Styx
First Council Casino
Newkirk, Oklahoma
February 12, 2011

By Jeb Wright
Photo by Jake Willoughby

Set List:
Blue Collar Man | The Grand Illusion | Too Much Time on My Hands | Lady | Lorelei | Man in the Wilderness | I’m OK | Crystal Ball | Castle Walls | Fooling Yourself | Miss America | Come Sail Away

Encore:
I am the Walrus
Renegade

Casino gigs have become the home of many classic rock bands during the summer shed off season. One can see why, as the gigs pay well, the venues have good sound systems and they treat the talent well. Fans that don’t live in major cities also get the opportunity to witness bands play without having to travel hours to a big city.

Having seen Styx over a dozen times in my career, I knew what I was in for, which was a standard Styx greatest hits show, the like of which they have been pumping out since the late 1990’s. This version of Styx, run by vocalist/guitarist Tommy Shaw and founding member James “JY” Young, is set up for the hardcore, old school, hard rock Styx fan, as the band’s number one hits, “Mr. Roboto” and “Babe,” both written by former member Dennis DeYoung, are long gone from the set list.

As the lights went down, Styx took the stage and the familiar sounds of “Blue Collar Man” filled the venue. Tommy Shaw shares center stage with Laurence Gowan and James “JY’ Young, but the Newkirk crowd only had eyes for Tommy. The crowd cheers for Shaw were so obvious that between songs Gowan looked at his fellow band members and said, “I think this crowd is mainly here to see that guy on the other side of the stage.” Shaw smiled and the crowd went wild.

It was apparent early in the gig that Styx was in the mood to play. Styx is still reeling from last years tour where they performed The Grand Illusion and Pieces of 8. The energy from these classic albums is alive and well as the band performed nine songs from these two releases.

After playing “Grand Illusion,” “Lorelei” and “Lady” Shaw announced the band would perform a song that, before last year’s tour, they had not played in years. “Man in the Wilderness” from The Grand Illusion thrilled the hardcore Styx faithful. Many of the band’s fans who came on board with the success of albums released later in their career, such as Cornerstone, Paradise Theater and Kilroy Was Here, do not realize that Styx were once a hard rock band with progressive leanings. “Man in the Wilderness” and “Castle Walls” both proved, on this night, that Styx has not forgotten where they came from. “I’m OK” from Pieces of 8 was a surprise inclusion in the set and, while never a hit single, features all of the ‘70’s era Styx trademarks, great vocals, high energy, cool keyboard licks and a killer guitar solo. Styx ended the regular set with “Fooling Yourself,” “Miss America” and “Come Sail Away.” Each of the aforementioned songs remains an FM radio staple to this day.

Before “Come Sail Away,” all but Gowan left the stage. The outgoing keyboardist played a classical piece and then sang something about Newkirk, Oklahoma before addressing the crowd, “That’s all I’ve got so far. I can’t think of anything that rhymes with ‘Newkirk’ except for ‘you jerk’ and I don’t want to go there.” He went on to question what it was that made a song classic. He pondered with the crowd why certain songs get into one’s head and if we hear a line that we can’t help but saying the next part.

Gowan sang several famous lines from classic tunes and the audience responded with the next line. Songs included “War Pigs” from Black Sabbath and “Another Brink in the Wall Part 2” from Pink Floyd. After enjoying the call and response from the crowd, Gowan pranced around, spoke in a cockney accent and then stated he was going to put the cherry on top of the musical Sunday they had made. He sang out “A gathering of angels appeared above my head” and the audience responded with the next line as Gowen skipped back to his keyboard and played the opening piano line to “Come Sail Away.“ The band returned to the stage and the crowd sang along with every word.

The band returned for a two song encore, the first being a cover of the Beatles classic “I am the Walrus.” They ended the evening, as it began, with a classic song from Pieces of 8. “Renegade” is one of the best Styx has to offer and the Newkirk faithful were literally singing and dancing in the aisles. At the conclusion of the song, the lights immediately came up and the band began tossing drumheads, t-shirts and guitar picks into the crowd.

Styx can do a good show in their sleep but tonight, in Newkirk, Oklahoma, they took it up a notch and put on a great show. Drummer Todd Sucherman literally put on a drum clinic from the first note he played to the last. Bass player Ricky Phillips did his job perfectly while Gowan provided musical and visual entertainment. Tommy Shaw is a natural born entertainer and James Young a true guitar slinging rock star. It would be impossible for Styx to top the concert they put on in Newkirk. The band was on fire and the set list was stellar. This was a magical evening of music courtesy of a truly iconic rock band.

With the classic songs and styles of ‘70’s Styx in their veins one can only hope that they will take this energy into the studio and create some new music. A new album with that sort of brilliance would truly be grand, and do much to erase the illusion that this is just a greatest hits band. For Styx proved, on this night, that they are more than musically viable, they are still taking their game to new heights.