R.E.O / T.W.O Songs Ranked
R.E.O./T.W.O. is the second studio album released by the Illinois-based rock band REO Speedwagon, released in 1972. Under the leadership of guitarist Gary Richrath, this album continued the musical direction set on 1971’s REO Speedwagon with Richrath’s own compositions carrying the record. R.E.O./T.W.O launched REO on its first national tour and presented a more polished production than the band‘s debut album; however, it still retained the progressive rock leanings that they were to ditch following the arrival of Mike Murphy and did not even have a slightly successful single to rival “Sophisticated Lady”. Despite this and R.E.O./T.W.O.’s failure to dent the Billboard Top 200, it has remained more readily available than the debut. The album went gold on August 13, 1981. The album introduced Kevin Cronin as vocalist and contributing songwriter to the band, replacing Terry Luttrell. Notable tracks on the album include Richrath’s political “Golden Country” as well as “Like You Do”. Both songs, as well as Cronin’s “Music Man”, are frequently part of the band’s current setlist. Here are all of R.E.O / T.W.O Songs Ranked.
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8. Being Kind
“When you listen to it for the first time, you immediately notice that R.E.O. Speedwagon has its roots somewhere in Southern rock, it’s a hell of a lot of fun to hear the scraped riffs that are accompanied by the piano’s excellent accompaniment.”
7. Golden Country
“There’s many songs here (the legendary “Golden Country”) that would have sounded great on Album Rock stations at the time but nobody except album rock stations in the midwest, southwest and parts of the south gave this platter a serious spin.”
6. Little Queenie
“If you like the band from the “Hi Infidelity” era, you might have difficulties with the two albums presented here, if you want to expand your 70s rock collection, you can access it here. Personally, I like both sides of the band – that too is supposed to exist.”
See more: REO Speedwagon Albums Ranked
5. Flash Tan Queen
“Gary Richrath rips off some uninhibited killer solos all over here, it sounds like he’s really savoring the moment of trying to make a mark in the Rock ‘N’ Roll world. And I dont think Neal Doughty’s piano was recorded this well again, it always sounded tinny or pushed back in the mix on later albums.”
4. Like You Do
“Terry Luttell’s voice reminds me a lot of Tom Johnson of the Doobie Brothers, interestedly this LP was released before the Doobies first LP. It’s just a shame Epic didn’t do much to promote this LP or radio stations just weren’t paying attention.”
See more: REO Speedwagon Songs Ranked
3. How the Story Goes
“Things were different on R.E.O./T.W.O. when Kevin Cronin joined the band with his folk-rock and pop influences. The second album doesn’t quite have the raw energy and excitement of the first due to the (slightly) slicker production. But the songs, better arrangements and the band’s improved musicianship make up for it.”
2. Music Man
“I have been a fan of REO for many years and have always thought that they were a much better live outfit than on album. Their albums never seem to capture their hard rocking raw live sound. Well their first two albums are a fair reflection of their live shows. These albums rock hard and contain many outstanding.”
1. Let Me Ride
“Everything about this two record set was done right. Holding the line to faithfully reproduce the original flow of the album and stepping up the output through enhanced re-engineering is executed to perfection. The additional integrity of reproducing each disc separately is a plus for me. “