The Grand Illusion (1977)
1.The Grand Illusion
2.Fooling Yourself
3.Superstars
4.Come Sail Away
5.Miss America
6.Man in the Wilderness
7.Castlewalls
8.The Grand Finale
The seventh studio album for Styx has now been revealed as the album that would make or break them. Dennis DeYoung later admitted that he told himself during the recording: “If this doesn’t work, I’m going back to being a school teacher.” He would soon find out that he could stay away from the schoolyard permanently. Ironically, the concept here (and the band didn’t disguise it in any way) was how success and stardom are often mistaken as synonyms for happiness. Ironic, because the band hadn’t quite made it yet—although they were gaining fans every day through persistent touring. The album is full of Grand Illusions, and stands as one of the darkest (although strongest) pieces in their catalog.
Consider the strongest piece on the release (perhaps the strongest ever?): Come Sail Away. What seems like a pleasant journey through childhood fantasy is actually a desperate plea for understanding and acceptance in a world the band had only begun to fully enter. Tommy Shaw avoids the dreaded sophomore slump entirely, delivering the haunting Man in the Wilderness, a beautiful yet melancholy reflection of isolation. “Sometimes it makes no sense at all,” he tells us, over and over again.
Musically, most fans and critics would agree—the band was at its peak. The creative detours that would eventually splinter their unity were still a few albums off, and their formula of big arena rock with complex vocal arrangements was now fully dialed in. Fooling Yourself is the most obvious example of this—Shaw’s insistent acoustic guitar duel with DeYoung’s synthesizer crescendos beautifully when the full band kicks in with their now unmistakable vocal layering. James Young takes the mic for his best-known Styx contribution, Miss America, another hard-edged rocker tackling more of the album’s “illusion of grandeur” themes. DeYoung’s Castle Walls is the lone nod to the early days, clocking in at over six minutes, and makes one wish their early material had been this focused.
What really holds this whole thing together is the rare moment of complete collaboration. DeYoung, Shaw, and Young all brought different flavors to the table, but here, they were all working toward the same goal. No one personality overshadowed the others. No one was dominating the mic or the liner notes. For once, it felt like a complete group effort. And the result? Easily one of the defining records of the era—and the one that finally launched them into the upper tier of American rock bands.
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