This review was commissioned by Mrs. T. Wolcott.
I bought this CD from the CD club in the fall of 96. And for a good while, it was one of my favorites. I mean, I listened to this CD a lot . (Even now, just reading the titles on the back of the CD, I can sing almost all the songs.) But eventually, I moved on to much weirder kinds of music and never really looked back. This is a fine album, it's just not really my taste any more. Since I like basically all of these songs the same I'll just pick a few and write about them.
Lady '95 Basically just an updating of the song that first gained Styx attention on Chicago radio back in 73. I got so used to hearing this version that the 'real' now sounds odd when I hear it on radio. The vocals are definitely better on thi s version, IMO.
Lorelei Before hearing this song, the only exposure I had to the name Lorelei was in the book "Ramona Forever" when they are trying to think of names for the coming baby. This song is, undeniably Styx (read: undeniably cheesy). But that doesn' t stop it from being an effective pop tune.
Babe Once, after hearing this song on the radio, the dj (female) remarked, "Hey, buddy, why don't you learn my actual name?" or words to that effect. It's a very sweet ballad.
Show Me the Way> This was Styx's last hit. It's from 1990 and it always reminds me of the Gulf War, which was going on at the time it was popular. I was pretty freaked out about that war, if I remember correctly.
Renegade, Blue Collar Man These songs were basically the reason I bought this CD. I had heard them on the radio & thought they were pretty cool. Of course, I'm older now and usually don't stop when I hear them while channel-surfing through the FM dial.
Crystal Ball Probably my favorite song on the album. Great to sing along with in the car. Kind of a sad song to boot.
Suite Madam Blue Admittedly, they rip off CSN's "Suite Judy Blue Eyes" with the title but it holds its own as a song. Just another big blustering rock song that's fun because you don't have to think about it too much.
So I would recommend this CD to people that have heard Styx on the radio and like them, or seventies children whose Styx collection is currently only in 8 track format.
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