coming."
Love what Tommy, had to say about LG. 
Oh one fine day and it will all be sweet again. 
NOT!!! 
Now LG ROCKS