Early life & music career
Tommy Shaw was born in Montgomery, Alabama in 1953 and played with many local bands in his early years. He left Montgomery after high school to join MS Funk, a Chicago-managed outfit that he played with for 3 years, which gave him a chance to be noticed by the band Styx during a 2-week club gig in Chicago. After MS Funk disbanded, he went back to Montgomery to join a local group with his childhood friends called Harvest, which performed at a club in a bowling alley called "Keglar's Kove". Following Styx's move to A&M, guitarist and vocalist John Curulewski suddenly left the band shortly before they were to embark on a nationwide tour, and a frantic search to find a last-minute replacement was launched. While playing at the bowling alley bar, as a result of his previous experience with MS Funk in Chicago, Shaw got the call to audition for Styx and was quickly hired.
Styx — 1970s
The first album with Shaw, "Crystal Ball" (1976), was titled after his own composition and also includes his songs "Mademoiselle" and "Shooz". Its follow-up, The Grand Illusion (1977) became the group's breakthrough album, which went platinum and also featured a radio hit by Shaw, "Fooling Yourself (The Angry Young Man)".
Styx's 8th album, appropriately entitled Pieces Of Eight, was the breakout album for Shaw's songwriting talent with his rock-oriented contributions "Renegade" and "Blue Collar Man", which became `70's rock radio staples and perennial Styx concert favorites, reaching #16 and #21 respectively on the Billboard Hot 100 Singles chart.It also featured a minor radio hit Shaw's tune "Sing For The Day".
[edit] 1980s — 1990s
Though the `80's brought the downfall of Styx, it began with Styx riding a wave of commercial success with the #1 pop ballad "Babe" from the 9th Styx album, Cornerstone in 1979, which was written by keyboardist Dennis DeYoung. However, tension mounted within the band as Shaw and other band members expressed dissatisfaction with DeYoung's desire to pull the band into a pop radio & theatrical direction, while other members preferred the rock direction of the songs written by Shaw and guitarist James "JY" Young. For this reason, unbeknownst to the public-at-large, Dennis DeYoung was fired from the group in early 1980 for a brief unpublicized moment and quickly rehired, but this conflict would arise again. Shaw's ascerbation was furthered with his disatisfaction of the theatrical-themed album Paradise Theater and brought to a boil with the tour for the next album Kilroy Was Here, which featured a progressive stage show combined with an 11-minute movie intro and theatrical performances by the band. Shortly after the tour ended, Shaw left Styx in 1983 to pursue his solo career.
Shaw released 3 solo albums in the 1980s: Girls with Guns (1984), What If (1985), and Ambition (1987), scoring a Top 40 hit with the title track from the 1st album.
1990s — present
In the early 1990s, Shaw, Ted Nugent, Jack Blades, and drummer Michael Cartellone formed the band Damn Yankees. Their biggest hit, "High Enough", was co-written by Shaw. The band had a strong concert following; however, even though the 2nd album went platinum, the band separated.
Shaw returned to a reunited Styx in 1995 and embarked on a subsequent tour with them in 1996. Tommy would later record a fourth solo record in 1998: "7 Deadly Zens". Shaw has also worked with other artists on a "Pink Floyd's The Wall" tribute album. He also worked on a KISS tribute album, "Spin The Bottle: An All-Star Tribute to KISS", on which he sang "Love Gun".
Tommy teamed up with Night Ranger's Jack Blades in a duo appropriately called Shaw Blades and released an album entitled "Hallucination" in 1995. A second collaboration entitled "Influence" was released in early March 2007 and the duo appeared live on VH1 Classic backed up by famed Nashville songwriter Gary Burr. Shaw Blades did a short tour in Spring 2007 that was well-received. The tour included songs from Night Ranger, Styx, Shaw's solo albums and Damn Yankees. The duo also recorded the classic Christmas song "The Twelve Days Of Christmas" which was released in 2002 on the album "A Classic Rock Christmas", a compilation of classic Christmas songs recorded by various Classic Rock artists.
As of 2007, Shaw leads Styx along with James "JY" Young. Shaw & Young are the only remaining members from Styx's heyday.
Hall of Fame
Tommy Shaw will be inducted into the Alabama Music Hall of Fame in February, 2008 at their awards banquet to be held in Tommy's hometown of Montgomery, AL..
Remo's Theme
Tommy Shaw Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
And it′s coming in clear
But it's not the one that I need to hear
So if seeing is believing
You better take another look
Because I'm half-way gone
And I′m hardly here
What if what if you find you made a mistake
What if what if it′s worth the chance
That your'e taking
I would never want to see you standing
In the line of fire
You′re the one who has to come to grips
With your own desires
Do you hear what I'm saying
Am I even getting through
Are you so far gone
I can′t talk to you
I could tell you what you want to hear
But is it really what you need
Now it's time to stand
On your own two feet
Get a hold on yourself now
Of your heart and your soul
You′ve got to make a few decisions
You've got to get some self-control
And you're the only one who can decide
Tommy Shaw's song "Remo's Theme" speaks to the struggle of people who are lost and need guidance to make the right decisions. He sends out a message, which is coming to him loud and clear, but it is not the one he desires. He notes that he is halfway gone and hardly present, suggesting the severity of the situation. Should one find that they have made errors, or if they are taking risks, they must be brave enough to face the consequences. He never desires to see anyone at risk, but people must come to terms with their desires and make informed choices.
The singer implores people to be in charge of themselves, to take responsibility for their actions, and to get a hold of their hearts and souls. He insists that self-control is required, and it is only up to an individual to decide what he/she wants. Shaw believes that people need to make the right decisions to stand on their own feet and take responsibility for their actions.
Line by Line Meaning
There's a message I'm receiving
I am receiving some kind of communication.
And it's coming in clear
I can hear it or understand it well.
But it's not the one that I need to hear
It's not the message that will help me or give me what I need.
So if seeing is believing
If I need visual proof to believe something is true.
You better take another look
You should check again to make sure.
Because I'm halfway gone
I am feeling disconnected or lost.
And I'm hardly here
I am not entirely present or engaged.
What if what if you find you made a mistake
What if you realize you were wrong or made a bad choice?
What if what if it's worth the chance
What if taking a risk is worth it in the end?
That you're taking
The chance or opportunity you are pursuing.
I would never want to see you standing
I don't want you to be in harm's way or at risk.
In the line of fire
Exposed or vulnerable to danger.
You're the one who has to come to grips
You are the one who needs to confront or face something difficult.
With your own desires
Your own wants or needs.
Do you hear what I'm saying
Are you listening to me or understanding what I'm trying to say?
Am I even getting through
Is my message reaching you or having an impact?
Are you so far gone
Have you become so distant or disconnected that I can't reach you?
I can't talk to you
I can't communicate effectively with you.
I could tell you what you want to hear
I could say something that would make you happy or pleased.
But is it really what you need
But would that truly help you or benefit you in the long run?
Now it's time to stand
It's important to be strong and confident now.
On your own two feet
To rely on your own abilities and make your own decisions.
Get a hold on yourself now
Take control of yourself and your emotions.
Of your heart and your soul
Of your deepest feelings and beliefs.
You've got to make a few decisions
You have some choices to make.
You've got to get some self-control
You need to have discipline and restraint.
And you're the only one who can decide
You are the only one who has the power to choose or make a decision.
Writer(s): Tommy R Shaw, Richard E Cannata
Contributed by Zachary L. Suggest a correction in the comments below.