Styx

Multi-platinum rock band Styx returns to the City National Civic of San Jose on March 17.

With over 30 million records sold in North America alone, Styx has forged an indelible legacy both on record and onstage. Tommy Shaw, James “JY” Young, Chuck Panozzo, Lawrence Gowan, Ricky Phillips and Todd Sucherman have been together longer than any other lineup in the band’s 40-year history.

In order to achieve a collectively mutual goal of live excellence, a band must have a time-tested arsenal of aurally rigorous and rewarding material to get it there, and Styx draws from over four decades of barn-burning chart hits, joyous singalongs, and hard-driving deep cuts to do so. Like a symphony that builds to a satisfying crescendo, a Styx set covers a wide range of stylistic cornerstones. From the progressively sweeping splendor that is “The Grand Illusion” to the hunker-down fortitude of all that is the “Blue Collar Man,” from the majestic spiritual love for a special “Lady” to the poignant rumination on the fleeting nature of fame in “Miss America,” from an individual yearning for true connection as a “Man in the Wilderness” to a soul-deep quest to achieve what’s at the heart of one’s personal vision in “Crystal Ball,” from the regal reach-for-the-stars bravado of “Come Sail Away” to the grainy all-in gallop of that rugged “Renegade” who had it made, the band draws on an unlimited cache of ways to immerse one’s mind and body in their signature sound.

Spawned from a suburban Chicago basement in the early ‘70s, Styx would eventually transform into the virtual arena rock prototype by the late '70s and early '80s, due to a fondness for big rockers and soaring power ballads. Early on, Styx's music reflected such then-current prog rockers as Emerson, Lake & Palmer and the Moody Blues, as evidenced by such releases as 1972's self-titled debut, 1973's Styx II, 1974's The Serpent Is Rising, and 1975's Man of Miracles. While the albums helped the group build a substantial following locally, Styx failed to break through to the mainstream, until a track originally from their second album, "Lady" started to get substantial airplay. The song was soon issued as a single nationwide, and quickly shot to number six on the singles chart, as Styx II was certified gold. On the eve of the tour in support of the album, original guitarist John Curulewski abruptly left the band, and was replaced by Tommy Shaw.  Shaw proved to be the missing piece of the puzzle for Styx, as most of their subsequent releases throughout the late '70s earned at least platinum certification.

1981's Paradise Theater became Styx's biggest hit of their career, selling over three million copies in a three-year period, becoming one of the U.S. top rock acts. It also marked the first time in history that a band released four consecutive triple-platinum albums.

Over the course of their illustrious career they’ve performed more live shows since 1999 than all of the previous years of its career combined. Throughout their career, they have had two Super-Bowl appearances, multiple Pollstar box office chart-topping tours with Def Leppard, Journey, Boston, REO Speedwagon, and Yes (to name a few), and no end in sight. STYX continues to conquer the planet, one venue at a time.

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