REO Speedwagon
Find Your Own Way Home

In 2007, Reo Speedwagon made a return to the music scene by releasing Find Your Own Way Home, a pleasant and sincere album, belonging to that kind of product which unfortunately has become scarce nowadays—one without economic interests. You can truly feel that these old timers still have a desire to rock and have fun after all these years, without any intention of revolutionizing their sound or competing with artists today who are more than half their age. No, their intention is to please their narrow circle of fans, enjoy themselves and, of course, if the profit is good, so much the better.

For fans of the group, this work is nonetheless a blessing. The song-writing standards are the classic Reo ones, that is, the catchy standard songs the band has been producing since the eighties, enhanced by today's perfect recording equipment sound, even if a vintage lover or old vinyl enthusiast might wrinkle their nose.

The lineup features the charismatic leader Kevin Cronin on vocals and production, accompanied by a host of highly skilled musicians, who found themselves in 2003 supporting Styx and Journey at the Rock's Main Event Tour, and have decided since then to remain united.

Find Your Own Way Home comes after twelve years of recording inactivity (excluding The Ballads, which contains the group's fantastic ballads plus two unreleased tracks), and it does not disappoint.

The rocking songs go straight to the heart with their simplicity, which nonetheless does not exclude class, right from the opening Smilin' In The End. The choice of the first track is excellent, the hard yet melodic sound and the upbeat rhythm encourage the listener to continue with the album.

Cronin's voice has matured over the years, almost more adult, and it is more recognizable in slower pieces like I Needed To Fall, which strongly recalls the melody of Keep On Lovin' You, or in the bluesy Run Away Baby, in Hi Infidelity (the album) style. The title track is fantastic, a classic AOR where the guitars take the lead, even though noteworthy are the all-American Dangerous Combination, or the fun Lost On The Road Of Love.

At certain points in the album, you can hear the Toto family serving as a school, for example, Another Lifetime could easily be found on an album like Tambu or Falling In Between, especially due to Lukather's strong influence on Dave Amato's guitar playing.

In short, the whole album proceeds with a radio-friendly momentum, even if Find Your Own Way Home hasn’t seen much radio play, only I Needed To Fall has earned a small spot on the charts, achieving a modest twenty-fifth place, just because they are Reo Speedwagon.

But in the end, who cares about the charts? Just listen to the album while driving calmly to be more than satisfied.