The Essential REO Speedwagon
REO Speedwagon
Legacy Recordings, 2004
2 CD
Catalogue #: 86015
EAN: 0696998601529
UPC: 696998601529
You save: 25%
REO Speedwagon: Kevin Cronin (vocals, guitar, piano); Mike Murphy (vocals); Gary Richrath (guitar); Bruce Hall (bass guitar).
Liner Note Author: Kevin Cronin.
Named after an early pickup truck, this band from Champaign, Illinois recorded some of America's most popular arena rock. THE ESSENTIAL REO SPEEDWAGON charts the group's progress from 1971 to 1999, from the early riff-rockers on which the act built its fanbase to the juggernaut hits of the early 1980s to a handful of later recordings. Kevin Cronin and company certainly know their way around an anthemic ballad, as evidenced on the guitar-driven "Keep on Loving You," the powerfully catchy "Take It on the Run," and keyboard-laden "Can't Fight This Feeling." The earlier collection THE HITS places all of REO Speedwagon's radio-friendly singles in a more concise, single-disc package for casual fans, but, for those wishing to delve further into the band's catalog, this double-CD compilation is indeed essential.
Tracklist
REO Speedwagon
Though the Champaign, IL group REO SPEEDWAGON eventually became known as one of the preeminent stadium-rock bands of the late 1970s/early '80s, they started out at a grass-roots level as a hardworking local act. On REO's early-'70s albums, their pure American sound hinted at the hard-rock style of bands like the James Gang (whose Joe Walsh guested on RIDIN' THE STORM OUT). By the end of the decade, however, they had adopted a more commercial sound bolstered by power ballads like "Keep on Lovin' You," which broke them through to stardom in 1981. Returned to the top of the charts in 1985 with yet another power ballad "Can't Fight This Feeling."
