REO Speedwagon Live at Mystic Showroom – Shakopee MN – October 30th 2021

Mystic Lake Casino presents REO Speedwagon live

Review and photos by Tommy Sommers

REO Speedwagon @ Mystic Lake Showroom  Prior Lake, MN 10/30/21

Full disclosure before you read any further, I love this band! I’ve been a fan of REO Speedwagon since the 70’s. I believe this show went on sale almost two years ago and because of COVID, they finally been able to open things up again. Before I start with the band, I’d like to mention how much I enjoy going to Mystic Lake. For those of you that are not familiar it is a casino in the Southwestern metro area of Minneapolis in Saint Paul. The casino is absolutely massive, and it includes all types of gambling as well as hotel and other activities. It’s just a great showroom to see a live band because the production is always top notch. Plus, it was so nice just to see live music again

REO Speedwagon sounded amazing as they always do. They’ve only had one member that’s been changing for the most part over the years which is the drummer. Other than that, the four that are together have been that way for easily over 20 years. That consistency I think adds to how great of a band they are. I just have always felt they offer so much more than just what you think they are. Meaning those radio hits of songs like “I Can’t Fight This Feeling, “Keep on Loving You” and “Time for Me to Fly”. They are all great, but they are not what makes this band amazing.

What makes this band amazing is their depth of catalog. They’ve got so many incredible songs I can’t imagine it would be easy to pick a set list every night. They did the songs I mentioned above, but they also pulled out some that I haven’t heard them play that often like “Golden Country” and “Son of a Poor Man”. My only complaint is I wish they would have played longer.

Again, going back to their depth of catalog. This was their 40th anniversary of the release of their multiplatinum album, 1981’s Hi Infidelity. They played the four most common songs off that record that they always do which are “Don’t Let Him Go”, “Take it on the Run”, “Keep on Loving You” and “Tough Guys”. This would have been the perfect opportunity to play a few of the deeper cuts like “In Your Letter”or “Out of Season”. They also had an incredible record that followed up that huge platinum selling record titled Good Trouble with an amazing song “Keep the Fire Burning”. Unfortunately, that record was overshadowed by the massive success of the previous record.

I know I’m going on and on probably more than I should. So, I’ll get to the point, REO Speedwagon is a class act and if you are a classic rock fan, you can’t help but love this band. Even the most casual fan could go to their concert and know 90% of their set list. They are incredibly professional it will always put a smile on your face.