The sessions started out with Kevin Cronin, but he left the band before the album was finished, due to creative differences.

The song refers to the band being stuck in a harsh winter blizzard after a show in Boulder, Colorado, at a bar named Tulagi (now closed).

Cronin's original version of "Son of a Poor Man" is featured on the compilation albums A Decade of Rock and Roll: 1970-1980, and The Essential REO Speedwagon.

The studio version of "Ridin' the Storm Out" with Cronin on vocals was released on the compilation "Box Set Series" in 2014, "The Early Years 1971-1977" boxed set in 2018 and as a downloadable track in the music video game Rock Band.

Record World said of the title track that it has "a good mix of hard rock guitar sounds and harmony vocals.