REO Speedwagon Announces Summer Tour With Train

REO Speedwagon will be back on the road again this summer, touring for the first time with Train.

The Summer Road Trip 2024 starts July 8 in Somerset, Wisconsin and is currently set to wrap on September 11 in Phoenix, Arizona. Artist presales begin on Wednesday (Jan. 31) with the general onsale starting Friday (Feb. 2). Yacht Rock Revue will open all of the shows. You can see a complete list of tour dates below.

The two bands will team up for a special performance on Wednesday (Jan. 31) on Jimmy Kimmel Live! They’ll continue to celebrate the tour announcement with an intimate concert the next day at the Whisky in Hollywood, California.

The Midwest classic rockers first teased the trek earlier this month. Vocalist Kevin Cronin noted on Instagram that they would be “announcing a very special summer tour.” He added that they were “very stoked to be sharing the stage with an awesome band and an amazing lead singer that we’ve never played with before.”

Though Train are perhaps best known for their past pop and Top 40 success with hits like “Drops of Jupiter” and “Hey, Soul Sister,” they’re also well-known for their love of classic rock. They recorded an album featuring Led Zeppelin II in its entirety in 2016 — and have mixed in songs by .38 Special and Eagles in some of their recent set lists. Train’s Pat Monahan is also quick to identify himself as an REO fan. “When I was younger I heard a band called REO Speedwagon and fell in love with their numerous, infectious hit songs,” the singer said in a press release. “Years later I met Kevin Cronin, and thank goodness he’s as great a person as he is a songwriter. This tour won’t just be a great time with great people, but a tour that will have a ton of familiar songs to most generations. I will be wishing I was in the audience as much as I’ll love being on the stage.”

READ MORE: Train’s Pat Monahan Talks About Performing ‘Led Zeppelin II’

As Cronin tells UCR, the pairing is a welcome surprise. “It was kind of a shocker. Because, normally we’re out there with Styx or Journey, you know, in our comfort zone,” he explains. “But I really dig Train and I’ve always thought that Patrick Monahan is just a world-class singer and songwriter. I’ve loved their records from Drops of Jupiter on.”

“It was a really unique proposition to do a big Live Nation tour with those guys. The more I thought about this [tour], the more I started seeing it,” he continues. “I started thinking about the songs. Because you know, it’s really about the songs. I was listening to Patrick’s voice and I’m really looking forward to being up there on the same stage and playing our show every night. I think it’s going to be a [good challenge].”

What Fans Can Expect From REO and Train

With 32 Top 100 hits between the two bands, there’s no shortage of classic songs. But Cronin says he and Monahan have already been deep in discussion to figure out how they can make the evening an experience that fans will remember. With that in mind, they’re talking about some songs that they might be able to jam on together. “Patrick and I, from the very first conversation that we had, that was something that both of us want to do,” he says. “My first thought was to pick a [song from] Simon & Garfunkel or the Everly Brothers. But then I thought, well, actually, you could take ‘Bye Bye Love’ by the Everlys and mash it up with ‘Homeward Bound’ by Simon & Garfunkel.”

“Because if you remember “Homeward Bound,” in the chorus, they go to double-time and it’s the same kind of feeling as “Bye Bye Love,” he details. “We thought about that and we’re like, ‘Well, it’s a little folk-sy.’ If we were doing a club tour or a theater tour, maybe. For amphitheaters, that might be a little too stripped down. So we’ll see. But we’re going to do something. Both bands are into it, we just have to figure out how to make it all work logistically.”

Leading up to the summer dates, REO Speedwagon will keep the engine running with additional performances of their Hi Infidelity album in Las Vegas. Cronin is also excited about upcoming shows with Rick Springfield and Cheap Trick. “I think Robin [Zander] still owes me for a poker game in 1978,” he laughs. “So I’m gonna see if I can settle that or if he wants to go double or nothing. It’s time.”

Train and REO Speedwagon, Summer 2024 Tour Dates
July 8 – Somerset, WI @ Somerset Amphitheater
July 10 – Noblesville, IN @ Ruoff Music Center
July 11 – Pittsburgh, PA @ Stage AE*
July 12 – Cincinnati, OH @ Riverbend Music Center
July 13 – Tinley Park, IL @ Credit Union 1 Amphitheatre
July 15 – Cuyahoga Falls, OH @ Blossom Music Center
July 16 – Maryland Heights, MO @ Hollywood Casino Amphitheater
July 17 – Kansas City, MO @ Starlight Theatre*
July 19 – Lewiston, NY @ Artpark*
July 20 – Toronto, ON @ Budweiser Stage
July 21 – Clarkston, MI @ Pine Knob Music Theatre
July 23 – Saratoga Springs, NY @ Broadview Stage at SPAC
July 24 – Bethel, NY @ Bethel Woods Center for the Arts
July 26 – Camden, NJ @ Freedom Mortgage Pavilion
July 27 – Wantagh, NY @ Northwell Health at Jones Beach Theater
July 28 – Gifford, NY @ Bank NH Pavilion*
July 31 – Syracuse, NY @ Empower FCU Amphitheater at Lakeview
Aug. 1 – Holmdel, NJ @ PNC Bank Arts Center
Aug. 3 – Hartford, CT @ XFINITY Theatre
Aug. 4 – Mansfield, MA @ The Xfinity Center
Aug. 6 – Bristow, VA @ Jiffy Lube Live
Aug. 7 – Virginia Beach, VA @ Veterans United Home Loans Amphitheater
Aug. 9 – Raleigh, NC @ Coastal Credit Union Music Park
Aug. 10 – Charlotte, NC @ PNC Music Pavilion
Aug. 11 – Wilmington, NC @ Like Oak Bank Pavilion*
Aug. 16 – Birmingham, AL @ Oak Mountain Amphitheatre*
Aug. 17 – Alpharetta, GA @ Ameris Bank Amphitheatre
Aug. 18 – Franklin, TN @ First Bank Amphitheater
Aug. 20 – Tampa, FL @ MIDFLORIDA Credit Union Amphitheatre
Aug. 21 – West Palm Beach, FL @ iTHINK Financial Amphitheatre
Aug. 22 – Jacksonville, FL @ Daily’s Place*
Aug. 23 – Orange Beach, AL @ The Wharf Amphitheater
Aug. 25 – Houston, TX @ The Cynthia Woods Mitchell Pavilion
Aug. 26 – Dallas, TX @ Dos Equis Pavilion
Aug. 28 – Denver, CO – Fiddlers Green Amphitheatre
Aug. 29 – Salt Lake City, UT @ USANA Amphitheatre
Aug. 31 – Auburn, WA @ White River Amphitheater
Sept. 1 – Bend, OR @ Hayden Homes Amphitheater
Sept. 4 –  Ridgefield, WA @ RV Inn Style Resorts Amphitheater
Sept. 6 – Wheatland, CA @ Toyota Amphitheatre
Sept. 7 – Mountain View, CA – Shoreline, Amphitheatre
Sept. 8 – Inglewood, CA – The Kia Forum
Sept. 10 – Chula Vista, CA @ North Island Credit Union Amphitheatre
Sept. 11 – Phoenix, AZ @ Talking Stick Resort Amphitheatre

* No REO Speedwagon