REO Speedwagon's Kevin Cronin on Gary Richrath & Big Al's Strip Club

Kevin Cronin is always a great interview. How did Kevin and REO Guitarist Gary Richrath meet? Awesome story! Also, Kevin is NOT a fan of concert venues constantly changing names for sponsors.
Finally, being a Central-Illinois band, Gunner asks about Big Al's ALL NUDE Strip Club in Peoria! Yes, Kevin's been there and the story is great!

Episode Transcript

(00:00):
Well, it is such a greatpleasure to have with us today. A
friend of the show, a fellowMidwesterner. Hello, Kevin Cronin, good
morning, Oh my goodness. Itis so great to hear your voice again.
And you guys are out with trainthis summer. We will see you
at Ruolf Music Center on Wednesday,July tenth. Hey, can I ask

(00:20):
because I don't wait wait, wait, hang on one second, what it's
deer creek. I'm sorry. Youknow what I'm saying. I mean,
let's let's be real here. Youknow what I'm saying. See there there
is a true no bs Midwesterner rightthere. Kevin Cronin knows what it's all
about. Man, thank you forthat. What were you about to say?

(00:44):
Oh? I was going to say, it's great to have you here.
And now I have to ask.Have you guys hit the fifty year
mark in Rio? I think so. I want It depends, you know,
because you know there was a bandcalled Ario Speedwagon. It's in Champagne,
Illinois that started in nineteen Uh wasit forty three or forty four?

(01:07):
Oh my god? Well no,no, no, we're not now,
okay, you're not. It startedin It started in sixty seven. But
that band played you know, fraternityparties and and you know they were just
a you know, they were agarage band. But in uh, in

(01:29):
nineteen seventy, when Gary and theygot Gary, that was that was the
turning point. And soon after thatis when when Epic signed the band to
the first recording contract. And uh, you know, Irving Azoff, who
was a local booking agent in Champagneat the time, you know, saw

(01:49):
saw Ario Speedwagon, but in particular, you know, he saw Gary.
Gary was just he was a forcein nature man, the guy. Yeah,
you know, and anyone who sawthe band, uh in those days
just knows that that it was uhyou know, it was it was something
special. And you know, andI just kind of got lucky because because

(02:10):
Gary and I met accidentally a coupleof years later up in Chicago and and
uh, you know, they weregetting ready to record their second album and
they and they didn't didn't have enoughsongs and and I just you know,
I was a local singer songwriter,you know, playing playing the folk clubs
in Chicago, and uh, itwas an unlikely part and ship and Gary

(02:36):
and I met and we just therewas a yeah, I think both.
I don't think either of us hadever met anyone else who was as driven
and as and just loved music,uh the way we did. So we
just kind of it was like theband didn't even know anything about it.

(02:59):
Gary brought me down to Champagne.A big band is like, wait,
what what's called? What are youdoing? What's go? Who's he?
You know? But so, youknow, I think I would say officially
the band, you know, Iwould say nineteen seventy you know what when
when Rich Raps joined. That's that'swhen it became real. If you want
to check out a great guitar show, what guitar rock and roll? Guitar

(03:21):
where a Gibson Les Paul is allabout Rich Rath, you the whole band,
Reo Speedwagon, get the live album, you get what you play for?
I mean, that is it.There's there's such a guitar school Man,
flying Turkey Trot, all of it. You know myself, I sing,
you know, it's just the greatestthere's everybody had. Everybody had a
great live album back in the day, but yours top five you had a

(03:44):
live bullet. Get what you playfor? I mean it was a squit
essential Yeah, yeah, well,and that was really that was the album
that kind of put us on themap, because you know, it took
took all the songs that kind ofsounded a little a little weak, a
little a little drive, you know, in the original recorded versions, you

(04:05):
know, on the first six albums, and that that album just really you're
right, it really just captured whatthe band sounds like. You've got these
great hit songs, but you it'sso difficult to take them off of the
album version and bring them to life. It's really hard to capture. Only
a few people did it, man, and you guys absolutely did it.

(04:26):
Well, thank you, we didit, and and they It reminds me
that in I think it's in rightright around the indianapolish right before the Indianapolis
show, there's a uh, there'san album coming out that that kind of
we In nineteen seventy nine, wewent to Europe for the first time and

(04:50):
we played a show in Hamburg ata club and it was and it was
this just this heavy duty, youknow, German rock audience, and it
was and I'll never forget the show. Well, it turns out we're releasing
another live album, which is whichis that performance from that club in nineteen

(05:15):
seventy nine in Hamburg. And what'sreally weird is that the night before we
decided. You know, we're allhuge Beatle fans, right, so we're
in Hamburg, and you know theBeatles played clubs in Hamburg, you know,
before they before they released any records, that they were in Hamburg for
a couple of years. So wedecided that we're going to go. And

(05:40):
the area of town where the clubsare is the red Light district of Hamburg.
It was all kind of the samething. Yeah, I know,
kind of convenient for a bunch ofyoung gentlemen back in nineteen seventy nine.
How does a live show with ReoSpeedwagon go. There's Gary, he plays
the guitar. Myself I saying,don't forget tip your bartenders and waitresses.

(06:01):
Yeah, well, but but noone spoke English. I mean, I
you know, I I haven't.Actually, it's a it's a it's a
seed. It's not coming out onvinyl, uh C D and dB D.
And I'm I'm curious to see theDVD because I remember the show.
I remember for I don't know why, but I remember what I was wearing

(06:24):
that night and I remember, Ithink I must have seen a photo of
it or something, and it isperhaps the low point in my in my
career as far as rock and rollfashion. It was that. But it's
you know, it's gonna be fun. I'm actually looking forward to seeing it

(06:45):
because just a little snapshot I think, you know, I'm not exactly positive,
So it's either I think it's earlyJuly, but it might be it
might be sooner, but but earlyJuly. It's called something like a live
at rock plast Wait. You know, yeah, we're gonna be We're going

(07:06):
to have them available at the venuesand I think you can also probably order
it online or whatever. So justjust kind of a fun little thing for
the fans, all right now,I know we're coming to the end of
our interview. Kevin cronin Ario andTrain Wednesday, July tenth at Deer Creek
Music Center. You brought up thered Light district. You're in a central

(07:28):
Illinois guy. You ever been toBig Ol Strip Club in Peoria? Dude,
Big Ol Strip Club in Peoria isdownstairs from the hotel that we stay
in. So I'll just leave itat that. Big Big Owls by the
way for people who don't know allnude. You're in the middle of Illinois

(07:48):
and cornfields. These girls are allnude. I went to a bachelor party
there. I think I spent onethousand dollars. Yeah. We once,
we once pulled the tour bus upright in front of Big Als. So
the so there was there was someyou know, there was some co mingling

(08:09):
going on between what was going oninside the club and what was going on
on the bus. It was,it was, it was a wild night,
I'll put it that way. OhGod, if Ario speed Wagons staying
above the Strip Club Big Owls andyou're staying upstairs, they they've now installed
the Ario Speedwagon band delivery pole thatyou can slide down like a fireman,

(08:31):
straight into the Strip Club. Kevinspeed Wagon immediately, Yeah, the alarm
goes off. You guys, jumpout of bed, throw your clothes on,
jump down a pall, bring yourown lubrication. Uh, we just
got to polish that pole. Welove it. Kevin Cronin, thank you
for all the years of music.We can't wait to see you in July.

(08:52):
Hey man, you know me too, I mean checking out. When
when when the idea came up totour with Trey Now. You know,
as a singer, I you know, I'm a fan of Pat Montey and
that guy. He is world classman. This guy can sing his ass
off. And we've you know,we've done a few promotional shows. We

(09:13):
did a show at the Whiskey withthem in Los Angeles and the couple of
TV shows. And their band isgreat, good guys. You know,
they're kind of like a little bityounger version of us. You know,
they like to have a good timeand uh and and here's the thing.
You know, people, you know, Rio fans are going to come to

(09:33):
this show and they're gonna hear Train, and they're gonna be sitting there for
the whole set. You know thatfeeling when you go to see a band
and you're and you're not all thatfamiliar with him. You know, a
couple of their songs and then yousit there in the crowd and you go,
oh, wait a minute, thatone. I didn't know they did
that one. You know, that'sthe yeah, And I think a lot
of Train fans are gonna, youknow, come out to Deer Creek and

(09:56):
they're going to be listening to toRio speed. Why you're doing the same
thing. But the beauty of itis that, you know, it's a
it's it's it's a multi generational thing. And it was a little bit of
a you know, you know,it's a little uh you know, I
think it shows a little spunk inboth of our bands to to really go

(10:16):
for the fact that that that it'sall about the music and uh and and
so I think it's gonna be alot of fun. And you know,
the bands already have a vibe togetherand you know, and when the bands
are having a good time, itshows on stage. And you know,
we might do you know, Patrickand I are talking about trying to figure

(10:37):
something out when we do something together, uh at some point. So so
we're gonna you know, it's gonnabe fun and uh and we're you know,
God coming to Indianapolis. Are youSpeedwagon? And you guys know we
were the house band on New Year'sEve in in Indianapolis. We played like
four New Year's Eves in a rowat the Old Market Square Arena. That

(10:58):
we're you know, we we wefeel at home in Minnieapolis and well,
you know, we're looking forward toit. So thanks for having me on
and uh and we'll see you inDeer Creek or whatever you want to call
it. Look look for the twoguys. We want to call it Deer
Creek. Look for the two guysin the Big Al's T shirts, and
that'll be on See you, Kevinye