Whether you're young or old, everyone loves a good song about memories and good times. These are ten things you didnt, Read More 10 Things You Didnt Know about Andrew BaenaContinue, Angel Vivaldi is a New Jersey-based progressive metal guitarist, composer, producer, environmentalist, and philanthropist. 2023 Getty Images. Well, that got dropped. DK: A few years later, you followed up with another big ballad, Cant Fight This Feeling. Is this song perhaps the most popular song youve written? DK: So what were you thinking about, when you wrote Cant Fight This Feeling? In the original script there was a shot of a banner that has a big REO Speedwagon logo and says "Welcome to the Missouri Dental Association Convention." REO Speedwagon lead singer Kevin Cronin turns to his kids for advice when deciding on new projects including the band's recent cameo on Netflix's "Ozark.". DK: These days, so much of the songwriting process is co-writing, particularly in Nashville. I saw both seasons, all the way through, and I was like, Im ready to go. At that point, Cronin decided to dole out some tough love and stop enabling his son. "It was so inspirational.". Friday's prayer vigil with its call for justice on George's behalf "was beautiful," LaTonya said. DK: A couple years later REO released Hi Infidelity, which became your biggest album. Im trained on the guitarI took guitar lessons for years when I was a kid. Scott Weiland, lead singer of Stone Temple Pilots and Velvet Revolver, died December 3 at age 48. Zelenskyy on Anniversary of Russian War. But then once I got done with the craftsmanship part of it, I thought HeyI think I could hear this song on the radiopeople might want to listen to it. Its funny, when youre just starting out as a songwriterwhen youre trying to figure things out and see what your path is and where youre headingas I reminisce and think about it, it seems I have these sweet memories of that time. Now I kind of see how it feels when your own name is up there. What are we doing here? I swear to you, all of a sudden from behind one of our road cases pops the ventriloquists dummy. I had just stopped at a truck stop in New MexicoI had a brown paper bag that was sitting on the seat next to me, when the thoughts of the lyrics started coming to me. Notably, both Cant Fight This Feeling and Keep On Loving You reached number one on Billboards Hot 100 singles chart, and became two of the most popular rock ballads of the 1980s. It was basically Garys responsibility to write the songs, and I think he realized thatyou know what they saythat you have your whole life to write your first album but only a year to write your second albnm. I could have very easily followed that fear that I had about that title and thought Oh Man, I better not call it this, because of some commercial concern. I sat there on the floor of my bedroom, and I thought, Alright, what is this song all about? Why cant I name this songwhy cant I write the chorus for this song? The. Classic Rock at the best online prices at eBay! It was just that I needed to really identify where the heart and soul of this piece that I was working on was. Cronin: Yeah, I think so. I didnt just want to jump on an airplaneit was too big of a move for me. REO Speedwagon, Boz Scaggs Latest To Sue Sony Music Over Digital Downloads, I feel so sad. "The lead singer of REO Speedwagon, Kevin - he's a rock-n-roll Hall of Famer - he said, 'How about that LaTonya, your first live performance, and you've got a platinum record already.' ". But, spoiler alert: REO plays a major role in one Season 3 episode, which also happens to be named after the band's lead singer, Kevin Cronin. Ive sat down with peopleIve written with some great writers in Nashville, and for whatever reason, none of those songs have really panned out. Songwriting and music has always been my savior in that way. Midway through the song, the words disappeared from the screen and the singer had to rely on memory to get through the rest. The MCUs tiniest heroes are kicking off its biggest phase yet, setting up the next several years of storytelling. Meanwhile, their 1988 compilation album, The Hits, entered the Top Rock Albums chart at 49. When the call came in for us to appear in Ozark,my reaction was, Theyre going to have REO Speedwagon playing on a riverboat in the Lake of the Ozarks? When I have a question, I bring it up at the dinner table. Are you and the band working on a new studio album? The first time I was introduced to her, when I saw herit was that love at first sight feeling. The bandwe were all kind of going through some chaos in our personal lives. How a gym teacher, a janitor, and a junkie became part of some very famous band names. Showing Editorial results for kevin cronin of reo speedwagon. On Friday, as the trial of former police officer Derek Chauvin for George Floyd's murder continued in Minneapolis, REO lead singer Kevin Cronin joined LaTonya and others for a vigil honoring George, 46, at The Community of Faith Church in Houston, where Cronin and LaTonya stood on stage and sang the song together. REO Speedwagon's 1971 debut album was with their original lead singer, Terry Luttrell. The cause of death has not yet been. Please subscribe. All Rights Reserved. It was one of those albums which was definitely top-heavy with songs that people, to this daythey come to our concerts and we play at least five or six songs from Hi Infidelity every night. My biggest inspiration in music is the Beatles, and Lennon & McCartney in my mind are the great songwriting duo in the history of the world, and I owe everything that I know about being in a band, writing a songI owe it all to the Beatles. It's a different feeling, because I'm not used to it. For our episode, they had me on stage delivering a couple of lines. [1] When my children were born, I didnt name my children when my wife was pregnant. Who is the lead singer in REO Speedwagon? Cronin: I cant say that we felt that. When fans of the Netflix show Ozark tuned in to its third season, they were treated to a surprise appearance from Cronin and the rest of REO Speedwagon during episode three. REO Speedwagon is an American hard rock band from Champaign, Illinois. I couldnt do it the real way that human beings communicate (laughs). I think it's a combination of both. Its like the stars lining up. Paul Natkin/WireImage. We thought it was all going to be right next to each other, like on the show. It was monumental.". The Hi Infidelity album was the one that broke things loose. I named my children after they were born and I looked at them, and I saw their little bodies, and they kind of told me what their names should be to some degree. Afterwards, she spent time with Cronin, his daughter and his manager. But then looking back on it, and now seeing the impact that Cant Fight This Feeling has had on my life, the life of everyone in the REO Speedwagon family, the lives of people whom Ive never met all over the worldpeople have played that song at their weddings. Sold in excess of 17 million records worldwide. Speedwagon ), or simply REO, is an American rock band from Champaign, Illinois. They also have pleaded not guilty. It took a long time, and I wrote that song before I finally got the guts to tell her. Cronin: That song, coincidentally, was number one 35 years ago from right now. document.getElementById( "ak_js_1" ).setAttribute( "value", ( new Date() ).getTime() ); This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. With Cant Fight This Feeling, I did not know what the name of that song was. LaTonya Floyd, at right, with sister Zsa Zsa Floyd at their brother George's funeral June 9, 2020. I didnt put a whole lot of time and energy into the creative part of what I do. Ozark, a dark, violent drama about family both the crime and blood variety is not the kind of show where youd expect to hear the light classic rock stylings of REO Speedwagon. The memoir (which is tentatively titled Roll With the Changes: My Life Within and Without REO Speedwagon) is now in its final stages -according to Cronin, it should be finished in time for a 2022 release. Click to listen to REO Speedwagon on Spotify: http://smarturl.it/REOspot?IQid=RUN Show more REO Speedwagon - Event. So it was literally time for him to fly. These words do not come close to expressing the depth of emotions I am feeling at this time.. And then if Im lucky enough to capture that, then the actual craftsmanship comes into play. Theres no bigger influence for me. Maybe you have and maybe you havent, at least not yet. 2023 Billboard Media, LLC. Search instead in. Cronin was born on October 6, 1951, in the Chicago suburb of Evanston. Streamline your workflow with our best-in-class digital asset management system. Speaking to Guitar World about his favorite piece of kit, he said: People tell me its too valuable to take on tour, but I love playing that guitar so much that I dont care. I thought that if I co-wrote it with someone, I had a feeling it would lose something that was really necessary for the song to happen. The current lineup of REO Speedwagon consists of Cronin, original member Neal Doughty (keyboards), Bruce Hall (bass), Dave Amato (lead guitar) and Bryan Hitt (drums). Hi Infidelity blew the doors off the joint and people went back and discovered (early albums like)You Can Tune a Piano, But You Cant Tuna Fish and discovered R.E.O/T.W.O, and all the songs on those albums. I was really focused on my wife, my children and my homemy children are all in high school now. "If I want to see if . Gary Richrath, a former guitarist for the classic rock band REO Speedwagon who also co-wrote the group's hit song . The Getty Images design is a trademark of Getty Images. Last year, we called our tour the Family First Tour. [But] they sent me the first two seasons of the show and I got on the tour bus, got in my bunk and binge-watched. It just has this huge history to it. Kevin Cronin -- lead singer of '80s rock group REO Speedwagon -- heard the words straight from his own son's mouth . You can find out more and change our default settings with Cookies Settings. Thats another way of doing it. I sat down and started playing those chordsthat was what the song came from. About The Lead Singer Of REO Speedwagon "When Gregg left the band in 1977, he took with him the prog-leaning extended instrumental section aspect of the REO sound," Cronin wrote. document.getElementById( "ak_js_1" ).setAttribute( "value", ( new Date() ).getTime() ); Recording-history.org is a participant in the Amazon.com Services LLC Associates Program. . Erik Stein confirmed on Monday that Richrath passed away but offered no details about the cause of death. We pull up to the last gig of the tour and there on the marquee, in English, it says, REO Speedwagon plus ventriloquist act. We go into the venue, and not only were we sharing the bill, but we were sharing the dressing room with the ventriloquist act. We're all sitting there going, God, this is bullst. I had written some songs before that were okaythey were passable. They perform about 100 dates a year. Billboard is a part of Penske Media Corporation. Yet Im thinking this song is so important to me and I think its got the potential to be a real special song in the world, but this title is going to kill it. But the whole thing about the dentists, that happened in episode one. says the actress. Grow your brand authentically by sharing brand content with the internets creators. Richrath co-wrote some of the bands songs, including Take It on the Run, which became a Top 5 pop hit on the Billboard charts. He realized that the band needed songs. Luckily, I had the sense to stick with my gut and sure enough, Cant Fight This Feeling ends up being the most popular song Ive ever written. I just really felt like it was a two-person job [this past year] more than ever. Cronin is known to play Ovations on tour, and even has his own signature guitar from the brand. It just so happens that the album came out when I was in junior high school. DK: When you write, do you usually create the melody or the lyrics first? I remember where I was when I wrote that song. Richrath released a solo album, Only the Strong Survive,in 1992. And when I had that realization, I went down to my piano room and I wrote the B section and the chorus in about 15 minutes. I think the opening scene is more a literal translation of what the song is about. Among other things, the memoir promises to lift the lid on Cronins troubled relationship with bandmate Gary Richrath, who died from complications following surgery in 2016. Search instead in. The Getty Images design is a trademark of Getty Images. REO Speedwagon has recorded 16 studio albums which have sold a total of more than 40 million units. Charlie discusses the songs that made him a Southern Rock icon, and settles the Devil vs. Johnny argument once and for all. In addition, his songs Roll With The Changes and Keep The Fire Burning have had an enduring impact, becoming rock anthems which convey positive and uplifting lyric themes. Cronin: I was kind of a late bloomer with the ladies. Cronins decision to forgo a college education for music paid off by the age of 20, hed been recruited by REO Speedwagon as a replacement to original lead vocalist, Terry Luttrell.