"Come Sail Away" is a song by
Styx from their album
The Grand Illusion. One of the band's biggest hits, it was released in 1977 (see
1977 in music), rising to number 8 on the Pop Singles chart and helping The Grand Illusion reach multi-platinum sales. Musically, "Come Sail Away" combines a plaintive, ballad-like opening section (including piano and synthesizer interludes) with a bombastic, guitar-heavy second half. In the middle of the second half is a
psychedelic minute-long synthesizer instrumental. The lyrics use the
metaphor of a voyage of discovery and make reference to
angels and
spaceships. The song is typical of the music the band played in the 1970s — pop meets
progressive rock. Styx member
Dennis DeYoung revealed on
In the Studio with Redbeard (which devoted an entire episode to the making of The Grand Illusion), that he was depressed when he wrote the track after Styx's first two
A&M offerings,
Equinox and
Crystal Ball, sold fewer units than expected after the success of the single "
Lady".
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