Ridin' the Storm Out | ||||
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Studio album by | ||||
Released | December 21, 1973 | |||
Recorded | Summer 1973 | |||
Studio | Wally Heider Studios (Los Angeles) The Record Plant (Los Angeles) | |||
Genre | Blues rock, hard rock | |||
Length | 36:26 | |||
Label | Epic | |||
Producer | Bill Halverson | |||
REO Speedwagon chronology | ||||
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Ridin' the Storm Out is the third studio album by REO Speedwagon, released in 1973. It peaked at number 171 on the Billboard 200 chart in 1981, [1] and reached platinum status in 1989. It was the first album to feature Mike Murphy on vocals. The sessions started out with Kevin Cronin, but he left the band before the album was finished, due to creative differences. The title track would later become a hit for the band on their live album, after Cronin had returned to the band. The song refers to the band being stuck in a harsh winter blizzard after a show in Boulder, Colorado, at a bar named Tulagi (now closed).
The album includes a new composition by Stephen Stills, "Open Up", which was never recorded by Stills himself or any of his bands, although "Know You Got to Run" from Stephen Stills 2 is essentially an embryonic version of the song. "Know You Got to Run" consists of only verses and uses a sombre acoustic folk arrangement, while "Open Up" includes a chorus and uses an up-tempo rock arrangement.
Cronin's original version of "Son of a Poor Man" is featured on the compilation albums A Decade of Rock and Roll: 1970-1980, and The Essential REO Speedwagon . "Son of a Poor Man" and "Ridin' the Storm Out" were featured on the live album Live: You Get What You Play For . The studio version of "Ridin' the Storm Out" with Cronin on vocals was released on the compilation "Box Set Series" in 2014, "The Early Years 1971-1977" boxed set in 2018 and as a downloadable track in the music video game Rock Band .
Record World said of the title track that it has "a good mix of hard rock guitar sounds and harmony vocals." [2]
Review scores | |
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Source | Rating |
Allmusic | [3] |
No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length |
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1. | "Ridin' the Storm Out" | Gary Richrath | 4:12 |
2. | "Whiskey Night" | Richrath | 4:42 |
3. | "Oh Woman" | Richrath | 2:46 |
4. | "Find My Fortune" | Richrath | 2:53 |
5. | "Open Up" | Stephen Stills | 3:31 |
No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length |
---|---|---|---|
6. | "Movin'" | Kevin Cronin | 3:20 |
7. | "Son of a Poor Man" | Richrath | 3:44 |
8. | "Start a New Life" | Richrath | 3:50 |
9. | "It's Everywhere" | Cronin | 3:26 |
10. | "Without Expression (Don't Be the Man)" | Terry Reid | 3:51 |
REO Speedwagon [4]
Chart (1974) | Peak position |
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US Billboard 200 [5] | 171 |
Region | Certification | Certified units/sales |
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United States (RIAA) [6] | Platinum | 1,000,000^ |
^ Shipments figures based on certification alone. |
Region | Date | Title | Label | Format | Catalog # |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
USA | December 1973 | Ridin' the Storm Out | Epic Records | Stereo Vinyl | E-32378 |
USA | 1973 | Ridin' the Storm Out | Epic Records | Tape | PET-32378 |
USA | 1973 | Ridin' the Storm Out | Epic Records | 8 TRK | E32378 |
USA | 1986 | Ridin' the Storm Out | Epic Records | CD | EK32378 |
UK | 2008 | Ridin' the Storm Out / Lost in a Dream | BGO Records | CD (Digitally re-mastered) | BGOCD805 |
Japan | 2011 | Ridin' the Storm Out | Sony Music | CD (DSD-Remaster) | EICP 1482 |
REO Speedwagon, or simply REO, is an American rock band from Champaign, Illinois. Formed in 1967, the band cultivated a following during the 1970s and achieved significant commercial success throughout the 1980s. Its best-selling album, Hi Infidelity (1980), contained four US Top 40 hits and sold more than ten million copies.
Hi Infidelity is the ninth studio album by American rock band REO Speedwagon, released on November 21, 1980, by Epic Records. The album became a big hit in the United States, peaking at number one on the Billboard 200. It went on to become the biggest-selling album of 1981, eventually being certified 10 times platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America. Of the four singles released, "Take It on the Run" went to number 5 on the Billboard Hot 100, and the band got their first of two number one hits with "Keep On Loving You".
The Earth, a Small Man, His Dog and a Chicken is the thirteenth studio album by REO Speedwagon, and was released in 1990.
Wheels Are Turnin' is the eleventh studio album by REO Speedwagon, released in November 1984. It reached No. 7 on the Billboard 200. The lead single was "I Do' Wanna Know," which stalled at #29 on the Billboard Hot 100. The second single, "Can't Fight This Feeling," was REO's second and longest-running number one single. Other singles released were "One Lonely Night" and "Live Every Moment". These singles also reached the Top 40 of the Billboard Hot 100, reaching #19 and #34, respectively. The singles from the album also had success on other Billboard charts: "Can't Fight This Feeling" and "I Do' Wanna Know" each reached #5 on the Mainstream Rock chart, with "One Lonely Night" reaching #17, and "Can't Fight This Feeling" and "One Lonely Night" reached #3 and #10, respectively on the Adult Contemporary chart.
"Keep On Loving You" is a rock ballad written by Kevin Cronin and performed by American rock band REO Speedwagon. It features the lead guitar work of Gary Richrath. The song first appeared on REO Speedwagon's 1980 album Hi Infidelity. It was the first REO Speedwagon single to break the top 50 on the U.S. Billboard Hot 100, reaching the number-one spot for one week in March 1981. The single was certified platinum for U.S. sales of over one million copies. It peaked at number seven on the UK Singles Chart. "Keep On Loving You" has been a mainstay on 1980s soft rock compilations and has appeared on dozens of 'various artists' compilation albums, as well as several REO Speedwagon greatest hits albums.
R.E.O./T.W.O. is the second studio album released by the Illinois-based rock band REO Speedwagon, released in 1972. Under the leadership of guitarist Gary Richrath, this album continued the musical direction set on 1971's REO Speedwagon with Richrath's own compositions carrying the record.
You Can Tune a Piano, but You Can't Tuna Fish is the seventh studio album by REO Speedwagon, released in 1978. It was their first album to be co-produced by lead singer Kevin Cronin and lead guitarist Gary Richrath. The album was REO's first to make the Top 40, peaking at No. 29. The album sold over 2 million copies in the US, which led it to being certified 2× Platinum.
Live: You Get What You Play For is a live album by rock band REO Speedwagon, released as a double-LP in 1977. It was recorded at Soldiers and Sailors Memorial Building in Kansas City, Kansas, the Convention Center in Indianapolis, Indiana, Kiel Auditorium in Saint Louis, Missouri and Alex Cooley's Electric Ballroom in Atlanta, Georgia. It peaked at number #72 on the Billboard 200 chart in 1977. The song "Ridin' the Storm Out" reached #94 on Billboard's Hot 100 chart, but has since become a classic rock radio staple. The album went platinum on December 14, 1978.
Good Trouble is the tenth studio album by REO Speedwagon, released in 1982 as a follow-up to Hi Infidelity. It peaked at #7 on the Billboard charts. The single "Keep the Fire Burnin'" gave the band a #7 hit on Billboard's Pop Singles Chart and a #2 hit on the Mainstream Rock Tracks chart, their highest-charting hit on this chart.
R.E.O. Speedwagon is the debut studio album by American rock band REO Speedwagon. Released in 1971, it was the only album recorded with singer Terry Luttrell, who would go on to join Starcastle. Kevin Cronin joined the band for R.E.O./T.W.O. This album concluded with a progressive rock song unlike the later arena rock songs that made them famous.
Lost in a Dream is the fourth studio album by REO Speedwagon, released in 1974. It peaked at number 98 on the Billboard 200 chart in 1975, It was the second album to feature Mike Murphy on vocals. The title track was written by Murphy and future bassist Bruce Hall, who would join the band in 1978. The title track was featured on the compilation A Decade of Rock and Roll: 1970-1980. The album was in print on CD format in 1992 for two months before being quickly deleted.
Nine Lives is the eighth studio album by REO Speedwagon. It peaked at number #33 on the Billboard 200 chart in 1979. The album went gold on December 5, 1979. The title Nine Lives was chosen because the album was the band's ninth, including their live album, and it also featured nine songs. It was the last REO album to prominently feature a more hard rock sound. The group would turn to more pop-oriented material with 1980's Hi Infidelity. In 2013, the album was released on CD by UK-based company Rock Candy Records, with expanded liner notes and photos.
Building the Bridge is the fourteenth studio album by REO Speedwagon. It became the group's first non-charting album since 1972's R.E.O./T.W.O.. This is the only studio album by the band not in the ITunes Store, though the title track is available on The Essential REO Speedwagon. The album was re-released on May 27, 2022 on Jimmy Buffett's Mailboat Records on CD, LP and digital.
R.E.O. is the sixth studio album by REO Speedwagon, released in 1976. It peaked at number 159 on the Billboard 200 chart in 1976. It marked the return of Kevin Cronin to the band after a four-year absence. Five of the songs were featured on the band's subsequent live album, Live: You Get What You Play For. Many fans refer to the album as C.O.W. due to the background of the cover art.
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"Keep the Fire Burnin'" is a song by REO Speedwagon from their 1982 album Good Trouble. This single was the only track from the Good Trouble album to make the top ten on the pop charts, cresting at number seven.
"Don't Let Him Go" is a song written by Kevin Cronin. It was originally released as the opening song for REO Speedwagon's #1 album Hi Infidelity. It was also released as a single, reaching #24 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart. "Don't Let Him Go" has appeared on several REO Speedwagon greatest hits albums.
"In Your Letter" is a song written by Gary Richrath that was first released on REO Speedwagon's 1980 album Hi Infidelity. It was released as the fourth single from the album and just made the Top 20 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart, peaking at #20. It also reached #26 on the Billboard Adult Contemporary chart. It also had some chart success in Canada, reaching #34.
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