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This page offers a career retrospective of Styx from their origins in 1971 through the release of their 2004 anthology Come Sail Away: The Anthology by offering snapshots of all the studio albums released during that time and highlighting several compilations.
The Players:
- Dennis DeYoung (vocals, keyboards: 1971-1999)
- James “JY” Young (guitar, vocals: 1971-)
- John Curulewski (guitar, vocals, synthesizers: 1971-76). Died of an aneurysm in 1988.
- Chuck Panozzo (bass: 1971-)
- John Panozzo (drums, percussion: 1971-1990). Died of gastrointestinal hemorrhage on 7/16/96 at age 47.
- Tommy Shaw (vocals, guitar: 1976-84, 1995-)
- Glen Burtnik (bass, vocals: 1990, 2000-04)
- Todd Sucherman (drums: 1995-)
- Lawrence Gowan (vocals, keyboards: 1999-)
- Ricky Phillips (bass: 2003-)
Formed: 1971
Where: Chicago, Illinois
Disbanded: 1984
Reunited: 1990, 1999-present
Album Sales: 54 million
Official Website: StyxWorld.com
Awards:
See Styx et al’s Top 100 Songs here.
The Panozzo twin brothers started playing in their garage at the age of 12. Their neighbor, DeYoung, joined them. When the trio went to Chicago State University, they formed TW4 with Curulewski. Young joined in 1970. In 1971, Wooden Nickel Records heard them, signed them the following year, and Styx (named after river Hades in Greek mythology) was born.
In 1975, the group signed with A&M after a revival of the song “Lady” restored interest in the band. After their first A&M album (Equinox), Curulewski left the group; replaced by Shaw. The group broke up in ‘84. Shaw, DeYoung, and JY did solo projects. In 1990, Styx reunited for an album without Shaw, who worked with supergroup Damn Yankees from 1989 to 1992 and then as a duo with Damn Yankees’ bandmate Jack Blades in 1995.
Shaw returned to the fold for a 1995 tour and they recorded a few songs in the studio for their Greatest Hits and Greatest Hits 2 compilations. In 1999, they released their first studio album in nearly a decade. They’ve actively toured since and released studio albums sporadically.
The Studio Albums:
Hover over an album cover for the title and year of release. Click on the album cover to see its DMDB page.
Compilations:
These are the compilations spotlighted on this page. The snapshots of the studio albums indicate all songs featured on any of these compilations, noted by the codes below. Appearing after song titles are the songwriters in italicized parentheses, running times in brackets, and when relevant, the date the song was released as a single and its peaks on various charts.
Click for codes to singles charts.
Live Albums:
(Organized by dates of recording, not release)
Styx I (1972):
“Although they began as an artsy prog-rock band, Styx would eventually transform into the virtual arena rock prototype by the late ‘70s and early ‘80s, due to a fondness for bombastic rockers and soaring power ballads.” GP
Twin brothers John Panozzo and Chuck Panozzo started playing in their garage at the age of 12. Their neighbor, Dennis DeYoung quickly joined them and they formed a “combo named the Tradewinds during the late 1960s.” LP When the trio went to Chicago State University, they formed TW4 with John Curulewski. James Young joined in 1970.
“Local gigs in and around the Windy City led them to the attention of Bill Traut, a Chicago musician/producer whose regional record label Wooden Nickel was distributed throughout North America by RCA. Traut was actively seeking new talent and TW4 was just what he was looking for to compete with” LP the “primarily U.K-centered progressive rock scene” LP and bands like Yes; Rush; and Emerson, Lake & Palmer. The band changed their name to Styx, “named after a river from Greek mythology that ran through the ‘land of the dead’ in the underworld,” GP and signed to Wooden Nickel.
- Best Thing (DeYoung, Young) [3:15] (9/16/72, 82 US, 86 HR, 40 CL) AN
- You Need Love (DeYoung) [3:44] (5/10/75, 88 US, 81 CB, 40 CL) AN
Styx II (1973):
Styx’s early albums reflected the prog-rock vibe Traut was seeking. They built a substantial local following with their early albums and non-stop touring, but couldn’t break through to the mainstream until 1974 when Lady, a track from their second album, was revived by Chicago radio station WLS-FM. It was issued as a single nationwide and became a top-10 hit on the Billboard Hot 100. GP
- Lady (DeYoung) [2:58] (12/7/74, 6 US, 6 CB, 7 HR, 7 RR, 5 CL, 19 CN, 23 AU) AN
The Serpent Is Rising (1974):
Styx’s third studio outing was a loose concept album which sold under 100,000. It was promoted with the single “Winner Take All” which didn’t chart.
- Winner Take All (DeYoung, Charles Lofrano) [3:05] AN
Man of Miracles (1974):
This was Styx’s last album with Wooden Nickel. It didn’t gain much traction for the band, but featured a cover of the Knickerbockers’ “Lies,” which was later substituted with “Best Thing” from the first album. It was during promotion for this album that “Lady” from Styx II was revived and gained attention for the band and got them signed to a major label.
- Rock and Roll Feeling (Curulewski, Young) [3:02] AN
Equinox (1975):
This was Styx’s fifth album overall and first with major label A&M. It gave them their second top-40 hit with Lorelei and also led to songs Light Up and Suite Madame Blue gaining inroads into AOR radio.
- Light Up (DeYoung) [4:17] (1975, 13 CL) CL, G2, AN
- Lorelei (DeYoung/ Young) [3:19] (2/14/76, 27 US, 30 CB, 28 HR, 26 RR, 9 CL, 6 CN) G1, AN
- Prelude 12 (Curulewski) [1:21] AN
- Suite Madame Blue (DeYoung) [6:30] (7 CL) CL, G1, AN
Crystal Ball (1976):
The night before Styx was set to launch a tour in support of their Equinox album, Curulewski abruptly left the band. They scrambled to find a replacement, settling with guitarist and singer Tommy Shaw. While Crystal Ball wouldn’t become a monstrous success, Shaw’s addition to the band would set the band on a trajectory which would make them arguably America’s favorite rock band. Here he contributed the album’s power ballad title track and in a co-lead vocal with DeYoung on top 40 hit Mademoiselle.
- Mademoiselle (DeYoung/ Shaw) [3:57] (11/6/76, 36 US, 57 CB, 58 HR, 15 CL, 25 CN) G2, AN
- Crystal Ball (Shaw) [4:32] (5/14/77, 9 CL) CL, G1, AN
- Shooz (Shaw/ Young) [4:44] AN
The Grand Illusion (1977):
This was the first of Styx’s four consecutive top-10, multi-platinum albums. No band had ever accomplished that feat. This album was propelled by Come Sail Away, a top 10 Dennis DeYoung-penned pop hit that became the band’s show closer, and Fooling Yourself, a prototype for the Tommy Shaw rockers that were to come.
- Come Sail Away (DeYoung) [6:07] (9/24/77, 8 US, 1 CL) CL, G1, AN
- Fooling Yourself (Angry Young Man) (Shaw) [5:29] (2/18/78, 29 US, 6 CL) CL, G1, AN
- The Grand Illusion (DeYoung) [4:36] (5 CL) CL, G1, AN
- Miss America (Young) [5:01] (15 CL) CL, G1, AN
- Superstars (DeYoung/Shaw/Young) [3:59] G2
- Man in the Wilderness (Shaw) [5:49] AN
Pieces of Eight (1978):
DeYoung had established himself as the most commercial of the band’s trio of singer/songwriters with top-10 hits “Lady” and “Come Sail Away” and James Young was the undeniable rocker of the band. Shaw, however, found a comfortable place between the two and exerted his clout as a rocker who could also generate hits on Pieces of Eight with the top-40 songs Renegade and Blue Collar Man.
- Blue Collar Man (Long Nights) (Shaw) [4:05] (9/9/78, 21 US, 21 CB, 22 HR, 21 RR, 4 CL, 9 CN, 98 AU) CL, G1, AN
- Sing for the Day (Shaw) [4:57] (12/30/78, 41 US, 41 CB, 39 HR, 17 CL, 27 CN) G2, AN
- Renegade (Shaw) [4:13] (1/9/79, 16 US, 18 CB, 22 HR, 17 RR, 1 CL, 10 CN) CL, G1, AN
- Queen of Spades (DeYoung/Young) [5:38] G2
- Pieces of Eight (DeYoung) [4:44] AN
Cornerstone (1979):
DeYoung returned to the forefront on the Cornerstone album. To the chagrin of Styx’s harder-rocking fans and to the delight of the pop world, the lead single was the full-on ballad Babe by DeYoung. The lighter fare landed Styx its only #1 pop hit, but caused tension as Shaw fought to keep the band from succumbing to DeYoung’s more theatrical, melodic balladry. For unknown reasons, “Why Me,” the second top-40 hit from Cornerstone, failed to find a home on any of the compilations featured on this page.
- Babe (DeYoung) [4:25] (10/6/79, 12 US, 13 CB, 12 HR, 13 RR, 6 UK, 9 AC, 1 CL, 6 UK, 16 CN, 3 AU) CL, G1, AN
- Why Me (DeYoung) [3:54] (12/15/79, 26 US, 19 CB, 18 HR, 12 RR, 9 CL, 10 CN)
- Boat on the River (Shaw) [3:10] (3/16/80, --) G2, AN
- Borrowed Time (DeYoung/Shaw) [4:58] (3/29/80, 64 US, 74 CB, 63 HR, 33 CL, 76 CN) G2, AN
- Lights (DeYoung/Shaw) [4:38] (41 CL) G2, AN
- First Time (DeYoung) [4:24] G2
Paradise Theater (1981):
“The band decided that their first release of the ‘80s would be a concept album, 1981’s Paradise Theater, which was loosely based on the rise and fall of a once-beautiful theater (which was supposedly used as a metaphor for the state of the U.S. at the time – the Iranian hostage situation, the Cold War, Reagan, etc.). Paradise Theater became Styx's biggest hit of their career (selling over three million copies in a three-year period), as they became one of the U.S. top rock acts due to such big hit singles as Too Much Time on My Hands and The Best of Times.” GP The former was yet another Tommy Shaw rocker while the latter was a DeYoung song that was more in the vein of ‘Lady” and ‘Come Sail Away,’ which had ballad elements but still rocked.
- The Best of Times (DeYoung) [4:17] (1/24/81, 3 US, 5 CB, 6 HR, 13 RR, 26 AC, 1 CL, 16 AR, 42 UK, 11 CN, 23 AU) CL, G1, AN
- Too Much Time on My Hands (Shaw) [4:31] (3/21/81, 9 US, 8 CB, 7 HR, 4 CL, 2 AR, 4 CN, 68 AU) CL, G1, AN
- Rockin’ the Paradise (DeYoung/Shaw/Young) [3:35] (3/21/81, 20 CL, 8 AR) G2, AN
- Snowblind (DeYoung/Young) [4:48] (3/21/81, 17 CL, 22 AR) G2, AN
- A.D. 1928 (DeYoung) [1:07] G2, AN
Kilroy Was Here (1983):
“But the behind-the-scenes bickering only intensified in the wake of the album’s success, as DeYoung was now convinced that a more theatrical approach was the future direction for Styx. Shaw and the rest of the group begrudgingly went along.” GP “The resulting follow-up was another hit, 1983’s sci-fi based Kilroy Was Here (which told the story of a future where rock & roll was outlawed, almost a carbon copy of the story line of Rush’s 2112).” GP “The ensuing prop-heavy tour seemed to focus more on scripted dialogue and lengthy films than good old rock & roll.” GP In addition, the over-the-top (and poorly done) concept coupled with lead single Mr. Roboto’s cheesy novelty elements, alienated some Styx fans – and “would eventually lead to the group’s breakup.” GP
- Mr. Roboto [5:28] (2/12/83, 3 US, 11 CB, 3 RR, 3 AR, 12 CN, 40 AU) CL, G1, AN
- Don’t Let It End [4:56] (4/30/83, 6 US, 14 CB, 3 RR, 56 UK, 13 AC, 15 CN) CL, G1
- Haven’t We Been Here Before (Shaw) [4:06] G2
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