I was listening to one of Dennis DeYoung's interviews. One thing about the former lead singer and founding member of the band Styx is that he's charismatic, funny and an entertaining guy to listen to. Despite the fact that he's released two albums in the last two years, you can tell he's very keen on reuniting with Tommy Shaw and James Young for one more tour with the band Styx.
I think one thing fans of his would like if there is no reunion is for him to play some of his new songs live and change things up a bit. When you understand that he's basically touring for nostalgia's sake, it's obvious that this isn't something that's likely to happen. I'm beginning to wonder if there's a possibility that he could get Chuck Panozzo to appear with him and his band for some shows. I get the feeling that it's possible.
When Dennis talks about the magic created by the classic lineup of the band, he points out the importance of the roles that James and Tommy both played in making the band who they are. One of the stories he tells is how the other band members wanted to continue to tour as Styx after Tommy Shaw walked off of the Kilroy Was Here tour. The other three members were keen on doing it, but Dennis felt Tommy brought something to the band that couldn't be replaced.
When you listen to his interviews, Dennis talks about the importance of songs, and he definitely doesn't short change the abilities of either Shaw or Young. What he isn't doing is talking about the importance of Chuck Panozzo on base or John Panozzo, who has since passed away, on drums. He talks about how the songwriters are more important members of the bands, and I can understand that. However, the non-songwriters frequently contribute something to the formation of a song, even if they don't get credit.
When you look at a band like Kansas, for example, it wouldn't exist today without founding drummer Phil Ehart. He was the glue keeping that band together from the moment it was formed, and he's the person who assembled all of the talent to make the band in the first place. Founding guitarist Rich Williams has been there with him the whole time, but these two performers didn't write any of the songs the band is known for. They did contribute something here or there, and the band Kansas simply would not exist if it wasn't for them.
I don't know the dynamics of the band Styx, so I'm not sure how songs were formed and what little contributions were made by people who may not have had writing credits on songs. Did Chuck add a baseline that the writers didn't have in mind? Did John change things up on drums in a way that they hadn't planned? Are there any lyrics that the two might have contributed to a song? I don't know. When they talk about those days, they don't really get into what Chuck or John brought to the band.
I think it's rather funny that Styx continues the narrative that Chuck Panozzo and John Panozzo formed the band Styx. It's laughable, because it's highly unlikely that we would have heard of either one of those two had Dennis not heard them practicing one day. This is when The Tradewinds were formed, and they were a cover band. Even Dennis wasn't the Dennis that we know today. However, it is fair to say that the band wouldn't exist without John or Chuck. They were the inspiration for DeYoung to pursue the dream of creating a band and making music.
With John and Chuck, Dennis learned about playing gigs and they became better musicians. Dennis learned about crafting good songs. The importance that Chuck and John Panozzo have on the history of Styx is undeniable. This band wouldn't have existed without them. I would also go so far as to say that kicking Dennis out of Styx might not have been possible if not for Chuck voting with James. At that point, Tommy didn't have a say, so Chuck was needed in casting the vote to move ahead without Dennis.
In my opinion, any band that becomes famous is the sum of the whole. Many times, there might only be one chief songwriter who crafts the songs. Sometimes there are two. There may be one lead singer or two. The singer and the songwriter are generally the ones who get all of the credit for the fame a band achieves. In some cases, the lead guitarist will get that love, and oftentimes the bass player and the drummer might not get any credit. People sometimes assume that you can put anybody on base and drums and achieve the same results.
Styx was the sum of all of their parts, and they all were important to the band's success. In the case of this band, it wouldn't have been formed without Chuck and John, and they were there as it evolved, got the record deal and achieved the fame. I count myself among the fans who would like to see a reunion of the classic lineup, but the reality is we will never get a complete reunion. This is because John Panozzo has since passed away. I have a feeling that John may have played a more important role in this band than we've been led to believe, but I'll save that speculation for another time.
