Pieces of Eight (album)

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Pieces of Eight
Studio album by Styx
Released	September 1, 1978
Recorded	1978 at Paragon Recording Studios, St. James Cathedral Chicago
Genre	Progressive Rock Hard Rock
Length	42:18
Label	A&M
Producer	Styx
Professional reviews
All Music Guide link Rolling Stone (mixed) link
Styx chronology
The Grand Illusion (1977) Pieces of Eight (1978) Cornerstone (1979)

Pieces of Eight is the eighth album by Styx, released September 1, 1978 (see 1978 in music).

The album was the band's follow-up to their Triple Platinum selling The Grand Illusion album. The band members produced the album and recorded it (like their previous three efforts) at Paragon Studios in Chicago with recording engineer Barry Mraz and mixing engineer Rob Kingsland.

The theme of the album, as Dennis DeYoung explained on In the Studio with Redbeard which devoted an entire episode to Pieces of Eight, was about "not giving up your dreams just for the pursuit of money and material possessions".

Eight of the album's ten tracks have vocals, and it features two instrumentals, the DeYoung synthesizer showcase "The Message" and Tommy Shaw's closing "Aku-Aku" (although for the latter, there was one lyric spoken, the title of the song).

The album's cover was done by Hipgnosis. DeYoung stated in the same 1991 interview with Redbeard on the In the Studio episode for the album that he initially hated the cover but grew to like it as he got older.

The album peaked at #6 on the Billboard album chart, and like its predecessor would go Triple Platinum.

[edit] Track listing

1. "Great White Hope" (Young) – 4:22
   • Lead vocals and lead guitar: James Young
2. "I'm Okay" (DeYoung, Young) – 5:41
   • Lead vocals, synthesizer solos and pipe organ: Dennis DeYoung, lead guitar: Tommy Shaw
3. "Sing for the Day" (Shaw) – 4:57
   • Lead vocals, mandolin and all guitars: Tommy Shaw
4. "The Message" (DeYoung) – 1:08
   • Instrumental, all synthesizers: Dennis DeYoung
5. "Lords of the Ring" (DeYoung) – 4:33
   • Lead vocals and first guitar solo: James Young, synthesizer solos: Dennis DeYoung, last guitar solo: Tommy Shaw
6. "Blue Collar Man (Long Nights)" (Shaw) – 4:05
   • Lead vocals and lead guitar: Tommy Shaw
7. "Queen of Spades" (DeYoung, Young) – 5:38
   • Lead vocals: Dennis DeYoung, lead guitar: James Young
8. "Renegade" (Shaw) – 4:13
   • Lead vocals: Tommy Shaw, lead guitar: James Young
9. "Pieces of Eight" (DeYoung) – 4:44
   • Lead vocals: Dennis DeYoung, lead guitar: Tommy Shaw
10. "Aku-Aku" (Shaw) – 2:57
    • Instrumental, lead guitar and whisper chant: Tommy Shaw

[edit] Personnel

• Dennis DeYoung – keyboards, vocals, pipe organ
• Chuck Panozzo – bass, vocals
• John Panozzo – drums, vocals
• Tommy Shaw – guitars, mandolin, vocals, all guitars on "Sing For the Day"
• James Young – guitar, vocals

[edit] Production

• Producer: Styx
• Engineers: Rob Kingsland, Barry Mraz
• Cover by Hipgnosis

[edit] Charts

Album – Billboard (North America)

Singles – Billboard (North America)

[edit] See also

• Top 100 Selling Albums of the 1970s

[edit] External links

• Official website