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..
What Do You Want From Life
Tommy Shaw Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
And you can't sleep
You fell in love
And you feel too deep
But it wasn't returned
And now you been burned
Oh yeah
You're in such a slump
You need to shout
But you're down in the dumps
It won't do any good
Till you find your way out of the woods
All she did for you
Was let you be an idiot
What else could she do
Everyone knew but you weren't ready yet
Hey now
What do you want from life
What do you want from love
What do you want from me
Hey now
What do you want from life
What do you want from love
What do you want from me, me, me
I feel your pain
I've been there before
Standing in the rain
In the dark outside her door
Feeling like the fool that you are
All she did for you
Was make you feel
Like a millionaire
What else could you do
If you had it for real
You'd give it all away to her
Hey now
What do you want from life
What do you want from love
What do you want from me
Hey now
What do you want from life
What do you want from love
What do you want from me, me, me
Tommy Shaw's song "What Do You Want From Life" depicts a situation that many of us have been in when we love someone deeply but it's not reciprocated. The opening lines show that the singer is in a state of emotional disarray – they can't eat, they can't sleep because they fell in love, but it wasn't returned and now they've been burned. The next two lines illustrate how the singer is now trapped in their own indecisiveness and doesn't know what to do. They need to speak up, but they feel like they're in the dumps, and nothing they do will help until they find their way out of the woods.
The second stanza reveals that the woman involved hasn't been cruel, but she has let the singer make a fool of himself. Everyone knew what was going on, but he wasn't ready yet. The chorus returns to ask what the singer wants from life, from love, and from whoever else is involved. It's a lament, an expression of how tragic love can be when it's one-sided. The lines "I feel your pain, I've been there before, standing in the rain, in the dark outside her door, feeling like the fool that you are" empathize with the singer, who is left with nothing but a sense of foolishness and the realization that the woman's actions only highlighted his own emotional vulnerability.
The song is a powerful commentary on love and how it can cause angst and turmoil in our lives. Shaw's ability to capture such raw, honest emotions is what makes the song so relatable to all of us who have experienced unreturned love.
Line by Line Meaning
You can't eat
You have lost your appetite due to heartbreak.
And you can't sleep
Your emotions have impacted your ability to fall asleep.
You fell in love
You found someone special and developed strong feelings for them.
And you feel too deep
Your emotions are intense and all-consuming.
But it wasn't returned
The person you love doesn't feel the same way about you.
And now you been burned
You are experiencing the painful consequences of unrequited love.
You can't go out
You don't feel like going out and socializing due to heartbreak.
You're in such a slump
You are feeling low and unmotivated.
You need to shout
You want to let out your emotions and express yourself vocally.
But you're down in the dumps
You are feeling sad and depressed.
It won't do any good
Shouting won't necessarily help you feel better or solve your problems.
Till you find your way out of the woods
You need to find a way to move past your heartbreak and difficult emotions.
All she did for you
The person you love did something for you.
Was let you be an idiot
They allowed you to behave foolishly or make poor decisions.
What else could she do
The person you love likely couldn't change your feelings or mindset.
Everyone knew but you weren't ready yet
Others may have recognized that the relationship wasn't going to work, but you weren't willing to accept it.
I feel your pain
The singer understands and empathizes with the listener's pain.
I've been there before
The singer has experienced similar heartbreak and emotions in the past.
Standing in the rain
The singer vividly describes a moment of sadness and vulnerability.
In the dark outside her door
The singer is feeling lost and alone, hoping for love and acceptance from someone else.
Feeling like the fool that you are
The singer recognizes the pain and embarrassment of loving someone who doesn't share your feelings.
All she did for you
The person you love did something positive or meaningful for you.
Was make you feel
They were able to make you feel happy and positive emotions.
Like a millionaire
The person you love made you feel incredibly wealthy and fulfilled in life and love.
What else could you do
You were so happy and content that you didn't know how to respond or act.
If you had it for real
If you possessed the true love you desire, you would want to give your all to that person.
You'd give it all away to her
You would be willing to sacrifice anything and everything for the person you love.
Hey now
The singer is getting the listener's attention.
What do you want from life
The singer is asking the listener to consider what they truly desire in life.
What do you want from love
The singer is asking the listener to reflect on what they desire from romantic relationships.
What do you want from me
The singer is asking the listener directly what they want or need from them.
What do you want from me, me, me
The singer is emphasizing the importance of the listener's own needs and desires.
Contributed by Alaina G. Suggest a correction in the comments below.