{"id":2656,"date":"2022-10-17T19:09:20","date_gmt":"2022-10-17T19:09:20","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.woas-fm.org\/?p=2656"},"modified":"2022-10-17T19:12:57","modified_gmt":"2022-10-17T19:12:57","slug":"ftv-neal-schons-journey","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.woas-fm.org\/?p=2656","title":{"rendered":"FTV: Neal Schon’s Journey"},"content":{"rendered":"

\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0At the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame induction in 2017, members of Journey had a weird family reunion of sorts.\u00a0 First there was the Gregg Rolle thing.\u00a0 The HOF wasn\u2019t keen to invite the band\u2019s original keyboard player and vocalist, so just two days before the big night, guitarist and band leader Neal Schon said, \u201cNo Gregg, no Journey.\u00a0 I stood my ground and they (expletive deleted) hated me for it.\u201d\u00a0 Schon also noted the maroon clothing and accents worn by some of the management team and band members that night, but we will come back to the conspiratorial overtones he was feeling a bit later.\u00a0 There were also reunion rumors fueled by having former vocalist Steve Perry there.\u00a0 Schon had not talked to him since 2005;\u00a0 would Perry sing with the band?\u00a0 According to Neal, \u201c The best part of the evening was speaking with Steve Perry in his room before we went on stage.\u00a0 We hadn\u2019t seen each other for many years.\u00a0 That was the most moving part of the evening to me.\u00a0 We really had a connection, and a love for one another.\u00a0 It was emotional, I think, for both of us.\u201d\u00a0 For the record, Perry came on stage for the acceptance speeches but did not perform that night.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Originally known as the Golden Gate Rhythm Section, the group came together in 1973 to act as a sort of all-star backup band for more established Bay Area artists.\u00a0 Rolle and Schon came out of Santana, George Tickner and Ross Vallory (guitar and bass) were both from Frumious Bandersnatch, and drummer Prairie Prince played primarily with The Tubes.\u00a0 It only took one live performance in Hawaii for them to realize they had something special going on so they began working on their jazz fusion tinged rock repertoire.\u00a0 Their \u2018coming out\u2019 gig as Journey (on New Year\u2019s Eve of 1973) was at the famous Winterland Ballroom in front of an audience of 10,000.\u00a0 When Prairie Prince departed to rejoin The Tubes, Ansley Dunbar (David Bowie, Frank Zappa\u2019s Mothers of Invention) took the drum chair.\u00a0 Between their first eponymously titled\u00a0 album (released in April of 1975) and their second (<\/span>Look Into The Future – January 1976<\/span><\/i>), the heavy touring schedule wore Tickner out and he dropped out of the line up.\u00a0 Lackluster album sales of their third LP <\/span>Next <\/span><\/i>(which peaked at No. 85<\/span> on the charts) put the band on the verge of being dropped by their label, CBS.\u00a0 The suits at CBS suggested the band might consider changing their jam based music (perhaps to something more commercial) by adding a second vocalist.\u00a0 The band complied, but the new singer wasn\u2019t who you think.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0The voice heard on the song that would be considered their first true hit, <\/span>Wheel In the Sky, <\/span><\/i>wasn\u2019t Steve Perry but Robert Fleischman.\u00a0 Unfortunately, manager\u00a0 Herbie Herbert and Fleishman had differences of opinion which caused him to leave (Fleishman, not Herbert), thus opening the door for Perry to fill his spot.\u00a0 With Roy Thomas Baker (known for his work with Queen) producing their fourth album (<\/span>Infinity<\/span><\/i> released in January of 1978), the band began a remarkable run of highly successful releases, both singles and albums.\u00a0 Drummer Dunbar disliked the move away from their jazzier fusion sound.\u00a0 The tensions he created within the band led Herbert to fire Dunbar after the <\/span>Infinity<\/span><\/i> tour.\u00a0 Montrose alum Steve Smith replaced the drummer and this lineup would remain intact through the next two albums and tour cycles.\u00a0 After the <\/span>Departure<\/span><\/i> album tour, Rolle left on his own terms (to open a soul food restaurant) and was eventually replaced with The Babys former keyboardist, Jonathon Cain.\u00a0\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Throughout the early 1980s, Journey seemed to have the Midas touch as albums like <\/span>Escape <\/span><\/i>and <\/span>Frontiers<\/span><\/i> filled arenas.\u00a0 MTV made them the darlings of music television pushing their album sales through the stratosphere.\u00a0 Anthemic songs like <\/span>Who\u2019s Crying Now, Open Arms, <\/span><\/i>and <\/span>Don\u2019t Stop Believin<\/span><\/i> received extensive airplay – you couldn\u2019t listen to the TV or radio and not hear their music.\u00a0 As busy as they were, Schon and Perry still recorded solo albums between Journey\u2019s extensive touring and recording schedule in 1984.\u00a0 Journey recorded their ninth LP, <\/span>Raised on Radio <\/span><\/i>in 1985<\/span> with Perry producing the album.\u00a0 Tensions again arose during the next band sessions so Perry and Herbert fired the Valory\/Smith rhythm section.\u00a0 The subsequent tour found Randy Jackson handling the bass duties and Mike Baird on the drum riser.\u00a0 Even though Herbert booked an additional fifteen shows at the end of the <\/span>Raised on Radio<\/span><\/i> tour, Perry declined to do them citing health problems and the strain the tour had taken on his voice.\u00a0 He told Schon and Cain he was done with Journey.\u00a0 With Perry\u2019s exit, the band went on hiatus from 1987 to 1995.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0When Perry agreed to a reunion in 1995, it had a condition attached:\u00a0 Herbie Herbert must go.\u00a0 Eagles manager Irving Azoff took over the job with Steve Smith and Ross Valory also returning to the fold.\u00a0 Journey entered the studio to produce <\/span>Trial By Fire,<\/span><\/i> the band\u2019s tenth album, but a tour slated to follow the album\u2019s release was not an option.\u00a0 Perry discovered he had a degenerative bone condition and would need hip replacement surgery.\u00a0 The album\u2019s release was delayed while the rest waited for Perry to make up his mind about having the surgery.\u00a0 The members of Journey kept themselves busy with side projects until 1998 when Perry announced he was leaving the music business to take care of his health matters.\u00a0 Steve Smith left the band because he did not think they would be as successful without Perry.\u00a0 Drummer Deen Castronovo took his place and the lead singer\u2019s spot was filled by Steve Augeri.\u00a0 With Journey sidelined for a decade, Schon reported a return to touring, \u201cFeels like we are reborn again.\u201d\u00a0 Journey\u2019s next studio record was done with South African expat Kevin Shirley at the helm in 2000.\u00a0 <\/span>Arrival <\/span><\/i>was released in April of 2001, peaked at #56 on the charts and garnered mixed reviews.\u00a0 Sony dropped Journey from their label and the band\u2019s last work in 2001 came when they performed with other major bands in Texas to aid the families of 9\/11 victims.\u00a0 The <\/span>Generations<\/span><\/i> album followed in 2005 but during the 2006 tour, it became obvious that Augeri was struggling with his vocals.\u00a0 He was replaced for the rest of the tour by Jeff Scott Soto.\u00a0 Soto toured with the band through June of 2007 when it was announced he was no longer with the band.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0<\/span>\u00a0Neal Schon\u2019s Journey<\/span><\/i> serves a dual purpose as the title of this article because throughout the band\u2019s journey, he has been Journey\u2019s one constant member and leader.\u00a0 With Augeri and Soto gone, Schon called the shots on personnel as they looked for another vocalist.\u00a0 The next lead singer lined up in 2007 was Jeremy Hunsicker from a Journey tribute band called Frontiers.\u00a0 Hunsicker says he was offered the position but tension with Schon saw him dismissed after a short tenure writing new material with the band.\u00a0 Neal resorted to searching YouTube in his quest to find a new vocalist.\u00a0 Schon stumbled upon internet clips of Filipino singer Arnel Pineda performing flawless Journey tracks with a cover band called The Zoo.\u00a0 At first, Pineda did not believe it really was Neal making contact with him, but eventually they set up two auditions.\u00a0 Things went so well Pineda was named the band\u2019s new vocalist on December 5, 2007 in spite of reservations about the hire raised by the rest of the band and their management.\u00a0 At the time, Pindeda was having a run of tough luck and was basically homeless.\u00a0 He has now been with the band for fifteen years and Schon is happy he stuck to his guns.\u00a0 Even as Arnel worked through a recent run of rough live vocals, the band stood solidly behind his work.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Pineda\u2019s uncanny vocal similarity to Steve Perry and the use of <\/span>Don\u2019t Stop Believin\u2019<\/span><\/i> in the final episode of the TV series <\/span>The Sopranos <\/span><\/i>suddenly made Journey a household name again.\u00a0 They recorded a new album with their new singer (<\/span>Revelation<\/span><\/i>) with the multi-disk set being released on June 3, 2008.\u00a0 When drummer Deen Castronovo took the lead vocal to spell Pineda in concert, he too displayed Steve Perry-like vocals on the song <\/span>Mother Father.\u00a0 <\/span><\/i>Journey had entered a third life as a major touring act.\u00a0 <\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/i>Surely the band member-go-round was now over,\u00a0 but no, that would make their journey smoother than one could hope for.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0In 2015, Castronovo was released from the band after he was accused of domestic violence.\u00a0 Deen himself admitted he had gone off the rails when drug dependency from various health issues caused him to lose his way.\u00a0 He would be replaced by studio veteran Omar Hakim and eventually Steve Smith.\u00a0 Not long after the dust settled on the Castronovo affair, Cain and Schon decided to go a few rounds over an invitation to tour the White House.\u00a0 Cain and Schon are great musical partners, but that is about all they have in common.\u00a0 Cain\u2019s acceptance of the White House invitation irked Schon, thus setting off an intense tit-for-tat social media barrage.\u00a0 Schon maintained that Journey was never a band involved with politics or religion.\u00a0 Cain countered that he wasn\u2019t promoting politics (\u201cjust taking the White House tour,\u201d he said) or religion in the band. Those siding with Schon noted Cain had recently undergone a re-awakening of his Christian faith and his wife since 2010, Paula White, was serving on the president\u2019s evangelical advisory board.\u00a0 When Cain\u2019s wife became part of the dialog, it seemed the band was about to split at the seams for good.\u00a0 When Neal reminded Cain about Journey not delving into politics or religion, he ended the discussion by stating, \u201c…and by the way, Journey is <\/span>my<\/span><\/i> band.\u201d.\u00a0 As the title says, \u201c<\/span>Neal Schon\u2019s Journey\u2019.<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Schon was very open about the tensions when <\/span>Classic Rock Magazine\u2019s <\/span><\/i>Dave Everly interviewed him in <\/span>CRM <\/span><\/i>Issue 303 in the summer of 2022:\u00a0 \u201cI was very vocal about it publicly.\u00a0 Everybody hated that, but, you know, I\u2019m like, I\u2019m gonna put it out there, because I want the fans to either back me or say, \u2018Man, you should shut up and go behind the doors with this.\u2019\u00a0 And there was an overabundance of people that came forward and said we support you a thousand percent.\u00a0 Bands\u2026you get married to these guys,\u00a0 And like in a marriage, people can go in different directions.\u00a0 Bands can be difficult and challenging, but removing certain individuals\u2026(he trailed off without finishing the thought).\u201d\u00a0 Oddly enough, it would be another round of drama, law suits, and \u2018removing certain individuals\u2019 that would bring Cain and Schon back together again.\u00a0 Schon sensed something was going on when certain members of the band and management team showed up in color coordinated outfits at the Hall of Fame induction.\u00a0 He just wasn\u2019t sure if he was being paranoid or if something was brewing.\u00a0 HInt:\u00a0 He wasn\u2019t just being paranoid.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0In 2020, Smith and Valory decided to have a little insurrection of their own long before the attack on the U.S. Capitol put the word on everyone\u2019s lips on January 6, 2021.\u00a0 Although their uprising was not of a violent nature, it was disturbing just the same.\u00a0 The drummer and bass player tried to oust Cain and Schon from the band.\u00a0 Their little \u2018coup d\u2019etat\u2019 was designed to legally seize control of the Journey brand.\u00a0 Schon claims the drummer and bass player were attempting to turn the Journey brand into their own retirement account.\u00a0 According to Everly, \u201cLawsuits flew both ways, sparking a full year of tiresome and costly litigation that would eventually result in an \u2018amicable settlement\u2019, a phrase that conjures images of gritted teeth and fingers crossed behind backs.\u201d\u00a0 Cain says now, \u201cIt came out of the blue.\u00a0 They tried to drum me and Neal out.\u00a0 It was unbelievable what they did.\u00a0 Really, really disappointing.\u00a0 Many, many millions were spent battling it,\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0So, where does this put Neal Schon\u2019s Journey in 2022?\u00a0 First off, they have just finished recording a new album called <\/span>Freedom <\/span><\/i>which was released earlier this year.\u00a0 It is said to be the strongest album they have recorded since Perry was still in the band.\u00a0 Producer \/ drummer Narada Michael Walden was supposed to carry on with his dual role after replacing Smith, but he asked to be released from the tour so he could spend more time with his family.\u00a0 The door was now open for the return of Deen Castronovo who began by sharing touring duties before Walden stepped back.\u00a0 Castronovo turned his dismissal from the band in 2015 into his own private self-help crusade which he says saved his life, marriage, and career.\u00a0 Pineda will no doubt be happy to have a break during their demanding shows when Deen takes the vocals on a couple of tracks.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Speaking of Pineda\u2019s vocals, there was a period when fans were beginning to whisper that his tenure with the band was going to end much as Augeri\u2019s run had.\u00a0 Arnel was obviously struggling during some of his live performances and Castronovo shed some light on the situation when he returned to the band:\u00a0 \u201cWe had to change our front-of-house sound guy.\u00a0 Arnel was having a hard time hearing:\u00a0 he has been fighting this for years.\u00a0 And we finally figured out, after years and years, that the soundman, our front-of-house guy, has been just pushing mixes that Arnel was turning up in his in-ear monitors.\u00a0 Arnel\u2019s ears would just close up and he was having a hard time, struggling to hear himself.\u00a0 Now that we have a new soundman, who used to work with Shawn Mendes, so this guy really has stuff dialed in.\u00a0 Arnel, man, it was just like a flip of the switch.\u00a0 All of us were just, like, \u2018Oh my gosh.\u2019\u00a0 I mean, he hasn\u2019t lost it.\u00a0 This changed everything, bro.\u00a0 It\u2019s night and day.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Schon says he is ready to do another album as soon as they can.\u00a0 Cain is a little more cautious, stating, \u201cYeah, I could do it if I had to.\u00a0 If it was put on me.\u00a0 It would have to warrant it.\u00a0 If this album is not a success, why do another one?\u201d\u00a0 Schon counters Cain\u2019s reluctance with, \u201cAre we going to wait another eleven years to do another album?\u00a0 I don\u2019t think so.\u00a0 Do I want to do another one?\u00a0 Absolutely.\u00a0 And I\u2019m sure we\u2019re going to do another one after that.\u00a0 As long as I\u2019m here, we\u2019re gonna keep creating.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Getting back to the Hall of Fame induction, Neal should probably send Bruce Springsteen a thank you note.\u00a0 The band became eligible for induction in 2000 but the HOF did not exactly embrace the idea.\u00a0 In fact, they dragged their feet so long Journey fans were beginning to have doubts they would ever get in.\u00a0 Springsteen, who is well respected at the HOF, gave them a nudge.\u00a0 After performing <\/span>Don\u2019t Stop Believing <\/span><\/i>with Lady Gaga and Elton John at a benefit performance, The Boss said, \u201cThat\u2019s a killer tune, yeah, Journey, we should give them a shot.\u201d\u00a0 The Boss started a relentless campaign to get them in.\u00a0 Once they were put on the ballot,\u00a0 Cain says, \u201cThe fans who voted us number one did the rest.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0There you have it, Journey lovers.\u00a0 Neal Schon is at the wheel and no matter what comes up in the future, you can take solace in one thing:\u00a0 Journey is still Neal\u2019s band and Neal Shon\u2019s Journey will continue as long as he is in the driver\u2019s seat.\u00a0 Listen for our featured blocks of Journey\u2019s music over the next couple of weeks on WOAS-FM 88.5 or online at www.woas-fm.org.<\/span><\/p>\n

Top Piece Video:\u00a0 Deen C showing off his drumming skills and Steve Perry-like vocals:<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0At the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame induction in 2017, members of Journey had a weird family reunion of sorts.\u00a0 First there was the Gregg Rolle thing.\u00a0 The HOF wasn\u2019t keen to invite the band\u2019s original keyboard player and vocalist, so just two days before the big night, guitarist and band leader Neal Schon […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[3,8,6,9],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-2656","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-bands-musicians","category-from-the-vaults","category-new-music","category-woas"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.woas-fm.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2656","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.woas-fm.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.woas-fm.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.woas-fm.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.woas-fm.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=2656"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/www.woas-fm.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2656\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2659,"href":"https:\/\/www.woas-fm.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2656\/revisions\/2659"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.woas-fm.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=2656"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.woas-fm.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=2656"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.woas-fm.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=2656"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}