Over the course of its career, the band has sold more than 40 million records and has charted thirteen Top 40 hits, including the number ones "Keep On Loving You" and "Can't Fight This Feeling". REO Speedwagon's mainstream popularity waned in the late 1980s, but the band remains a popular live act.
In the fall of 1966, Neal Doughty entered the electrical engineering program at the University of Illinois in Champaign, Illinois, coming in as a junior. On his first night, he met another student, Alan Gratzer. They held an impromptu jam session in the basement of their Illinois Street Residence Hall dormitory, and soon started a rock band. Gratzer had been a drummer since high school, and was playing in a local group on the weekends, while Doughty had learned some Beatles songs on his parents' piano.
Doughty started to follow around Gratzer's band, eventually sitting in on a song or two. The keyboard player was the leader, but several other band members were unhappy with the situation. On the last day of the university's spring semester, guitarist Joe Matt called the band's leader and told him that he, drummer Gratzer, and bassist Mike Blair had decided to leave the band and start a new one with Doughty.
They made a list of songs to learn over the summer break, and Doughty landed a summer job to buy his first keyboard. On his Farfisa organ, he learned "Light My Fire" by The Doors. The members returned to school in the fall of 1967, and had their first rehearsal before classes even started. They named the band REO Speedwagon, from the REO Speed Wagon, a flatbed truck Doughty had studied in transportation history, and the initials are those of its founder Ransom E. Olds. Rather than pronouncing REO as a single word as the motor company did, they chose to spell out the name with the individual letters each pronounced ("R-E-O"). An ad in the school newspaper produced their first job, a fraternity party that turned into a food fight. They continued to perform cover songs in campus bars, fraternity parties, and university events. The first lineup consisted of Doughty on keyboards, Gratzer on drums and vocals, Joe Matt on guitar and vocals, Mike Blair on bass and vocals.
In early 1968, Terry Luttrell became lead singer, and Bob Crownover joined as the guitar player, replacing Matt. When Mike Blair left the band in the summer of 1968, Gregg Philbin replaced Blair, Marty Shepard played trumpet and Joe McCabe played sax until McCabe moved to Southern Illinois University. Crownover played guitar for the group until the summer of 1969 when Bill Fiorio replaced him. Fiorio then departed in late 1969, eventually assuming the name Duke Tumatoe, and went on to form the All Star Frogs. Steve Scorfina (who would go on to found progressive rock/album-oriented rock band Pavlov's Dog) came aboard for over a year, composing with the band and performing live, before being replaced by Gary Richrath in late 1970.
Richrath was a Peoria, Illinois-based guitarist and prolific songwriter who brought fresh original material to the band. With Richrath on board, the regional popularity of the band grew tremendously. The Midwestern United States was the original REO Speedwagon fan stronghold and is pivotal in this period of the band's history.
The band signed to Epic Records in 1971. Paul Leka, an East Coast record producer, brought the band to his recording studio in Bridgeport, Connecticut where it recorded original material for its first album. The lineup on the first album consisted of Richrath, Gratzer, Doughty, Philbin, and Luttrell.
Richrath was a Peoria, Illinois-based guitar player and prolific songwriter who brought original material to the band including REO's signature song "Ridin' the Storm Out". With Richrath on board, the regional popularity of the band grew tremendously. The Midwestern United States was the original REO Speedwagon fan stronghold and is pivotal in this period of the band's history.
The band signed to Epic Records in 1971. Paul Leka, an East Coast record producer, brought the band to his recording studio in Bridgeport, Connecticut where it recorded original material for its first album. The lineup on the first album consisted of Richrath, Gratzer, Doughty, Philbin, and Luttrell.
The band toured relentlessly under guidance from early manager Irving Azoff. The band's most successful period featured lead vocalist Kevin Cronin who joined the band briefly for their second album T.W.O in 1972, and left in the middle of recording the Album "Ridin' The Storm Out" and returned in 1976, co-producing with Richrath their landmark Live: You Get What You Play For. Ridin' the Storm Out was completed with Michael Bryan Murphy on the microphone. Murphy stayed on for two more albums, "Lost in a Dream" and "This Time We Mean It", before Cronin returned to the fold in January 1976 and recorded "R.E.O.", which was released that same year.
They grew in popularity in the Midwestern United States during the early 1970s and peaked in popularity in the early 1980s. The band's first mid 70s FM hit was the Richrath composed concert fave "Ridin' The Storm Out", and their first gold record was a live album, 1977's "Live: You Get What You Play For". Their hard rocking live show was so integral to their success, their label released another live album in 1978, "More Live".
In 1977, Philbin was replaced with Bruce Hall to record the first studio album that reached platinum, "You Can Tune a Piano, But You Can't Tuna Fish", released in 1978 which received FM radio airplay but fell short of the Top 40. In 1979, the band took a turn back to hard rock with the release of Nine Lives.
By 1981's "Hi Infidelity" they had reached a new peak, and the LP spawned several major radio hits including "Keep On Loving You", "Don't Let Him Go" and "Take It on the Run" which went to #5 on the US charts, and the Cronin composed "Time For Me To Fly, released on the "Tuna" album.
REO Speedwagon followed up the "Hi Infidelity" LP with the power ballad "Can't Fight This Feeling" from Good Trouble in 1982, and dented the charts again with 1984's "Wheels Are Turning" album, 1987's "Life as We Know It" was the last new release to go gold, before popularity waned, and their long winning streak subsided. Founding members Richrath & Gratzer left the band, essentially ending a 20 year arena rocking run, but the band's collections continued to sell and earn classic rock & retro power pop airplay. Richrath and Gratzer was replaced by Miles Joseph and Graham Lear, Cronin's band members from jazz ensemble called "The Strolling Dudes". And soon Lear and Joseph was replaced by Bryan Hitt (formerly of Wang Chung) and Dave Amato.
Nowadays Reo Speedwagon remains a U.S concert circuit staple, mostly known as a crowd pleasing classic AOR genre rock band. Still fronted by longtime vocalist Cronin, currently the only original member in the 21st century touring lineup is keyboardist Neil Doughty. The hired guns brought in since have had stints in band's like Ted Nugent and Wang Chung. Spurred on by numerous re-packagings of their back catalog, and successful newer live recordings, in 2007 they released "Find Your Own Way Home" the group's first new studio album in more than ten years. Though it did not chart as an album, it produced two singles which appeared on Billboard's Adult Contemporary radio chart.
REO Speedwagon continues to tour regularly, performing mostly their classic hits. They are popular on the fair and casino circuits, but still team with other acts to play larger venues.
REO Speedwagon's birth place was reportedly a Red Lion Inn, on Green Street near the U of I campus (Champaign-Urbana, IL).
Principal Members (1971)
Gary Richrath - Guitar
Alan Gratzer - Drums
Gregg Philbin - Bass
Terry Luttrell - Vocals
Mike Murphy - Vocals
Current Lineup
Kevin Cronin - Lead Vocals, Rhythm Guitar
Dave Amato - Lead Guitar, Vocals
Bruce Hall - Bass Guitar, Vocals
Neal Doughty - Keyboards
Bryan Hitt - Drums, Percussion
http://www.speedwagon.com
In Your Letter
REO Speedwagon Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
In your letter ooh in your letter
In your letter ooh in your letter
In your letter ooh in your letter
In your letter you said you didn't love me
You said you're gonna leave me
But you could've said it better
You said you could replace me
But you could've said it better
You could've left him only
For an evening let him be lonely
But you hid behind your poison pen and his pride
You could've told him something
And proved to me you don't love him
But you hid behind your future full of lies
In your letter
You could've left him only
For an evening let him be lonely
But you hid behind your poison pen and his pride
You could've told him something
And proved to me you don't love him
But you hid behind your future full of lies
In your letter you said you didn't love me
You said you're gonna leave me
But you could've said it better
Oh in your letter, you said you couldn't face me
You said you could replace me
But you could've said it better
In your letter ooh in your letter
In your letter ooh in your letter
In your letter ooh in your letter
In your letter ooh in your letter
In your letter ooh in your letter
In your letter ooh in your letter
In your letter ooh in your letter
In your letter ooh in your letter
In your letter ooh in your letter
The lyrics of REO Speedwagon's "In Your Letter" describe the hurt and betrayal felt by the singer after receiving a letter from a former lover, in which she confesses that she no longer loves him and is leaving. The singer emphasizes that the letter could have been handled better, and that the former lover could have shown more consideration and honesty.
The lyrics suggest that the former lover was not truthful about her intentions and motivations for ending the relationship. She is accused of hiding behind a "poison pen", using harsh and hurtful language to distance herself from the singer and his emotions. Furthermore, the singer implies that the former lover did not truly love the person she was leaving him for, but instead used that as an excuse for ending the relationship.
The repeated refrain of "In your letter" emphasizes the central role of written communication in this situation, and highlights the impact that words can have in framing and shaping emotional responses. The song captures the lingering pain and confusion left behind by a relationship that ended poorly.
Line by Line Meaning
In your letter ooh in your letter
The singer repeats the phrase to emphasize the importance of the written communication.
In your letter you said you didn't love me
The recipient of the letter expressed that they did not feel love for the singer.
You said you're gonna leave me
The recipient of the letter indicated that they plan to end their relationship with the singer.
But you could've said it better
The singer believes that the way the message was communicated was not done effectively or considerately.
Oh in your letter, you said you couldn't face me
The recipient of the letter claimed that they could not confront the singer in person regarding their feelings and intentions.
You said you could replace me
The recipient of the letter expressed that they believe they can simply find a new partner to fill the void left by the end of their relationship with the singer.
You could've left him only
The singer suggests that the recipient of the letter could have ended their current relationship with someone else before seeking a new one with the intention of being with the singer.
For an evening let him be lonely
The singer implies that the recipient of the letter could have ended their evening plans with their current partner to spend time with the singer, rather than breaking things off completely.
But you hid behind your poison pen and his pride
The singer believes that the recipient of the letter used the written word to deliver a harsh message in a cowardly way, and did so to intentionally hurt their current partner's feelings.
You could've told him something
The singer suggests that the recipient of the letter could have made an effort to communicate their feelings to their current partner before ending things with them and moving on to the singer.
And proved to me you don't love him
The singer implies that if the recipient of the letter truly did not love their current partner, they should have made that clear to the singer before attempting to start a new relationship.
But you hid behind your future full of lies
The singer believes that the recipient of the letter is making promises about their future with the singer that they have no intention of keeping, suggesting deceit and insincerity.
Lyrics © O/B/O APRA AMCOS
Written by: GARY DEAN RICHRATH
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
Jack Gilley
In your letter ooh in your letter
In your letter ooh in your letter
In your letter ooh in your letter
In your letter ooh in your letter
In your letter you said you didn't love me
You said you're gonna leave me
But you could've said it better
Oh in your letter, you said you couldn't face me
You said you could replace me
But you could've said it better
You could've left him only
For an evening let him be lonely
But you hid behind your poison pen and his pride
You could've told him something
And proved to me you don't love him
But you hid behind your future full of lies
[Instrumental bridge]
You could've left him only
For an evening let him be lonely
But you hid behind your poison pen and his pride
You could've told him something
And proved to me you don't love him
But you hid behind your future full of lies
In your letter you said you didn't love me
You said you're gonna leave me
But you could've said it better
Oh in your letter, you said you couldn't face me
You said you could replace me
But you could've said it better
Jerry Noble
I grew up in the 80's, graduated high school in 86. It truly was a
different world from today. The music of that time period will always
hold a special place in my heart. All of my favorite bands, Motley Crue,
Skid Row, Tesla, Ratt, Def Leppard, Warrant, Poison, Bon Jovi, Wasp,
Cinderella, Van Halen, Metallica, Judas Priest, REO and so on were all over
MTV and the radio and it was awesome! Those of us who remember that time
know it will never be duplicated.
Edmund Clark
Absolutely, hands down..........
John Dayton
I agree 100% It was an era that was one of the greatest.🎶
Tommy Pate
Class of 87
Tammy Nelson
@Frank Dahlquist, Jr. YOUR RIGHT!!! NEVER ! Same Age Graduated In 86 Way Different From Today! Let The MUSIC LIVE ON😀😁😂😘😘
Alan DeMoss
This song used to be all over the place in the early 1980s. I haven't heard it on the radio in decades.
What's wrong with radio stations today?
Mike E
One of the most under rated bands in music history!
Hugh Wright
No doubt.
John Dayton
The 80's were so great and with this song makes it awesome🎶
JaQuayvius Deonte Riley-Wooden
I've always Loved REO Speedwagon! They always Wrote some of the Best Love Songs. Too Bad this Generation of Music can't Write anything CLOSE to Good Music as this. It's not the same.