REO Speedwagon's Kevin Cronin is having second thoughts

Kevin Cronin onstage last month in Alpharetta, Georgia (Image credit: R. Diamond/Getty Images)

Kevin Cronin, who announced last year that he'd no longer be touring under the REO Speedwagon banner due to "irreconcilable differences" with longtime bassist Bruce Hall, has admitted that going out under his own name has not been as successful as he'd hoped.

Cronin now leads the Kevin Cronin Band, who include two longtime members of REO Speedwagon in guitarist Dave Amato and drummer Bryan Hitt. They're currently playing with Styx and Don Felder on the Brotherhood of Rock tour, but the change of name has apparently made fans cautious.

"This tour has been a delight, but not without its challenges," Cronin tells Ultimate Classic Rock. "It's not easy going out as the Kevin Cronin Band, I will tell you. You can't overestimate the power of the name REO Speedwagon and that ubiquitous, winged logo. They mean a lot to people.

"I can sit here and say that the Kevin Cronin band is doing the same thing until I'm blue in the face, but when people see the Kevin Cronin Band, there's a question – 'I wonder what this is gonna be?' – whereas if you see REO Speedwagon and the winged logo on the bill, it's 'I know what that is.'"

As a result, the Kevin Cronin Band will no longer be set up as a touring concern, and the band's crew will be available for other projects once their current commitments have been fulfilled.

Cronin has cancelled two September shows in Evans, GA and Mobile, AL, as well as a date with Styx in Sparks, NV, next April. He will, however, honour his booking aboard the next sailing of the Rock Legends Cruise, which departs from Fort Lauderdale, FL, in February 2026.

"My plan was always to keep the organisation together, " he continues. "But there are challenges around that are just overwhelming and I couldn't promise the crew that I could afford to keep them. Again, as REO Speedwagon, no problem.

"For REO Speedwagon to book dates this coming autumn or winter would be no problem, but that's just not available to me (as the Kevin Cronin Band). Believe me, we tried, and it's way more challenging than I was hoping it would be."

This might sound like Cronin is hoping to steer a path back towards REO Speedwagon, but he'll have to convince Bruce Hall, who was replaced on REO Speedwagon's final tour by session man Matt Bissonette after reportedly failing to recover fully from back surgery.

"Neal and I never voted to 'bring the curtain down," Hall tells UCR, referring to keyboardist Neal Doughty, who retired from live work at the end of the tour. "We voted for REO to continue with the 2023 lineup that included me. Kevin is who didn't agree and withdrew from REO Speedwagon, choosing to go solo under his own name."

The next date on the Brotherhood Of Rock tour is this evening at the Budweiser Stage in Toronto, ON. Remaining dates below.

Brotherhood Of Rock tour

Aug 13: Toronto Budweiser Stage, ON
Aug 15: Noblesville Ruoff Music Center, IN
Aug 16: Clarkston Pine Knob Music Theatre, MI
Aug 19: Cincinnati Riverbend Music Center, OH
Aug 20: Cuyahoga Falls Blossom Music Center, OH
Aug 22: Maryland Heights Hollywood Casino Amphitheatre, MO
Aug 23: Tinley Park Credit Union 1 Amphitheatre, IL
Aug 24: Milwaukee American Family Insurance Amphitheater, WI

Tickets are on sale now.

Online Editor at Louder/Classic Rock magazine since 2014. 40 years in music industry, online for 27. Also bylines for: Metal Hammer, Prog Magazine, The Word Magazine, The Guardian, The New Statesman, Saga, Music365. Former Head of Music at Xfm Radio, A&R at Fiction Records, early blogger, ex-roadie, published author. Once appeared in a Cure video dressed as a cowboy, and thinks any situation can be improved by the introduction of cats. Favourite Serbian trumpeter: Dejan Petrović.

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