REO Speedwagon, well-known for tunes like "Can't Fight This Feeling" and "Keep On Loving You," is getting ready for a 2023 tour Called "Live & UnZoomed," the tour will see the band perform in over thirty American locations. Since the epidemic started, this is the band's first big tour.
Beginning on May 31, 2023, at the Concord Pavilion in Concord, California, the Live & UnZoomed tour runs From there, REO Speedwagon will tour other towns throughout the country including Seattle, Denver, Houston, and Orlando, among others until they converge in Highland Park, Illinois on September 23. During the trip, they will be playing at famous sites such as Daily's Place in Jacksonville, The Fillmore in San Francisco, and Red Rocks in Colorado.
Neal Doughty, a University of Illinois student, wanted to start a band with his buddy Alan Gratzer in 1967, thus the band REO Speedwagon originated. They met vocalist Terry Luttrell and began performing in neighborhood taverns and at college parties. The lineup changed much at first, then Gary Richrath joined as guitarist in 1970; this is regarded as the founding of the REO Speedwagon. The band signed with Epic Records in 1972 after first independently releasing an eponymous first album in 1971.
REO Speedzag jumped right into popular rock in 1980 with the album Hi Infidelity, pouring out its soul across the Midwestern schools and bars circuit. Driven by the popularity of songs like "Keep On Loving You" and "Take It On The Run," Hi Infidelity ranked at the top of the Billboard album charts for fifteen weeks. The album's popularity enabled REO Speedwagon to grow into a national band with songs suitable for venues and arenas throughout America.
It was particularly in the 1980s when a run of arena rock classics and power ballad successes brought the band even more fame. Top songs on the mainstream and rock charts were "Can't Fight This Feeling," "I Do's Wanna Know," and "In Your Letter." All in all, REO Speedwagon sold more than 40 million records throughout the band's lifetime. Their combined Top 40 hits over more than one decade count thirteen Top 40 hits.
REO Speedwagon broke up in 1989, but they got back together in 1991 because of fresh interest generated by the band's tribute album A Decade of Rock and Roll 1970-1980. Up to the present, they have kept this pattern; they are still releasing fresh albums and have started a few performance tours. Lead vocalist Kevin Cronin has been the one consistent for REO Speedwagon despite changes in the band's lineup throughout the years since 1972. The only other member of the band remaining with us now is original keyboardist Neal Doughty.
REO Speedwagon is still active today and may be seen on tour with other bands falling into the same age range and genre. Demand to listen to such singles as "Roll With the Changes," "Time for Me to Fly," and "Back on the Road Again" life is still present as millions of REO Speedwagon fans. Only the most ardent REO fans, ready to see the band play after their somewhat sudden withdrawal from the stage, will be present on the Live & UnZoomed tour.
The Live & UnZoomed events may reveal the muscle memory that REO Speedwagon has gained from their many stadium performances because the band has been active for over five decades with constant traveling. Kevin Cronin's vocal cords have not gotten worse, and the band still presents a tight and professional performance based on footage captured by the last couple of years' fans. With Neal Doughty's always front-and-center keyboards and this band's wealth of anthemic rock tunes to choose from, these gigs will be boisterous nostalgia excursions.
It also offers fans, many of whom may have never seen these artists perform live, one last chance to see these icons on stage. REO Speedwagon is not a young band anymore, after all. Cronin, Doughty, and bassist Bruce Hall are all by this point in their 70s. As for their 2023 tour, it is as intense as previous ones, but who knows how many more times fans will get to listen to “Ridin’ the Storm Out” or “Roll With the Changes”? Between the chance to finally hug after years apart and the importance of seeing a beloved band as they enter their 50th year of creating music, the upcoming Live & UnZoomed tour promises to be one for the record books for both REO Speedwagon and its fans.
As concerts have grown increasingly erratic and bands shift formations frequently in recent years, hearing the latest on a REO Speedwagon tour is likely to be welcomed by fans of classic rock. Expect the speakers to be filled with feel-good tunes, Kevin Cronin’s vocals, Neal Doughty’s keyboard solos, and an atmosphere that is nothing but happy. Do not assume that the notion of standing ovations, people lighting cigarette lighters, or turning the lights off their phones during the songs and encores, is alien to REO Speedwagon’s 2023 Live & UnZoomed performances. Be sure to see them before they disappear!
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