Fooling Yourself (The Angry Young Man)

"Fooling Yourself" is the second single released from Styx's The Grand Illusion album. On the Billboard Hot 100 pop chart in the U.S., the single peaked at number 29. It also hit #20 on the Canada RPM Top Singles chart the week of May 6th 1978.

The song was written by guitarist Tommy Shaw. It was originally based on Shaw's initial perception of Styx keyboardist Dennis DeYoung — an "angry young man" who viewed the group's successes with a wary eye and grew angry or depressed with every setback. It was only in later years that Shaw began to see himself in the lyrics, and the song took on a more personal meaning to him.

In addition to Shaw's driving acoustic guitar tracks during the verse and chorus, DeYoung performs two intricate synthesizer solos. The first, in the middle of the song, is performed in 7/4 time, an unusual meter for a pop song. The second solo, as the song fades out, is performed in 6/8 time.