Fooling Yourself (The Angry Young Man)

About Fooling Yourself (The Angry Young Man)

"Fooling Yourself (The Angry Young Man)" is the second single released from Styx's The Grand Illusion (1977) album. On the Billboard Hot 100 pop chart in the U. S., the single peaked at number 29. It also hit no. 20 on the Canada RPM Top Singles chart the week of May 6, 1978. The song was written by guitarist Tommy Shaw. It was originally based on Shaw's initial perception of Styx keyboardist Dennis DeYoung — an "angry young man" who viewed the group's successes with a wary eye and grew angry or depressed with every setback. It was only in later years that Shaw began to see himself in the lyrics, and the song took on a more personal meaning to him. The composition features a number of time signature changes. The intro and outro are performed in 68 time, led by Shaw's acoustic guitar tracks and Dennis DeYoung's synthesizer melodies. The vocal sections of the song are in 44. The instrumental features a synthesizer solo in 74 time, before returning to 44 for the final chorus. After a brief intro recap, there is a brief break with two measures of 54 time, and then a return to the 68 meter, with another synthesizer solo, before fading out. more »