track

Fooling Yourself (The Angry Young Man)

1977Released
5:31

Did You Know?

Interesting facts and trivia about Fooling Yourself (The Angry Young Man). By Songfacts®.

Styx guitarist Tommy Shaw wrote this song, which was in part a message to his bandmate Dennis DeYoung, who hated touring and often seemed miserable. Said Shaw: "In a way that song was from me to Dennis. The seeds of discontent had started to take over on the road. The rest of us were all really happy at the time, but Dennis wasn't getting quite the same joy. I was trying to tell him there was all this great stuff going on, and to enjoy it more. It was frustrating to see someone so talented and loved, but not getting more out of the experience. Whether or not he understood, I don't know. It was fairly subtle." Shaw would later downplay the DeYoung connection and say that he realized the song could also apply to himself, as he could become cynical at times.

The synthesizer intro on this song was played by Dennis DeYoung, with Shaw's acoustic guitar strumming along. This intro was typical of the prog-rock that was popular at the time in bands like Yes and Emerson, Lake & Palmer. Styx had a prog influence and did concept albums, but they're songs tended to be much tighter and more radio-friendly than the prog rockers.

Following "Come Sail Away," "Fooling Yourself" was the second single from Styx' breakthrough album, The Grand Illusion. Running 5:27 with a vocal that doesn't start until the 1:22 mark, it's not a typical pop song, but Styx didn't release a radio edit, as shaving down the intro would be like cutting the wedding scene from The Godfather. The song wasn't a huge hit, reaching just #29 in the US, but it helped the album sell over 3 million copies and stuck around on Classic Rock radio. Styx became a stadium act, to the dismay of many music critics.

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Song Analysis

Key, BPM (tempo) and time signature of Fooling Yourself (The Angry Young Man).
DKey
MajorMode
4/4Time Signature
103BPM

Album

The album Fooling Yourself (The Angry Young Man) is released on.

Released By

The record label that has released Fooling Yourself (The Angry Young Man).
A&M
© 1977 A&M Records
℗ 1977 A&M Records

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