Renegade (Styx song)
| "Renegade" | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | ||||
| Single by Styx | ||||
| from the album Pieces of Eight | ||||
| B-side | "Sing for the Day" | |||
| Released | January 9, 1979 | |||
| Format | 7" | |||
| Recorded | 1978 | |||
| Genre | ||||
| Length | 4:15 | |||
| Label | A&M | |||
| Songwriter(s) | Tommy Shaw | |||
| Producer(s) | Styx | |||
| Styx singles chronology | ||||
| ||||
| Red vinyl pressing | ||||
 Limited edition release | ||||
"Renegade" is a 1979 hit song recorded by the American rock band Styx. It was on their Pieces of Eight album. It reached #16 on the Billboard Hot 100 in the spring of 1979.
The song is a first-person narrative of an outlaw, captured for a bounty, who recognizes that he is about to be executed for his criminal activities. The execution will be by hanging, as the outlaw laments, "Hangman is coming down from the gallows and I don't have very long."
Some pressings of the single were made with translucent, red vinyl. Years after its release it remains a staple on classic rock radio playlists, and is usually the final song Styx plays at its concerts.
When performed live from 1978 to 1983, drummer John Panozzo increased the tempo of the drum pattern during the guitar solo sections. Also, the track would serve as the drum solo spot for Panozzo during that time frame.
Although songwriter Tommy Shaw and fellow Styx guitarist James Young usually played lead guitar on their own compositions, Young asked Shaw if he could take the solo on "Renegade". Shaw agreed, and Young later returned the favor by allowing Shaw to play lead on his "Half-Penny, Two-Penny" on the Paradise Theatre album.
In popular culture
- The song has been used regularly to pump up the Pittsburgh Steelers defense before an important drive at Heinz Field.
- The song is used in the video game Grand Theft Auto: The Lost and Damned.
- A re-recorded version of this song appears as downloadable content for the Rock Band games as well as on the main setlist of Guitar Hero: Warriors of Rock.
- The song is also used in the TV shows Supernatural[1] and Freaks and Geeks[2]
- Milwaukee Brewers reliever Josh Hader used the song as his walk-in music when he enters a game from the bullpen.
Personnel
- Tommy Shaw - lead vocals, rhythm guitar
- James Young - lead guitar, backing vocals
- Dennis DeYoung - keyboards, backing vocals
- Chuck Panozzo - bass
- John Panozzo - drums
