Styx had three singers capable of singing lead. Dennis DeYoung sang most of the time, but Tommy Shaw (who played the guitar solo) is also a great singer, and James Young sang the edgier songs. One of my favorite groups!
Yes but you must do the original release from the early 70s not the re-release recorded in 95 or 96. The original release of this song is owned by the record company Wooden Nickle. The band released a greatest hits in 95 but Wooden Nickle wouldn't give up the copy rights to the original so the band had to do a another version of it to get it on the album. Nowhere a good as the original.
I believe this is the song that Dennis DeYoung actually wrote it to his wife for her birthday. People at the party that were records execs with his company, said "Styx has to put that on your next album". He didn't want to do that but with the execs urging, it became a huge hit.
This song is a winner but the first song that introduced me to the group was LADY and COME SAIL AWAY from 1977. BABE composed and sung by Dennis De Young.
My husband and I were in middle school in San Vito Spain on a military base. We dated a yr and his dad was sent to Va. My family were in Spain 1 more yr then sent to Italy for 2 yrs . Before my husband left Spain he dedicated “Babe” to me and when he got to Va. within a week I received a “promise ring” not engagement but simply “I love you” I left Italy on June 9 (Im not a 100%sure on date) which was a few days after I graduated. We were married July 14, 1984. On January 5, 1988 I became a paraplegic due to Multiple Sclerosis’s and I refused to let it destroy me. We had our 1 and only child 3 yrs later. So BABE will forever be a gift 💝 in my world. Were celebrating 38 yrs this yr
He wrote this song as a gift for his wife. When he played it for the band they wanted to record it for the album. Then it went number one and they ended up resenting it lol.
Harri, The versatility of Stxy is they have such great vocalists . Tommy Shaw Sang Renegade that you liked. Try,,,,,,, To Much Time On My Hands .... James Young also sings a song called .....Miss America.......you might like
Dennis DeYoung (who sang lead on "Come Sail Away") was one of the founding members of the band and has such an amazing, distinct voice! He also sings lead on "Lady," the band's first hit in 1973, which has a similar sound to "Come Sail Away." You might also like these Styx songs with Tommy Shaw ("Renegade") on lead vocals: "Fooling Yourself ("the Angry Young Man)" and "Too Much Time on My Hands."
Thank you for your reaction Harri. I've enjoyed hearing your thoughts and feelings of Styx so far and am excited to see more Styx reactions. If you want another song like Babe from Styx look no further than Lady. Lady is the equal opposite of Babe in almost every. Babe is one of Styx's last major hits released in '81 and Dennis DeYoung wrote it as a private song for his wife and was never meant to be released but when the producers heard it they practically begged him to put it on the album saying it's going to be their next big hit. Lady released in '72 was Styx's first major hit and is an upbeat joyous love song praising and exalting Denis DeYoung's wife and how wonderful it is to be close to her as apposed to a sad song lamenting being away from her. But the producers forbade him from releasing the song because they believed that nobody wanted to hear a love song dedicated to someone's wife from a rock band. They told him that Styx needed to maintain the rockstar persona of drugs, drinking, and tons of women to sell albums but Dennis DeYoung disagreed believing people would want a love song from a rock band so he snuck the song onto the album against the producers' will and it became an instant major hit and is still one of their biggest hits today. Dennis DeYoung proved to the music industry that people do actually want love songs from rock bands dedicated to their wives and nearly 10 years later found himself in the opposite situation were producers were begging him to put a love song on the next album despite him not wanting to with Babe.
Thanks for listening to my request! 😃 Written + sung by Dennis DeYoung. Dennis kept it with himself. Originally, this was for his wife. But Dennis had a change of heart: he decided to release it on the album. Great decision: Nr 1 in 1980. 🤯 Great analysis. Lovely! ❤ Suggested next video: Love at First Sight. Released 10 years later, 1990. 🎹
Dennis DeYoung says this wasn't supposed to be a Styx song, he wrote it for his wife's birthday as a present. The record label reps heard it and the rest is history.
Totally agree that Mr Roboto was total garbage. Ended Styx as we knew them, much like Michael McDonald's influence ended the Doobie Brothers as we knew them.
Some songs by all three singers that are worth listening to. The Best of Times - Dennis DeYoung Angry Young Man - Tommy Shaw Miss America - James Young
This is my favorite Styx song.. this song came out in high school. It takes me back and a girl I wanted to be with at that time. Someone said this was a love letter to one of the members to his wife.
Hi Harri! It's great to finally meet you. I love your reactions! Another great Styx song, that I know you'll love, is Clair de lune/ Ballerina, off their 1976 Crystal Ball album. It's a magnificent song. The piano work is beautiful, and the lead and Harmony vocals are amazing. Towards the end the two guitar players play back and forth for their solos. The whole effect is just stunning. I'm 55 years old, and to this day I haven't heard another group pull off songwriting that is this fantastic! I hope you and your family are doing well, and I'll see you at your next reaction! Take care, Lisa
not to go off topic but if you thought there was a lot of babes in this song, theres a Led Zeppelin song called Babe, Im Gonna Leave You with probably triple the babes and baby in this awesome love song
As many mentioned Lady is a must hear ballad of theirs. If it wasn't for Lady they may not have been famous. It was released from their Styx II album in 1973 but didn't go anywhere. They released their fourth album in 1975 Man of Miracles and Dennis DeYoung said if it hadn't hit he was going back to teaching school. A programmer released Lady again and it became a hit for them. Tommy Shaw joined them in 1976 and they released the Crystal Ball album.
Okay Harri..., let's get serious... & prepare yourself to be surprised & blown away! It's just an instrumental but "WOW"! Emerson, Lake & Palmer / "FANFARE FOR THE COMMON MAN"! A rehearsal! 1977 Olympia Stadium, Montreal, Quebec Canada! REALLY COLD OUT THERE TOO! & THEY ARE HOT & JAMMIN"!
Saw them in concert a few years ago, unfortunately Dennis Deyoung was not with them. When we entered the auditorium the ushers were handing out earplugs. I looked at my wife and laughed saying " if it's too loud you're too old" once they started playing I thought " damn they are pretty loud but great too. I love all their songs but my two favorites are: Too much time on my hands, and Renegade.
Dennis DeYoung wrote this song for his high school sweetheart, Suzanne. All these years later, they're still married and perform together with his band. They're in their seventies and she's still gorgeous. It's a shame that Dennis and the other guys from Styx couldn't get over their differences.
This song you're listening to is actually a demo. Dennis wrote for his wife's birthday and went to record it with the band's bassist and drummer, but it was never intended to be a Styx. The piano in the studio was out of tune but they had a Fender Rhodes lying around so Dennis played that and sung all the harmonies himself. The record label heard it and wanted to put it out as a single, and the band couldn't re-create what they had done on the demo, so they slapped on Tommy Shaw's guitar solo and the rest is history. It became their first and only #1 hit.
I met my husband in 1997, 3 months shy of turning 40. I was a die hard country music lover and had not been subjected to very many other genres since my Mom sold her diner in 83 and no more juke box. Anyway....this song was one of the first he played for me after we met. It melted my heart as did he.
Other great songs by Styx are, The Best Of Times, Come Sail Away and The Grand Illusion. Many people like Mr.Roboto but IMO that was one of their worst songs and left many true Styx fans with a bad taste in their mouths. Very 80’s synthesized nonsense.
Another great reaction, Harri, but by now we expect no less! Between you and me, Harri, since I am one of the many who demanded you react to this one we will just "forget" about all the others and claim that you took my request with this one, lol!! Dennis DeYoung is the lead singer on this one and unless something has changed recently he is still married to his babe many many years later!! "Lady" is next! And don't forget you told me you were going to get to "Lucretia MacEvil by Blood Sweat and Tears before long!!!
A FEW MORE SONGS FROM THESE GUYS: LADY, TOO MUCH TIME ON MY HANDS, CASTLE WALLS, THE GRAND ILLUSION, THE BEST OF TIMES :) I GUESS THAT'S GOOD FOR NOW HARRI
Aye I am clapping wid ja and I have heard this way many times before /**** LADY / LIGHT UP / LORELIE / ANGRY YOUNG MAN ,that sounds like a song title but it is 4 different suggestions
I’ve always wished I could sing Styx on karaoke nights, but I’m a baritone, and Styx songs weren’t written in my key. The octave change has always been to low for me;(;(
It is beautiful, and far from their usual style. It was never meant to be recorded, he wrote this purely for his wife as reassurance for when he was on the road. I don't recall exactly who it was but someone insisted they record it and release it as a single, turned out to be their biggest worldwide hit. Love this band, so underrated. Oh, and they're still married, so he wasn't lying.
Would love to hear you review this one. Glenn Campbell also did a version but this was the original ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-NEY4LxORCeo.html
So funny that you’d compare him to Rush. Those two bands are the only ones this side of techno/disco that mastered the use of the synth. And if you want QUANTITY of great songs, Styx is unparalleled and horribly underrated. But one band that equals them? Rush. Few others do. Even epic bands like The Stones, The Eagles, Zeppelin haven’t put out the volume of high quality songs. Rush and Styx are in a class all their own. And while many might begrudgingly accept that about Rush (begrudgingly, because while they’d put them on the same level as the aforementioned bands, I’m not sure they’d put them higher). But Styx? Styx?!?!?!?! Did I seriously compare them to Rush, who I put above icons like Zeppelin and The Eagles? Yes, yes I did. To be clear, I’m talking about the quantity of quality songs. The BEST Zeppelin, Stones or Eagles song is probably better than the best Styx song. But if you just look at the actual number of songs worth taking the time to do a reaction to and post a video on here, yeah, it’s not close. Rush and Styx both blow away the competition. The only comparable are Elvis, The Beatles, MJ and maybe one or two others. And that’s why I say that Styx is the most underrated band ever. They’re in that pantheon with the best of the best. Yet, they’re not considered as such. I don’t mean to sound bent out of shape about it, lol, because they are certainly held in high regard. I don’t think many people disrespect them. Everyone recognizes that they were quite good. All I’m saying is that their degree of excellence is severely understated. One of the best rock bands of all time. I’m not sure why they’re so underrated, but I have four ideas, which o won’t bother with now… I just mention it because I think I legit understand why they’re so underrated and, so… it makes me believe I’m right that they’re underrated… because I can put my finger on it. Sooooo, yeah, one of the most underrated bands in the history of rock and roll.
