Fortunate are the few who are not only doing what they were always intended to do but are also able do so on the world’s biggest stages to the delight of the masses.
Since securing a degree in classical piano from Toronto’s Royal Conservatory of Music at age 19, Lawrence Gowan hasn’t missed a note, initially in the 1980s as a solo performer known as Gowan, and, since 1999, as the lead keyboardist and singer for the iconic American rock band Styx.
Scottish-born and raised in Scarborough, Gowan’s music career began in unison with his high school journey when his prog-rock band Rhinegold formed and, with time, made the rounds of the Toronto bar circuit. His soaring vocals and relentless attack upon the piano keys aside, it was Gowan’s showmanship that garnered attention early on and kept it.
After 16 Juno Award nominations, with two of the statues in his possession, Gowan is now approaching 27 years as a member of Styx, having earlier enjoyed a very fruitful solo career in the new wave era that brought him considerable commercial success to the tune of four platinum-certified albums and a star on Scarborough’s Walk of Fame.
All of this brings us to Peterborough, where organizers of Peterborough Musicfest’s 39th season know full well that the season-opening concert sets the tone for what’s to follow. And so, on Saturday (June 27), Gowan will welcome live music fans back to Del Crary Park.
Admission to the 8 p.m. concert, which will mark Gowan’s fourth Musicfest appearance, is free.
VIDEO: “(You’re A) Strange Animal” – Gowan (1985)
When Gowan formed his band Rhinegold in 1976 with school friends Daniel Bourne on drums and Pat Bourke on guitar, it provided the perfect training vehicle for its theatrical front man for the next five years.
Performing keyboard-heavy covers for the most part, a typical set included Styx hits — close to 25 years before the singer of those covers could count himself among its members.
“When I was a teenager, I saw Rick Wakeman, Elton John, Tony Banks, Freddie Mercury and Keith Emerson — all these great keyboard players,” said Gowan in an April 2022 interview with Andrew Daly of VWMusic.
“I took note of Styx. That’s kind of what the band that I was in was trying to emulate in some ways,” Gowan recalled.
“Rhinegold, unfortunately, emerged right at the height where disco just melted into punk. We had a great following in Toronto but the record companies weren’t all that enamored with it, because we just weren’t the flavour of the moment. That’s ironic because now that’s the flavour that seems to have lasted the longest.”
Undaunted, Gowan carried on post-Rhinegold, signing a deal with Columbia Records. In 1982, his debut self-titled album, while commercially falling short, served notice of better things to come.
VIDEO: “A Criminal Mind” – Gowan (1985)
Come they did when English record producer David Tickle brought Gowan to Ringo Starr’s Startling Studios in 1984 and enlisted the help of a number of Peter Gabriel’s backing musicians.
The resulting album — 1985’s Strange Animal — was a huge commercial success, producing the top-selling title track as well as charting hits “A Criminal Mind,” “Guerilla Soldier,” and “Cosmetics.” Critical acclaim followed in the form of six 1985 Juno Award nominations, with statue wins for Best Video for “A Criminal Mind” and Best Album Graphics for “Strange Animal.”
While Strange Animal seemed an impossible act to follow, follow Gowan did, the result being 1987’s Great Dirty World which produced another huge hit in the form of “Moonlight Desires.” Three years later, Gowan’s fourth album, Lost Brotherhood, featured a harder rock feel and produced a hit single in “All The Lovers In The World.” The 1990s saw Gowan release three more studio albums, with singles such as “When There’s Time For Love” and “Dancing On my Own Ground” keeping him relevant.
However, it was Gowan’s 1997 performance at Montreal’s Molson Centre as a supporting act for Styx that set him on an exciting new trajectory. Two years later, he was contacted by an impressed Tommy Shaw, the band’s guitarist and co-vocalist, and asked to tour with the band as a temporary fill-in for ailing lead singer Dennis DeYoung.
“At first, it was surreal,” Gowan recalled of performing with Styx.
“It didn’t hit me until our first show. We were playing in Branson, Missouri. We opened up with Blue Collar Man and the second song was The Grand Illusion. As we’re about to start The Grand Illusion, there was a big fanfare at the beginning. I’m looking at over two thousand people and realizing ‘This just got very real.'”
VIDEO: “Moonlight Desires” – Gowan (2022)
“My career is weird,” Gowan said. “Normally you’re in a big band and then you try to see how your solo career will go. Mine was the opposite of that. But I’m glad with the way it all worked out because I wouldn’t be in Styx today if it had gone the other way.”
“I like the unpredictable nature of where things have gone for me. It’s like you finally have to acknowledge the fact that you might think life is predictable and you might think that everything’s pointing in one direction, but then fate steps in and says ‘No, I’ve got another idea for you.'”
Prior to Gowan taking the stage shortly at 8 p.m., the Cogeco-sponsored Future Sound Series will see Peterborough musician Irish Millie perform from 6:30 to 7:30 p.m., near the food trucks at the George Street entrance to Del Crary Park.
Peterborough Musicfest is presenting 16 free-admission concerts during its 39th season, staged in Del Crary Park on Wednesday and Saturday nights until August 19.
Overseen by executive director Tracey Randall and staff, a board of directors, and numerous volunteers, Peterborough Musicfest’s stated mission remains “to provide diverse, affordable live music to enrich cultural and economic prosperity in our community.”
For more information on this concert or the 2026 season, visit www.ptbomusicfest.ca or call the Peterborough Musicfest office at 705-755-1111.
kawarthaNOW is proud to be a headline sponsor of Peterborough Musicfest’s 2026 season.
