Bruce Hall talked about REO Speedwagon on Facebook as Kevin Cronin decided to go solo.
“Wish we could just press rewind! 2 years ago, grateful for each and every memory,” the bassist wrote in his post by sharing some photos from their previous shows.
REO Speedwagon has been going through a turbulent for a while due to the disagreements within the band. Hall seems to go back to the period when they all got along better. In 2023, REO Speedwagon’s Neal Doughty retired from touring after 55 years, and Hall later took a leave for back surgery.
Matt Bissonette replaced him for touring. By September 2024, the band announced they would stop touring in 2025, citing Hall’s recovery and growing tensions between Hall and Cronin. In October, Hall shared his thoughts on Cronin and sent him a message about the ‘ugly mess’ that caused the band’s breakup.
“I’ve worked really hard trying to do what I can to get back in there, talking to the people and all this stuff,” Hall explained in an interview with Eubanks Reality Check. “Kevin’s the one who’s made up his mind. I’m trying to get him to change his mind for some reason, but what if this is going to be the end and it should be? I think we’ve done this a long time and we’re still capable of putting on a good show.”
The rocker continued, “It’s time to say goodbye, it’s a farewell time and that would be the right way to end the band instead of like this. This is just an ugly mess and it’d be a perfect time to go out. It wouldn’t take maybe a year to hit all the good spots and say goodbye and thank you everybody for being so wonderful to take care of us this long. Then we could go home and KC could do whatever he wanted to do with his life after that, but the way he’s splitting like this now is not it’s not the right way to go.”
Cronin recently announced that he will tour with Styx next summer for 40 concerts. The tour, called Brotherhood of Rock, starts on May 28 in Greenville, SC, and ends on August 24 in Milwaukee, WI. Tickets go on sale December 13. Don Felder will be a special guest.
