''R.E.O. Speedwagon'' is the debut

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 American rock band

REO Speedwagon REO Speedwagon (originally stylized as R.E.O. Speedwagon) 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. The ...

. Released in 1971, it was the only album recorded with singer

Terry Luttrell Terry Luttrell (born 1947 Champaign, Illinois) is an American rock singer/musician best known as lead vocalist for both REO Speedwagon (1968–1972) and Starcastle (1973–1979). Bands Luttrell had played guitar with a local Champaign band, Ter ...

, who would go on to join

Starcastle Starcastle is an American progressive rock band from Champaign, Illinois, United States. Formed in 1969, the group played many shows under the names Pegasus and Mad John Fever before eventually settling on Starcastle. They inked their first reco ...

. 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.

History

The album produced the fan favorites “157 Riverside Avenue”, “Sophisticated Lady” and “Lay Me Down”, but sold very poorly, though “Sophisticated Lady” did reach number 122 on the singles charts. “157 Riverside Avenue” and “Lay Me Down” were subsequently recorded on the live album ''Live: You Get What You Play For''. “157 Riverside Avenue” and “Sophisticated Lady” were both featured on the compilation album ''A Decade of Rock and Roll: 1970-1980''. In 2007, the British company

BGO Records BGO Records (Beat Goes On) is a British record label specializing in classic rock, blues, jazz, and folk music. In 1965, Andy Gray opened Andys Records and set up a market stall in Bury St Edmunds, Suffolk. Year by year he opened up more shops. ...

released ''REO Speedwagon'' and ''R.E.O./T.W.O.'' together (BGOCD775), marking the first time the band's first album was widely available in CD format. For some unknown reason, Epic Records never issued this first album on the cassette tape format (but they did issue an 8-Track Stereo Tape Cartridge version of it). ''

Record World ''Record World'' magazine was one of the three main music industry trade magazines in the United States, along with '' Billboard'' and '' Cashbox''. It was founded in 1946 under the name ''Music Vendor'', but in 1964 it was changed to ''Record Wo ...

'' called the single "Sophisticated Lady" "ultra-energy music of the sort that enlivens top 40 formats." ''

'' called the single "Lay Me Down" a "hard, but not too hard, rock number" and "exciting music."

Track listing

All songs written by

Neal Doughty Neal Allan Doughty (born July 29, 1946, in Evansville, Indiana) is an American keyboardist, best known as a founding member of the rock band REO Speedwagon and the only member to have played on every album. He formed the band in fall 1967, with or ...

, Alan Gratzer,

, Gregg Philbin, and

Gary Richrath Gary Dean Richrath (October 18, 1949 – September 13, 2015) was an American guitarist, best known as the lead guitarist and a songwriter for the band REO Speedwagon from 1970 until 1989. Early life Richrath was born in Peoria, Illinois, on Octob ...

. ;Side one #"Gypsy Woman's Passion" – 5:17 #"

157 Riverside Avenue "157 Riverside Avenue" is a song by REO Speedwagon from their first album, ''REO Speedwagon'', released in 1971. It was written by all five band members at the time, Terry Luttrell, Gary Richrath, Gregg Philbin, Neal Doughty, and Alan Gratzer. ...

" – 3:57 #"Anti-Establishment Man" – 5:21 #"Lay Me Down" – 3:51 ;Side two #

"Sophisticated Lady" – 4:00 #"Five Men Were Killed Today" – 3:00 #"Prison Women" – 2:36 #"Dead at Last" – 10:08

Personnel

REO Speedwagon *

- lead vocals *

- guitar *

- keyboards *Gregg Philbin - bass, backing vocals *Alan Gratzer - drums, backing vocals ;Additional personnel *Andre Borly - organ (track 6) *Freedom Soul Singers - backing vocals (track 8)

Charts

Singles -

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)

Release history

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Reo Speedwagon REO Speedwagon albums 1971 debut albums Albums produced by Paul Leka Epic Records albums