I took guitar lessons from John Curulewski back in Chicago1979 Junior year of High School. He helped me pick out my first real guitar, Gibson Les Paul Custom, cherry sunburst. Still have it to this day. #1. Equinox for me. Check out the song A Day. All John Curulewski, still brings a tear to my eye to this day when I put it on.

yet, another band well deserved for Rock Hall of Fame

my list 1. Grand Illusion 2. Pieces of Eight 3. Paradise Theatre 4. Cornerstone 5. Equinox

The Wooden Nickle stuff is terribly underrated...

15. Cyclorama (meh) 14. Edge of the Century (meh) 13. Kilroy Was Here (meh that had potential and makes you smile a little) 12. The Mission (cool, but kind of relied on Tommy Shaw way too much) 11. Brave New World (Interesting album with some hidden gems) 10. Cornerstone (Far from their best, but has a couple of timeless classics) 9. Styx (Great debut, could do better with less cover songs) 8. Paradise Theatre (holds up well, you can revisit this album quite often) 7. Styx II (Great album front to back, just can't compete with their absolute best because their top songs are really on other albums) 6. Pieces of Eight (side two is magnificent, although I think side one is kind of bland) 5. Equinox (I'd say has a bit of the same problem, except that Lorelei and Suite Madame Blue are two of their best songs and this might be straight-out one of the best albums of 1975) 4. The Serpent is Rising (Surprising pick for top five, but I think this album kills... Grove of Eglantine, Witch Wolf and Jonas Psalter are extremely underrated songs in their catalogue, and I'm bummed out that there's apparently no live recording or footage of the title track, I think it's one of JY's best solos) 3. Crystal Ball (I can almost agree with anyone who considers this their best album; one of the more proggy ones but also really fluid and easy to listen to, it opens and ends with a bang) 2. Man of Miracles (Srangely enough, if there's one Styx album that screams consistency, where I don't dislike ANY songs AT ALL it's this one; also love the Uriah Heep vibe on here) 1. The Grand Illusion (Man in the Wilderness, Miss America and the title tack are the real tie-breakers for me, when a single album has three of your maybe top 10 favorites from the band it's hard to argue... Come Sail Away and Castle Walls are also greatest hits material, so...)

I agree that Grand Illusion is a better album, but I always go for Equinox

1. Illusion 2. Eight 3. Crystal 4. Equinox 5. Kilroy 6. II 7. Miracles 8. Serpent 9. I 10 Paradise 11 Brave 12 Edge 13 Corner 14 Mission 15 Cyclorama

Man In The Wilderness and Castle Walls make The Grand Illusion my #1 Styx album.

Not in the Rock Hall of Fame but at least Biggie is...what a joke.

People are gonna say I'm crazy, but I think their 2017 mission album is their best. I just discovered it and I am in love with it

Thank you for your ranking Styx review! Styx Grand Illusion is my favorite too! 🎤🎸🎵🥁

Queen of Spades - One of those moment in time songs. My soccer teammate had his old Impala convertible top down. We were flying down a local two lane road on a beautiful fall afternoon for soccer practice. He blasted Queen of Spades, and I was hooked.

I'd rank Paradise Theater more favorably. But I generally agree with your overall rankings for many bands. Thanks for your great videos. By the way, I read that Styx considers The Serpent is Rising as their worst album, but I love it!

Solid ranking, but I’d have Paradise Theater much higher. Cool concept with some very memorable tracks.

Queen of Spades -- first song I ever heard from Styx. Opened me up to rock music. One of the great songs of the 70s.

I knew this day was coming and I knew it would be so hard as Styx is my favorite band. But I will do my best: 1. The grand illusion 2. Pieces of eight 3. Paradise theatre 4. Crystal ball 5. Equinox 6. Cornerstone 7. Kilroy was here 8. The mission 9. Serpent is rising 10. Styx 2 11 man of miracles 12. Styx 1 13. Cyclorama 14. Brave new world 15. Edge of the century.

Yep, Queen of spades is a kick ass Styx tune ! Also Crystal Ball is one of my all time favs By Styx 🙂

I swear, I'm the ONLY person on Earth who love's Kilroy Was Here!

One of my fave bands of all time. Love all their records, but Pieces of Eight is the one I play start to finish the most...followed by Grand Illusion...Then, and don't laugh, Equinox!

YES!!! The Mission is unbelievably good!! No, great!!! Listening to it for the first time, it immediately grabs you & draws you in for the whole ride from beginning to end and you feel like it's a lost recording from snackdab between The Grand Illusion & Pieces Of Eight!!!

I love the intro of Borrowed Time

I would rate "Paradise Theater " much much higher, one of the 5 best of Styx

My first ever concert was Styx! November 1977 Long Beach Arena with Firefall opening.About 10 rows back center. Grand Illusion tour, was my introduction to Styx. Very partial to all the earlier work, pre Pieces of Eight. Great work Pete!!

Thanks for putting this together and the top Styx songs. Styx is a band I never paid much attention to but I’m listening now.

1. Grand Illusion 2. Equinox 3. Pieces of Eight 4. Paradise Theater 5. Cornerstone 6 .Crystal Ball 7. Man of Miracles 8. Styx II 9. Serpent is Rising 10. Styx I 11. Mission 12. Cyclorama 13. Brave New World 14. Kilroy was Here 15. Edge of the Century

GREAT review I really enjoyed it. You sure gave the Wooden Nickel more love than most do. Ill give you my rankings with top songs 15. Styx - What Has Come Between Us & 14. Styx ll - Lady & You Need Love 13. Brave New World- Roseland , Everything Is Cool, Brave New World & Heavy Water all very good 12. Man of Miracles- Golden Lark, Evil Eyes, A Song For Suzanne 11. The Serpent Is Rising- Serpent is Rising(JC meets Kurt Cobain) Young Man ( JY's Best Song) 10. Kilroy Was Here- Side 2 is VERY strong - Side 1 not good at all 09. Crystal Ball - Solid album - like the entire album- Crystal Ball, Put Me On, Ballerina best tracks on solid album 08. Edge of the Century - Outstanding Album- All In A Days Work, Show Me The Way, World Tonight, Love Is The Ritual, and the title track are all outstanding - Glens all over this- Really really good album that you didnt give much love to. 07. Cyclorama- These Are the Times, Killing The Thing That You Love, Kiss Your Ass Goodbye, Yes I Can, One With Everything, More Love For the Money, Do Things My Way all fantastic - Glen shines again 06. The Mission - Love the entire album - Locomotive is one of my all time favorite Styx songs 05. Paradise Theater - GREAT album not a huge fan of She Cares & Lonely People but the rest of the album is GREAT 04. Cornerstone - Borrowed Time, Love In The Midnight & Lights are tremendous. GREAT album ** My #'s 3&2 depend on the day you ask 03. Pieces of Eight - It has a PERFECT Side 2( Tails) & a near perfect Side 1(Heads) 02. The Grand Illusion - Its a PERFECT album 01. EQUINOX - GREATEST Side 2 in the history of Rock, Perfect Side 1 - My favorite All Time album ** Get a chance and you will need to give these albums some solid listens check out (in order) Images & Words, Octavarium & Metropolis ll Scenes From a Memory by Dream Theater. Dream Theater is my all time favorite band. Styx is #2 Thanks for the great review

Bugger, now I have come sail away in my head and have to sing it from the start. Paradise always be my favourite album.

5.-Paradise Theatre 4.-Equinox 3.-Crystal Ball 2..-Pieces Of Eight 1.-The Grand Illusion

I was a teenager in the late 90's, and Styx was my favorite band, a testament to how timeless and fantastic they are!

Crystal Ball and Equinox are effing awesome albums and put together with Grand Illusion and Pieces of Eight, what a quartet. Those four albums can be put up against any bands best.

Grand Illusion is my number one too, but Paradise Theater must be higher than 11.

I liked your list. Of course, it is all subjective. My list of most beloved STYX albums to least liked and my favorite song from each: 1. Pieces of Eight (Queen of Spades) . Not a bad song on the album 2. The Grand Illusion (Castle Walls/Miss America) Not a bad song on the album 3. Paradise Theatre (Half Penny, Two Penny) Not a bad song on the album 4. Equinox (Prelude12/Suite Madam Blue) Not a bad song on the album 5. Crystal Ball (Shooz) Not a bad song on the album 6. Cornerstone (Eddie) Why Me was kinda weak 7. Edge of the Century (Show Me The Way) All in a Days Work was kinda weak 8. Man of Miracles (Southern Woman) 9. Styx II (Lady/ I'm Gonna Make You Feel It) 10. The Serpent Is Rising (Young Man) 11. Kilroy Was Here (Don't Let It End) 12. The Mission (Gone, Gone, Gone) 13. Styx (Best Thing) 14. Brave New World (Everything Is Cool) 15. Cyclorama (none, I hated it)

Thanks, Pete. I’ve wanted to explore this band, but wasn’t sure where to start.

5 - Cornerstone 4 - Kilroy Was Here 3 - Pieces Of 8 2 - Paradise Theatre 1 - The Grand Illusion

"Man in the Wilderness" means so much more to me at 53 than 23. Cheers.

Queen of Spades!! Such a killer song. Definitely my favorite on Pieces of Eight. 🤘

MY FRIEND. THANKS TO YOU I MEET THIS GREAT BAND. COMPLETELY MATCHED WITH THE FIRST PLACES, I ONLY CHANGE THE ORDER, FOR ME: 1. EQUINOX 2. CRISTAL BALL 3. THE GRAND ILLUSION 4. PIECES OF EIGHT 5. CRASH OF THE CROWN 6. CORNERSTONE 7. PRADISE THEATER

Interesting take; thanks for sharing. One of the Styx songs that I'm surprised I love so, so much is... "Boat on the River." It just sounds so great.

Hey Pete, you mentioned how *Crystal Ball* came in with an important new member (of course TS). Going with that, you should do a top 10 of very important new members to any band. I'd be interested to see whose new members you think were instrumental in really changing those bands for the better...

Great stuff. Love Styx.my #1 favorite song snowblind . In the middle when the singing stops and the guitar takes over just awesome 😎

The other day a guy at the store had on a Styx concert T-shirt and I KNEW it was fine to walk right up and say, "The second album I ever bought was Paradise Theatre." HIS. FACE. LIT. UP. Mine, too.

1. Grand Illusion 2. Equinox 3. Paradise Theater 4. Pieces of Eight 5. Crystal Ball 6. Cornerstone I understand why DeYoung did what he did: in '83 New Wave was taking over, and he wanted to change with the times. But, he alienated his fan base.

Definitely a favorite band of mine. To see them live is amazing.

1 Pieces of Eight 2 Grand Illusion 3 Equinox 4 Crystal Ball 5 Paradise Theater 6 Man of Miracles 7 Serpent is Rising 8 Cornerstone 9 Styx 10 The Mission 11 Styx 2 12 Cyclorama 13 Brave New World 14 Edge of the Century 15 Kilroy was Here

Every now and then, there's a rare radio earworm that is every bit worth the hype (things like Ace of Spades by Motorhead, Highway Star by Deep Purple, or Working Man by Rush.). Just, be hanging with some friends, find the tone and sing out loud "Oh mama, I'm in fear for my life, from the long arm of the law", and immediately, almost involuntarily, someone will respond "Law man has put an end to my running, and I'm so far from my home" If you have more than 1 friend around- you will all finish the verse, before you realize what it is you're doing.

To go with your review, when I heard "Gone, Gone, Gone" off "The Mission" I didn't realize, yet, that there was a new album, and was straining the brain to remember which of the Wooden Nickle albums it was on. The guitars and- most importantly- those early Styx harmonies had me convinced I missed one (even though I own all of the Styx catalogue). Great stuff

agreed on Queen of Spades. Amazing song!

1 ) The Grand Illusion 2 ) Pieces Of Eight 3 ) Paradise Theatre 4 ) Equinox 5 ) Styx II ... Caught them on ' Paradise Theatre ' tour , the first act was all 'Paradise Theatre ' , the 2nd act was their discography of their ' hits ' ... No opening band , 2 1/2 - 3 hours of pure Styx ... btw Dennis De Young played a janitor in a movie theatre , to start the show ...

A middle-term band for me. I easily divide this list in groups, no specifical order into each group. Fourth group, they are 100% disposable: Edge of the Century Cornerstone Kilroy Was Here Third group, just one or another interesting song: Styx Equinox Crystal Ball Pieces of Eight Paradise Theatre Cyclorama Brave New World Second group, good albums: Man of Miracles The Grand Illusion The Mission Styx II My favourite, that sounds really different from all others: The Serpent Is Rising

I've never understood all the hate for the song 'Babe', especially when 'Lady' is so well-liked. I agree it's not a rock song, but I never thought it was terrible. It's leaps and bounds better than anything that comes on current popular radio stations.

Glad to see you rank the Styx albums. Agree with the top 3; GI, P of 8, & Equinox. I would rank paradise higher with cornerstone and serpent lower. A bombastic band that put out some cringy stuff, but at their best they were great. They should be in the R&R HoF.

1.)Pieces Of Eight(because of the Hipgnosis cover art). Also dig the pipe organ on I'm Okay, and Sing For The Day as well. 2.)The Grand Illusion 3.)Equinox 4.)Crystal Ball 5.)The Mission 6.)The Wooden Nickel Collection. It's a 2 CD set that was released in 2003, and contains all four Wooden Nickel albums 7.)Cyclorama(cool Storm Thorogerson Cover art) 8.)Killroy Was Here. I actually dig the concept, the sci-fi vibe, and the synths. 9.)Cornerstone 10.)Paradise Theater-too much electric piano 11.)Edge Of The Century 12.)Brave New World, which I don't actually have(and have never heard).

1. Grand Illusion One of my top 10 desert albums. 2. Pieces of Eight. flip flop the rest, Sytx a great band.

I agree about Grand Illusion and Pieces of Eight. Maybe I would switch the order because Pieces of Eight is a bit special for me being the first Styx album I bought. When it comes to ranking the rest I would rank Cornerstone and Paradise Theater higher and some of the early albums lower, but that is probably due to the fact I haven't listened enough to the early stuff.

I went to a party in Huntington Beach, CA, and Styx was cranking out on the reel to reel. I was really digging the tuneage but then sort of forgot about them. I was driving to Las Vegas, moving there, and stopped at a record store to get some new music for the road and when I pulled up to park 'Grand Illusion' came on the radio. I listened to the whole song then went in and asked the guy working if he knew who did it. He said it was the new Styx album. I bought it... cassette... and dug it so much I bought all their stuff when I got to Vegas. I saw them live twice, great shows but then I lost interest and never really got back into them. But hey, that's just my preferences

Hi, Pete. Great to know that the only three albums I own from the band are 3 of your favorite ones. "The Grand Illusion" "Cornerstone" "Paradise Theater" I've been about to buy "Killroy Was Here" but I think I 'm gonna follow your advice and get "Pieces of Eight" and "Equinox" first. By the way, "Pieces of Eight", the name of the album has a connection with the "Real de a 8" (a spanish coin) which was the coin used in the States before the dollar. I' m really curious about this. The album, which I'm now listening to in Spotify, is glorious. Thanks for your show. It really helps in these difficult times. Greetings from Spain.

100% agree. The Grand Illusion. It was the first cassette I bought, the first music I ever bought. Love singing Miss America at karaoke.

Pretty much agree on the same top two....even though haven't heard all Styx stuff yet. "I'm Ok" and "Fooling Yourself(The Angry Youngman)" from each of those two albums are probably my two fav Styx songs, but songs from other albums like "Lorelei",Suite Madame Blue", "Lights", "Why Me", and "Music Time" are also ones I like a lot....🙂👍

I love the Wooden Nickel recordings. Before they hit the big time. Interesting listening. Thanks for your thoughts.

My ranking of Styx studio albums from worst to best: 16. Big Bang Theory 15. Edge of the Century 14. Kilroy Was Here (I understand the point of this album and I agree with its message against censorship, but musically speaking Kilroy has not aged well at all compared to its preceding albums.) 13. The Serpent Is Rising (I'm kinda torn on the Wooden Nickel albums. Styx were clearly in their building years, trying to find their footing and not quite getting there yet. So clearly the Wooden Nickel era has its ups and downs. But on the other hand, Dennis DeYoung was DA BOMB back then, and combined with JY and JC, they had a solid rock sound established. And honestly, Plexiglass Toilet is so bad it's good.) 12. Styx 11. Styx II 10. Brave New World 9. Cornerstone 8. Man of Miracles 7. Cyclorama (This album gets a lot of hate which I don't understand. My opinion is it's a very good, if flawed, album. I don't care about DDY being absent. I just feel that Cyclorama is padded out in length and has some throwaway tracks. Having said that, Cyclorama still does not deserve to be out of print. Also, One With Everything is a Styx masterpiece.) 6. Paradise Theater 5. Equinox (As a start-to-finish album, this is Dennis DeYoung's magnum opus.) 4. Crystal Ball 3. The Grand Illusion (If you rank this at #1 I won't argue with you. This really was Styx at their peak.) 2. The Mission 1. Pieces of Eight

Thanks Pete, I have only heard a couple of songs from this band so I will check out your first 4 album picks first and then move with the rest, I have check bands and albums that I haven't heard thanks to your videos and suggestions, so I will do with this band Most recently I heard the Toto catalog and yes indeed their debut album in my opinion is also their best

Styx is the band that got me into Hard Rock in the late 70s while I was in Elementary school. I heard Blue Collar Man, and I was changed forever!

Great list!!! Same here with the debate on Illusion and Pieces! I’d probably go with Pieces on top since it was my first Styx lp... I’ll have to pick up Mission... based on how you raved about it, I know I’m gonna dig it!

Cyclorama is quite a grower. 1. Pieces Of Eight 2. The Grand Illusion 3. Crystal Ball 4. Cyclorama 5. The Mission

When I would go to the record store back in the 70's, I would always make sure to pick up Styx.....

I liked how you chose a deep cut as your favorite all time Styx song (Queen of Spades).

I love Styx ! Hugs from Brazil 🎉

Paradise Theater tour was my first concert ever. Loved it.

Thanks for going through this Pete! I was not familiar with Styx outside of the radio hits and went back to listen to the catalog. Really good stuff here

I'm in my 20's and I honestly think Styx made some of the best music. My favorites are very closely tied among Grand Illusion, Edge of the Century, The Mission, Corner Stone, Paradise Theatre, and Cyclorama (what's up with the floating carrot).

Out of the ones I've heard: 01) The Grand Illusion 02) Equinox 03) Serpent Is Rising 04) Pieces Of Eight 05) Styx II 06) Crystal Ball 07) Paradise Theatre 08) Styx 09) Man Of Miracles 10) Cornerstone 11) Edge Of The Century 12) Kilroy Was Here

First concert I ever went to was Styx back in 1976. I'll will always remember seeing DDY in a rocking chair singing Lady. To me he is the greatest male vocalist of all time. Far as albums go, I flip flop between Grand Illusion and Equinox for #1 then Pieces of Eight.

1) The Grand Illusion 2) Pieces of Eight 3) Crystal Ball 4) Cornerstone 5) The Mission 6) Equinox 7) Paradise Theatre 8) Man of Miracles 9) Styx 1 10) Styx 2 11) Serpent is Rising 12) Kilroy was Here 13) Cyclorama 14) Brave New World 15) Edge of the Century

great list the top two I would flip around . I had forgotten how many good albums Styx had made...

I love your story about your dad taking you to see Styx on the Paradise Theater tour. My dad did the same thing for me and a couple of my friends but for the Cornerstone tour. We had a blast! Great memories.

Such a fantastic band.very diverse and original.

#1 Album Peices of Eight!! Fav song, Miss America!!!!

Great story about Paradise Theater tour. We were lucky to get tickets. My dad took me to that concert. It was my very first concert.

1. Pieces of Eight; 2. Grand Illusion; 3. Paradise Theater

15. Edge of Century 14. Kilroy was here 13. Brave New World 12. Mission 11. Cyclorama 10. Styx 9. Serpent is Rising 8. Styx II 7.Man of Miracles 6. Cornerstone. 5. Paradise Theater 4. Crystal Ball. 3. Pieces of Eight. 2. Equinox. 1. Grand Illusion. Thanks Pete great list!

Interesting rankings. I know pretty much every Styx song by heart (I consider Kilroy to be their last album). It's been a while since I listened to some of the albums all the way through. I agree with a most of your rankings, although Paradise being that low, kind of put me off. But I heard your reasoning, and some of the key songs you mentioned kind of make me re-think their discography. The first Styx album I ever heard was Paradise, and I loved it. Still do. But how does it hold up as a whole album, compared their whole discography? Very good question. Time to listen to everything, in order, starting from Styx I, and ending with Kilroy.

I'll always love Styx dearly-- they were the band that really got me into classic rock in the first place when I was around 11 or so. My dad gave me the StyxWorld Live album that had just come out in 2001, and to this day it remains my idea of the perfect rock show. Naturally, I had to figure out my own ranking: 15. Kilroy Was Here 14. Edge of the Century 13. Serpent Is Rising 12. Man of Miracles 11. Styx 10. Cornerstone 9. Paradise Theatre 8. The Mission 7. Brave New World 6. Grand Illusion 5. Pieces of Eight 4. Equinox 3. Styx II 2. Crystal Ball 1. Cyclorama (yep, you read that right)

I love Killroy... a very underrated album. I am ranking the 76-83 period. 1. Killroy 2. Cornerstone 3. Paradise Theater 4. Grand Illusion 5. Pieces of eight 6. Crystal Ball

Pete, totally on board with Illusion, Castle Walls is fantastic. I trade that with Crystal Ball, which got me into Styx. Great show!

Solid Ranking. Hard to rank some of those albums... choosing a favorite sometimes comes down to the one you are listening to at the moment. Love Queen of Spades as well.

Yep Grand Illusion the best one. Couple years ago I got the 180 g vinyl and it's just so nice to have a brand new beautiful record with that gorgeous cover.

Dig the Mission, great songs and production

I have EQUINOX on vinyl this album is my childhood soundtrack one of my favorite all time

If factoring in all components of making a record; melody; lyrics; hook; AND production (quality of recording and sound of guitars). I also prefer the hard rock tunes of STYX. My ranking is as follows: 1. Pieces of 8 2. Grand Illusion 3. Equinox 4. Paradise Theatre 5. Crystal Ball 6. Cornerstone 7. Styx 2 (good songs but bad sound recording) 8. Man of Miracles (would be much higher but recording quality not good) 9. Kilroy 10. Edge of the Century 11. Serpent is Rising (would be much higher but recording quality not good) 12. Cyclorama 13. Brave New World 14. STYX (could be some higher but recording quality not good and too many non-styx written songs) 15. Mission to Mars (I thought the tracks were decent enough, but not written by JY, DDY, TS and the guitar sounds were too "thin" for me.

1. Equinox 2. Cornerstone 3. Crystal Ball 4. Paradise Theatre 5. Pieces Of Eight 6. The Grand Illusion 7. Kilroy Was Here 8. Edge Of The Century I Really Dig "Kilroy Was Here", Cheesy? Yes, But it's Iconic IMO.

Thanks to your list I gave the Mission a good listen. Bought it when it came out but never gave it time to sink in. What an album! Nice to see the post Kilroy stuff get a mention as well as the Wooden Nickel releases. Most lists only focus on the A & M releases. I am a Pieces of Eight guy, though, with Queen of Spades being my favorite Styx song.

I just started watching this one, but that is a dope f'n shirt! Loves me some Styx!

Thanks so much... From Colombia!!!

Styx did a gig at my high school in 1974. Loved them. The grand illusion came out when I was a junior in college. My favorite.

Equinox is my favorite and also the first i get my hand on back in the 70's. Kilroy is underrated btw!

Agree for the most part, but Equinox will always be my number 1

I was at the concert at the Meadowlands that you missed out on tickets. It was a great show! Styx at the peak of their live performance powers.

Awesome. Could you rank the YES albums? It would take a while but I’m sure a few people would enjoy

Missed out Big Bang Theory...excellent album of covers. Some great hard rock stuff on there. Would be number 5 or 6 on my list.

My ranking 16. Big Bang Theory (I almost don't count this one, which is why it's at the bottom) 15. Styx 1 14. Cyclorama 13. Brave New World 12. The Mission (this would be higher on the list if it wasn't for how barebones and almost non-existent the back half of the album is.) 11. Edge of the Century 10. The Serpent is Rising 9. Man of Miracles 8. Cornerstone 7. Crystal Ball 6. Styx II 5. Kilroy Was here 4. Paradise Theater 3. Equinox 2. The Grand Illusion 1. Pieces of Eight