Loverboy is back in all its Can-con glory and is set to play the Grey Cup festivities with fellow Canadian rock relics April Wine, Trooper and David Wilcox. (Supplied photo)

When Can-rock staple Loverboy takes the stage tomorrow as part of the Grey Cup series of concerts, lead singer Mike Reno will feel much more comfortable there than on the football field.

"I actually sang the national anthem at the Grey Cup quite a few years back," Reno was saying from his cellphone recently, while parallel-parking in Vancouver. "I'm kind of glad they didn't ask me to do that this year because that has to be one of the most nerve-wracking things you can do. You're belting it out while you have people giving you the gears and the finger. And of course, your brain does funny things where, even though you know the words, you start forgetting them."

Loverboy is part of The Grey Cup Classic concert lineup featuring Trooper, April Wine and David Wilcox. But Reno is quite enthused about Just Getting Started, their first studio album in more than a decade.

"I never really planned it to be anything but just an exercise in writing songs," he says of the record. "After singing a couple of tracks everybody in the studio was like, 'Dude, these are definitely Loverboy songs. You should do a new album.' I was like, 'You're right. Maybe I should go and talk to the guys.' We started recording and it really turned out awesome."

The songs also seemed to come from some rather dark periods in Reno's life, including the death of bassist Scott Smith, who perished at sea in 2000 off San Francisco.

"Things got a little rocky in my life, people started dying from cancer, people were lost at sea and I had all this ammunition," Reno says. "I don't think I write songs when I'm happy. I guess I write the songs when I'm not so happy. I think the best material comes when you're feeling the worst."

The band had 35 songs to choose from for the record and started playing new tracks earlier in the year, to great fan reaction. Reno, who cites Die 4 You as his favourite off Just Getting Started, says four or five new songs are in the band's set.

"It's always expected of us that Loverboy play their hits," he says. "I think we're going to have a little bit more leeway on what we play. I think we'll be able to throw a few more songs in because people will have actually heard them."

But while the band is asked to do various one-off shows and some halftime events, Reno says nothing compares to a full gig.

"That's what Loverboy is all about -- a good, high-energy, 90-minute show," he says.

Unlike other classic rock acts not tuned into digital technology, Loverboy released its new album on iTunes. Reno says the digital age is something the music industry is still fighting. But even that marketplace has its flaws with illegal downloading.

"People get your music but they don't necessarily buy it, which makes it very frustrating," he says. "Not only do you not make enough money to pay for the recording of it and expenses, but you also don't qualify for gold or platinum records because they're not counted. I got more than enough gold and platinum records. I was selling records when people were actually buying records.

"Record companies don't really know what's going on. They are folding because they have refused to believe in the new digital age. We've embraced it. We're doing everything we can to make sure we service our fans."

Reno says Loverboy, now 27 years in, has a string of dates lined up for the rest of 2007. The constant travel makes attending Sunday's Grey Cup game doubtful, what with a show in Minnesota on Saturday.

"That's the nature of the business," he says. "I travel more than a flight attendant."