• Gypsy Woman's Passion
• 157 Riverside Avenue
• Anti-Establishment Man
• Lay Me Down
• Sophisticated Lady
• Five Men Were Killed Today
• Prison Women
• Dead at Last

This album is very difficult to find. It is long out of print and only exists on vinyl LP. Still it is an excellent start to REO's long career. The baritone voice of original vocalist Terry Luttrell is a surprise to many listeners. The album is rough and unpolished, but is rock and roll in its true raw form. Although Gary Richrath's guitar sound is yet undeveloped, Alan Gratzer and Neal Doughty deliver a strong performance on drums and piano. Highlights of the album include Gypsy Woman's Passion (cool guitar riff!), 157 Riverside Avenue (still a concert favorite), and the ten minute epic Dead at Last.

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• Let Me Ride
• How The Story Goes
• Little Queenie
• Being Kind (Can Hurt Someone Sometimes)
• Music Man
• Like You Do
• Flash Tan Queen
• Golden Country

This album is clearly one of REO's masterpieces, and the first album with Kevin Cronin on the microphone. Every member of the band gives a fantastic performance from beginning to end. The album is very energetic, ambitious, and exciting throughout. Richrath's guitar sounds remarkably sharp on this album, delivering heavy riffs and solos. Cronin's voice is a little dull at times, but a strong effort anyway. Cronin's first ballad effort, Being Kind (Can Hurt Someone Sometimes) is a fantastic song with great emotional performance. Richrath's Golden Country is an amazing political statement with possibly his finest guitar solo. Other highlights include the exciting opener Let Me Ride, the Chuck Berry classic Little Queenie, and Music Man.

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• Ridin' The Storm Out
• Whisky Night
• Oh Woman
• Find My Fortune
• Open Up
• Movin'
• Son Of A Poor Man
• Start A New Life
• It's Everywhere
• Without Expression

One more change in direction for REO. Kevin Cronin left the band and was replaced by Mike Murphy. The combination of Richrath and Murphy yielded a more laid-back, slower, blues-rock sound. Richrath wrote a few REO classics on this album, including the title Ridin' the Storm Out and Son of a Poor Man. Unfortunately, Murphy's nasal-sounding voice and slower style tend to lessen the impact of some of the great songs. Nevertheless, it is still a good sounding album with a number of highlights, including a cover of the Terry Reid song Without Expression

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• Give Me A Ride (Roller Coaster)
• Throw The Chains Away
• Sky Blues
• You Can Fly
• Lost In A Dream
• Down By The Dam
• Do Your Best
• Wild As The Western Wind
• They're On The Road
• I'm Feeling Good

This is the beginning of a dark period in REO's history. Mike Murphy remained the vocalist for the band, but they had no more classic hits like Ridin' the Storm Out to save them. All that remained were a bunch of monotonous songs reflecting the slow blues-country-rock sound of the Richrath/Murphy duo. The album begins with some energetic bluesy grooves, but becomes dull and dry. There are a couple highlights on this album, such as the opener Roller Coaster (which is accentuated by Gratzer's drums) and the title Lost in a Dream (which includes some great Richrath guitar).

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• Reelin'
• Headed For A Fall
• River Of Life
• Out Of Control
• You Better Realize
• Gambler
• Candalera
• Lies
• Dance
• Dream Weaver

Another lacking album of the Murphy era. This album is now out of print, but some copies still exist for the hardcore collector. Much of the album is the same slow, dragging monotony as Lost in a Dream. The band's futile attempt to capture the Eagles sound even brought the Eagles' producer, Bill Scymczyk. The only thing this added was a decent cover of the Eagles song Out of Control. Another highlight is the drunk anthem Reelin', which is actually a fun party tune. Otherwise, the album is a bore. One word of advice: most of the highlights from the 3 Murphy albums have been gathered on the band's Decade of Rock and Roll album to spare us the pain of buying these albums.

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• Keep Pushin'
• Any Kind Of Love
• (Only a) Summer Love
• (I Believe) Our Time Is Gonna Come
• Breakaway
• Flying Turkey Trot
• Tonight
• Lighning

Fortunately, REO gave Murphy the boot and welcomed Kevin Cronin back with open arms. The result was a combination of the excitement of REO TWO and the laid back country-rock sound of the three previous albums. Keep Pushin' is a great rocker with excellent lyrics and music. Another great song is I Believe Our Time is Gonna Come. In the album's more relaxed side, the band actually captures a good Eagles sound on Only a Summer Love, Any Kind of Love, and Breakaway (featuring both Cronin and Richrath on vocals). The album concludes with Lightning, a fantastic slow-yet-heavy song, which is probably the first REO power ballad. A good album for those who like REO's laid-back country side.

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• Like You Do
• Lay Me Down
• Any Kind Of Love
• Being Kind (Can Hurt Someone Sometimes)
• Keep Pushin'
• (Only a )Summer Love
• Son Of A Poor Man
• Our Time Is Gonna Come
• Flying Turkey Trot
• Gary's Guitar Solo **
• 157 Riverside Avenue
• Ridin The Storm Out
• Music Man
• Little Queenie **
• Golden Country

REO Speedwagon's only true live album marks the beginning of a string of excellent albums during the high point of the band's career. With Cronin remaining on vocals, this live compilation focuses mainly on the REO TWO and REO albums. What resulted was an amazing performance by each band member, as well as a level of energy and excitement unmatched by any previous studio album. A number of songs were greatly improved during this live performance. Son of a Poor Man gained new life with Cronin's vocals and an added intro. 157 Riverside Avenue also became a concert favorite with a fresh, lively sound (although the middle break is dry and flawed). This live version of Ridin' the Storm Out with Cronin on vocals is the familiar REO classic. The album's climax, however, is the extended performance of Golden Country with a smoking Richrath guitar solo. The bottom line is that many fantastic REO songs were reborn and sound even better on this live classic.

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• Roll With The Changes
• Time For Me To Fly
• Runnin' Blind
• Blazin' Your Own Trail Again
• Sing To Me
• Lucky For You
• Do You Know Where Your Woman Is Tonight?
• The Unidentified Tuna Trot
• Say You Love Me Or Say Goodnight

Great album! With the success of the live album and new bass player Bruce Hall, REO perfected their sound on this wacky-titled classic. All the ingredients for a great album existed: great songwriting from both Cronin and Richrath, great performance from every band member, and a sense of fun (the album cover features a fish with a tuning fork in its mouth). The album begins with two of REO's first big hits: Roll With the Changes and Time For Me to Fly. From there, the album stays strong with hard rocker Runnin' Blind and acoustic Blazing Your Own Trail Again. The Unidentified Flying Tuna Trot is a fun instrumental with a catchy Doughty piano groove. A weak spot on the album may be Do You Know Where Your Woman Is Tonight?, which offers little of interest. Another great Richrath rocker, Say You Love Me or Say Goodnight, is a fine ending to a fine album.

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• Heavy On Your Love
• Drop It
• Only The Strong Survive
• Easy Money
• Rock & Roll Music
• Take Me
• I Need You Tonight
• Meet Me On The Mountain
• Back On The Road Again

This is one of REO's more hard-rocking albums. Much like "Tuna Fish", there was a great deal of balance and collaboration between band members which made this a great album. Cronin and Richrath joined to write Heavy On Your Love, one of REO's heaviest songs. Bruce Hall wrote and sang Back On The Road Again, which was fueled by a heavy Richrath guitar riff. While this album doesn't have as many big hits, most of the album has a driving, energetic feel which makes it habit-forming. Other highlights include the creative Easy Money (a tale from a Mexican prison) and Chuck Berry's Rock & Roll Music. The album tends to slow down a bit in the second half, offering little of interest. However, the only major drawback of the album is its lame cover photo, which could only have been taken during the disco era. All in all, a great album.

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• Sophisticated Lady
• Music Man
• Golden Country
• Son Of A Poor Man
• Lost In A Dream
• Reelin'
• Keep Pushin'
• I Believe Our Time Is Gonna Come
• Breakaway
• Lightning
• Like You Do (live)
• Flying Turkey Trot (live)
• 157 Riverside Avenue (live)
• Ridin' The Storm Out (live)
• Roll With The Changes
• Time For Me To Fly
• Say You Love Me Or Say Goodnight
• Only The Strong Survive
• Back On The Road Again

After making nine albums in nine years, REO released its first (and much needed) compilation album to celebrate their first ten years. The result was an amazing 2-disc set which featured songs from each of their previous albums. Including big hits and a few lost gems, this is highly recommended for people who wish to have a sampler of REO Speedwagon's 70's sound. The first disc shows the many changes in the band during their early years, including early hits like Golden Country and Keep Pushin'. The second disc picks up with the live album and continues through the big hits of the late 70's such as Roll With the Changes. Some albums represented in this compilation are no longer in print, making this album all the more valuable. This compilation also highlights a couple bright moments during the Mike Murphy era, such as Reelin'. Given the diversity of sounds included on this anthology, the album is surprisingly consistent in quality. A few new versions of songs were added for this set, including the original Cronin version of Son Of A Poor Man and new live versions of Ridin The Storm Out and 157 Riverside Avenue (which rocks for over 12 minutes on the CD version!) This album is a brilliant summary of the band's first 10 years.

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• Don't Let Him Go
• Keep On Loving You
• Follow My Heart
• In Your Letter
• Take It On The Run
• Tough Guys
• Out Of Season
• Shakin' It Loose
• Someone Tonight
• I Wish You Were There

The definitive REO Speedwagon classic. What more can be said about Hi Infidelity? I'm not sure exactly how many millions of this album have been sold, but I can say that no REO fan should be without it. On this album, the band found the perfect blend of rock and pop, resulting in at least four big hits (Take It On The Run, Keep On Loving You, In Your Letter, & Don't Let Him Go). However, every song is fantastic; an excellent album from beginning to end. The album opens with the familiar drum rhythm of Don't Let Him Go, which begins each REO concert. Besides the radio favorites Keep On Loving You and Take It On The Run, there are a number of undiscovered gems here, like Follow My Heart, Shakin' It Loose, and I Wish You Were There. Basically, if you are visiting this website, I can safely guarantee that you will love this album.

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• Keep The Fire Burnin'
• Sweet Time
• Girl With The Heart Of Gold
• Every Now And Then
• I'll Follow You
• The Key
• Back In My Heart Again
• Let's Be-bop
• Stillness Of The Night
• Good Trouble

Good Trouble may be the most underrated REO Speedwagon album. The band tried to continue the success of Hi Infidelity with more of the same style of music. Much of this album has the sound and consistency of Hi Infidelity, but without the big hits. Keep The Fire Burnin' is the lone chart hit from this album, although nearly every song is impressive. The songs, for all their quality, seem to miss the mark of Hi Infidelity, which seems to be the case for the album. REO fans are often pleased to find this lost classic, which had high quality music but little publicity. High points on the album include The Key, Girl With The Heart Of Gold, Every Now And Then, and Sweet Time. A great album which never received the credit it deserved.

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• I Do'Wanna Know
• One Lonely Night
• Thru The Window
• Rock 'N Roll Star
• Live Every Moment
• Can't Fight This Feeling
• Gotta Feel More
• Break His Spell
• Wheels Are Turnin'

With this album, the band seemed to be focusing on making big hits, which seemed to be lacking in the previous album. REO succeeded in producing a number of hits here, but lost the musical consistency of the last few albums. Hits like Live Every Moment and I Do'wanna Know have a fun, lighthearted mid-'80's feel. On the slower side, One Lonely Night and Can't Fight This Feeling are timeless ballads. Other songs, however, lack the sound or quality of REO tunes (e.g. Break His Spell). Members of the band appeared to be moving in different directions, and outside songwriters were used for assistance. While the album contains numerous hits, there seems to be a lack of consistency and focus which made the classic REO Speedwagon sound of previous albums.

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• New Way To Love
• That Ain't Love
• In My Dreams
• One Too Many Girlfriends
• Variety Tonight
• Screams And Whispers
• Can't Get You Out Of My Heart
• Over The Edge
• Accidents Can Happen
• Tired Of Gettin' Nowhere

REO Speedwagon has many great albums. Unfortunately, this is not one of them. This album was overcome by the confusion, inconsistency, and lack of focus that plagued Wheels Are Turnin'. Disagreements between band members (namely Cronin & Richrath) severely limited the cooperation and unity within the band on this album. The album did manage to spawn a couple hits, however. In My Dreams and That Ain't Love capture the classic REO Speedwagon sound. After that, the album disintegrates quickly. The album is plagued by outside songwriting and low quality songwriting, as well as the band's lack of focus and cooperation. This would prove to be the last studio album for Richrath and drummer Alan Gratzer. A bright spot on the album may be its closer, Tired of Gettin' Nowhere, a true-to-life song about frustration with a jazzy brass sound. Otherwise, the good stuff on this album can be found on compilation albums.

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• I Don't Want To Lose You
• Here With Me
• Roll With The Changes
• Keep On Loving You
• That Ain't Love
• Take It On The Run
• In My Dreams
• Don't Let Him Go
• Can't Fight This Feeling
• Keep Pushin'
• Time For Me To Fly
• One Lonely Night ***
• Back On The Road Again ***
• Ridin' The Storm Out (live)

Well the title says it all, as many REO Speedwagon hits that you can fit onto one disc. The songs are taken mainly from the 80's albums, with emphasis on Hi Infidelity. The album is comprised mostly of songs that became singles or chart hits, with the curious exception of Keep The Fire Burnin'. There is little description necessary, since most of the songs received heavy radio play. The album even includes a few 70's classics such as Ridin' The Storm Out, Keep Pushin', and Roll With The Changes. A couple of new songs were recorded for this album. Here With Me is a fantastic ballad with a classic REO sound. I Don't Want To Lose You is a mediocre song written by the songwriters who contributed to the failure of Life As We Know It. There are a couple mild criticisms of this album. This album includes REO's big hits, but not much else. If the first ten years of the band's music required a double disc set, how the band's entire career fit on a single disc? There seem to be a large proportion of slow songs here, but they are so enjoyable that you don't seem to mind. Basically it's a good brief summary of the band's career, and a place where many of us began as REO fans.

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• Love Is A Rock
• The Heart Survives
• Live It Up
• All Heaven Broke Loose
• Love In The Future
• Half-Way
• Love To Hate
• You Won't See Me
• Can't Lie To My Heart
• L.I.A.R.
• Go For Broke

With three new members of the group, REO either had to reinvent their sound or try to continue their old sound with the new lineup. The result was a little of both on this album, which bears the wackiest title since "Tuna Fish". Most of the songs were written by Cronin and new member Jesse Harms. Although Harms didn't last long with the band, his songwriting added an interesting dynamic to this album. Love Is A Rock is an excellent song with some of Cronin's best lyrics. There's not much else spectacular on this album, but it is consistently somewhat good throughout. The most noticeable difference in the new lineup is the guitar. New guitarist Dave Amato has quite a different sound than Richrath, but a quality sound nonetheless. This album is a good introduction to REO in the 90's.

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• Don't Let Him Go (live)
• Tough Guys (live)
• Take It On The Run (live)
• Shakin' It Loose ***
• Keep The Fire Burnin' (live)
• Roll With The Changes (live)
• I Do' Wanna Know (live)
• Can't Fight This Feeling (live)
• Live Every Moment
• That Ain't Love (live)
• One Too Many Girlfriends
• Variety Tonight
• Back On The Road Again (live)
• Keep On Loving You '89 (live)
• Love Is A Rock
• All Heaven Broke Loose
• L.I.A.R.
• Live It Up (live)

This album fulfilled a few important roles for the band. First, it revisited the glory of the "Decade of Rock" album with the spotlight on their highly successful second decade. Second, this was (nearly) the band's second live album, one that captured the music of the late 70's/early 80's success. Third, this was one final album featuring the classic "Hi Infidelity" lineup of REO Speedwagon. For these reasons, this album is especially appealing to long-time REO fans. The song list may bear resemblance to "The Hits", but the album contains fresh live recordings of many of these songs. The album features a number of 80's classics that didn't make the "Hits" album, such as Keep The Fire Burnin' and I Do'wanna Know. Also, like the original "Decade" album, this one gathers the good songs from some of the weaker albums. The live tracks sound pretty good, but lack the energy and excitement of the original live album. These songs are also scattered throughout the album, so it's hard to get the feel of a live concert. Nonetheless, this album fills in a lot of gaps that weren't covered in "The Hits". Other interesting features include a recording of Back On The Road Again from Richrath's last show in 1989. From the same show, the band also recorded a reggae version of Keep On Loving You, which is interesting at first but becomes annoying. On the positive side, this album is a good representation of the band's live show. A great album to play before that REO Speedwagon concert!

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• Can't Stop Rockin'
• I Still Love You
• Building The Bridge
• When I Get Home
• Then I Met You
• Look The Other Way
• After Tonight
• Hey,Wait a Minute
• One True Man
• She's Gonna Love Me
• The Ballad of the Illinois Opry

This album marked REO's first studio release in six years (just ask us REO fans how long we waited for this album!) The band spent much time in the studio perfecting their sound, but the album just couldn't live up to the expectations of many fans. The music is well recorded, clean and polished. The problem seems to be in the songwriting. At this point, Cronin was left as the sole songwriter (with occasional contributions from Bruce Hall). The album is weighed down by slow songs and seems to lack creativity. Hey Wait A Minute is an amusing Bruce Hall song which breaks the monotony. Can't Stop Rockin' is a weak attempt at a hard-rocking opener, again lacking creativity. There are a few bright spots at the beginning and end of this album, including the Building The Bridge, When I Get Home, and The Ballad of the Illinois Opry. One True Man is a fantastic power-ballad with a classic "Hi Infidelity" style and a good modern sound.

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• Just For You
• Time For Me To Fly
• Keep On Loving You
• Can't Fight This Feeling
• Take It On The Run
• Till The Rivers Run Dry
• In My Dreams
• Here With Me
• Building The Bridge
• One Lonely Night
• The Heart Survives
• After Tonight
• I Wish You Were There

This is an interesting compilation, a collection of REO's slower hits. Not many bands could successfully pull this off, but REO does it with ease. Keep in mind that this is the band that invented (and perfected) the power-ballad. The first two-thirds of this album is surprisingly similar to "The Hits". Despite the softer content of this album, it manages to keep the listener's interest without becoming dull or monotonous. These songs are not "elevator music" ballads; most of them have a kick to them. The album contains two new recordings. Just For You is an impressive song in the classic REO power-ballad style. Till The Rivers Run Dry has a bit of a different sound, but not bad. The later part of the album is comprised of mediocre 90's ballads like The Heart Survives and After Tonight. However, the album tragically omits One True Man, the band's finest ballad since The Hits. I Wish You Were There brings the album to a fine close, much like Hi Infidelity, with its bluesy beat and soulful vocals. A great make-out album.

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