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The past two weeks at the Toyota Pavilion at Montage Mountain have been a lesson in what rock music used to be and has since become. Today’s scene is dominated by mainstream acts like Kings of Leon, Nickelback and Green Day (among many others) who sell albums, gain fans and push limits faster than you can say “your sex is on fire.”

Twenty and 30 years ago, rock bands were doing the same exact things, as we saw when Def Leppard, Poison and Cheap Trick played the Toyota Pavilion on June 28, followed by Styx, REO Speedwagon and .38 Special on July 3. Running around stage while playing all the radio-friendly hits still makes the kiddies go wild, except the kiddies have grown into middle-aged Americans grasping at memories of seventh-grade dances, prom pledges and early-20s debauchery.

As the second of those two shows proved to this reviewer, playing to fans’ affections is just about all it takes to become — and remain — a successful band.

The evening began with a set by .38 Special featuring 11 songs, capped by fan favorite “Hold On Loosely,” the band’s first hit from 1981. Donnie Van Zant and the gang provided a solid warm up for the headlining acts.

REO Speedwagon followed with lead singer Kevin Cronin engaging the crowd, telling numerous stories and admitting they hoped to turn Montage Mountain into a “skanky rock ’n’ roll bar.” I’m not sure they accomplished that, but with tight musicianship and Cronin’s energy, the REO fans in attendance appeared more than pleased.

The group’s nearly 75-minute set featured “Keep Pushin’,” “Ridin’ the Storm Out” and “Time for Me To Fly,” as well as megahit ballads “Keep On Loving You” and “Can’t Fight This Feeling.”

Styx followed 20 minutes later with the five members at the front of the stage clad in black outfits and ties, while drummer Todd Sucherman opted for a black tank top.

Frontman James Young towered over the crowd as their set opened with “Miss America,” but Young spent most of the night ceding lead vocalist duties to guitarist Tommy Shaw and keyboardist Lawrence Gowan. Despite both being in his 50s, Shaw and bassist Ricky Phillips each sported shoulder-length blonde hair that would make many women jealous.

Shaw jumped around stage early on, straddling his guitar and driving the women in the first 10 rows nuts as the band kicked things off in rocking style. The set included “The Grand Illusion,” “Too Much Time on My Hands” and “Lorelei,” as well as fan favorites “Come Sail Away” and “Renegade,” the first song of the encore. The evening ended with REO joining Styx on stage for “Can’t Stop Rockin’,” a song co-written by Shaw and Cronin and recorded together by the bands this year.

But the true highlight, for this reviewer anyway, was the fifth song of the set, a cover of The Beatles’ “I Am The Walrus,” which Styx recorded on their most recent album, Big Bang Theory, released in 2005. Die-hard fans may not have been surprised to hear the song, but to casual fans or those simply there to see some rock ’n’ roll, it was a well-performed surprise that brought out many smiles.
-rshemanski@timesshamrock.com