''Ridin' the Storm Out'' is the third

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 ...

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 1973. It peaked at number 171 on the

Billboard 200 The ''Billboard'' 200 is a record chart ranking the 200 most popular music albums and EPs in the United States. It is published weekly by '' Billboard'' magazine and is frequently used to convey the popularity of an artist or groups of art ...

chart in 1981, and reached

platinum Platinum is a chemical element with the symbol Pt and atomic number 78. It is a dense, malleable, ductile, highly unreactive, precious, silverish-white transition metal. Its name originates from Spanish , a diminutive of "silver". Platinu ...

status in 1989. It was the first album to feature Mike Murphy on vocals. The sessions started out with

Kevin Cronin Kevin Patrick Cronin (born October 6, 1951) is an American singer and songwriter, who is the lead vocalist, rhythm guitarist, and pianist for the rock band REO Speedwagon. The band had several hits on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100 throughout the ...

, 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 Boulder is a home rule city that is the county seat and most populous municipality of Boulder County, Colorado, United States. The city population was 108,250 at the 2020 United States census, making it the 12th most populous city in Color ...

, at a bar named Tulagi (now closed). The album includes a new composition by

Stephen Stills Stephen Arthur Stills (born January 3, 1945) is an American musician, singer and songwriter best known for his work with Buffalo Springfield and Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young. As both a solo act and member of two successful bands, Stills has com ...

, "Open Up", which was never recorded by Stills himself or any of his bands, although "Know You Got to Run" from ''

Stephen Stills 2 ''Stephen Stills 2'' is the second solo album by Stephen Stills, released on Atlantic Records in 1971. It peaked at number eight on the Billboard 200 and was certified as a gold record by the RIAA. Two singles were released from the album, both ju ...

'' 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 ''The Essential REO Speedwagon'' is a greatest hits album by the band REO Speedwagon released through Epic Records and Legacy Recordings. The collection spans the band's history from 1971 through 1999 and the package includes two compact discs. ...

''. "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 Video games, also known as computer games, are electronic games that involves interaction with a user interface or input device such as a joystick, controller, keyboard, or motion sensing device to generate visual feedback. This fee ...

Rock Band A rock band or pop band is a small musical ensemble that performs rock music, pop music, or a related genre. A four-piece band is the most common configuration in rock and pop music. In the early years, the configuration was typically two guita ...

''.

Track listing

Personnel

REO Speedwagon *Mike Murphy – lead vocals *

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 ...

– guitar, lead vocal on "Find My Fortune" *

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 ...

– keyboards *Gregg Philbin – bass *Alan Gratzer – drums ;Additional personnel *

Gene Estes The Wrecking Crew was a loose collective of Los Angeles-based session musicians whose services were employed for a great number of studio recordings in the 1960s and 1970s, including hundreds of top 40 hits. The musicians were not publicly rec ...

– percussion * Guille Garcia – percussion *

Joe Walsh Joseph Fidler Walsh (born November 20, 1947) is an American guitarist, singer, and songwriter. In a career spanning over five decades, he has been a member of three successful rock bands: the James Gang, Eagles, and Ringo Starr & His All-Starr B ...

– slide guitar on "Whiskey Night", "Open Up" and "Start A New Life" *

Gloria Jones Gloria Richetta Jones (born October 19, 1945) is an American singer and songwriter who first found success in the United Kingdom, being recognized there as "The Queen of Northern Soul". She recorded the 1965 hit song "Tainted Love" and has wo ...

– backing vocals *Carolyn Willis – backing vocals *Oma Drake – backing vocals

Charts

Album

Certifications

Release history

References

{{Authority control REO Speedwagon albums 1973 albums Albums produced by Paul Leka Epic Records albums