40 Years Ago, People Wanted Their MTV

It's the 40th anniversary of the launching of MTV, otherwise known as Music Television. The channel still exists, but it's anything but a music video channel these days. It's sad that reality TV replaced the music, but I have to admit I had a bad feeling when they put that crap show known as The Real World on the air. Even sadder is that nobody has come along to do what MTV used to do, because I believe it could still work. You have so many channels these days, why wouldn't there be room for this? 

Back in those days, the cable box was just making its way into people's homes. I don't know if we had the cable box when August 1st, 1981 came along. It might have been a few months after when I became aware of this channel. The music industry freaked out about it, and the record labels didn't want to support this upstart channel. They thought it would hurt their own bottom line. However, record sales started to go up for the artists who did put videos on this channel. Suddenly, the labels wanted in on the deal.

There is speculation about where the concept for Music Television really came from. Was it Michael Nesmith who deserves the credit? He was on the Monkees long before he started playing with the music video concept, and certainly segments of that show took on the appearance of MTV music videos. Actually, bands would do promotional videos long before MTV became a thing. Those videos would play at record stores as a way to entice people to buy their records. Whenever the case, the rocket launched and the first song on the air was Video Killed The Radio Star by The Buggles. The music industry wasn't quite the same.

Radio stations had DJs, but MTV had VJ's. They were JJ Jackson, Martha Quinn, Nina Blackwood, Mark Goodman and Alan Hunter. These guys and gals would introduce the newest videos. They got to interview the artists and even check out some of big concerts. What an exciting time it must have been to be on the ground floor of launching this channel. This is before Viacom got their hands on it and pretty much turned it into crap. We were getting music videos. If there was nothing on TV, you could just flip to the channel and kill a couple of hours enjoying some music and some cool videos

There were many promotions that they did. there were lots of contests that they had, but they had the campaign to get the channel on various cable systems. Back then, some of those cable carriers were reluctant to put a channel like this in their lineup. Hence, "I want my MTV" became the catch phrase with Billy idol and other artists saying the phrase. For all of the criticisms of this channel, there really was nothing like it. We were introduced to music we might not have otherwise heard, some of it good and some of it bad.

One of the big critics of the channel was Frank Zappa, and it's very interesting to go back and listen to some of the things he said about the music industry and the world in general. He wasn't that far off the mark. His concern was that MTV was all about style over substance. How you looked was more important than how well you could play or the songs you created. True, there was some garbage on MTV, but there was good music being created and shown to us. It's sad that artists like Christopher Cross didn't catch a break on MTV because he didn't have the look. Some of the top '70s acts didn't quite make the transition and missed the wave that MTV rode In on. 

I could easily get into talking about the different artists. Billy Idol, Pat Benatar, Duran Duran, Twisted Sister, Michael Jackson, Madonna, Van Halen, Prince, Genesis and so many more. If you were there, you know. You probably enjoyed this channel. It changed the music industry, and I don't necessarily think it hurt it. Music was immensely popular in the 1980s and records were selling off the shelves. Concert tickets were selling out, and MTV had a hand in all of that. 

As we went into the 1990s, things started to change. The channel became less about music until it was ultimately phased out of the lineup entirely. They created MTV2, but even they phased music out as did VH1. It boggles my mind that there is no channel doing what they did when we have so many channels to choose from. You can't tell me that there's not enough room for one channel that does this. Better yet, why doesn't Viacom make a Classic MTV channel that shows things as they aired all those years ago? It's just a time that has gone by, but those of us who saw it in its infancy can attest to how cool MTV was. I can't believe it's been 40 years.

Dennis DeYoung Should Have Replaced Tommy Shaw In Styx After The Kilroy Tour

I'm going to do a little bit of speculation on the history of the rock group Styx. There may be an even bigger article coming. In that column, I'll speculate on how certain members of the current band Styx really feel about Dennis DeYoung and why I'm led to believe that. In this article, I want to talk about why DeYoung should have replaced Tommy Shaw in Styx after the Kilroy Was Here tour.

 

As somebody who considers Styx one of my all-time favorite bands, it makes me sad to see what's currently happening with the key members of the group that I loved. Sure, I always leaned towards Dennis DeYoung in this group. However, I appreciated what everybody brought to this band. Although I think they wouldn't have been as big a band or maybe even existed without Dennis, you can't argue the edge that James Young brought to the act, nor can you ignore the fact that Tommy Shaw brought the band to a whole new level when he joined.

I don't want to talk too much about what should be covered in another article, but I will say that Dennis has spent the last 20 years disproving the narrative that the other band members have been trying to create. From the position that they are in, they can just keep moving forward and define Styx however they choose. They own the band name. From Dennis's perspective, It's not just about him proving that what these guys have said is wrong. You can tell that he is deeply hurt by the things that took place after the second reunion tour of the band in 1997.

DeYoung never thought it would come down to this. How could he? There wouldn't even be a band if not for Dennis. He formed it with John and Chuck Panozzo. They were a very different band in 1962. They weren't the rock band we came to know. This was a group that did cover tunes and played at weddings and other venues in the Chicago area.

At some point between then and the time 10 years later when they became Styx, they became a rock band. They were still playing cover tunes and figuring out who they were as a band. Up till that point, nobody who's currently performing live with the band was even in the band. By the time they got their first record deal with Wooden Nickel, James Young had joined.

DeYoung played an important part in creating the sound of this group. It wasn't that he did everything, but from the moment they recorded the song Lady, he understood what this band was meant to be. He also understood that he wasn't the only reason they sounded the way they did. He understood the part each member played in that sound. When it came to writing and creating the music, he understood what James brought to the deal.
 
When Shaw came along after they got their second record deal with A&M records, he knew exactly what the new band member brought to the act. They already knew what their sound was. Tommy's contributions were the songs that he brought, not necessarily the shaping of the overall sound of the band. They already knew who they were by then.

Fast forward to the Kilroy Was Here tour. It's my belief that Tommy was already very unhappy with this band before they even recorded that album. I personally believe it started going downhill for him the moment they did Cornerstone, but I'll talk about why in another article. Dennis clearly had a vision for Kilroy Was Here, and I think the themes of that album are very important. Musically, it left Tommy unsatisfied, and he wanted out. Dennis has even admitted that everybody else was still good to go. They wanted to continue with a big stadium greatest hits tour and live album before heading back into the studio a year or so later.

Dennis has even mentioned that he promised Young that they would do the stadium tour after Kilroy, but Tommy left at that point. It was pretty clear that James, Chuck and John still wanted to continue, but Dennis didn't want to. He was looking at the band dynamics and who they were. He believed that fans would not accept this band without Tommy bringing what he brought to the show. Therefore, the three other remaining members could not convince DeYoung that it was a good idea to tour. Did he make the right decision? Here is where I will engage in some speculation.

Other bands had replaced lead singers for whatever reason by then. Kansas had replaced Steve Walsh and still had some chart success with a new lead singer. AC/DC had to replace Bon Scott and ended up having the biggest chart success they'd ever had. There were cases of bands moving forward without key original singers, and they were able to sell concert tickets and create new music.

Considering the minor success Styx had about a decade later with Edge Of The Century and the fact that Tommy wasn't involved in that album, I'd have to believe that this band would have been okay for at least a few years. It's my belief that Dennis should have replaced Shaw at that point, and there's a few reasons I believe this.

I have to agree with critics of bands when it comes to replacing singers and not trying to get somebody who sounds like the guy everybody loved. I think Lawrence Gowan is a fine keyboardist, but he sounds so different than Dennis that he becomes distracting when you listen to him singing anything that Dennis recorded with Styx. He doesn't do him fair justice. When Journey replaced Steve Perry, they at least made an effort to bring in somebody who sounded like the guy. Say what you want about Arnel Pineda, he's a reasonable vocal facsimile of Perry.

Dennis was right about what Tommy brought to the band, and simply putting a guy in there that could sing decently and play guitar would not have worked. However, we witnessed over the last decade that DeYoung understood that in his own band. They finally play Styx songs that were made famous by Tommy, and the guy they have singing those songs, August Zadra, does a good job of making the song sound close to what long time fans remember. There's only one Shaw, but I'm saying that DeYoung did a reasonable job of bringing somebody into his band who could sing those songs.

The first order of business would have been going out on the road and playing live. That was the plan. The band could have taken as long as they needed to bring in a guy who could sing the Tommy Shaw songs faithfully enough and play guitar. Then, they go out on the road. We're talking 1984 at that point, and I think it would have worked reasonably well for the guys. There's probably a live album at that point and maybe even a concert that would have appeared on MTV. Then, they go back into the studio with the new guy, unless Tommy decides at that point that he wants to come back.

It's possible that Tommy sees that the guys are touring and rocking out more than they did on the Kilroy tour, and he wants back in. Maybe not. If not, the band records another album, and they possibly have a little bit of success. Maybe they don't reach the triple platinum status of before, but gold or even platinum is possible.

With their status, they can go back out on tour and make money, and the band still continues. Another tour and another album? That's just possible. All the while, the door is still open for Tommy to come back, but what if the new guy actually does such a good job that they don't need Shaw to come back into the band? Again, this is just speculation.

DeYoung tried to wait Tommy out and did his own solo stuff. It should be pointed out that Dennis really made no attempts in any of his solo work to sound like Styx until he did 100 Years From Now about 15 years ago and then his latest two albums. This is because he wanted Styx to be done by the band, not just himself. While he disbanded this group for about 8 years, he waited for Tommy. Tommy had no incentive because he was still making records and touring. He wasn't doing as good as he had with the band, but he was still doing okay throughout the 1980s.

What going back on tour does is keeps the other band members happy. The other three members probably pointed out that they were there before Tommy for a while and felt that they were as much the band as he was. If it didn't work out, which I doubt would have been an issue, they could have given it up a couple of years later.

However, what if Tommy looks over at the band and decides he really wants to come back? It's very possible that after a tour and another album with somebody else, Tommy is brought back in and we get the lineup of the band that we all know and love. Dennis isn't seen as the bad guy for putting an end to the band for so long, and who knows what songs they create at that point?

The other thing about DeYoung bringing this band back is the other three members are happy and they continue on in the newer incarnation. There's not eight years of idle time that builds up any sort of animosity from those members. He can at least claim that he tried as requested if it doesn't work out, and it's not going to damage the reputation of the more popular songs from the band.

The other thing it does is keeps the band under the guidance of Dennis. This slightly different history makes it less likely that he gets kicked out of the band when it eventually happened, and he doesn't have to go through the last 20 years trying to defend himself and figure out what went wrong.

I dislike the idea of replacing popular members of bands when they are still available. If somebody actually doesn't want to come back, that's another story. Perry doesn't want to be in Journey, so that's not going to happen. DeYoung very much wants to be in Styx, even if it's just for one final tour. He's been wanting to do something with the guys for a while now, but they won't hear it.

DeYoung is powerless to do much about it at this point except for explaining his side of the story in interviews. Had he went ahead and done the stadium tour after Kilroy, it's just possible that he'd still be in the band to this day. That's my take as an observer and a fan of the classic line up of the band.
 

Original Kansas Violinist Robby Steinhardt Dead At 71

I just got word that original Kansas violinist Robby Steinhardt has passed away. He was 71 years old. People probably don't think about the violin as an instrument in rock music, but Robby probably did more to change that perception than anyone. The sound of Kansas was unmistakable. The violin set Kansas apart from any other band and played a big role in helping take them to stardom. It still boggles my mind that this band hasn't been inducted into the Hall of Fame yet.

One of the first albums I bought as a kid was Point Of Know Return. Who can forget Dust In The Wind? It's not only one of the greatest songs a rock band has ever recorded, it's something that's part of pop culture for the ages. Robby's violin solo set the song apart, and he also did backing vocals. Throughout the first seven albums of the band, he got to sing lead vocals on several songs. He helped give this band an edge.

I can remember thinking about the album cover of Point Of Know Return and the song Dust In The Wind, but I devoured the music. When I saw the picture of the long haired guy with the beard, I was mesmerized. Steinhardt was always my favorite member of this band. He sang lead vocals on maybe Kansas's hardest rocking song during the classic run of the band, Lightning's Hand. I understand his favorite song in which he sang lead vocals was Miracles Out Of Nowhere, which was certainly a good song.

Some of my favorite songs featured him either doing lead vocals or sharing the lead vocals with iconic lead singer Steve Walsh. I loved All The World, which is still one of my all-time favorites from the band. Sparks Of The Tempest, Apercu, Child Of Innocence, Down The Road, Hopelessly Human. I'm getting a bit choked up thinking about Robby and what his role in Kansas meant to me as a fan. Listen to his violin work on songs like Chasing Shadows, The Pinnacle and Nobody's Home, but he could also rock out, as evidenced with songs like Apercu, Down The Road and Bringing it Back.

As with any band, tensions heat up and the dynamic changes when somebody leaves. The band was in the midst of recording what became their eighth studio album, Vinyl Confessions. In fact, the album was pretty much recorded when Walsh decided it was time to leave. He didn't like the religious message lyricist Kerry Livgren was putting in the music. As the lead singer, he felt he would be seen as preaching to the fans. Steinhardt tried the soldier forward and did the original lead vocals for Crossfire, though the John Elefante version is what we eventually got. 

Truthfully, you could see his role diminishing in the band after Point Of Know Return. Yes, he still had a vocal presence and his violin was present, but his lead singing opportunities dwindled. I think he lost interest in the band after Walsh left, and he sort of unceremoniously walked away at the end of the Vinyl Confessions tour. We didn't hear much from Robby for a long time, and the band became much different without his presence. 

They went through the remainder of the 1980s without a violinist before David Ragsdale convinced them they needed to bring it back in the 1990s. Ragsdale is certainly a fine violinist and has done a good job of carrying on the legacy of this band that Robby helped create.

We probably wouldn't have heard anything from him, but the band dynamics of Kansas changed again when Ragsdale left at the end of the Freaks Of Nature tour. When Phil Ehart wanted to revisit the classic hits with a studio album recorded with the London Symphony Orchestra, he got an idea. He had seen Steinhardt perform with the band Steinhardt-Moon, and he sounded great. Phil was able to convince him to come back, and they recorded Always Never The Same. It's all the classic songs with a few new ones, and you get the London Symphony Orchestra.

Though Steve Walsh had the passion and still sang as hard as ever, his voice clearly wasn't what it was in the glory days. However, Robby sounded like he did back then. I'm fortunate that I was able to see the band on the Point Of Know Return 20th Anniversary Tour. Even more so, Robby's manager Nick Fakouri was arranging for fans to get to meet him backstage. I went to two shows one weekend and got to hang out with him, talk for a moment and got autographs and pictures. It's truly a treasured memory for me, moreso because I got to share it with my sister, who has since passed on. 

What Robby was able to bring to the band was his stage presence. He was always the guy who introduced the songs back in the glory days and bantered with the crowd a little bit. This is the role he filled for the next decade or so. Robby got to exercise his vocal chops on the last studio album that featured all of the original members, Somewhere To Elsewhere. Distant Vision is a song that stands out to me. However, Kansas was touring pretty heavily. As the first decade of the 2000s was close to winding down, you could see that the road was not agreeing with him. Ultimately, he left again as Ragsdale rejoined the band.

I think there were certain members of the band who were hurt by his departure and maybe even felt he was abandoning them. I remember reading a few things, but it's not worthy of getting into the details. The bottom line was Robby's health wasn't so good. I do believe he would have been ready to get back up on stage with the guys for the 40th Anniversary Show they had planned, but there was bad news. He suffered a stroke and was unable to be there. Much like Livgren when he had a similar health issue, Steinhardt battled back.

You could tell that he still had the passion to be involved in music, and he was hanging out with the guys of Stormbringer and occasionally playing and singing with them. At first, you could tell he was still suffering the effects of the stroke, and it was a bit sad to watch. What it did illustrate, however, was his desire to do what he loved to do and his determination to get better. Gradually, you could see him getting healthier and stronger. He was again playing the violin and singing, and I'm sure the fans who came to see him in Florida and surrounding states enjoyed his performances.

By all accounts, Robby was one of the nicest guys you would want to meet. He was friendly and outgoing as a person. I can only go by my interaction with him. When he came back to the band, you could tell he was happy to be there again. I was not aware that his health was in decline again, and I don't have all the details. I understand he was even recording new music again, which is nice. Maybe we'll get to hear that as I'm always curious what band members record when they are out on their own. 

Robby Steinhardt will always be one of my all-time favorite musicians. He was an important part of why I have become a lifelong Kansas fan. Some of the songs he sang and played on are my favorites to this day, and I'm glad that he was able to touch my life and others with his music. There's not much else that I can say about this other than the fact that he will be missed. I think we should all appreciate any of the classic groups and artists that are still out there performing while we still have them. My condolences go out to his family.