Happy Valentine's Day and Whatnot friends.
I'm not a big fan of Valentine's Day.
I've been in a state of total inertia as far as getting the Mushtastic Month of February going on the Ocho-rific. I'm
mentally and emotionally worn out to be perfectly honest with you ... all 200 or so of you :) You've felt that way though.. every single one of you understand..so why not tell the truth :)
Anyhoo - so today is Valentine's day. I bought one Valentine's gift as it just landed in front of me yesterday afternoon while picking up some art supplies at Michael's.
I was waiting in a rather lengthy line and couldn't help but notice the gargantuan explosion of red and pink and everything LOVE right beside me. Bleich - I prefer to get stuck in line near things like books... As I perused it from afar, but not really far enough :) .. I couldn't help but notice one single package of "Lovetastic Valentine's Day Pancake Mix" ... or whatever ridiculous thing they had named it...
NOW, for that to be even remotely entertaining to you; you would have to know that I have a friend who's been dreading V-Day and she keeps saying she's looking forward to Pancake Day. I can't quite recall when Pancake Day is, though she has told me and everyone else on her FB on multiple occasions... but it's coming up.
ANYHOO - I decided I absolutely must grab this pancake mix for her.
NOW then ((and we're almost to the Song o the Day)) .. she works in the office building that I clean on Sundays - so I had the opportunity to leave the Valentine Pancake Mix on her desk.
I started to leave a note and say "Thank you for being a friend". But then I thought how funny it would be if she just found the pancake mix ... knowing that she'd blabbed about it all over FB and hopefully give her a hysterical moment of "Oh my God (!!) someone's stalking me and they've left me pancake mix!!!" So I just left it there and we'll see what happens. I'll keep you posted...
Now, on to today's Ocho-rific Song o the Day...
KEEP PUSHING - REO SPEEDWAGON - 1976
Let me go on record as saying this is beyond a shadow of a doubt one of my all-time-favorite upbeat hits! Let me also go on record as saying if you even remotely enjoy REO and have an opportunity to see them, don't miss it! Kevin Cronin puts any 30 year old to shame, he is absolutely bounding with energy~REO is absolutely in my Top 5 Fave bands and I don't did a rat's shiny patute what year it is :)
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| Kevin Cronin on stage with Tommy Shaw of Styx, Jack Blades of Night Ranger and Bruce Hall of REO - taken by me, KCoJax @ Styx, REO and Night Ranger in Nashville in November of '09. |
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| Kevin Cronin and Tommy Shaw - taken by me, KCoJax @ Styx, REO and Night Ranger in Nashville in November of '09. |
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| Kevin Cronin and Bruce Hall - taken by me, KCoJax @ Styx, REO and Night Ranger in Nashville in November of '09. |
***
-Browse
REO Speedwagon
Concert Dates and Locations
HERE-
***
I used to be lonely till I learned about livin alone
I found other things to keep my mind on
And I'm gettin to know myself a little bit better
Whoa , I keep pushin on
Keep pushin on, yeah
Goin through all the changes I made so many mistakes, oh yes I did
Tryin to leave behind the heartaches
And sometimes I think I was a little bit crazy, oh yeah
Whoa, I keep pushin on
Keep pushin, keep pushin, keep pushin, keep pushin on
Keep pushin, keep pushin, you know you have got to be so strong
Keep pushin, keep pushin, well even if you think your strength is gone
Keep pushin on
(solo)
Well it's comin together I finally feel like a man, oh yes I do
I never thought that I'd be where I am, oh
Everyday I wake a little bit higher
Whoa I keep pushin on, oh yeah
(repeat chorus)
Words & Music Kevin Cronin
©1976 CBS Inc., all rights reserved
***
1979
1979
After the "turn of the century"... :)
Highly recommended!
Artistfacts:
| They were named after a fire engine. The Name "REO Speedwagon" Refers to Ransom Earl Olds, the founder of Oldsmobile. The Speedwagon was one of the Models prior to Oldsmobile. (thanks, James - Anaheim, CA) |
***
::Wiki "Facts"::
REO Speedwagon took its name from the REO Speed Wagon, a flatbed truck and fire engine, manufactured by the REO Motor Car Company. ("R.E.O." are initials of the company's founder, Ransom Eli Olds, who also founded Oldsmobile, once a division of General Motors.)
***REO Speedwagon was formed by students attending the University of Illinois in Champaign, Illinois, in the fall of 1967 to play cover songs in campus bars.
***
The first line up consisted of Alan Gratzer on drums and vocals, Neal Doughty on keyboards, Joe Matt on guitar and vocals, and Mike Blair on bass and vocals. In the spring of 1968, Terry Luttrell became lead singer, and Bob Crownover and Gregg Philbin replaced Matt and Blair. Joe McCabe played sax at this time until moving to Southern Illinois University. Crownover played guitar for the group until the summer of 1969 when Bill Fiorioreplaced him. Fiorio then departed in late 1969, eventually assuming the name Duke Tumatoe, and went on to form the All Star Frogs. Another guitarist, Steve Scorfina, came aboard briefly, and was replaced by Gary Richrath in late 1970.
Richrath was a Peoria, Illinois-based guitar player and prolific songwriter who brought original material to the band including REO's signature song "Ridin' the Storm Out". With Richrath on board, the regional popularity of the band grew tremendously. The Midwestern United States was the original REO Speedwagon fan stronghold and is pivotal in this period of the band's history.
The band signed to Epic Records in 1971. Paul Leka, an East Coast record producer, brought the band to his recording studio in Bridgeport,Connecticut where it recorded original material for its first album. The lineup on the first album consisted of Richrath, Gratzer, Doughty, Philbin, and Luttrell.
Starting out with their equipment being hauled to dates in a friend's used station wagon, REO played bars all over the Midwest. The band's debut album, REO Speedwagon, was released on Epic Records in 1971. The most popular track on this record was "157 Riverside Avenue". The title refers to the Westport, Connecticut, address where the band stayed while recording in Leka's studio in nearby Bridgeport, and remains an in-concert favorite.
Although the rest of the band's line-up remained stable, REO Speedwagon switched lead vocalists three times for their first three albums. Luttrell left the band in early 1972, eventually becoming the vocalist for Starcastle. He was replaced by Kevin Cronin. Cronin recorded one album with the band, 1972's R.E.O./T.W.O., but left the band during the recording sessions for 1973's Ridin' The Storm Out because of ego conflicts [4]. Ridin' the Storm Out was completed with Michael Bryan Murphy on lead vocal. Murphy stayed on for two more albums, Lost in a Dream and This Time We Mean It, before Cronin returned to the fold in January 1976 and recorded R.E.O., which was released that same year. Cronin's return came after Greg X. Volz turned down the position for lead vocals due to his conversion to Christianity.
REO Speedwagon's first live album, Live: You Get What You Play For (1977), was certified platinum. In 1977, Philbin was replaced with Bruce Hall to record You Can Tune a Piano but You Can't Tuna Fish, released in 1978 which received FM radio airplay. The album was REO's first to make the Top 40, peaking at #29. The album sold over 2 million copies in the U.S. which led it to go 2x Platinum. In 1979, the band took a turn back to hard rock with the release of Nine Lives.
The lineup was now set for the band's most popular era. In the fall of 1980, REO Speedwagon released Hi Infidelity, which represented a change in the music from hard rock to more pop-oriented material.[5] Hi Infidelity spawned four hit singles written by Richrath and Cronin, including the #1 "Keep On Loving You", the #5 "Take It on the Run", "In Your Letter" (#20), and "Don't Let Him Go" (#24), and remained on the charts for 65 weeks, 32 of which were spent in the top ten, including 15 weeks atop the Billboard 200.
Good Trouble (1982) and Wheels Are Turnin' (1984) were follow-up albums which also did well commercially, the former containing the hit singles "Keep the Fire Burnin'" (U.S. #7) and "Sweet Time" (U.S. #26) and the latter containing the #1 hit single "Can't Fight This Feeling" plus three more hits: "I Do' Wanna Know" (U.S. #29), "One Lonely Night" (U.S. #19) and "Live Every Moment" (U.S. #34).
On July 13, 1985, the band made a stop in Philadelphia (en route to a show in Milwaukee) to play at the US Leg of Live Aid. They performed "Can't Fight this Feeling" and "Roll With The Changes", which featured members of the Beach Boys, the REO Speedwagon band members families, and Paul Shaffer on stage for backing vocals. 1987's Life as We Know It saw a decline in sales, but still managed to provide the band with the hits "That Ain't Love" (U.S. #16) and "In My Dreams" (U.S. #19).[6]
By the end of the 1980s, the band's popularity was waning.[5] In September 1988, Gratzer retired and in early 1989, Richrath was asked to leave over disagreements with Cronin regarding musical direction. Cronin had been playing in a jazz ensemble called "The Strolling Dudes" with jazz horn player Rick Braun, Miles Joseph on lead guitar and Graham Lear on drums. Lear was invited to join REO to replace Gratzer and Joseph was brought in as a temporary guitarist. Back up singers Carla Day and Melanie Jackson were also added in 1989 to boost the group's vocal sound onstage. This lineup did only one show—in Viña del Mar, Chile—winning the award for best group at the city's annual International Song Festival. After that, Miles Joseph and the back up singers were dropped in favor of former Ted Nugent guitarist Dave Amato and songwriter/producer/keyboardist Jesse Harms (Eddie Money, Sammy Hagar).
From 1995 to the present, the label released over a dozen compilation albums featuring greatest hits, including 1999's The Ballads. In 2000, REO teamed up with Styx for an appearance at Riverport Amphitheater in St. Louis, which was released as a live concert video Arch Allies: Live at Riverport. The REO portion of the show was released again under three separate titles: Live - Plus (2001), Live Plus 3 (2001) and Extended Versions (2001)(which was certified Gold by the RIAA on 4/26/2006). REO once again teamed with Styx in 2003 for the Classic Rock's Main Event tour which also includedJourney. In 2008 they teamed with Styx and Def Leppard for another major tour headlined by Def Leppard to promote its latest album.
REO Speedwagon continues to tour regularly, performing mostly their classic hits.[7] They are popular on the fair and casino circuits, but still team with other acts to play large venues. They teamed up with Styx to record a new single entitled "Can't Stop Rockin'", released in March 2009, as well as for a full tour that includes special guest .38 Special.[8]
***
Have a Grand and Groovy Day!!
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Please and Thanks!
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