How I met Styx (a fanfic in three parts)

There was a burst of applause, cheers, screams, etc. as the a voice boomed over the speakers, "Billy Bob’s Texas is proud to present STYX!" [Note: It’s been awhile since I’ve been to BB’s, so I’m not sure if they announce the bands or not, but hey, it’s my fantasy, so I say they do! *g*] The guys came out on stage, waving to the crowd, and took their places behind their microphones. They opened up with my favorite song from Paradise Theatre, "Rockin’ the Paradise" (which I don’t believe they’ve played in awhile) before going into "Blue Collar Man", and the crowd was singing and clapping along. Then they went into "The Grand Illusion", which is one of my favorites off The Grand Illusion album. Then came my very favorite song from Equinox, "Lorelei", which I have always thought that JY does a better job on than Dennis ever did. (Please let me live! I love Dennis, but I just like hearing JY sing this song. I just think it suits him, or maybe his vocal style suits it…) I sang along with all of it – since Dennis did the vocal on it originally, it’s easy for me to sing. I discovered years ago that I suck at singing most of JY’s stuff, except on the choruses. JY smiled and winked at me during the song, and I pretended to swoon. "One With Everything" was next, which of course they played on their matching seafoam green Fenders, and "Lady". I must admit that I’ve never liked that song much, even with Lawrence doing the vocal, but this night it sounded wonderful. I don’t know what the difference was, but it was great. "Too Much Time on My Hands" is another one of my faves off of Paradise Theatre, and even though Tommy blew some lyrics (he recovered well), I enjoyed singing it. One of the highlights of my night… hell, maybe of my entire life! … came as the guys came downstage, tearing through the outro. I let out a yell, then screamed at the top of my lungs, "I LOVE YOU, TOMMY!" lol Unfortunately, he chose that moment to look down at his guitar, but either JY is an accomplished lip reader, or he just knew what I said, because he grinned and winked at me before nudging Tommy with his elbow. Tommy glanced up, JY nodded in my direction, and Tommy looked at me with those heavenly blue eyes and SMILED AND WINKED!!! (And then had to interrupt the concert while someone fetched a mop and a bucket… All right, so I made that up. But don’t be surprised if it does happen one of these days! Lol)

Lawrence played a little bit of Beethoven before launching into "I Am the Walrus" (not really big on the Beatles here, so I mainly just watched the guys play their instruments). Then Tommy said, "You know, even if I’d had a crystal ball back in 1975, I don’t know if I would have believed what my life would have turned out like. I just figured I’d be playing in a bowling alley for the rest of my life. When I got the call to go up to Chicago and audition for Styx, I had no idea what an incredible ride this would be. All I can say is, if you’re gonna dream, dream big!" The fans roared as Tommy began to play the intro to "Crystal Ball". I was singing, and one of the techs came offstage with a cordless microphone in hand. Nothing could have shocked me more than having it stuck in my face and being encouraged – by Tommy – to sing a bit! J He stepped back from his microphone and sang the words – although since no one could hear them, it was more like he was mouthing them – to help me along. Sigh Definitely one of the highlights of my night! Then they did "Suite Madame Blue"… thank goodness a friend of mine loaned me his copy of Equinox so I could learn how to sing it, lol. Although I have heard the live version the guys did on the Return to Paradise tour, so that was also helpful.

The guys did an acoustic set that was simply amazing. "Man in the Wilderness", "Midnight Ride" (I love that song! When I was young, my mom wouldn’t let me listen to it because it’s JY singing about having a one-night stand with a fan, lol.), and a few covers – Queen, Lynyrd Skynyrd, Zeppelin, and others.

Tommy introduced Chuck, "Our original bass player, Chuck Panozzo, came all the way from Florida to perform with us tonight! Y’all give him a hand!" We did, of course, as he came out and joined the guys on "Fooling Yourself", which I was glad to see. He wasn’t at the concert at the Smirnoff back in September, so I haven’t gotten to see or hear him since the Styx/CYO concert in Cleveland back in 2006… and that was only on DVD. On the bridge of the song, Lawrence did his schtick of turning his back to his keyboard and playing, then turning sideways and playing without looking. Isn’t he crazy? But of course, that’s partly why we love him, isn’t it? Next was my favorite JY song, "Miss America", one of the few songs I didn’t sing the verses on, but did the choruses. (I’ve always been sort of amused by JY’s heavy metal, scream-at-the-top-of-his-lungs style. I love it! At least he screams on key, lol…) The next song that they played was "I Don’t Need No Doctor", and Lawrence came to the front of the stage and sang to me! (The line "all I need is your sweet love", in point of fact.) "Snowblind" from Paradise Theatre was next, followed by "Half Penny, Two Penny" from the same album. (Gotta love Todd’s drum solo on the bridge of that one!) Finally came the song I’d been waiting all night to hear – "Come Sail Away". The same tech who’d come to me before came back and helped me up onstage, where he handed me a microphone. I walked over to Lawrence’s keyboard and we chatted a bit, then he introduced me, "Here’s a very special fan, who’s been a Styx fan since the album this next song is from was released back in 1977. From The Grand Illusion, "Come Sail Away", with lead vocals sung by Ciana Douglas!" The crowd applauded as he started the intro, and he mouthed the lyrics as I sang. (I actually did much better than I thought I would… I figured I’d be so nervous, I’d forget most of the lyrics, or at least mix them up, but I didn’t!) After the second verse, when the other guys came in with the guitars and drums, Lawrence took my hand and led me out to center stage where we basically turned the rest of the song into a duet. I was so excited to actually be on the same stage with Styx! After the song was done, Lawrence led the applause, and Tommy came up and handed me the guitar pick he’d been using. I went back to my seat as the guys left the stage to take a break, and the rest of the fans went to take care of some business (you know, getting drinks, answering the call of nature, etc.) Someone brought me a margarita and complimented me on my singing. (I also sounded better than I thought I would… everyone apparently understood every lyric I sang!)

Fifteen minutes later, the guys came back out for their encore – "Everything All the Time" and "Renegade" (Chuck came out again), and Tommy introduced the band members as Lawrence took the pictures of them to give to the fans. "I can’t believe the show is over! Did everyone have a good time tonight?" "YEAH!" "Let me hear you say ‘Yeah’!" "YEAH!" "Wow, we could do this all night long, then get up in the morning and do it again!" Crowd cheers "The thing is, we have a gig tomorrow night!" Crowd boos, lol "I’ll tell you what though… y’all just get on the bus, and we’ll take you with us!" Crowd goes berserk Then he launches into the song that no Styx fan ever wants to hear, "We Gotta Go", and then the reprise of "Renegade". All in all, one of the best concerts I’ve ever been to!

Check back for PART 3: THE AFTERSHOW