This article in Society of Rock "We Found Steve Perry's Greatest Performance Ever And It Will Stop Your Heart," argues that the 1978 Chicago PBS Soundstage live Winds of March is Steve Perry's best live performance. Geez, I can't single out any one performance in this artist's body of work as "greatest." From the article:
"Although it is bold to claim which of Steve Perry’s amazing live performances are the best, we would have to argue that his insanely pristine vocals and range in the 1978 Chicago “Winds Of March” is it.
...From Journey’s fourth album, Infinity, “Winds Of March” proves to be one of the sweetest soft rock songs in existence about a parent experiencing the heart wrenching loss of a child. "
Although there are hundreds of performances to choose from, this happens to be our favorite and most touching vision of the great Steve Perry.
I classify Steve Perry in three distinct vocal periods/quality: this is the pristine countertenor period, the 80s arena rock tenor heyday, and the very tour-damaged, dirt-in-the-vox, but talented latter period in late 80s to 1996. I love each period because he learned to adapt as his voice changed, but what remained constant is his ear for melody, tonal excellence, convincing emotion, judicious use of melisma, a base rooted in Sam Cooke, and that vibrato.
I agree that this is an incredible example of his range, power, clarity, and emotive qualities. It almost makes you weep listening to the disciplined note production, the controlled vibrato, the ease with which he delivers an extremely difficult song. It is beautiful to behold.
This song is a Mount Everest for any tribute singer. It's so way up there, unearthly, practically unachievable. Even Perry stopped performing it after it was effectively replaced by Mother/Father as the vocal show stopper in 1981.
People need to remember that most of the recorded official (and unofficial on YouTube and boots) show SP at his best. As he is a human being, his gift wasn't "on" every night. You can find some YouTubes where he's dodging notes, doing brilliant substitutions but staying faithful to the song's intent and emotion. The hallmark of a great vocalist is one who learns how to work with the tools in his vocal toolbox on any given night on the fly.
That's where I have to give props to tribute singers like my bud (and colleague) Jeff Salado, of Journey Revisited. All of these singers attempt to emulate Steve Perry at his BEST consistently night after night in front of casual fans of Journey to die-hards like myself. Keeping the Perry era of live performance authentic is a tall order indeed. The demand is there to hear these great compositions performed live with fidelity to original sound.
Check out discussion on this topic in two Facebook groups:
Before Steve Perry made his set of recent appearances with the Eels to show he's still got a lot of vocal talent left to share in live performance (here, here, here), the last look look at his live chops was during the 1994 For The Love of Strange Medicine (FTLOSM) tour. I decided to take another look at it. [He would later rejoin Journey for Trial By Fire (1996), but did not tour behind the studio album (you die hard fans probably already know that whole story).]
FTLOSM just came out at the wrong time; grunge was in. Listening to it today it has aged well; special props to the then baby-faced guitarist Lincoln Brewster, he's fantastic here; he's currently a popular contemporary Christian music artist.
The songs are all downtuned significantly here for SP in 1994. Even with a reduced vocal range because of time (and all that wear on his instrument from overtouring), what remains is his styling, soul, astounding sense of melody and lyrical interpretative skills.
This full concert vid at the Beacon Theatre in NYC was obviously shot bootleg. SP/Journey fans have to thank the boot videographer, TheNYBG1 for capturing this; it was shot before small camcorders, point and shoot cameras or cell phone vid. He said this in the YouTube comments:
"I'm the filmer of this video. Obviously back then, there were no cell phones doing video. You either had a $1,000+ video camera or you had no video. By far most of the concerts I filmed in the late 80's and 90's, the only video to come out of a show was what I filmed. That being said, to try and give people a feel for what it was like to be there filming it, the Beacon Theater 2nd balcony in the 1st row where I filmed quite a few shows from, as you can see, it's quite a steep angle down to the stage.
Sitting back in the seat, I was filming above a ledge, but below a bar that was about a foot above it. Plus, add in security coming to seat people in the only 9 seats across rows (like the camera duck about a minute in due to that). Regardless of anyone's opinion of this video, the fact is that there wouldn't be any video of this show to watch if I didn't videotape this. I left my mark. :-)"
The set list:
1) Only The Young
2) Girl Can't Help It
3) Oh Sherrie
4) Lights
5) Foolish Heart
6) You Better Wait
7) Someone's There
8) Missing You
9) Listen To Your Heart
10) I'll Be Alright Without You
11) Wheel In The Sky
12) Dixie Highway
13) Lovin' Touchin' Squeezin'
14) Any Way You Want It
15) Separate Ways
16) Don't Stop Believin'
17) Faithfully
Every Journey junkie knows this pair of tunes - Feeling That Way and Anytime - classics produced by Roy Thomas Baker on Infinity (1978). When it was released, back in those AOR days, they were played back to back. One or both are usually played on set lists today.
What some may not know is that Journey did several songs from the album, including Feeling That Way and Anytime, on a live-in-studio, audience-free jam on the 1978 King Biscuit Flower Hour -- aka Super Jam II. It was recorded at Automatt Studio in San Francisco. The band collaborated with Tower of Power, the Doobie Brothers' Tom Johnston, and two members of the group Stoneground, Annie Sampson and Jo Baker.
This is a powerhouse show that proves Journey was capable of excelling in a diverse range of genres; the R&B roots are sorely missed today, IMHO.
A great write-up of the entire program is at ConcertVault. What makes this worth a listen is the genuinely organic sound of Journey back then -- unvarnished production, pure musicianship, stellar vocals and harmonies -- no pre-recorded backing vocals -- it's all live. It was edited and readied for broadcast, but due to legal issues it never aired. But today you can find all of the performances from the program on YouTube, which you can listen to here. It's amazing.
A snippet from the ConcertVault write up:
"Despite excellent results, legal entanglements prevented these remarkable SuperJam 2 sessions from being scheduled for broadcast, and with the exception of a cover of "Let the Good Times Roll," none have seen official release. Bootleg copies of the sessions did eventually surface, and they became treasured items among Journey collectors, often accompanied with rumors that the masters had been either lost or destroyed. Now, for the first time ever, the complete "Superjam 2" KBFH sessions are presented here in superb quality.
...Bookended by two pairs of classic Journey songs when they were just breaking big and featuring various configurations, performing choice cover songs in between, these recordings represent a peak moment in San Francisco's musical history. These recordings also prove that Journey had not only become masters of commercially successful rock music, but was a group equally adept at many styles of music, including R&B and blues, with compelling examples of both included here.
The sessions begin with a pair of classic rock songs from Journey's breakthrough Infinity album, "Feeling That Way" and "Anytime." The former is a prime example of what Steve Perry brought to the table, featuring a penetrating lead vocal that raises the superb instrumental work of this band to another level. The latter, which features Rolie singing lead, is a solid rocker that also presents Journey in a most positive light. Both of these numbers feature soaring lead guitar work from Schon, but it is keyboardist Rolie's piano work that saves all of the recordings presented here from sounding dated. Nothing more clearly dates late 1970s/early 1980s rock music more than the sound of synthesized keyboards and Rolie wisely avoids using them on these sessions. A talented and tasteful pianist, Rolie's instrumental contributions strongly contribute to the organic feel that make these sessions compelling even decades later."
What can you say? A pleasure to the ears once again. My first reaction:
Stephen Hazan Arnoff: @hazanarnoff - #StevePerry sings again...What's it all mean? Me: Melting and weak knees here is what it means.
How it looked on Twitter...
The setlist:
It's a Motherf*cker
Only Sixteen (Sam Cooke cover)
Open Arms
Lights
Lovin', Touchin', Squeezing.
As I said on Facebook when the video surfaced: "Excuse me. Momentary break for weak knees and swooning. From Wednesday night in LA..."
Only Sixteen was jaw-droppingly good this time around. Steve Perry had so much more power and command of his reinvigorated gift -- his instrument -- it was all there. You could hear a pin drop at times in the Orpheum theatre. Perry's trademark vibrato and judicious use of melisma -- the whoa-oh-whoa-whoas that send chills up and down your spine -- resonated throughout the room. I confess, I was tearing up as I heard it. Joyful tears at missing that tone, that presentation. He's back; the rusty pipes are clearing up at lightning speed and he now has the self-confidence to let us see him getting back up to speed. That in itself is a victory. So many of us don't mind watching him bloom again, we've all waited for so long.
And after some touching and amusing storytelling, he launched into Lights and Lovin' Touchin, Squeezing...downtuned a couple of keys, but who cares. Swoon again...
Dancing like a man at least 20 years younger than his 65 years, Perry rocked out on "Lights (When the Lights Go Down in the City)," nimbly leaping over the microphone cords perilously snaked around the stage, turning his back on the audience to groove with Eels drummer Knuckles (Derek Brown), then facing the audience to hit the high trills flawlessly, yet with a new rasp in his voice sounding just a bit like E himself.
"The 'cit-ee' is L.A.!" shouted E.
"Here's another," said Perry. "I was 18, working as an assistant engineer in a music studio... I'm out of breath! I guess I haven't done this enough lately to get in shape.
..."It's been so goddamn long," said Perry to the audience. "I gotta thank the Eels for inviting me out here -- the best band that any singer could want. I met E because of a friend of mine, Patty [Jenkins, director of Monster]. She burnt me a CD of Daisies of the Galaxy, and I told Patty, 'Someday I want to sing that song.'" Then Perry and Eels performed the Eels tune, "It's a Motherf---er."
..."Listen, I've done the 20-year hermit thing, and it's overrated," said Perry. "Why now? It's a long story, but it has to do with a lot of changes in my life, including losing my girlfriend a year ago, and her wish to hear me sing again."
As I shared with my friend Jeff Salado, lead singer of the fantastic tribute band Journey Revisited, I can be tough as nails in other areas, but I'll easily cop to being weak-in-the-knees, schoolgirl crushing on this stuff (it's why my political blog readers often made light of my Journey obsession).
But I wasn't the only one crushing on The Voice. Former Journey lead singer Jeff Scott Soto hit the nail on the head in a Facebook post (and he faved my Tweet when I pointed folks to it):
Ok, I’ve sat back and watch the cheers (and jeers), the big hype, the fatuous rumors and lastly, the criticisms of what once was and/or isn’t anymore so now I’ll chime in…as I do!
Being a member of the legendary Journey for all of 11 months, I have my own thoughts about how I feel about this monumentally influential band today…but how I still feel about the phenomenon that is Steve Perry!
Mr Perry has resurfaced recently performing with The Eels, and I will admit, regardless of all the hoopla made out there, I personally just enjoyed hearing THAT voice again…in any capacity!
The words ‘aged, husky, raspy’, even ‘too rested’ have been thrown out there but to me personally, that ‘tone’ is still there, the one and only thumb, or rather, voiceprint, still exists and I couldn’t be more excited to hear it again!
A few weeks after the 1st earshot of Steve’s voice rang out, quite possibly a reality check in that YouTube is the end all be all in one’s humble beginnings or belated comebacks, and he’s seemed to spring back even more into his ol’ form. Sure, the Journey tunes he’s doing are a key or 2 lower give or take, but JESUS CHRIST, that tone, it’s there, it’s STEVE F-ING PERRY! If you don't believe me, here's what I am talking about from LA, I believe just last night.
So as I shake off the cobwebs of my own memories with this band that ended 7 years ago, I revel in the (hopeful) return of this monolith who was one of the reasons I could see R&B & Rock be plausible, the man who influenced me in so many ways and now after a 20 year absence, continues to do so…thank you Steve Perry!
UPDATE: Martha Quinn (@marthaquinn) agrees with my weak-kneed review!
Today I experienced what I or any singer or songwriter dreams of and aspires to but seldom achieves. That is to be moved to tears, tears... by a singer and his or her song. The singer, Steve Perry, and the song penned by The Eels, "It's a Mother Fucker".
I am / was apprehensive of writing and expressing myself because there will be those who will perceive this to be either a kissing of the "tuckus" or… a show of disrespect to the gentleman who so successfully and beautifully followed us both, Arnel. They are neither, but a tribute to, and an acknowledgement of, an achievement that so many thought no longer obtainable.
This should be a lesson and an inspiration to us all. It certainly is to me.
It happened again at the Lincoln Theatre, in Washington, DC.
He delivered:
It's a Motherf*cker
Only Sixteen (a Sam Cooke cover)
Open Arms
Lovin', Touchin', Squeezing.
Wow.
He told short stories in between songs, including a heartfelt mention of 'the love of his life" whose passing made him rekindle his love for The Eels' "It's a Motherf*cker."
The storytelling/singing is exactly the kind of tour I talked about in my essay after his first appearance. Limited shows, smaller venues, no stadiums, giving him freedom to be relaxed and enjoy himself. So glad he's also not discouraging of all the viral video (the selfie vid is hilarious and wonderful!). It's a real gift to fans not present at these surprise events.
"I would be perfectly happy to see Steve Perry do a couple of "Evenings With" concerts, filmed with an audience (bucket list item - to be there!) in Storytellers style. He doesn't even have to sing any Journey tunes. He's apparently got plenty of original material written and in demo form. It would be fantastic for him to do some R&B, blues stuff - the one genre he excels at that the current iteration of Journey unfortunately steers clear of in favor of the Dirty Dozen + a couple of deeper cuts."
I was blown away by the difference between the Minneapolis appearance and this one! The difference in confidence level surely represents the public response to the first. He reached back and just cut completely loose here, and he relaxed. His vocal cords came alive. And despite the bad hip, he was busting a few classic moves, as well. :)
As Ross Muir wrote in his analysis of Mr. Perry's voice, "One in a Million," he's a freak of nature. To be out of performing circulation for 20 years and to be able to bring back a much-improved performance over just a few days (his range and vibrato were in better, exhilarating form this go-round) was pretty awesome. He can't turn the clock back to 1978 and tour -- with his 2014 voice, but this was enough to make you shed a tear and want to hear more...at his pace, and on his terms.
This format suits him, a small, organic musical environment, not amped up with rock tour dressing, drowning him out in some reunion of "glory days." People, er, "fans," out on the Internet began screeching at one another over whether SP's re-emergence as a sign that he must Journey (been there, done that) or that he sucks completely. These are exactly the kind of people Perry needs to ignore.
I'm also glad he's also not discouraging of all the viral video (the selfie vid is hilarious and wonderful!). It's a real gift to fans not present at these surprise events. It says it all about his healthy mindset:
I think he's probably still somewhat on the same page as he was in a 2012 interview since when people say "touring" they immediately think of him going on the road w/Journey doing like the old days. Not. Going. To. Happen. I think these recent appearances suggest he's warming up US to the idea that limited scope appearances and tours are something he'd entertain. No pressures to do 100 dates, etc.
The lesson: Just enjoy life. It's too short.
UPDATE: 6/2: Mr. Perry spoke about his appearances as just "for fun" (as it should be), and gave his insight on his voice now vs. then -- a nice reality check for fans thinking he can recreate the past.
He says of his moment in the spotlight: "When E announced me I thought I’d take the piss and hang back a while. But finally I’m out there; the audience saw me, and I hadn’t experienced that kind of emotion in quite a while. It was beyond exhilarating.
"I was so grateful that they were so loving and happy to see me. I was just as happy to see them. I had forgotten how much I’d missed it.”
Asked if he was happy with his performance, he replies: "Well, I hadn’t sung in 20 years – I sounded more like Otis Redding than I did in Journey; and I love Otis, so that’s not a bad thing. But after twenty years, wherever you hit that golf ball is where it lands. I just wanted to go out there and hit the ball. I was pretty pleased with what I pulled off.
"I’m not the person I was thirty years ago; that person is gone."
As a long-time fan who respects all eras of the band -- for me it's about the music -- it was gratifying to see former front man Steve Perry at the mic actually singing at length in public. It happened last night at an Eels concert in St. Paul, MN. He sang the band's song "It's a Motherf*cker", then went into a stepped-down version of Open Arms and Lovin', Touchin', Squeezing. It was wonderful to see him comfortable at the mic, and more important for the occasion --seeing an audience appreciating him.
That golden voice was completely pummeled by an insane touring schedule back in the day that would roast anyone's vocal cords. Fans that followed his vocal progression over the years can mark that around 1983 or so, his voice changed radically, the rasp that most fans of the Perry-Schon-Cain era know and love emerged. While it has character, that represented damage to his cords. He had an unreal, bell-clear countertenor back in the Infinity-Departure-Evolution era. That's not what we heard by the time he recorded Trial By Fire in 1996. His range was reduced, the rasp more pronounced, but he was still able to produced tracks that had emotional depth, soul, and amazing lyrical interpretation.
What I do hope this wonderful, heartfelt live performance will do is cease the ridiculous "reunite with Journey" mantra by some delusional fans that want him to hit the road again with the band. Steve Perry cannot sustain the trauma on those cords over a tour, nor would he satisfy the casual fans who want to hear the 80s hits as he performed them then. Just can the fantasy, folks.
I also hope this stops the incessant criticism that his voice is "gone" -- no, it isn't, it's what about I expected to hear. The grand thing is that he did it - getting over the fear of performing live, being judged unfairly about the "dirt" in his voice, the reduced range, etc. by people expecting SP pipes from 1978.
It didn't take long for comments on social media to get into all of that mess.
I am thankful that he is stepping out so he can see how most of us are content to hear him as is -- his vocal styling is completely intact - and shower him with the gratitude he deserves (and has feared wasn't out there). I feel sorry that for some he has to compete with the heights of his gift from decades ago.
***
And yes, I'm going to a Journey concert on Thursday in Raleigh -- with frontman Arnel Pineda singing those Perry-era hits and beyond (after all, he's now recorded two albums of original material with the band!). He's not in any competition with Steve Perry, nor should he be placed in that awful position by fans, nor should his fans find Steve Perry's recent appearance as some sort of threat to Arnel's existence with the band. I find these internecine wars juvenile, hurtful and unnecessary. Why can't folks enjoy the music, and come back to the real world.
I would be perfectly happy to see Steve Perry do a couple of "Evenings With" concerts, filmed with an audience (bucket list item - to be there!) in Storytellers style. He doesn't even have to sing any Journey tunes. He's apparently got plenty of original material written and in demo form. It would be fantastic for him to do some R&B, blues stuff - the one genre he excels at that the current iteration of Journey unfortunately steers clear of in favor of the Dirty Dozen + a couple of deeper cuts.
***
UPDATE: additional thoughts that I shared in abbreviated form on Facebook after more surfing around to see more reactions.
I've been in -- and lurked in -- a variety of fan forums and comments sections of news articles about the band over the years. It's way too easy to get sucked into the vortex of insanity -- 1) "no SP/no Journey/bring him back to the group;" 2) SP's voice is shot; 3) AP is better than SP; 4) JRNY= SA/JSS/AP = Karaoke. Or other subset groups that will never meet the other half way, and worse, take it out on fellow fans on a personal level.
Musical tastes are a highly personal area, so I get the passion surrounding it, but I think some folks find it hard to engage without taking different opinions personally.
Coming from a political blogging (and moderating) background, I've developed a thick skin from that sparring (try fending off death threats, social condemnation, and threats to your day job; that will harden you fast), so it still surprises me how quickly that conversations about my favorite band get hot and seemingly personal, when the temperature doesn't seem hot enough to warrant it. But they can and do at times.
I'm not sure why these camps can spiral out of control, but moderating discussions where there are a range of firmly-held opinions, no matter the topic, is a challenge. Every word choice gets amplified, the _perceived_ power differential between commenters and the moderator is always an issue in trying to keep everyone feeling welcome.
For instance, the terms of service on PHB was several pages long, and we had pretty firm moderation that required a good deal of time by my admin contributors, but it was all in the name of 1) keeping conversations civil, and 2) making it possible to have an environment where it felt safe to navigate politically sensitive topics with one another.
What kind of setlist would I like to see Journey play before the group stops touring? The band has a large catalog of hits, but there are a lot of lesser-known gems that you may not know about, and if you do, know them, in the last few years you didn't hear them in concert.
Journey, 2011, the Today Show / Pam Spaulding
The last several tours have been triple bills (2014 will feature Tower of Power and the Steve Miller Band opening for the J-Boys), and that means little more than the Greatest Hits (or "Dirty Dozen") will be played for the mass of casual fans that show up. This leaves a chance for one, maybe two lesser-known nuggets to make the setlist. I will not shed a tear if I don't hear the beloved Don't Stop Believing again. A few more from the band's rich catalog would be greatly appreciated!
This post is about a hope and dream that Journey will think about doing maybe 5 dates, in strategic locations in the U.S., that die-hard fans will be willing to travel to -- smaller, more intimate venues (I fantasize about them coming to the Durham Performing Arts Center; and how about going to The Apollo in NYC for the hell of it!?), where they can do a 2.5-3 hour single bill show. If it's just 5 dates, there's no dread about the endless, tiring road dates. They will have time to think about fresh arrangements/concepts for the concerts, and they will be well-rested and enthusiastic about traveling down memory lane to revisit songs that rarely or never saw play on the road, plus personal faves, etc.
Or, rather, MY personal faves. Since this essay is about a dream set list of deeper cuts from albums that I happen to love, I get to set the terms! There's plenty here to argue over, of course (such as leaving the pre-Perry albums off of my consideration list). I welcome comments, and it would be great to see others make their own fantasy setlists; it's all good.
Journey fans are opinionated die hards and there are definite differences as to which period in the band's history is "the best." The fact is that this band is much more than its "classic" period that most casual fans know about and love. (And for the haters? Why are you reading this? Move along.)
What isn't in question, as you sample some of the video clips, is that the band excels in the live environment. They come alive in concert when released from the constraints of the studio.
A couple of caveats about this fantasy --
1) It has to be grounded in reality. Steve Perry is not going to reunite with the band. Period. Done. If he ever turns up in a concert, it will be solo, one-night-only kind of deal, and it will be on his own terms. Or he'll remain happily retired and we'll possibly, one day hear new recorded music from him. Having lunch with The Voice is on my bucket list (I'd probably pass out if I ever did get to meet him), but there's no way a concert appearance going to happen in the context of a reunion tour -- I accept that; and
2) It is has to be plausible that a couple of the former lead vocalists could be convinced to show up at this handful of dates. I'm thinking Robert Fleischman (who's that, you might ask -- well, he wrote and performed in the band before Steve Perry, and is still going strong with his band The Sky these days), Gregg Rolie(the original Journey vocalist, now on the road with Ringo Starr's All Starr Band in 2014), and perhaps even SteveAugeri would say yes to an invitation to sing a couple of numbers from their chapters in the Journey catalog. While I'd love to see short-term frontman JeffScottSoto on board to handle a few of the hits that call for the considerable R&B swagger that he possesses I'm not sure things were left off in a place with the band (long story, for another day) where he'd say yes, given I set the "plausible" standard here. Oy.
So where to begin? I won't bother attempting a sequencing of the setlist. First I need to pick some cuts. My picks for the setlist will have 2 asterisks, runners-up, 1 asterisk.
Let's be counterintuitive and start from the most recent album and go backwards in the DeLorean ...
I saw the kickoff concert for this 2011 release, and they played 5 cuts from this CD, so I was quite fortunate. However, there are fantastic, very Journey-esque tunes on this guitar-heavy work that were never played in concert. Here are the ones I definitely want to hear live (two stars):
Current Journey frontman Arnel Pineda./ Pam Spaulding
City of Hope *
Edge of the Moment *
Chain of Love *
Tantra Anything is Possible **
Resonate *
She's a Mystery *
Human Feel *
Ritual
To Whom It May Concern * Someone **
For crying out loud, there was not a sane reason to leave Anything Is Possible off a 2011 set list. It was actually released and charted as a single! I heard it 3 times when I was randomly out in public, once in a grocery store, once in a Subway. I forgot the third venue. I also heard it on the radio a few times. But it was never played in concert by the band. Huh? It's pure, classic, Journey. Uplifting message, positive, it showcases Arnel's warm, rich tenor, great harmonies, and Neal's guitar just sings during the solo and outro.
Someone -- come on, boys, this is another sure-fire single that never was. It's has a great zingy, pop confection of a synth opening by Jon Cain, paired with ample classic piano keying. I would consider kicking the concert off with this one! Arnel's energy is infectious; so much fun energy!
Runner-up Human Feel was one of the songs played at the Las Vegas February 23, 2011 concert. It has a unique, fascinating syncopation, courtesy of skins master Deen Castronovo, and great pulsing bass on the part of Ross Valory. It threw a lot of concertgoers off beat as they tried to dance to it. It was hilarious. Interesting lyrics about the disconnect in this "digital ocean" of information make this one a winner live. I'd enjoy hearing this one again just to watch Deen go wild on the kit.
Never Walk Away
Like a Sunshower **
Change for the Better **
Wildest Dream
Faith in the Heartland *
After All These Years
Where Did I Lose Your Love **
What I Needed
What It Takes to Win
Turn Down the World Tonight
Almost all of these got an airing in concert as it was Arnel Pineda's debut smash with Journey. The release also featured a CD with re-records of classic Journey hits. But what holds my interest are the original recordings -- Cain and Schon definitely wooed fans with a classic sound on this CD.
Like A Sunshower didn't see the light of day in concert, and it's a pity, so that's why it makes my cut here. Beautiful, slow ballad in an unusual time signature (Pandora says twelve-eight time signature; it's the same as the classic "Lights") and sonically pleasing chord progression that takes advantage of the J-Boys harmonizing. Win.
Change for the Betteris a driving rocker, with a 80 synth + crunchy rhythm guitar style. My ears tend to tire of over-reliance on synthesizers that Jonathan Cain used to create the signature sound of the band in the 80s. Some songs simply don't age well (more on that later), or head directly into Cheez-Wiz land for me. However, this one perfectly matches up to the material and Arnel and Deen's energy. Neal's standard wailing solo fits as well. It's upbeat and has there's a nice pulsing bridge.
Also played in concert during this period is one of my favorites, Where Did I Lose Your Love, that clearly (to me) is a echo/tribute to Motown, written in a minor key, and it benefits from strong piano work by Jon, and great singing guitar work by Neal, and again, the harmonies make this song rise. Want to hear this one live again.
Let's step back into the Journey Wilderness Years after the jump....
[NOTE: Bucket list - lunch with Steve Perry. One can dream...]
I'm so pleased to see that Steve Perry, who has battled skin cancer and the loss of a partner in the last year or so, 1) looking healthy, and happy, and 2) back on stage. It's huge deal as he's not been anywhere close to a public appearance like this in years. Glad to see him enjoying himself.
A Facebook friend asked a familiar question for those who aren't diehard Journey fans -- "Why isn't he the lead singer for Journey any more?"
It's a pretty well-known story -- here's the Cliff Notes version. After recording their reunion album, Trial By Fire (1996), SP was hiking in prep for the tour. He hurt his hip, and it required surgery. Then the story becomes somewhat disputed. SP told the band he needed time to think about having the surgery, after several months they wanted to tour and told him to make a decision. He wanted more time, they gave him an ultimatum, then began auditioning singers. He then either quit or was fired.
Journey went on with Steve Augeri for 8 years; he had vocal issues in 2006-7 and was replaced briefly by Jeff Scott Soto on tour. Arnel Pineda was discovered on YouTube. Neal Schon had him flown in to audition and he's had the gig since 2008.
Steve Perry went on to continue writing and work behind the scenes on projects for others, but has led an otherwise quiet life out of the spotlight, doing an occasional charity event but he didn't tour. He did interviews rarely, but surfaced for several in conjunction with the release of Journey's Greatest Hits Vol. 2, a project he personally oversaw the remastering of (and the tracks sound crisp and awesome, btw). Before and during those interviews he discussed that he had built a home studio, written 50-plus songs and did some demos and planned to record them.
Perfectionist that he is, I think he's terribly afraid that his voice -- The Voice -- isn't what it was during any of the periods he was active with Journey and thus would disappoint fans. Most people are familiar with his acetylene torch mid-tenor vocal period (1981-83), less so with his bell-clear high tenor altino during the first three albums with Journey (1977-1980). By the time Trial By Fire was recorded, he had lost some of the high end, had a bit more dirt (roughness) in his vocal delivery, but obviously hadn't lost a lick of his emotive expression and lyrical interpretation. But what does he sound like now? I think most fans are so hungry for new music and to hear Steve Perry's voice again, and are more forgiving than he thinks.
Of course there will always be critics who will have (unrealistic) expectations that after a huge gap of time that a performer that doesn't sing regularly with the level of discipline required for public performance can somehow generate with the same vocal cords the dulcet tones of 40 years ago. Can't be helped. It pains me that those few may keep SP from recording and releasing new material. But it's his choice in the end. He's left us a legacy of recordings that are timeless and preserved at the peak of his natural talents. What's most important is that he's out and will hopefully see he's still beloved by so many Journey fans and give him the confidence to share what's musically on his mind someday soon.
...and here he is on stage, doing some percussion (more cowbell!) at the Drum Off. If you get to 2:07, he actually does jump on the mic for a bit (even with a little wail on "Pick Up The Pieces"!), just enough to tease us.
At the mic!
UPDATE: More of SP singing! At the 6:30 mark. Great, strong and oh-so-Steve Perry. Aw, man, give us some new music, it's killing me!
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A reminder about just how hard the road was on Steve Perry's voice -- his instrument -- when he was at the height of touring with Journey. From Fire and Air:
"No articles that I’ve found focusing on vocal training or quality exist for Perry, and most interviews concentrate on the somewhat acrimonious breakup between him and his former bandmates. Other interviews mention only in passing the difficulties of performing as a quasi-operatic vocalist for 180+ sets a year for years on end, well beyond that which is euphemistically called “punishing” or “grueling” in the operatic world and firmly in the realm of larynx-shredding insanity.
...Perry was left quite on his own in dealing with these issues and both he and his voice suffered for it. Often the only points of comparison for singers in rock are their instrumentalist bandmates, who while they are also subject to great stress while touring, can nevertheless do something singers can never do — buy new strings or new instruments when they play out their old ones.
...Due to the fact that neither the rock music industry, his management, his bandmates, nor Perry himself apparently had any profound awareness of how to caretake voices of that caliber, what should have been a luminous 35-year career was effectively burned through in what amounted to roughly one decade of active recorded performance.
...Thus as an operatic vocalist functioning in rock, Perry stood in a tiny area of overlap that did not exist until he created it, located between two of the most mutually suspicious forms of music. As high as the barriers to critical respect are between classical and popular music, they are a thousand times higher between opera and rock. This left only the fans themselves, who flooded toward his music by the millions, to recognize the monumental achievement that his musically tribeless voice represents. Those fans have now begun to achieve some position of authority as they (we) enter middle age, and their respect for Perry’s voice is beginning to be taken more seriously as a result."
Update (6/6): This week Mr. Perry posted a rare personal message on his fan site about the facial scar in the pic with Martha Quinn -- and something even more personal about his life over the last year. More at the end of the post.
If you're a Journey fan (and I know there are far too many of them in the closet about it), it can't get much better than this blast-from-the-past reunion of two icons, frontman Steve Perry and MTV VJ Martha Quinn. SP sightings are pretty rare.
The former lead singer/songwriter hasn't been with the band since 1996, and he's much beloved. He probably knows his fans would love to see him record and release the 50+ tunes he says he has in the can.
On my bucket list -- being able to have lunch with Mr. Perry. How that could even happen, I don't know (anyone with connections out there???), but it would make me a very a happy woman. Love, love his voice; have so many questions to ask about his compositions and positive experiences singing and songwriting.
One of my favorites, from a collaborative gig that was never released (but bootlegs are everywhere) that Perry and his Journey mates did singing live in studio on a radio show called King Biscuit Super Jam II is amazing. And it's full of songs from Infinity (1978) and other gem covers, like this one, that gets to emphasize the influence on SP of soul-singer Sam Cooke, something Journey capitalized on very little during its superstar 80s run.
UPDATE: In a rare public statement about his personal life, Steve Perry explained the scar on his face (melanoma removal; two operations) in the recent photo with MTV VJ Martha Quinn.
Three weeks ago a routine mole was taken off my face and the lab report came back Melanoma skin cancer. I've had two surgeries in two weeks to remove all the cancer cells and I've been told they think they got it all and no other treatments are required.
On Sunday I was a bit depressed because Kellie's birthday was coming up so I went for a drive and ran into Martha Quinn at a street fair. It was so great to see her and in a few short moments I told her most of this story. She asked if I'd take a picture with her and I said, "If you don't mind my face scar." She said, "Not at all." I joked about me and Pirates of the Caribbean and we both laughed.
"Kellie" refers to a woman he began a relationship with two years ago, a psychologist who was participating in a documentary on cancer that he first saw while reviewing footage of the doco with a friend. Kellie was dealing with breast cancer that had been treated, went into remission and had resurfaced as Stage 4 cancer in her lungs and bones. SP goes on to write a moving and unexpected emotional disclosure about meeting her, and the intense love and loss that he experienced over the last year. Click over to read it. It's hard not to feel heartbroken and uplifted at the same time. He notes that encounter with Martha Quinn was therapeutic and Steve thanks her for it in the piece.
As a long-time fan who knows how rare statements by Mr. Perry are about his life -- and those are usually through his site to fans, not the press, what he wrote this week was extraordinarily intimate and revealing about the man whose musical compositions touch so many. And I'm not talking about DSB (Don't Stop Believing) or the myriad harder-edged anthems most casual folks know that he wrote with Journey or during his solo outings.
Many of the mid-tempo compositions (such as "I'll Be Alright Without You") and ballads (Faithfully, Open Arms and a ton of lesser-known pieces that I'm drawn to), in the wake of how he crafted and shared highly-charged content about what occurred in this relationship reflects how easily these songs flowed from that same personal emotional space years ago. The ability to do so in putting melody and lyrics together serves as a both a therapeutic outlet for to explain experiences and feelings about people and places we'll never know about. The gift is doing it in way that communicated his (deeper-than-we-know) feelings in a universal way -- music -- that is what many of us connect to unconsciously when a Journey or SP song is on. I know it when I sing along...
That's where I have to give props to tribute singers like my bud (and colleague) Jeff Salado, of Journey Revisited. All of these singers attempt to emulate Steve Perry at his BEST consistently night after night in front of casual fans of Journey to die-hards like myself. Keeping the Perry era of live performance authentic is a tall order indeed. The demand is there to hear these great compositions performed live with fidelity to original sound.
Panda (Pam Spaulding)
