The Grand Illusion: Love, Lies, and My Life with Styx

Panozzo was the bass player in Styx, whose mid-'70s hits such as "Mr. Roboto," and "Lady" are staples of classic rock radio, and he is rightfully proud of Styx's accomplishments—"The first rock band ever to sell four consecutive triple platinum albums." Styx's fans will enjoy Panozzo's detailed look at the band's internal conflicts as they rise from small Chicago bars to sold-out arenas. But the heart of Panozzo's autobiography is a sensitive and insightful look at "one gay man's struggle to come to terms with himself" while performing in a rock world where "the things that would make the other guys laugh—a female fan lifting up her skirt, a pair of panties thrown on stage—just didn't do it" for him. The most fascinating sections are accounts of Panozzo's conflicted youthful feelings in his sheltered Catholic neighborhood; his adolescent trips to gay theaters where "skin flicks validated the fact that there were other people out there like me"; his attempts to keep his rock identity secret during furtive dates while on tour where he "treated every excursion like a CIA mission;" and a joyous moment when he publicly comes out and decides to tell his story "to inspire others, gay or straight, to live a proud, truthful life." (May)