REO Speedwagon weren't gone for long. Almost exactly one year ago, the classic rock institution announced their breakup, citing "irreconcilable differences" between frontman Kevin Cronin and bassist Bruce Hall. Neither of those guys were original members of REO Speedwagon, who formed in Champaign, Illinois in 1966, but both of them had been in the band for decades. The band played their farewell shows in December of last year, and Cronin said that the breakup was not his idea. Cronin was publicly upset when a bunch of his bandmates announced plans for a hometown Champaign show earlier this year. This past weekend, however, Cronin was back with his old bandmates, playing the halftime show for the University Of Illinois' homecoming game against USC.
As Ultimate Classic Rock reports, Kevin Cronin and Bruce Hall were back together at Champaign's Memorial Stadium on Saturday. They were joined by two founding members, keyboardist Neal Doughty and drummer Alan Gratzer. Doughty retired from the group in 2023, and Gratzer left in 1988. This was the first time that all four of them performed together since Gratzer's department. They all wore personalized Illinois football jerseys. Together with hundreds of members of the Marching Illini band, the band played "Ridin' The Storm Out," "Roll With The Changes," and the debut-album track "157 Riverside Avenue." You couldn't hear REO Speedwagon much over the marching band, but it's cool that they patched things up enough to do that. Watch the performance below.
All four band members also did an inteview with WCIA, and they talked about how excited they were for the homecoming performance. They seemed like they were all having fun together. As far as future plans go, they said, "You never know."
