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Kilroy Was Here | ||||
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Studio album by | ||||
Released | February 22, 1983 | |||
Recorded | 1982 | |||
Studio | Pumpkin Studios, Oak Lawn, Illinois | |||
Genre | Pop rock | |||
Length | 40:41 | |||
Label | A&M | |||
Producer | Styx | |||
Styx chronology | ||||
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Singles from Kilroy Was Here | ||||
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Review scores | |
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Source | Rating |
AllMusic | [4] |
Rolling Stone | [5] |
The Rolling Stone Album Guide | [6] |
Kilroy Was Here is the eleventh studio album by the American rock band Styx, released on February 22, 1983. [7] A concept album and rock opera about a world where rock music is outlawed, it is named after a famous World War II graffiti tag, "Kilroy was here." It was the last album of original material to be released by the "classic" lineup of Dennis DeYoung, Tommy Shaw, James "J.Y." Young, John Panozzo, and Chuck Panozzo.
The album spawned two hit singles, the synth-pop "Mr. Roboto" which later became one of their signature songs, and the power ballad "Don't Let It End." Both of them were major hits in 1983, peaking at No. 3 and No. 6 respectively, on the US Billboard Hot 100.
The album is certified platinum by the RIAA. [8] It is the most recent studio album by the band to be certified platinum.
In 2022, Rolling Stone ranked the album #50 on their list of the 50 Greatest Concept Albums of All Time. [9]
The band created the album Kilroy Was Here partly to mockingly respond to Christian groups and other anti-rock-music activists who had previously influenced the Arkansas State Senate to pass a bill requiring that all records containing backmasking be labeled as such by the manufacturer. Cited in the legislation were albums by The Beatles, Pink Floyd, Electric Light Orchestra, Queen, and Styx themselves. [10] ELO similarly responded with its own 1983 album Secret Messages .
The hard rocker "Heavy Metal Poisoning," the fifth track on the album, begins with the backmasked Latin words "annuit cœptis, novus ordo seclorum." [10] Translated from the Latin, these words mean "[he] has favored our undertakings, [11] a new order of the ages." [12] [13] These are the two mottoes from the Great Seal of the United States on the reverse side of the United States one-dollar bill.
The album's somewhat rock-operatic story tells of a future in which a fascist and theocratic government and the "MMM (the Majority for Musical Morality)" have outlawed rock music. The story's protagonist, Robert Orin Charles Kilroy (DeYoung), is a former rock star who has been imprisoned by MMM leader Dr. Everett Righteous (Young). [14] He escapes using a disguise (according to the album's famous song "Mr. Roboto") when he becomes aware that a young musician, Jonathan Chance (Shaw), is on a mission to bring rock music back.
Vocalist and keyboardist Dennis DeYoung conceived Kilroy Was Here as an album and accompanying stage show, which opened with a short film of the same name. According to the episode of Behind the Music featuring Styx, the early part of the supporting tour was a financial disaster, due to the fact that Styx had booked small, theater-sized venues for a more intimate experience, while later tour dates saw the group performing in large arenas to sold-out crowds. The album debuted at No. 10 on the Billboard 200 in its first week and sold over 1 million copies (although some sources say 2.5 million copies) and peaked at No. 3 on the US charts; however, it broke the streak of multi-platinum albums for Styx, and ushered in a more keyboard-oriented, theatrical direction.
In an interview with the Chicago Tribune , James Young talked about the creative differences in the band, and what led to their breakup: "Dennis really wanted to do these soft, intimate love ballads, and that was against the grain for me and Tommy Shaw, so our differences got magnified, because Dennis was insisting on going outside the boundaries we lived with. He's an assertive and strongly opinionated guy." [15]
Despite the album's financial and chart success, after the Kilroy tour, the songs were not performed live by the band Styx (who fired DeYoung in 1999) in subsequent tours (with the exception of segments from "Mr. Roboto" and "Heavy Metal Poisoning" performed in the "Cyclo-medley"), until "Mr. Roboto" reappeared in full (in their encore) on May 30, 2018. [16] DeYoung does perform the songs "Mr. Roboto" and "Don't Let It End" regularly during his solo tours. The James Young Group performed "Heavy Metal Poisoning" and "Double Life" as well on their tour in 1993. [17]
Three of the four videos for the album, "Mr. Roboto," "Don't Let It End," and "Heavy Metal Poisoning," were filmed at the same time and used footage from the minifilm. A fourth video, "Haven't We Been Here Before," was filmed a few months after the album was released; it did not interact with the album's story.
No. | Title | Writer(s) | Lead vocals | Length |
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1. | "Mr. Roboto" | DeYoung | DeYoung | 5:28 |
2. | "Cold War" | Shaw | Shaw | 4:27 |
3. | "Don't Let It End" | DeYoung | DeYoung | 4:56 |
4. | "High Time" | DeYoung | DeYoung | 4:33 |
No. | Title | Writer(s) | Lead vocals | Length |
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1. | "Heavy Metal Poisoning" | Young | Young | 4:57 |
2. | "Just Get Through This Night" | Shaw | Shaw | 6:06 |
3. | "Double Life" | Young | Young | 3:46 |
4. | "Haven't We Been Here Before" | Shaw | Shaw/DeYoung (duet) | 4:06 |
5. | "Don't Let It End" (Reprise) | DeYoung | Shaw, DeYoung | 2:22 |
Weekly charts
| Year-end charts
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Region | Certification | Certified units/sales |
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Canada (Music Canada) [27] | Platinum | 100,000^ |
United States (RIAA) [28] | Platinum | 1,000,000^ |
^ Shipments figures based on certification alone. |
Styx is an American rock band formed in Chicago, Illinois, in 1972. They are known for blending melodic hard rock guitar with acoustic guitar, synthesizers mixed with acoustic piano, upbeat tracks with power ballads, and incorporating elements of international musical theatre. The band established themselves with a progressive rock sound during the 1970s, and began to incorporate pop rock and soft rock elements in the 1980s.
Pieces of Eight is the eighth studio album by American progressive rock band Styx, released in September 1978.
Edge of the Century is the twelfth studio album by Styx, released in 1990. It was the first Styx album featuring A&M solo artist Glen Burtnik, the only album to feature the Dennis DeYoung/James Young/Glen Burtnik/Chuck Panozzo/John Panozzo lineup, and the last album to feature John Panozzo on drums before his death in 1996.
Annuit cœptis is one of two mottos on the reverse side of the Great Seal of the United States. The literal translation is "[He] favors [our] undertakings", from Latin annuo, and coeptum. Because of its context as a caption above the Eye of Providence, the standard translations are "Providence favors our undertakings" and "Providence has favored our undertakings".
"Mr. Roboto" is a song by American rock band Styx, released as the lead single from their eleventh studio album, Kilroy Was Here (1983). It was written by band member Dennis DeYoung. In Canada, it went to #1 on the RPM national singles chart. It entered the US Billboard Hot 100 on 12 February 1983, reaching No. 3 in April.
Dennis DeYoung is an American singer, songwriter and keyboardist. He was a founding member of the rock band Styx and served as its primary lead vocalist and keyboardist from 1972 until 1999. DeYoung was the band's most prolific and successful writer, having been credited as the writer of more Styx songs than any other band member. DeYoung penned seven of the band's eight Billboard top 10 singles as well as a solo top 10 single.
Cornerstone is the ninth studio album by the American rock band Styx, released in 1979. Styx's third straight multi-platinum selling album, Cornerstone was Styx's first album to earn a Grammy nomination, which was for Best Rock Performance by a Duo or Group. Like the four previous Styx albums, the band produced the album themselves. Styx recorded the album at Pumpkin Studios in Oak Lawn, Illinois.
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Brave New World is the thirteenth studio album by Styx, released in 1999. It is the band’s first studio album to feature drummer Todd Sucherman, replacing John Panozzo, who died in 1996 and the last album to feature keyboardist/vocalist Dennis DeYoung. This is the last album that bassist Chuck Panozzo is credited as a full-time member, he would continue with the band as a part-time member. The album peaked at #175 on the Billboard 200 and reached the top 10 on the Top Internet Albums chart. However, its position on the Billboard charts was the lowest from a Styx album of new material since 1973's The Serpent Is Rising.
Tommy Roland Shaw is an American guitarist, singer and songwriter best known for his tenure in the rock band Styx as co-lead vocalist. In between his stints with Styx, he has played with other groups including Damn Yankees and Shaw Blades as well as releasing several solo albums.
Big Bang Theory is the fifteenth studio album and the first covers album by the band Styx, released in 2005. It consists of cover versions of classic rock songs.
John Anthony Panozzo was an American drummer best known for his work with rock band Styx.
Kilroy Was Here is a short film made to tie in with the Styx album of the same name. It was played at the beginning of each Styx show on their 1983 tour. It was written and directed by Brian Gibson of Still Crazy, What's Love Got to Do With It, The Josephine Baker Story and Poltergeist II fame.
"Don't Let It End" is the third track and the second top 10 single on the 1983 album Kilroy Was Here, by Styx. The song is also reprised at the end of the album.
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"Heavy Metal Poisoning" is a song by American rock band Styx. It was included as the fifth track on their 1983 studio album Kilroy Was Here.