Styx & Kevin Cronin Celebrate 25 Years of Musical Friendship in the Woodlands!

Styx & Kevin Cronin (REO Speedwagon) co-headlined a show at The Cynthia Woods Mitchell Pavilion in The Woodlands, Tx on June 6th, 2025 with support from Don Felder (formerly of Eagles) on their Brotherhood of Rock Tour in celebration of their 25 year musical friendship performing The Grand Illusion & Hi Infidelity in their entirety!

Styx and Kevin Cronin, the iconic voice and writer behind REO Speedwagon’s greatest hits, have one of the strongest brotherly bonds spanning 25 years, especially since they’ve crossed paths on the North American concert trail along with the occasional joint festival concert. It wouldn’t be summer without a live celebration of some of the greatest Rock anthems of all time, including “Renegade,” “Keep On Loving You,” “Come Sail Away,” “Can’t Fight This Feeling,” and “Hotel California.”

STYX singer/guitarist Tommy Shaw says:

“The winter of 1975 I had returned home to Montgomery, Alabama after accepting the fact that there was very little, if any interest from club owners for seven-piece rock bands who played their original songs, (some of which were 10 minutes long) and we’d finally accepted the reality that people wanted disco music hits to dance to. A musician friend from home called me about a steady gig he and two other local musician friends had in the lounge of the local bowling alley. There was no dance floor, only tables and chairs, and they were playing music from bands like the Eagles, Dan Fogelberg, etc. and singing three-part harmony to locals who were loving it and not wanting to dance. And a steady weekly paycheck! I joined them and spent the rest of that year playing whatever we liked, bought a modest house, bought a used car, and was relieved to be off the road after two years of night club managers who wanted us to play disco. Thinking I’d found a secure life in my hometown, I got a call from a guy named Jim Vosecek, who’d introduced himself to me and the band at a club in Chicago. He explained that he was tour manager of the rock band STYX, that they had just released a new album called EQUINOX, and they were scheduled to embark on their first national tour when a member suddenly quit and left the band. He said to get on the plane they’d booked and come audition. Arriving at O’Hare airport, I met Kevin Cronin who was returning to rejoin his band, REO Speedwagon. It was the beginning of a lifelong friendship that finds us back on the road together, this time under much different circumstances! The BROTHERHOOD of ROCK is stronger than ever!”

Kevin Cronin remembers:

“I remember seeing Tommy’s seven-piece funk/rock band at the Rush Up club in Chicago, during my mid-‘70s REO hiatus, and then bumping into him at O’Hare Airport a few weeks later. In no time I was back in REO Speedwagon and Tommy had become the newest member of Styx. REO and Styx dominated the Billboard charts in 1981 with HI INFIDELITY and PARADISE THEATRE, but for reasons unknown we had never toured together. So in the year 2000, Tommy and I decided to give it a shot. The ‘Arch Allies’ tour was a smashing success, and a life-long friendship was formed. Now, here we are 25 years later, having always had each other’s back, and psyched for our bands to join forces once again for the ‘Brotherhood of Rock’ tour. A lot has changed since that chance encounter at the airport in 1975, but our brotherhood has only become stronger through the years, as the songs of Styx and REO Speedwagon have found a place in the hearts and souls of people all across America.”

Don Felder declares:

“I’m so excited to be hitting the road this summer with my friends Styx and Kevin Cronin. It’s such a great line up full of hit songs and lots of ROCK AND ROLL!!! We have so much fun together both on stage and off stage that it’s hard to find a more wonderful combination of great music and great friends. This is one show you won’t want to miss. See you soon.”

Styx is an American rock band originating from Chicago, Illinois and was formed in 1972. Their current lineup consists of lead and backing vocalist/guitarist James “J.Y.” Young, lead and backing vocalist/guitarist Tommy Shaw, guitarist/backing vocalist Will Evankovich, bassist/backing vocalist Terry Gowan, occasional backing vocalist/bassist Chuck Panozzo, keyboardist/lead and backing vocalist Lawrence Gowan, and drummer/occasional backing vocalist Todd Sucherman.

Styx originally released their critically acclaimed studio album The Grand Illusion on July 7, 1977, and were met with an outpouring of love and acclaim from fans and industry alike. The album was a smash hit world wide, selling three million copies in the US alone and an estimate of over 6 million copies altogether.

Styx began their set by performing “The Grand Illusion” from front to back, starting with the title track and continuing with some of the songs that earned them stardom such as “Fooling Yourself (The Angry Young Man),” and “Come Sail Away“. These huge hits are typically played later in the set, but since they’re a part of the album they were played in order early on.

After performing “The Grand Illusion“, they moved onto their second set. Yes, you read correctly. The “Best Of” portion of the show. We truly aren’t worthy of their graciousness. Two sets for the price of one. This set was began with “Rockin’ The Paradise“.

Finishing off strong they played arguably four of their best hits, two of which were encore songs. The emotional power ballad “The Best of Times and upbeat working man track “Blue Collar Man”. These were the last two songs of the regular set. The build up to the chorus for “The Best of Times” was honestly so intense. The crowd was holding each other and swaying while joyfully singing along to each and every word. This was easily the ballad of the night. As I’m sure you could have guessed, the last two songs that were encored for the evening were “Mr. Roboto” and “Renegade“.

This was truly a night to remember! It’s also a memory I will forever cherish, as I brought my mother with me to experience this eventful evening alongside me.

Dōmo arigatō (どうもありがと)

Thank you very much.

styxworld.com

Setlist:

The Grand Illusion

The Grand Illusion
Fooling Yourself (The Angry Young Man)
Superstars
Come Sail Away
Miss America
Man in the Wilderness
Castle Walls
The Grand Finale

Best of

Rockin’ the Paradise
Too Much Time on My Hands
Lady
Build and Destroy
The Best of Times
Blue Collar Man (Long Nights)

Encore:

Mr. Roboto
Renegade

REO Speedwagon originally released their critically acclaimed studio album Hi Infidelity on November 21, 1980, and were met with an outpouring of love and acclaim from fans and industry alike. The album has been RIAA certified ten times Platinum and spent time on the Billboard 200 peaking at number 1. It went on to become the highest selling album of 1981!

While the band isn’t using the REO moniker any longer, backing vocalist Kevin Cronin is supported by other longstanding members. Cronin is responsible for writing some of the band’s most successful songs. Kevin Cronin Band began their set by performing “Hi Infidelity” from front to back, including two of their greatest hits “Keep On Loving You,” and “Take It On the Run“.

Following the album’s conclusion they played arguably five of their best hits, two of which were encore songs. The first three “Keep Pushin‘,” “Time For Me to Fly,” and “Ridin’, the Storm Out” concluded their regular set. The last two songs that were encored were “Can’t Fight This Feeling ” and “Roll With the Changes“. This had everyone singing “’cause I can’t fight this feeling anymore”!

Setlist:

Hi Infidelity

Don’t Let Him Go
Keep On Loving You
Follow My Heart
In Your Letter
Take It on the Run
Tough Guys
Out of Season
Shakin’ It Loose
Someone Tonight
I Wish You Were There

Best of

Keep Pushin’
Time for Me to Fly
Ridin’ the Storm Out

Encore:

Can’t Fight This Feeling
Roll With the Changes

Don Felder, who spent nearly 30 years as a guitarist in the Eagles, opened up the show. Felder wasn’t just the lead guitarist for the group, he was co-writer for some of their songs including their legendary hit “Hotel California”. He concluded his set with this song dawning a Gibson double-neck guitar.