We Help You Hire, Book and Produce a REO Speedwagon Performance
Hire REO Speedwagon For Your Event
Celebrity Direct Inc. will help you select, book and hire REO Speedwagon to perform at your corporate event, non-profit event or private performance.
We are always uniquely positioned as your advocate throughout the hiring process and we won’t let you overpay.
Contact us for availability, price and other production details at:
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REO Speedwagon Songs
- “Can’t Fight This Feeling”
- “Don’t Let Him Go”
- “Keep On Loving You”
- “I Don’t Wanna Know”
- “In My Dreams”
- “Take It On The Run”
- “One Lonely Night”
- “Music Man”
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REO Speedwagon Bio
Three bands were the undisputed arena rock kings of the early ’80s — Styx, Journey, and REO Speedwagon — yet all weren’t overnight success stories (in fact, each group began pursuing different musical styles originally — prog rock, fusion, and straight-ahead hard rock, respectively, before transforming slowly into chart-topping mainstream rockers). REO Speedwagon first formed in 1968, via a pair of University of Illinois students, keyboardist Neal Doughty and drummer Alan Gratzer. After graduation, the group signed on with then-unknown manager Irving Azoff (who would later guide the careers of such multi-platinum acts as the Eagles and Steely Dan), which led to the outfit building a devoted following in the Midwest due to nonstop touring. By the early ’70s, Doughty and Gratzer had welcomed aboard guitarist Gary Richrath, who would soon prove to be the group’s spark plug (and one of rock’s more underrated players), in addition to bassist Gregg Philbin and singer Terry Luttrell. It was this lineup to be featured on the quintet’s 1971 self-titled debut recording for Epic Records.
Once more, a frontman change was required, and instead of searching for a fresh new face, REO welcomed back Cronin. The move paid off almost immediately, as REO found their niche by streamlining their sound and focusing on melodic rockers aimed at radio, as well as power ballads aimed at teenage girls’ hearts. Released in 1976, R.E.O. signaled the beginning of the veteran group’s winning streak, as both 1977’s Live: You Get What You Play For and 1978’s You Can Tune a Piano, But You Can’t Tuna Fish were REO’s first to earn gold and platinum certification. Another live album, Live Again, was also issued in 1978, followed up a year later by another gold-certified hit, Nine Lives. Although REO was slowly inching their way to big-time success, no one (not even the band) could have predicted the massive hit that their next album turned out to be, Hi Infidelity. Issued at the tail end of 1980, it became one of 1981’s biggest albums — spawning one of the best-known power ballads of all time, “Keep on Loving You,” as well as such popular rock radio hits as “Don’t Let Him Go” and “Take It on the Run.” Hi Infidelity would eventually go on to sell more than nine million copies — catapulting REO to arena-headlining status.
The ’90s saw the emergence of countless REO compilations, including such titles as The Second Decade of Rock n’ Roll: 1981 to 1991, Only the Strong Survive, The Ballads, and a specially priced three-disc set of Live: You Get What You Play For, You Can Tune a Piano, But You Can’t Tuna Fish, and Hi Infidelity. Additionally, further in-concert releases cropped up — Live: Plus, Extended Versions, and a 2001 live set, Arch Allies: Live at Riverport, split 50/50 between REO and touring mates Styx. In a 2001 episode of VH1’s Behind the Music series that focused on REO Speedwagon, Cronin and Richrath cleared up any misconceptions of ill will existing between either camp and voiced approval of a possible reunion in the future. When REO returned to the studio later in the 2000s, however, it was without Richrath. Find Your Own Way Home, the band’s first studio album of new songs in more than ten years, featured Cronin along with founding member Neal Doughty on keyboards, longtime bassist Bruce Hall, and ’80s additions Amato and Hitt. This lineup also released an unabashed record of Christmas songs in 2009, titled Not So Silent Night.
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Contact REO Speedwagon Manager or Agent | You May Ask?
How can I hire REO Speedwagon for a corporate event, non-profit or charity event or private performance? How much does REO Speedwagon cost for a performance, a song, an appearance at an event, party or convention ending gala? What kind of budget would I need for a REO Speedwagon performance at our event? How can I find out if REO Speedwagon is available for our event date? How do I contact REO Speedwagon’s manager? How do I contact REO Speedwagon’s agent?
We can answer all your questions.
Contact our National Booking Office or send us your questions via email to hire REO Speedwagon.
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Why Celebrity Direct Inc.
Direct Source for Celebrity Performers We are the industry leader in celebrity talent buying and production for corporate events. We work on your behalf to hire the best possible celebrity for your budget and we are uniquely positioned as your advocate in the booking process so you never overpay.
Corporate & Non-Profit Events and Private Performances We are dedicated to private performances, not publicly ticketed events, and we are the experts in this highly specialized entertainment market.
Complete Turn-Key Production Nationwide Event planners work with us in several ways, either choosing from a menu of our services or asking us to produce a show delivered completely turn-key at your event nationwide.