NDRU said:

no, apparently there was all sorts of drama going on.

they used to be a solid rock band, but when dennis came on the scene, they drifted from that to the cheese that we all know and love. yeah, it made them a lot of money, but as tommy(?) said, he had to 'self-medicate' just to get thru the sets. there is also the strong intimation that de young is 'closeted'.

it's hard to explain, but if you do find it on youtube, you'll be sorry you didn't see it before!

NDRU said:

The stuff about him being all about ballads and stuff was crap, always was. Thats what Vh1 made it to be, this was conflicting ego's, Dennis for the record is one of 3 founding members, the Pannozzo brothers Chuck and John, one passed in 1996, one has been HIV positive since 1998, but this was egos gone wild, and no one able to control the egos. Styx was ready to tour in 1999 for "Brave New World" but anyone who owns or has heard that record knows, that Tommy and Dennis, though on tracks together never were in a studio at all, Dennis was doing a musical and that started the shit again that festered from back in 1984, Tommy and JY like the whole "band" thing, Dennis is more of create it in the studio and let it go, hes a loner, like it was said he is the Brian Wilson of Styx. So though ballads may have caused a little riff, it was not the cause of Dennis getting the boot, because Tommy writes his own share of ballads and did it when Dennis was there, it was the "dictation" from Dennis that didnt sit well.

Absolutely.

Bands like Styx, Bad Company, Journey and Boston I always thought were too harshly criticized by music snobs and too praised by the mainstream.

Styx has some great songs, just not nearly as many as the legends.

And if their music is taken too seriously, is certainly can seem a bit ridiculous.

But more often that not, it just seems to be a way for insecure people to prove their obvious lack of superiority.

Absolutely.

Bands like Styx, Bad Company, Journey and Boston I always thought were too harshly criticized by music snobs and too praised by the mainstream.

Styx has some great songs, just not nearly as many as the legends.

And if their music is taken too seriously, is certainly can seem a bit ridiculous.

But more often that not, it just seems to be a way for insecure people to prove their obvious lack of superiority.

the drummer for styx todd sits in ata local club here in LA alot its a priviledge to see him .. hes one serious bad ass mofo on the drums .. ponchos in manhattan beach

Brendan said:

Yeah for some of those bands, their musical proficiency seemed to detract from their credibility. Yeah they are big & dramatic, but the music is performed at a higher level than some more highly acclaimed bands.

I'm not knocking the Dylans & Velvet Undergrounds of the world, either, but listening to Styx (or Journey, etc) you can hear that pure musicianship has merits, too. It's the same kind of quality that people like in Broadway/Vegas style entertainment.

NDRU said:

Thats it exactly, i hate the term "corporate" rock for this reason, why should a band like Styx get trashed because everything is in tune? And the harmonies go, and the choruses are tight, its not like they arent playing or writing, they do all that, as do the bands mentioned too, its just a different form, i mean Dennis DeYoung and Tommy Shaw may not pull out a "blood on the tracks" but Bob Dylan could never orchestrate a track like "suite Madame blue".

lastdecember said:

Styx cracks me up, quite honestly, but as a musician it makes me nuts that some writer will dismiss such talented musicians just because they're a little cheesy.

lastdecember said:

Styx cracks me up, quite honestly, but as a musician it makes me nuts that some writer will dismiss such talented musicians just because they're a little cheesy.

NDRU said:

yeah i always apply this "rule" to that Family Guy episode where Peter says "I hate Barry Manilow" and then he says "except for that..."and then each character names a song they like and by the end they are at Barry Manilow concerts

lastdecember said:

exactly, there is a reason the Barry Manilows, John Denvers, Celine Dions, & Styxs of the world get so damned popular.

NDRU said:

To be honest at some point i would not be surprised if Deyoung ends up back in Styx for something, i dont why i think that, i just feel that as time goes on, every band does it one more time

Got help me, I just ordered Equinox & Pieces of Eight from Amazon!

NDRU said:

Alright!

As I recall, one Styx album - I think it was "Pieces of Eight" - was released on 7/7/77.

Got help me, I just ordered Equinox & Pieces of Eight from Amazon!

NDRU said:

Another thing people FAIL to realize is that Styx had a period where they were untouchable, people look at accomplishments today and think they are a big deal, but back then Styx was the first group other than the Beatles to chart Four Straight MULTI platnum albums in a row, now that might not seem like much, but also understand they were doing these albums yearly and touring at the same time, todays acts cant even squeeze out one mutliplatnum and a talk of a long tour and they pass out and cancel dates

lastdecember said:

That's true, I think the stat was they were the very first band including the Beatles to have three triple platinum albums in a row, and that their 4th was not triple, but it was still double (IIRR)--still an impressive run

Got help me, I just ordered Equinox & Pieces of Eight from Amazon!

RodeoSchro said:

Actually, it was The Grand Illusion, their...7th album (duh!) that was released on 7/7/77. To make the coincidence more poignant, consider that in Greek myhtology Styx is a river that circles Hades seven times. This was Styx's seventh album and it was their first platinum album.

Just received my two new Styx albums this weekend, Equinox & Pieces of Eight

I see why someone would criticize Dennis DeYoung as a balladeer or for being cheesy, but having listened to Equinox (pre Tommy Shaw) and the post Tommy albums (Grand Illusion, Pieces of Eight, Paradise Theater) it's clear to me that Tommy made/helped to make Styx a pop band.

Tommy's songs are good, I like them, but Styx was much less AOR/MOR before he came aboard. I think it's unfair for him to criticize the move towards pop as being Dennis' fault.

Equinox is a nice album of slick prog rock.

Pieces of Eight has good stuff on it, but it's also totally ridiculous. Lords of the Ring? Maybe it's about Boxing & not a typo about the book. But it's nice. Styx is obviously the poor man's Queen as I can clearly see now. But they do it well. They also do Spinal Tap better than Spinal Tap.

NDRU said:

Harmony wise, i feel Styx rivals Queen big time. Shaw/Deyoung/James Young are right up there with mercury/may/taylor. Totally agree on the Shaw point, i feel that whole Behind the Music was just nothing but good"drama" tv, its easy to say that they were the rockers and DD was the show guy, just from hits, but listen to very very early styx, with the long jams, its like early Journey before Steve Perry.

I didn't see the Behind the Music, but it's interesting that Pieces of Eight (1978) produced three singles, all of which were Tommy Shaw songs: Blue Collar Man and Renegade (both rockers), and Sing for the Day (folky ballad). Dennis' radio tune from that album, Queen of Spades, was a melodic hard rocker, as tough as either Renegade or Blue Collar Man. The next album, Cornerstone produced three singles, all Dennis DeYoung's songs: Babe, First Time - both syrupy ballads - and Why Me?, not mushy but not a hard rocker either.
From then one, Dennis got the ballads, Tommy got the polished pop rock (Too Much Time on My Hands, Cold War, Never Say Never), and JY got the hard rockers (Snowblind, Half-Penny Two-Penny).
I just go the album Brave New World (1999) with the classic Styx lineup. It surprised me, barely sounded like Styx of old, although it had Tommy, Dennis and JY. I guess they were each kind of doing their own thing instead being a group again.