Tommy Shaw

Tommy Shaw
Tommy Shaw performing with Styx on July 2, 2010 at Memorial Park in Omaha, Nebraska
Background information
Birth name	Tommy Roland Shaw
Born	(1953-09-11) September 11, 1953 (age 63) Montgomery, Alabama
Genres	Hard rock, progressive rock, bluegrass, heavy metal
Occupation(s)	Musician, songwriter, vocalist
Instruments	Vocals, guitar, mandolin
Years active	1975–present
Associated acts	Styx, Damn Yankees, Shaw Blades, MSFunk, The Smoke Ring
Website	tommyshaw.com
Notable instruments
Gibson Les Paul Gibson Explorer Hamer Guitars Taylor Guitars

Tommy Roland Shaw (born September 11, 1953) is an American guitarist, singer, songwriter, and performer best known for his work with the rock band Styx. In between his stints with Styx, he has played with other groups including Damn Yankees, Shaw Blades as well as released several solo albums.

Tommy Shaw was born in Montgomery, Alabama, and played with many local bands in his early years. He left Montgomery after attending Robert E. Lee High School to join The Smoke Ring and then MSFunk, a Chicago-managed outfit that he played with for 3 years, which gave him a chance to be noticed by Styx during a 2-week club gig in Chicago. After MSFunk disbanded, he went back to Montgomery to join a local group called Harmony with his childhood friends, which performed at the club Keglers Kove in a bowling alley called Bama Lanes. Following Styx's move to A&M, guitarist and vocalist John Curulewski suddenly left the band shortly before they were to embark on a nationwide tour and a frantic search to find a last-minute replacement was launched. While playing at the bowling alley bar, as a result of his previous experience with MSFunk in Chicago, Shaw got the call to audition for Styx in Chicago. Shaw said: "I got on the plane and went up there the next day, and they didn't ask me to play the guitar at all. The guitar never came out of the case." Once Styx had listened to Shaw's demo tape and Shaw had proven he could sing high notes in "Lady", he was hired.

Shaw joined Styx in December 1975. His first album with Styx, Crystal Ball (1976), was titled after his own composition and also includes his songs "Mademoiselle" and "Shooz". Its follow-up, The Grand Illusion (1977), became the group's breakthrough album, which went platinum due in part to a lot of Shaw. Shaw personally went from studio to studio, coast to coast and pleaded with the stations to play the band's Dennis DeYoung-written and-sung single "Come Sail Away" and also featured a radio hit by Shaw, "Fooling Yourself (The Angry Young Man)".