Originally a Midwestern phenomenon far from the musical meccas of New York and LA, Styx were outsiders of sorts to the music industry, but dearly beloved by their loyal fan base to this day. Styx songwriters Tommy Shaw, James "JY" Young, and co-founder Dennis DeYoung wrote about the life in America they experienced, all the while battling for respect from certain music critics hell bent on tagging them "corporate rock" for the band's hard-earned success.

InTheStudio host Redbeard gets first-hand accounts from all three principles about this period in Styx history, as the band's current and former members share stories behind eight of their classic albums: Equinox, Crystal Ball, The Grand Illusion, Pieces of Eight, Cornerstone, Paradise Theater, Kilroy Was Here and the live double album Caught In the Act.

"Styx was a really hard thing to get people to believe in. Most bands have one sound. They have one guy you focus on and one style of songwriting... We were so different from each other that we were trying as hard as we could to have a unified sound." - Tommy Shaw