As Loverboy Gets Ready To Return to Sioux Falls, Mike Reno Looks Back on 35 Years in the Band and Talks About Songwriting and Their Worst Gig Ever

Loverboy is returning to Sioux Falls Thursday night May 29th to headline opening night of the 17th annual RibFest at the WH Lyon Fairgrounds. It will mark the band's third appearance at the festival. Singer/songwriter Mike Reno talked to Crash about coming back and why they'll be here:

Like a lot of people in my age range, we grew up with Loverboy. The band formed in 1979 and was all over the radio during our junior high, high school and college years. Reno says he feels blessed to be a part of fans DNA:

Loverboy wasn't Reno's first band, but there was nothing in the early days that indicated that this would be the band that would hit. Reno says in the early days they weren't thinking any further than 'working for the weekend' and making some beer money.

With pretty much every artist I've ever talked to, there has always been a moment or a band that has sparked their interest in music and wanting to do it for a living. And like many artists over a certain age, Reno says it was the Beatles that caught his attention when he was 12.

Reno credits Loverboy's longevity on having great songs and shares the best thing about being a rock star:

We talked about the great songs in classic rock that keep the music relevant today in a world filled with disposable pop fluff. And again, it goes back to great songs that tell a story:

One of the highlights of Loverboy's long career (besides playing Sioux Falls RibFest of course haha) came in 2009 when the band was inducted into the Canadian Music Hall of Fame. An honor that didn't really hit Reno until he was standing on stage that night receiving the honor:

Since the Hall of Fame was definitely one of the high points of the past 35 years, I had to ask Reno for their "Spinal Tap" story. The worst gig or moment they ever experienced. It happened in Cape Cod while they were on tour opening for ZZ Top:

Mike Reno and Loverboy will be back in Sioux Falls Thursday night May 29th at RibFest. Reno is excited about seeing the other bands on the lineup that night which has been dubbed "Canadian Invasion" night with April Wine, Honeymoon Suite and Helix.

Tickets for just Thursday are $10. There are also VIP tickets available. Or you could get a full weekend pass (May 29-June 1) and come back to see Lynyrd Skynyrd, Rick Springfield, Tom Keifer, Foghat, Dee Snider and others, for just $30. Get all the ticket links and details here.