Customer Reviews

Pieces of Eight

5 star:		(56)
4 star:		(11)
3 star:		(7)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

Most fans rate "The Grand Illusion" as Styx' best album. I would tend to disagree. From a purely musical standpoint, "Pieces of Eight" is the more complete work and shows the talents of the band at their prime. It is a complete work, one that lends itself to listening to it in its entirety, almost as if the individual songs were intended as movements in a symphony.

The album begins with the fast, hard-driving "Great White Hope". This song really gets your attention and gets the album going. This is contrasted with the slower, more majestic "I'm OK" which features a pipe organ solo performed by Dennis DeYoung recorded in a cathedral. If there is a weak link on the album, it is the third cut, "Sing for the Day", a lighter tune in 6/8. While a nice, sparsely textured and upbeat follow up to "I'm OK", it doesn't seem to demonstrate the same level of compositional talent as the rest of the album. The tour de force of the album is "The Message/Lord of the Rings". Here Styx continues its exploration of fantasy and storytelling, just as it had in earlier days with tracks such as "Jonas Psalter", and "Castle Walls". "The Message" demonstrates Dennis DeYoung's mastery of the synthesizer, both in technique and in creativity with timbres. "Lord of the Rings" is simply majestic and inspiring, and is probably the best example of all the voices within the band working together. If you aren't motivated by listening to this cut, you must not be a Styx fan. Incidentally, this first side consists entirely of songs in major keys. Side one is clearly uplifting both in musical mood, texture, and in lyrics.

Side 2 takes us on a journey into the minor keys. "Blue Collar Man" may be Tommy Shaw's finest work- one of those rare moments of inspired genius. Musically the song perfectly depicts the lyrical content of a desperate man fighting against all odds to make ends meet and the determination and will to get the job done. "Queen of Spades" is a minor-key soliloquy on the dangers of gambling addictions (or is it?). The vocal harmonies on this song (as throughout the album) really serve to bring home the message. "Renegade" is another song in a minor key and features blazing guitar work. I can remember being ten years old and hearing this song booming out of a chevy camaro going down the street- exciting! We end the album with the title track, which again starts out in a minor key as Dennis DeYoung recounts the events of a day with accoustic guitar accompaniment- we hear two stanzas of this, the second complimented with a bass countermelody, building anticipation. Psychologically, we've been in minor keys for an awfully long time, so when the chorus comes in in major, it is the perfect release of tension which has built up over eleven minutes. But they don't end there! We are treated to a developmental section where a melody is played by Dennis on the Piano, and each other voice enters sucessively with accompanying material including another bass countermelody. Dennis really out-does himself at the conclusion of this section with a rapid virtuosic passage. A majestic guitar solo (JY I believe?) ushers us back to the chorus, which repeats in all its glory until a cadence which ends on a suspension, resolves, and then Dennis plays a cadenza which ends leaving just one lone synthesizer note- this leads into the "Coda" of the album, a hauntingly relaxing Shaw composition entitled "Aku Aku". One is left with a feeling of completeness. "Pieces of Eight" is a true harmonic journey, THE masterwork of real musicians at the height of their compositional abilities.

Another great effort from one of rock's most underrated acts. Some may find the lyrics to a couple of the songs to be a little corny(I'm OK, Lords of the Ring), but the music is absolutely gorgeous throughout. One thing that's always puzzled me about Styx is how little notice Dennis DeYoung has gotten for his keyboard playing. I'm not a keyboard player, so I can't really speak as to the difficulty of his parts; all I know is, his arrangements were beautiful and his solos rocked, and to be perfectly honest, I've never heard anyone who sounds anything like him. Some of you keyboardists out there are probably sneering and thinking "Keith Emerson"(of ELP); but I would say that while he may have been an amazing player and a great showman, most of his music is just flat out boring. Anyway, Dennis is in top form on this album. The synth solo on "Sing for the Day" is so joyous it practically brings tears to my eyes. Lest I forget, let me add that the guitars of Tommy Shaw and James Young are also great as usual. The bottom line is this: Pieces of Eight is one of the best albums by a unique band at the height of their powers. No one else has sounded like this before or since.

Styx's 1978 release of "Pieces Of Eight" is a masterpiece in the word of progressive pop/rock. Sure, nearly every Styx album has hits, but there are a select four or five that mix the glory of pop and progressive rock in such a way that it stands the test of time as a true album rock record, without any throw-away tracks. "Pieces Of Eight" presents Styx at their absolute best; constructing a tight album for progressive rockers and pop lovers alike.

People will remember this album for it's radio hits the most - "Blue Collar Man" and "Renegade". The hits are fantastic songs, but the album tracks are what makes this album such a gem. Songs like "Sing for the Day", "Lords of the Ring" and the epic "Queen of Spades" are just as good if not better than the hits.

I own about 9 Styx albums, and I feel this is their most seminal work. If your looking for a second album to buy, I would recommend "The Grand Illusion". I've seen them live twice; incredible both times; so I got to show love for Styx.

ONLY WINNERS WHO LIKE GREAT 70'S ROCK MUSIC WILL LIKE THIS.THIS IS NOT FOR LOSERS WHO LISTEN TO MTV INSPIRED TEEN POP TRASH.TOMMY SHAW AND DENNIS DE YOUNG SHOULD BE HONOURED FOR MAKING SUCH GREAT MUSIC.MY RATING FIVE STARS.

This is by far, Styx' best album. This one is a little heavier than The Grand Illusion. This one contained 2 of Styx' most recognizable songs. The rest of the album however, is just as great.

1. Great White Hope-5/5. This is a great, heavy opener from JY. These are the songs where he is at his best, because he doesn't have the greatest voice. The rockers are his strong suit.
2. I'm OK-5/5. Another great rocker that could have fit on The Grand Illusion. A great pipe organ solo from Dennis. One of his greatest vocals too.
3. Sing For the Day-5/5. A lighter song from Tommy. The lyrics are very romantic and the music is wonderful. One of the best songs on here.
4. The Message-4/5. A short synthesizer intro to the next song. It sounds pretty cool, but might have been better if it was part of the next song instead of its own track.
5. Lords of the Ring-4/5. Written by Dennis and sung by JY. The song itself is cool. Slow, heavy song with interesting lyrics, but JY's vocals aren't very good. Would have been better if it were sung by Dennis.
6. Blue Collar Man (Long Nights)-5/5. Huge hit song from this album. Heavy, aggressive rocker from Tommy. Excellent song.
7. Queen of Spades-5/5. Probably my favorite song on this album. Very atmospheric, before it busts into one of the heaviest guitar riffs in Styx' history. Perfect song.
8. Renegade-5/5. One of Styx' most well known songs. Heavy and aggressive song from Tommy. One of my personal favorites ever. Excellent.
9. Pieces of Eight-5/5. Great power ballad from Dennis. The lyrics are great. He should have stuck to these types of lyrics instead of the more fantasy type stuff. Excellent song.
10. Aku-Aku-5/5. Beautiful soft instrumental from Tommy. Excellent way to end the album.

Styx fans already own this album. But for those who only know them for their overplayed hits, I strongly recommend this album. Styx get a very bad rap these days, and weren't liked very much by critics at the time, but good music is good music, regardless. Highly recommended!!

I am a big fan of most Styx albums, from their earliest, pre-Tommy Shaw stuff right up through the more "pop-oriented" stuff of the '80's and beyond. However, to me the most vintage Styx has to be "The Grand Illusion" and this album ("Paradise Theater" is not far behind). With the opening track "Great White Hope", which starts with Dennis DeYoung "announcing" followed by James Young breaking into song, you can tell that this is going to be quite a ride. Rarely did Dennis and James collaborate better vocally than on that song. "Sing For The Day" is a nice mellow Tommy Shaw offering, while "Blue Collar Man (Long Nights)" and "Renegade" are big rocking hits with Tommy on lead. "Renegade" to me is one of Styx' finest hits ever. JY rocks again mightily on "Lords Of The Ring". I listen to a hard rock song like "Queen Of Spades" and have to wonder why Dennis stopped rocking like this. He has a great ballad voice but also was a great and very unique rock singer in his day. This effort as a whole is so diverse and rocking that I find it a very enjoyable and interesting listen right to this day. The "music critics" who lump this music under the mindless category of "corporate rock" do not know what they are talking about. Like its predecessor, "Pieces Of Eight" is one of the most original, unique-sounding rock album offerings you could ever hope to listen to.

A truly great Styx CD once you get past/ignore Sing For the Day. That's not a bad song, it just doesn't seem to fit in here. Great White Hope kickstarts this nice set into high gear. The best song they completely ignore has got to be Queen of Spades. Some of my metalhead buddies who don't even like Styx claim this is a great song. Renegade and Blue Collar Man are great Tommy Shaw songs which hold up to this day no problem. Pices of Eight: Always been my favorite, always will.

Styx is one of my Top 10 Bands of all time and this album is my favorite(edging out Grand Illusion slightly). When I had the LP, I used to think that side 2 of this record was one of the best sides of any album made. "Queen of Spades" and "Pieces of Eight" have always sparked my imagination with sound and rhythms that are absolutely beautiful. I consider this album to be the apex of their work because "Cornerstone" and later albums seemed to taper off with lyric and music quality.

Generally acknowledged as Styx's most enduring album, very few of the reviews so far have mentioned anything about the album's overall concept. Released in September 1978, there's much more to this collection than cheery vocal harmonies and a few classic rock radio hits. While the individual songs of DeYoung, Shaw, and Young are all very different, there is a recurring theme behind the lyrics.

The band's eighth studio album, Pieces of Eight's concept is the illusions of modern day living. The previous album, 1977's The Grand Illusion, also touched on this topic, but did not carry it through on every single song. ("Come Sail Away" and "Castle Walls" are seemingly just fantasy pieces, without any underlying theme.) Take a look at the songs of Pieces of Eight:

"Great White Hope": the illusion of America as the fastest gun in the west, or the undefeated champ.
"I'm Okay": the illusions behind the late 1970s self-esteem movement.
"Sing for the Day": the illusion of eternal youth.
"The Message/Lords of the Ring": nothing to do with Tolkein, but rather with the illusion of celebrity and "making it". The "ring" is the "brass ring" of success. The last verse intones: "And though the legend was pure fantasy - we still need the hope it brings."
"Blue Collar Man": the illusion of "job security".
"Queen of Spades": not about gambling (as many people suppose), but the illusion of luck and good fortune. "Luck is a lady whose smile is as cold as a stone."
"Renegade": the illusion of escape and the so-called glamour of life on the lam.
"Pieces of Eight": the illusion of wealth, and the alleged power and happiness it brings. This song also brings home the overall theme of not trading reality for unreachable fantasy. (Enron/Broadcom moguls, are you listening?)

The album then closes with perhaps the most beautiful piece the band has ever recorded, the ethereal, dreamy "Aku Aku", music to float away on. Named after the ancestral spirits of the people of Easter Island, it also ties in with Hypgnosis' outer-cover and gatefold photography. That Easter Island was chosen is also appropriate to the concept because rather than being an idyllic South Seas isle, the local history is one of people who divided into groups and almost completely destroyed each other fighting over dwindling natural resources. In other words, there are no island paradises.

Most will agree this is the last album Styx recorded before moving into their lighter, Broadway-style period. Later albums were also conceptual, but were either too elusive (Paradise Theater) or hammered home too hard (Kilroy was Here). On Pieces of Eight, the production, musicianship, and songwriting were never better, and the concept has proved even more appropriate with the passage of time. Because of the dynamic contrasts between the celestial synths/acoustic guitars and the heavy guitar rock/cathedral organ, this album was very popular with the "half-speed mastered virgin-vinyl" audiophile movement among late 1970s LP buyers (I still have mine). Pieces of Eight still sounds great today in any format, and while Styx will always be dismissed by the roots-rock crowd, it has proved to be their most outstanding achievement musically, lyrically, and conceptually. Easter Island, indeed.

In many ways "Pieces of Eight" is the finest of all Styx albums. Overall it even outdoes "The Grand Illusion" which many consider to be Styx's finest work. The tracks 6-10 are in my opinion the best side of Styx ever. Tommy Shaw tears it up on both "Blue Collar Man" as well as "Renegade" and Deyoung has two of his most underrated tracks on the album in "Queen of Spades" and "Pieces of Eight." This album has a great mix of melody and crackling guitar which is sadly missing on "Cornerstone" which sounds like it could not have come from the same decade never mind a year later! Other later releases would include the so-so "Paradise Theater" which was at least a step up from Cornerstone, and the dreadful "Killroy was Here" when Deyoung and his ballad fettish put the nails in the coffin but good for these guys. I guess this is what makes this album a great one. A final time when the band ran on all cylinders and were at the peak of their creativity. Not many bands stay that way for long. Styx was no exception.