MR

The Grand Illusion

http://m.youtube.com/index?desktop_uri=%2F&gl=US#/watch?xl=xl_blazer&v=P8cDxF9Cb_U

Fooling Yourself

http://m.youtube.com/index?desktop_uri=%2F&gl=US#/watch?xl=xl_blazer&v=DND3k-lbvJA

Superstars

http://m.youtube.com/index?desktop_uri=%2F&gl=US#/watch?xl=xl_blazer&v=lnSA20MPRr0

Come Sail Away

http://m.youtube.com/index?desktop_uri=%2F&gl=US#/watch?xl=xl_blazer&v=J-7KFWa4BB0

Miss America

http://m.youtube.com/index?desktop_uri=%2F&gl=US#/watch?xl=xl_blazer&v=AD-XsHY4Jt4

Man In The Wilderness

http://m.youtube.com/index?desktop_uri=%2F&gl=US#/watch?xl=xl_blazer&v=mJfJAxBbd4M

Castle Walls / The Grand Finale

http://m.youtube.com/index?desktop_uri=%2F&gl=US#/watch?xl=xl_blazer&v=9q4myLFgxBU

Nothing here chicago

Dennis plays the Castle Walls keyboard solo with much more authority. Gowan seems to play it "timidly" if you will. Kinda dull.

Dennis DeYoung

Lawrence Gowan


Dennis plays it with an absolutely incredible ferocity. Lawrence just kinda goes through the motions

Archetype wrote:Dennis plays the Castle Walls keyboard solo with much more authority. Gowan seems to play it "timidly" if you will. Kinda dull.

Dennis DeYoung

Lawrence Gowan


Dennis plays it with an absolutely incredible ferocity. Lawrence just kinda goes through the motions

I believe Gowan does just fine with the music. Goes through the motions i think not. I know you are pro DDY & i am pro LG.

Babyblue wrote:

Archetype wrote:Dennis plays the Castle Walls keyboard solo with much more authority. Gowan seems to play it "timidly" if you will. Kinda dull.

Dennis DeYoung

Lawrence Gowan


Dennis plays it with an absolutely incredible ferocity. Lawrence just kinda goes through the motions

I believe Gowan does just fine with the music. Goes through the motions i think not. I know you are pro DDY & i am pro LG.

And there you have it. "Just Fine" doesn't equal amazing or "The Best Version of Styx Ever". Further proof that this incarnation of Styx is just clinging to the past when they were actually a band that had something to offer. The real sad fact of it all is that neither DDY nor the current Styx will ever be as good as when they were together. It's sad they just can't see that.

Boomchild wrote:

Babyblue wrote:

Archetype wrote:Dennis plays the Castle Walls keyboard solo with much more authority. Gowan seems to play it "timidly" if you will. Kinda dull.

Dennis DeYoung

Lawrence Gowan


Dennis plays it with an absolutely incredible ferocity. Lawrence just kinda goes through the motions

I believe Gowan does just fine with the music. Goes through the motions i think not. I know you are pro DDY & i am pro LG.

And there you have it. "Just Fine" doesn't equal amazing or "The Best Version of Styx Ever". Further proof that this incarnation of Styx is just clinging to the past when they were actually a band that had something to offer. The real sad fact of it all is that neither DDY nor the current Styx will ever be as good as when they were together. It's sad they just can't see that.

You are spot on !

In playing "just fine" Lawrence is wasting a ton of talent. As far as raw keyboard playing ability goes, anyting Dennis can do, Lawrence can do 10x better (this does not include songwriting or singing, just keyboard playing) So why is he so passive? Todd improvises, Ricky Improvises, and even JY has been improvising a lot more lately. Why is Lawrence playing monotonously?

Archetype wrote:In playing "just fine" Lawrence is wasting a ton of talent. As far as raw keyboard playing ability goes, anyting Dennis can do, Lawrence can do 10x better (this does not include songwriting or singing, just keyboard playing) So why is he so passive? Todd improvises, Ricky Improvises, and even JY has been improvising a lot more lately. Why is Lawrence playing monotonously?

Maybe his interest in being in this band is getting old for him. After all, they are stagnant with doing anything that is new material. Of course you can't expect him to come out and say that while he is in the band. It has to get old playing material that really doesn't mean anything to you.

Boomchild wrote:

Archetype wrote:In playing "just fine" Lawrence is wasting a ton of talent. As far as raw keyboard playing ability goes, anyting Dennis can do, Lawrence can do 10x better (this does not include songwriting or singing, just keyboard playing) So why is he so passive? Todd improvises, Ricky Improvises, and even JY has been improvising a lot more lately. Why is Lawrence playing monotonously?

Maybe his interest in being in this band is getting old for him. After all, they are stagnant with doing anything that is new material. Of course you can't expect him to come out and say that while he is in the band. It has to get old playing material that really doesn't mean anything to you.

He's getting to play stuff that they hardly ever, if ever played before. You'd think that if this was the case, he'd at least be a little bit more excited about what they're doing for this tour. He used to improvise a lot back in the early 2000s. His piano additions to Come Sail Away on the Styxworld CD were awesome. I wish he'd start doing that kind of stuff again. Listen to a 2009/2010 version of Come Sail Away then listen to the Styxworld version. It's a lot more exciting.

Archetype wrote:

Boomchild wrote:

Archetype wrote:In playing "just fine" Lawrence is wasting a ton of talent. As far as raw keyboard playing ability goes, anyting Dennis can do, Lawrence can do 10x better (this does not include songwriting or singing, just keyboard playing) So why is he so passive? Todd improvises, Ricky Improvises, and even JY has been improvising a lot more lately. Why is Lawrence playing monotonously?

Maybe his interest in being in this band is getting old for him. After all, they are stagnant with doing anything that is new material. Of course you can't expect him to come out and say that while he is in the band. It has to get old playing material that really doesn't mean anything to you.

He's getting to play stuff that they hardly ever, if ever played before. You'd think that if this was the case, he'd at least be a little bit more excited about what they're doing for this tour. He used to improvise a lot back in the early 2000s. His piano additions to Come Sail Away on the Styxworld CD were awesome. I wish he'd start doing that kind of stuff again. Listen to a 2009/2010 version of Come Sail Away then listen to the Styxworld version. It's a lot more exciting.

What you don't like the hey routine?

Maybe Lawerence is trying to play the keyboards as close to Dennis's orginal keyboards as possible. He may be doing this out of respect to DDY. He has stated and he believes songs like Queen Of Spades and Castle Walls are 'pure Dennis DeYoung'.

That is probably why he is not taking more liberty with these songs.


They NEED to keep this tour going. I want to see them on THIS tour January 7 in Houston.

yogi wrote:Maybe Lawerence is trying to play the keyboards as close to Dennis's orginal keyboards as possible. He may be doing this out of respect to DDY. He has stated and he believes songs like Queen Of Spades and Castle Walls are 'pure Dennis DeYoung'.

That is probably why he is not taking more liberty with these songs.


They NEED to keep this tour going. I want to see them on THIS tour January 7 in Houston.

Archetype wrote:In playing "just fine" Lawrence is wasting a ton of talent. As far as raw keyboard playing ability goes, anyting Dennis can do, Lawrence can do 10x better (this does not include songwriting or singing, just keyboard playing) So why is he so passive? Todd improvises, Ricky Improvises, and even JY has been improvising a lot more lately. Why is Lawrence playing monotonously?

Because he's damned if he does and damned if he doesn't.

brywool wrote:

Archetype wrote:In playing "just fine" Lawrence is wasting a ton of talent. As far as raw keyboard playing ability goes, anyting Dennis can do, Lawrence can do 10x better (this does not include songwriting or singing, just keyboard playing) So why is he so passive? Todd improvises, Ricky Improvises, and even JY has been improvising a lot more lately. Why is Lawrence playing monotonously?

Because he's damned if he does and damned if he doesn't.

I doubt he really cares what people are saying about it.

Archetype wrote:

Boomchild wrote:

Archetype wrote:In playing "just fine" Lawrence is wasting a ton of talent. As far as raw keyboard playing ability goes, anyting Dennis can do, Lawrence can do 10x better (this does not include songwriting or singing, just keyboard playing) So why is he so passive? Todd improvises, Ricky Improvises, and even JY has been improvising a lot more lately. Why is Lawrence playing monotonously?

Maybe his interest in being in this band is getting old for him. After all, they are stagnant with doing anything that is new material. Of course you can't expect him to come out and say that while he is in the band. It has to get old playing material that really doesn't mean anything to you.

He's getting to play stuff that they hardly ever, if ever played before. You'd think that if this was the case, he'd at least be a little bit more excited about what they're doing for this tour. He used to improvise a lot back in the early 2000s. His piano additions to Come Sail Away on the Styxworld CD were awesome. I wish he'd start doing that kind of stuff again. Listen to a 2009/2010 version of Come Sail Away then listen to the Styxworld version. It's a lot more exciting.

Just because it's stuff they hardly ever play doesn't mean he has an interest in it. It may be possible he has been "asked" to play the material as close to the original. Which doesn't make sense if you are trying to put a different spin on it or elevate the material.