Call Me Call Me
Written by Bob (Aku Aku) Young
To the tune of Crystal Ball, written by Tommy Shaw
I used to like to lead the band I thought as mine,
I used to think that every thing was fine.
You could say I forced all the guys to follow me;
But triple platinum was the key,
And they were produced by me.
I wonder now what the band has in mind for me,
Or am I even in its mind at all?
They sing my songs and use the name part owned by me.
And they don't share any of the money
JY, Tommy where's your loyalty?
Well, don't you you know that with my pushing we set the standard high?
Record sales and Gallup poles proved that I was so right.
We have a fan base that loves us dearly
And our music sung so tight.
So JY, Tommy don't you agree
Let's end this fight!
I know that you
Are having much fun without me.
But the fans deserve
The real McCoy which is us three
And the magic is
The sum total of you AND me
Won't you please call me?
OHHHHHHH, JY, Tommy I've been calling, let's all say sorry
The fans deserve the magic that occurs when it is us three
My heart is breaking, my body's been aching and I don't deserve to go
So call me call me or change your name so, normal fans will know
JY, Tommy
There's so many things you think you know
JY, Tommy
The magic is gone when one of us go
JY, Tommy
Won't you call me please before you go
And ruin The Show
Interpretation
It all started with the release of Brave New World. Tommy Shaw and James Young wanted to release the album in the summer of 1999 and immediately tour to support the album. Dennis DeYoung was suffering from a mysterious illness that baffled doctors and left him unable to tour. He also wanted more time to finish the album. The album was released that summer over Dennis' objections, and the band went on the road with Lawrence Gowan filling in for Dennis and Glen Burtnik returning to fill in for Chuck Panozzo, who had previously decided to retire. Rumors started surfacing on the Internet, interviews and on-line chats with band members revealed conflicting and changing stories. Flame wars erupted on the various Styx e-mail lists as the fans polarized over the band's internal issues. Meanwhile, the Styx tour continued without Dennis, whose health improved enough to begin a highly-acclaimed solo tour with a 50-piece orchestra. This song ironically parodies Tommy's signature song to tell the story from Dennis' point of view. Many, but not all, of the sentiments expressed are derived from interviews with Dennis. A few are speculative or wishful thinking of the fans.
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