''Edge of the Century'' is the twelfth studio

album An album is a collection of audio recordings issued on compact disc (CD), Phonograph record, vinyl, audio tape, or another medium such as Digital distribution#Music, digital distribution. Albums of recorded sound were developed in the early ...

by Styx, released in 1990. It was the first Styx album featuring A&M solo artist

Glen Burtnik Glen Burtnik (born Glenn Burtnick; April 8, 1955) is a singer, songwriter, entertainer and multi-instrumentalist, best known as a former member of Styx. Burtnik is originally from North Brunswick, New Jersey, in the Middlesex County part of th ...

, 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. The album spawned three singles. " Show Me the Way" was written by DeYoung and peaked at #3 on both the Hot 100 Pop Singles Chart and Adult Contemporary Chart. Some radio stations played a version edited with snippets of congressional debate and caller dedications to troops in the Gulf War. "

Love Is the Ritual "Love Is the Ritual" is the first single released from ''Edge of the Century'' by Styx. Background The song was written and sung by Glen Burtnik, who had been recruited by the band as a new guitarist. Shaw was at that time busy as a member of the ...

", (Pop singles peak #80) written by Burtnik and Plinky Giglio, and "

Love at First Sight Love at first sight is a personal experience as well as a common trope in literature: a person or character feels an instant, extreme, and ultimately long-lasting romantic attraction for a stranger upon first seeing that stranger. Described by p ...

", (Pop singles chart peak, #25) written by Burtnik, DeYoung and Young, were also released as singles, but neither garnered the same amount of success as "Show Me the Way". The album sold more than 500,000 copies and was certified gold by the RIAA. ''Edge of the Century'' would be Styx's last album of new music for

A&M Records A&M Records was an American record label founded as an independent company by Herb Alpert and Jerry Moss in 1962. Due to the success of the discography A&M released, the label garnered interest and was acquired by PolyGram in 1989 and began distr ...

and due to poor album sales, A&M did not renew their contract.

Track listing

Personnel

Styx

Dennis DeYoung Dennis DeYoung (born February 18, 1947) is an American musician, singer, songwriter and record producer. 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 th ...

– vocals, keyboards,

accordion Accordions (from 19th-century German ''Akkordeon'', from ''Akkord''—"musical chord, concord of sounds") are a family of box-shaped musical instruments of the bellows-driven free-reed aerophone type (producing sound as air flows past a reed ...

* James "JY" Young – guitars, vocals *

– guitars, vocals *

Chuck Panozzo Charles Salvatore Panozzo (born September 20, 1948) is an American musician best known as a co-founder of the rock band Styx. He is currently a part-time bass player in the band, sharing bass duties with Ricky Phillips. Panozzo suffers from HIV ...

– bass guitar *

John Panozzo John Anthony Panozzo (September 20, 1948 – July 16, 1996) was an American drummer best known for his work with rock band Styx. Early life and career Panozzo grew up in the Roseland neighborhood, the south side of Chicago, Illinois, with hi ...

– drums, percussion

Additional personnel

* Salvatore "Plinky" Giglio –

sequencing In genetics and biochemistry, sequencing means to determine the primary structure (sometimes incorrectly called the primary sequence) of an unbranched biopolymer. Sequencing results in a symbolic linear depiction known as a sequence which succ ...

(1) * Gary Fry – Synclavier programming (4) * Terry Fryer – sound effects (9) *

Howard Levy Howard Levy (born July 31, 1951) is an American multi-instrumentalist. A keyboardist and virtuoso harmonica player, Levy "has been realistically presented as one of the most important and radical harmonica innovators of the twentieth century. ...

–

harmonica The harmonica, also known as a French harp or mouth organ, is a free reed wind instrument used worldwide in many musical genres, notably in blues, American folk music, classical music, jazz, country, and rock. The many types of harmonica inclu ...

* Joe Pusateri – percussion * Ronald Kolber –

baritone saxophone The baritone saxophone is a member of the saxophone family of instruments, larger (and lower-pitched) than the tenor saxophone, but smaller (and higher-pitched) than the bass. It is the lowest-pitched saxophone in common use - the bass, contra ...

* Jon Negus –

clarinet The clarinet is a musical instrument in the woodwind family. The instrument has a nearly cylindrical bore and a flared bell, and uses a single reed to produce sound. Clarinets comprise a family of instruments of differing sizes and pitches ...

, saxophones, horn arrangements (10) * Michael Smith – saxophones * Mike Halpin – trombone * Danny Barber – trumpet * Mark Ohlson – trumpet * Mac Bialystock – horn arrangements (10)

Production

* Dennis DeYoung – producer, mixing * Phil Bonanno – engineer, mixing * Chris Shepard – second engineer * Plinky Giglio – additional engineer (1) *

Ted Jensen Ted Jensen (born September 19, 1954) is an American mastering engineer, known for having mastered many recordings, including the Eagles' ''Hotel California'', Green Day's '' American Idiot'' and Norah Jones' ''Come Away with Me''. Biography Ted ...

– mastering at Sterling Sound, NYC *

Hugh Syme Hugh Syme is a Canadian Juno Award-winning graphic artist and member of the Premier Artists Collection (PAC) who is best known for his artwork and cover concepts for rock and metal bands. He is also a musician and has appeared on some Rush ...

– art direction, design * Mark Hauser – photography

Charts

Album -

Billboard A billboard (also called a hoarding in the UK and many other parts of the world) is a large outdoor advertising structure (a billing board), typically found in high-traffic areas such as alongside busy roads. Billboards present large advertise ...

(United States) Singles - Billboard (United States)

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Edge Of The Century 1990 albums A&M Records albums Styx (band) albums