Laughlin Entertainer

[sadie65]

http://www.laughlinentertainer.com/arti ... s/news.txt

STYX IN CONCERT AT HARRAH'S LAUGHLIN


Tuesday, September 16, 2008 5:00 PM PDT

Harrah's Laughlin is backing the truck up and delivering some classic rock to the river for three connected concerts in their Rio Vista Outdoor Amphi-theater over the next month. It all kicks off this Friday, September 19, with Styx playing at 9 p.m.; continues on Sunday, October 5, with Journey taking the stage at 8 p.m.; and concludes with Chicago appearing on Saturday, October 25 at 8 p.m.


The following is a look at this week's band: Styx.

Styx sprung out of Chicago in the early ‘70s from a group of disparate musicians. One guy had an operatic voice and loved ballads; another was into raunchy guitar and wall of sound; and yet another was a country boy who loved R&B. Not the usual genesis for a rock band.

The three were Dennis DeYoung (vocals, keyboards) and brother act, Chuck Panozzo (bass) and John Panozzo (drums). They hooked up with James Young (guitar, vocals) and John Curulewski (guitar, vocals) and formed the band Tradewinds-which soon dropped that polyester name for the rock-laced name, Styx.

They were the first rock band to have four albums certified multi-platinum. Styx and The Serpent Rising were straight-ahead rock with a few artistic flourishes. Styx II, which didn't receive much mainstream radio play at first, hit the big time two years after its release. The power ballad “Lady” jumped from Chicago bar scene to the Top 10 and Styx II went gold.

From 1976 throughout the early 80s, Styx had a consistent run of hits, including “Come Sail Away,” “Renegade,” “Blue Collar Man,” “Fooling Yourself,” “Babe,” “The Best of Times” and “Too Much Time On My Hands.” They pushed the envelope with Kilroy Was Here, embracing a rock opera form. The synthesizer based “Mr. Roboto” and “Don't Let it End” took Kilroy to the Grammy awards.

Along with the success, Kilroy brought tensions within the band to a breaking point. Before the release of their live album Caught in the Act, in 1984, the band had parted ways.

They reunited in 1995, with Tommy Shaw playing guitar instead of Curulewski), and in 2001, Lawrence Gowen took over keyboards and vocals. The current line-up includes Shaw, original member James "JY" Young, Gowan, Todd Sucherman and Ricky Phillips (along with the occasional guest appearance by original member Chuck Panozzo) on bass.

The Laughlin entertainer talked with original member James ‘J.Y' Young and Lawrence Gowan (who also happened to be in the car at the time). Side note: Styx released their Grand Illusion album on the 7th day of the 7th month of 1977. For this particular interview, we talked to them on the 8th day of the 8th month of 2008. Maybe that qualifies as cosmic irony or something, but this is what they had to say about the band, the music and all kinds of other stuff.

James “JY” Young

Q. You have been a member since the beginning, playing on every recording and in every show. You are a rarity in this business. Is there a secret to your longevity?

A. I think I'm the kind of person who's capable of looking at the bigger picture as opposed to my own self interest. I'm short on my belief in myself-skeptical of my talent. With a certain amount of prodding, I have to admit I did a few good things.

But we (Styx) managed with hard work and persistence, patience, a small amount of talent-and a large amount of luck.Timing had a lot to do with it-it's important to do the right thing at the right time. It took a while for us to break through, but break through we did, and then hung on to it as tight as we could as we proceeded down the highway.

I was able to recognize the whole was greater than the sum of its parts in relation to this band. I recognized I didn't have all the answers and I was proved wrong sometimes. It taught me humility while others were less humble. Now they are being taught the lesson of humility.

Q. When you guys were starting out and working out a sound that was unique, did you have something in mind or was it one of those things where you knew it when you heard it?

A. We were inspired by bands like the Beatles and people like Jimi Hendrix-but there was a lot of orchestral influences with powerful rock instrumentation. We had a sense of Bach and Beethoven, drawing from a broader pallet of inspiration as opposed to staying within the narrow definition of the record company's characterization-the one that limits you to one quick sentence.

We're defying characterization still to this day. One thing to keep in mind is we had to find middle ground compromises for most of our career. Grand Illusion is the most successful example of that foray into narrow areas.

One song we recorded, “Boat on the River,” was a huge number one hit in 1980 in Europe. It never got a lick of airplay in the U.S. The song has sounds of a Middle Eastern nature. This band, stylistically, has been all over the map. We've returned to the progressive rock band we were in the 70s on our songs from the last four albums.

Q. Who was the songwriter? Was there a predominant writer or was it a group effort?

A. There was no assigned writers. Dennis DeYoung was the most driven and interested. I was sort of interested, and some of the songs I wrote were recorded, but didn't become hits. Tommy was as driven as Dennis. The main thing was we all equally collaborated.

Q. Were you guys always in charge of your own musical destiny? Did you always have a say in what you recorded and how you recorded it?

A. With our first recording contract, they wanted to bring in outside writers on the album. Three or four were cover songs. On subsequent albums some of their picks made it and some didn't. Every record after that, there would be one or two that wasn't penned by the band.

Sometimes things happened by accident. We never intended to record “I Am the Walrus.”. We performed it live to have fun. But then a DJ said, “give me a copy and I'll put it on the air.” What was exciting about that is that it was the first song Lawrence recorded with the group-establishing his voice with Styx. It was number two for eight weeks. It stood at the end of 2004 as one of the best covers.

Q. Styx would become the first in the history of rock ‘n' roll to have four consecutive triple-platinum albums. Did you have any idea that would happen?

A. Coming out of the 60s, the single was still the thing. Gold was the biggest thing. The Baby Boomers scooped up albums like they were hot cakes. It was fertile soil for our career to take off strong. If Beatles music was available during that time frame, the same thing would have happened to them. We just happened to be the guys to do it. It was the spirit of the time. It was a nice feather in our cap. We had no idea it would happen to us, but we're absolutely pleased that it did.

Q. Which album is your personal favorite?We know picking one is like picking a favorite child.

A. Grand Illusion holds up as an album with the most complete thought with all great songs, all different. It was not as widespread artistically as some of our albums, but it broke us wide open commercially. It was our biggest album. We always would do four songs from that one at every concert.

Q. It was kind of sad that the music and the success weren't enough for all the members of the band.

A. After 13 years some of us didn't know what we wanted to do when we really grew up. Some people don't like being on the road. It's a cruel mistress. Some of us are well balanced while others are mean and unhappy and cranky. The road has torn up bands- it's a horrible negative, becoming fatal for some of them. It's tough to be physically removed from your comfort zone, waking up and asking, “where am I, why am I here, who are these people and why can't I have the things I'm used to when I wake up?” Some people can't handle it-can't roll with the punches of the road.

Q. Favorite recording session?

A. Certainly Grand Illusion. Making that record was an amazing thing. Cyclorama in 2003-those were great sessions as well. We didn't have the right record company on that one-didn't have our ducks in a row the last session...but that's show biz. The reason Grand Illusion was as successful as it was was because we were all on the same page, going the same direction-and we were ready to take the world by storm. By God, we did.

Q. Do you miss the elaborate trappings some of your tours used to have-like the tours for your concept albums like Kilroy Was Here in 1983?

A. I think they were a manifestation of the time. I don't really miss them to be honest with you. It's great to have magnificent light shows and a few props but when it comes to special effects these days, one or two are good. It's now more about the talent of the people on stage, individually and collectively. It's about connecting with an audience, performing great music.

Lawrence Gowan

Q. You're the newest member of Styx, being with them nine years. What's it like touring with these geezers?

A. It's like being with Old Faithful, they pop off at the same time every day. It's tremendous, we erupt at 9 p.m. every night unless the show starts at 8 p.m. It's tremendous to tour with a band that always looks for ways to improve the show and the music, propelling it forward to the next 50 years. There's joy and passion and everywhere we go the audience seems to eat it up. At times audiences feel this is the best incarnation of Styx to have ever taken the stage.

It's a great way to spend my years on planet Earth. I can't think of a better way.

Q. It's nice that there are no egos these days and everybody still enjoys getting on that stage.

A. They've been through all that as illustrated in “Behind the Music” on VH1. Actually, it's all of those things that have propelled the group forward. There's been blood-letting, but sometimes that's what it takes to bring this caliber of show to the people. That's what Styx has done and has been successful doing it.

Q. Where did the idea for your spinning keyboard come from?

A. It was inspired by a hamster.

It's my design. I was sick that I didn't get noticed. The guitar players were getting the lion's share of the attention and having all the fun moving all over stage and I was locked into one position. I thought, ‘how do I move a giant object around on stage?' A spinning piano seemed like the natural conclusion, so I've been running around in circles ever since.

Q. What? No strap-on keyboard like Edgar Winter?

A. Yea, Edgar straps it on better than anyone.

But if you've seen our show, you know it's very animated. No one on stage is shy for attention. We're probably the most extroverted band on the planet. The music demands that-and the audience is engaged in such a devoted way that we have to keep up with them.

Q. Styx performed and recorded with the Cleveland Orchestra Youth Chorus. Talk about that experience.

A. It was quite amazing. People were astounded with how well we jelled with the youth chorus. We weren't stuffy shirts. We didn't act like a bunch of geezers. We threw ourselves into it with complete abandon. We were wild through arrangements, presenting the music with a different insight and style. We were very satisfied that it came across as well as it did.

Q. What's planned for the Harrah's Laughlin show?

A. We'll do brand new stuff, then do something people haven't heard in years. Sometimes JY refers to it as an ‘embarrassment of treasury'-having a large treasure of musical background to draw from, to make sure the show stays fresh.

We'll have an entirely new stage set. It's always fun to explore all kinds of little changes we can make, and this time around, we'll be doing a longer show.

Harrah's Laughlin will be giving away a Budweiser Select® guitar autographed by Styx and a second place prize of $200 and an autographed poster or postcard of Styx in drawings to be held approximately two hours after the 9 p.m. start of the Styx concert on Friday, September 19. Guests receive one drawing ticket with each concert ticket purchase. The drawing tickets must be deposited into the Budweiser Select drawing drum near the Harrah's Box Office prior to the start of the drawing. The winners' names will be posted at the Box Office immediately after the

drawing-the winner must claim the prize within one hour of posting. Must be 21 or older to enter the

promotion. Concert tickets can be purchased at the Harrah's Box Office, at the electronic ceOsk located on the casino floor, or at www.HarrahsLaughlin.com

STYX

Friday, September 19

at 9 p.m.

Rio Vista Outdoor Amphitheater

at

HARRAH'S

Tickets are $25/$35/$45-Mohave County, AZ; Laughlin; and Needles residents receive $5 off ticket price with valid ID

For tickets, see the Box Office next to the Bell Desk; call 1-800-447-8700 or 702-298-8510; or visit www.harrahslaughlin.com.

[stmonkeys]

wow.... it's refreshing to see journalists who remain true to their art and perform thorough background/fact checks.

[bugsymalone]

I think I'm the kind of person who's capable of looking at the bigger picture as opposed to my own self interest. I'm short on my belief in myself-skeptical of my talent. With a certain amount of prodding, I have to admit I did a few good things.

That is hilarious! I did not realize JY had such a sense of hu.... Say what?? He was serious???

Oh.


Bugsy

[STYX Fan]

Where are the fiery plane crashes when you need them?

[pinkfloyd1973]

Where are the fiery plane crashes when you need them?

OMG