Styx's Tommy Shaw Suggested Bringing "Mr. Roboto" Back to Live Show

Styx's Tommy Shaw Was Behind the Band's Decision to Perform "Mr. Roboto" Again

Styx singer Lawrence Gowan says Styx recently brought back its most controversial song, "Mr. Roboto," at the urging of one of the song's earliest detractors, guitarist Tommy Shaw.

Styx reintroduced the song to its live show at the beginning of its most recent tour after 35 years of not performing it in its entirety. Gowan was asked about the dramatic shift in a recent interview with I'm Music Magazine

"Believe it or not, that conversation started about five years ago on our bus," Gowan said.

He recalled the guitarist expressing his complicated feelings about "Mr Roboto": "Tommy said, 'You know, I'd really like to play 'Mr. Roboto,' but there's just so much baggage that we had to go through when we made that record. It ultimately led to the band breaking up, but I actually like that song. I just didn't like the experience of making that album.'"

Gowan recalls the Shaw continuing, explaining that he thought fans would be upset, since the band had been so public about its dislike of "Mr. Roboto" and of the tour for the Kilroy Was Here album.

Gowan says he was completely on board with bringing back the song. He says during the course of re-learning "Mr. Roboto," the band members recalled that singer Dennis DeYoung used to perform the tune by himself; he would be joined by the full band afterwards. 

Styx decided to reinterpret "Mr. Roboto" and add more guitars to the arrangement. 

"I intend to sing it with a bit more anger; I love the built-in drama of the lyrics," Gowan said. "Someone who is forced to hide their identity; I think it's a great concept. The robots are here to stay and we're living with them and with a little bit of fear of just how high they will rise, whether we like it or not. On top of everything else, the song is fun, so why shouldn't we play it?"

DeYoung said in a recent interview on The Eddie Trunk Podcast  that the band hurt its legacy by so publicly distancing itself from the song.

The song, written by DeYoung, was one of the legendary rock band's biggest hits, however the band reportedly had mixed feelings about it at the time. 

Shaw, in particular, supposedly disliked the song and the theatrics of Styx's live shows on its ensuing Kilroy Was Here tour. Shaw's disillusionment with the direction of the band led to him leaving the group at the conclusion of '83's Kilroy tour. The band broke up soon afterwards. 

When Styx returned in the '90s with Shaw and DeYoung, "Mr. Roboto" was never incorporated back into the set list. DeYoung was fired from the band in 1999 and replaced with Gowan. 

DeYoung told Trunk recently that he hasn't spoken to his former bandmates since then. 

Despite it all, DeYoung says, he's still proud of "Mr. Roboto" — proud that it was a departure for the band and that people like it anyway. He says he hopes Styx performing the song again live means the band is inching closer to a reunion. 

"I don't have any hard feelings towards those guys," he said. "I don't. If they called tomorrow for a reunion, — I've pushed it, I've said it for 18 years: I want to be in the band. I should be in the band. It's exactly what the fan base wants."

DeYoung will be playing the music of Styx all summer on tour. Get his tour dates here

Styx is on tour all summer with Tesla and Joan Jett & The Blackhearts. Get those dates here


Photo: Getty Images


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