During these early years, there were also several others(including horn players, etc.) who quickly came and went. With Richrath on board, the regional popularity of the band grew tremendously. Richrath was a Peoria, Illinois -based guitar player and prolific songwriter who brought original material to the band. Another guitarist, Steve Scorfina, came aboard, only to be replaced by Gary Richrath by late 1970. Fiorio then departed in late 1969, eventually assumed the name Duke Tumatoe, and went on to form the All Star Frogs. Crownover played guitar for the group until the summer of 1969 when Bill Fiorio (ex- Lothar and the Hand People ) replaced him. Around the same time, Neil Crownover and Gregg Philbin were brought in to replace the graduating Joe Matt and Mike Blair. Terry Luttrell was the one chosen to assume this position. In the spring of 1968, the group decided to recruit a permanent front man to handle most of the singing. Sometimes the members would switch around on their instruments(with Doughty even playing drums on one song, etc.). In the beginning, Gratzer handled about 95 percent of the lead singing, with occasional turns by the others. The first line up consisted of Neal Doughty on keyboards, Alan Gratzer on drums and vocals, Joe Matt on guitar and vocals and Mike Blair on bass and vocals. REO Speedwagon was formed by students attending the University of Illinois in Champaign in the fall of 1967 to play cover songs in campus bars. ) In 1971, GM gave the band rights to the name and logo. ("R.E.O." are initials of the company's founder, Ransom Eli Olds, who also founded Oldsmobile, once a division of General Motors. This is really arena rock’s Blood on the Tracks, albeit by a group of guys instead of a singular vision, but that makes it more affecting, as well as a killer slice of ear candy.REO Speedwagon took its name from the REO Speed Wagon, a firetruck manufactured by the REO Motor Car Company. “What’s really great about these songs is not just the sheen of professionalism that makes them addictive to listen to, but there’s a real strain of pathos that runs through these songs – the album’s title isn't just a clever pun, but a description of the tortured romantic relationships that populate this record’s songs.
Kevin Cronin has a serviceable voice and Gary Richrath is a solid if unspectacular lead player” RO “but there’s a real urgency to the songs and the performances.” STE Keep on Loving You set “the pattern for the power ballads that would take many a hard rock band to the top of the charts throughout the ‘80s.” RO That song “and the surging Take It on the Run…define their era.” STE There’s also “the Bo Diddley-inspired opener, Don’t Let Him Go” STE and other radio-friendly songs like “the sun-kissed ‘60s homage In Your Letter, and Tough Guys.” STE “The band’s strongest attribute is its inconspicuous nature. This is the sound of the stadiums in that netherworld between giants like Zeppelin and MTV’s slick, video-ready anthems.” STE This was “a record that not just summarized their strengths, but captured everything that was good about arena rock. However, REO got their first “with this incredibly mainstream collection of power ballads and economic hard rock.” RO They did it with a fifteen-week chart-topper which sold more than 9 million copies in the U.S.
Then, in 1981, all four bands topped the album charts. The highest REO ever previously reached was #29. The difference is that all those bands had landed a couple top ten albums. They “had been slogging it out in the arenas of the U.S.” STE for nearly a decade, “building up a sizeable audience because they could deliver live.” STE This was much the same story for the band’s peers like Styx, Journey, and Foreigner. “If you need proof why arena rock was giant, this is it.” STE REO Speedwagon could arguably be credited with bringing arena rock to its pinnacle.
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