Music Monday: Styx/Paradise Theatre (Act One)

After the drama that took place and the disagreements that boiled over following the previous album Cornerstone, Styx released their 10th studio album in 1981. And I must say, it is one of my top five favorite albums of all time. I am speaking of course about Paradise Theatre.

Paradise Theatre is a concept album which details a fictional account of Chicago's Paradise Theatre (photo on the left) from its grand opening in 1928 (front cover of the album) to its closing and eventual abandonment and demolition in 1958 (back cover). Dennis DeYoung used it as a metaphor for America's changing times from the late 1970's into the 1980's. The band members are depicted as "players", and each side of the album is referred to as "Act One" and "Act Two".

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