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..
The Outsider
Tommy Shaw Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Another lonely military brat
Norfolk, Virgina, Vallejo
Bags always packed
Now his mother was always out drinking
On midnight maneuvers of her own
Jimmy would sit there and stare at the clock
That's how he learned the facts of life
From a mother and a sailor's wife
Now he's out there somewhere on his own
He's always been an
Outsider
Taking on the world alone
Such an outsider
And it really doesn't matter who's right or wrong
'Cause sooner or later he's gone
Outsider
Jimmy tried his luck in the Navy
To see the world just like his old man
But too many rules and too many fools
Spoiled his plans
Now he's driving a truck through the Southland
Pulling anything that money can buy
He knows how it feels to fall asleep at the wheel
So he takes a little pill to get by
He's living on borrowed time
He doesn't see the danger signs
Now he's out there somewhere on his own
He's always been an
Outsider
Taking on the world again
Just an outsider
And it really doesn't matter whose side he's on
'Cause sooner or later he's gone
Ooh sweet isolation
Aah the perfect situation
Outsider outsider
He's living on the border line
Living in a different time
Now he's out there somewhere on his own
He's always been an outsider
"The Outsider" is a song by Tommy Shaw that tells the story of a man named Jimmy who has always felt like an outsider. Jimmy's mother was an unfaithful military wife who often left home to drink, leaving Jimmy to fend for himself. When she didn't come home one night, Jimmy was forced to learn the facts of life at a young age. Jimmy tried to join the navy to see the world like his father, but the rules and foolishness of others ruined his chances. Instead, Jimmy turned to truck driving and takes pills to stay awake during long trips. He lives on the border between life and death, always an outsider in the world that surrounds him.
The lyrics of the song paint a picture of someone who feels lost and alone, constantly searching for a place where he belongs. The use of the term "outsider" reinforces the feeling of detachment and loneliness, even though Jimmy has been in situations where he should have felt a sense of belonging. The song's guitar riffs and upbeat tempo create a powerful contrast to the somber lyrics, highlighting the internal conflict the character is experiencing.
Line by Line Meaning
Jimmy was the son of a sailor
Jimmy's father worked in the Navy
Another lonely military brat
Jimmy was a child of a military family who moved frequently
Norfolk, Virgina, Vallejo
Jimmy may have lived in these places due to the Navy's presence there
Bags always packed
Jimmy and his family were always ready to move
Now his mother was always out drinking
Jimmy's mother had an issue with alcohol
On midnight maneuvers of her own
She would often be out late drinking and partying
Jimmy would sit there and stare at the clock
Jimmy would wait up for his mother to come home
And one night she never came home
His mother disappeared one night, leaving Jimmy alone
That's how he learned the facts of life
Jimmy was forced to grow up and confront difficult realities
From a mother and a sailor's wife
Jimmy learned from his mother's struggles as well as his father's job
Now he's out there somewhere on his own
Jimmy is now independent and living without a safety net
He's always been an
Jimmy has reliably been a certain kind of person
Outsider
Jimmy isn't part of any particular group or community
Taking on the world alone
Jimmy faces life's challenges with minimal assistance
Such an outsider
Jimmy's status as an outsider is pronounced
And it really doesn't matter who's right or wrong
Jimmy doesn't get involved in the disputes of others
'Cause sooner or later he's gone
Jimmy doesn't tend to stay in one place very long
Jimmy tried his luck in the Navy
Jimmy signed up to serve in the Navy
To see the world just like his old man
Jimmy hoped to follow in his father's footsteps and travel the world through the Navy
But too many rules and too many fools
Jimmy didn't enjoy the military culture or the people he worked with
Spoiled his plans
Jimmy's experiences in the Navy didn't meet his expectations
Now he's driving a truck through the Southland
Jimmy found work as a truck driver in a specific region
Pulling anything that money can buy
Jimmy's job is to move goods from one place to another
He knows how it feels to fall asleep at the wheel
Jimmy's work requires him to be awake for long periods, which can be dangerous while driving
So he takes a little pill to get by
Jimmy uses a drug to stay alert while driving
He's living on borrowed time
Jimmy's job is risky and he may not live to an old age
He doesn't see the danger signs
Jimmy is not always aware of the risks he's taking
Ooh sweet isolation
Jimmy may enjoy being alone
Aah the perfect situation
Being an outsider feels comfortable to Jimmy
He's living on the border line
Jimmy's lifestyle is precarious and could be dangerous
Living in a different time
Jimmy's experiences in life have made him different from others
He's always been an outsider
Throughout his life, Jimmy has felt disconnected from others
Contributed by Nicholas O. Suggest a correction in the comments below.