Hello, My Name Is Kevin

[tater1977]

Hello, My Name Is Kevin
ilentertainer | Oct 01, 2010 | Comments 0

Q&A with Kevin Chalfant

http://illinoisentertainer.com/2010/10/ ... nt-page-1/


IE: You’ve been in a ton of bands over the years. Could you give us the official lineage?

Kevin Chalfant: Well I started in Illinois in the late 1970s, went to California in the ’80s through mid-’90s and them came back to Illinois. In Illinois, one group was called The Jones Band, which was an original group that developed into Fortran, which did a lot of opening slots for bigger bands at the time. As fate would have it, a situation opened up for me in California in 1981 when I hooked up with George Tutko, another guy who was originally from Illinois , who was working at Cherokee Studios in Los Angeles . I was telling him I thought it was time to make a change and it was really funny because the next call he got was from Kevin Russell, who was the guitar player for 707 who was looking for a lead singer. So the two Kevins looking for one another hooked up and made the record Megaforce together, but after the Boardwalk label president Neil Bogart died suddenly, we found ourselves on the outside of the company.

I just started putting my feelers out in the San Francisco Bay area after that and formed The Vu with Ross Valory [Journey], Prairie Prince [The Tubes], Stef Burns [Y&T] and Tim Gorman [The Who] and we made an entire CD, but it didn’t release until much later. In the early ’90s, I met Gregg Rolie [Journey and Santana] and we formed The Storm with Ross, Steve Smith [Journey] and Josh Ramos [Hardline]. After we signed to Interscope, we had some hit songs [I've Got a Lot To Learn About Love" and "Show Me the Way"] and toured with Bryan Adams and Peter Frampton. But then “Cop Killer” rap came along and Interscope did a shift, so we went independent. We did a second Storm CD that ended up releasing through bunch of indie companies and then Gregg got put in Rock and Roll Hall of Fame with Santana and that was pretty much the end of The Storm. So I released a solo record in 1997 called Running With the Wind that was cut in Nashville and was a real departure from the Journey-esque sounding music in favor of an earthier vibe. After that, I formed a new group called Two Fires and that was a really good outlet for me where I wrote a lot of songs with Jim Peterik, Chuck Giacinto and Alby Odum.

IE: What type of musical direction were you going for on the new Two Fires CD?

KC: Burning Bright ties all of those projects together taking bits of what I did with the Journey guys in The Storm and the earlier Two Fires stuff, basically melodic rock that sounds real punchy and takes it up a notch as far as production with George Tutko [John Mellencamp, Rod Stewart] mixing the record.

IE: Any Journey connections this time out?

KC: Back in the ’90s after The Storm was done touring, there was a Herbie Herbert charity roast in San Francisco . They invited all the bands Herbie’s worked with, like The Storm, Journey, Mr. Big and a bunch of others, and we all came there to perform, but Steve Perry declined because he was working on a solo project. So the band [Journey] basically asked me if I would jump in and fill in with them so I did and it was a great success. In fact, the San Francisco Chronicle had a picture of me on the cover of the music section that was a real compliment to be able to get up there with them and be able to hold my own. In the days following, Gregg, Neal [Schon], Jonathan [Cain] and I started writing songs. I guess the idea was “hey, Kevin could do this so why don’t we just do this with Kevin?” That was the plan, but that plan changed [when Steve Perry returned]. One of the songs that came out of our writing sessions was “Some Things Are Better Left Unsaid.” It was sitting there and I was holding onto it with the thought that maybe someday we’ll be able to do this together, but finally just came to the realization that I wanted to get this stuff out. So Gregg, Neal and I wrote this song on the new record and my band performed it spot on.

IE: How do you account for the fervency of the melodic rock audience, especially overseas?

KC: I see it mainly when I’m playing or selling records in Europe . It’s like it used to be here in the late ’70s and early ’80s and they just haven’t outgrown that genre. That’s not to say they’re aren’t people here that love that genre any less because there are, but when we do festivals over there, people just come out in droves.

IE: What inspired you to start the Voices of Rock Radio all-star band?

KC: I was pretty involved with World Stage with Jim Peterik and I’ve also been a guest singer with Gregg Rolie Band and the Alan Parsons Live Project. Working with a bunch of different singers isn’t an original idea, but it’s definitely something I wanted to do. I remembered touring with 707 and opening for the Ted Nugent Band and getting along great with the singer Derek St. Holmes, so I called him up and he was like ‘yeah man, let’s do it.’ The same happened with Jimi Jamison, John Cafferty and Wally Palmar from The Romantics, so that’s basically the nucleus.

IE: What can Chicagoland expect from your upcoming Voices concerts?

KC: Well I’m doing a show with Jimi on October 22 at the Arcada Theatre in St. Charles and we kind of split the duties and just have a great time together with my live band. Then on December 10, we have the whole Voices line-up at The Venue at Horseshoe Casino [in Hammond, IN], which is a benefit for my hometown of Streator after getting hit by twin sister tornados side by side and it tore up a lot of people’s property. It was originally scheduled for September 4, but now it’s going to be part of WLS ‘ Roe & Roeper Live Holiday Extravaganza [and will also benefit the USO of Illinois]. It’s really good timing because there’s a good chance I can pull in other singers who may be off tour, but for sure you’ll hear the main singers doing all the hits.

Kevin Chalfant performs October 22nd at Arcada Theatre in St. Charles and again with Voices Of Rock Radio at Horseshoe Casino in Hammond, Indiana, on December 10th. Q&A by Andy Argyrakis.

[Argus]

Thanks for the 411. Gotta love Kevin, great pipes and a very nice guy!

[tater1977]

Thanks for the 411. Gotta love Kevin, great pipes and a very nice guy!

Might have to go see him in Hammond...

[Arkansas]

Once upon a time, in another forum, I would write ~

"Bring back Rolie. Get Chalfant.
Make Journey a six-piece!
Make Journey a six-piece!
Make Journey a six-piece!
Make Journey a six-piece!
Make Journey a six-piece!
Make Journey a six-piece!


later..."

[The_Noble_Cause]

Man, did this guy get fucked. Band should have moved on with Kev and never looked back.

[S2M]

Man, did this guy get fucked. Band should have moved on with Kev and never looked back.

I disagree. He initially got brushed aside when SP came back for TBF. But once he ditched the tour the band could have called him back. In the 2 years between TBF and Remember Me - I'm sure Journey knew what a telephone was....

Ok, now that I'm reading this....maybe he did get fucked. But then again, Journey has never made ONE good decision.

[SF-Dano]

Man, did this guy get fucked. Band should have moved on with Kev and never looked back.

In a way I agree. I think the band fucked themselves by not going with that lineup. Still, in my opinion, the biggest mistake Neal and Jon have made. Not saying I don't like Arrival and beyond, because I do. But, you gotta wonder what might have been with that lineup.

[Shawn Of Fire]

Man, did this guy get fucked. Band should have moved on with Kev and never looked back.

In a way I agree. I think the band fucked themselves by not going with that lineup. Still, in my opinion, the biggest mistake Neal and Jon have made. Not saying I don't like Arrival and beyond, because I do. But, you gotta wonder what might have been with that lineup.

I think I have to agree with that...

[kgdjpubs]

Man, did this guy get fucked. Band should have moved on with Kev and never looked back.

In a way I agree. I think the band fucked themselves by not going with that lineup. Still, in my opinion, the biggest mistake Neal and Jon have made. Not saying I don't like Arrival and beyond, because I do. But, you gotta wonder what might have been with that lineup.

I think I have to agree with that...

Hindsight being 20/20, the band should have gone ahead with Chalfant, but I don't think anyone would have believed Perry would record one album and disappear into the woodwork without a single live performance considering he was gearing up for, or in the middle of, the FTLOSM tour.

Chalfant would have likely received the same treatment as Augeri for not being Perry, and not fully appreciated until he left the band, but it would have been much easier for Journey to move on. With Chalfant's range, he probably would have had an easier time with the catalog than Augeri did also. Hopefully, some of the other songs will surface at some point. It would be nice to hear them.

[RSParker]

Man, did this guy get fucked. Band should have moved on with Kev and never looked back.

you are so freaking right...

The first Storm cd smokes Eclipses..

And before you respond to that comment, i don't give a fuck what you say, so save it.

[Pelata]

Man, did this guy get fucked. Band should have moved on with Kev and never looked back.

In a way I agree. I think the band fucked themselves by not going with that lineup. Still, in my opinion, the biggest mistake Neal and Jon have made. Not saying I don't like Arrival and beyond, because I do. But, you gotta wonder what might have been with that lineup.

I think I have to agree with that...

Hindsight being 20/20, the band should have gone ahead with Chalfant, but I don't think anyone would have believed Perry would record one album and disappear into the woodwork without a single live performance considering he was gearing up for, or in the middle of, the FTLOSM tour.

Chalfant would have likely received the same treatment as Augeri for not being Perry, and not fully appreciated until he left the band, but it would have been much easier for Journey to move on. With Chalfant's range, he probably would have had an easier time with the catalog than Augeri did also. Hopefully, some of the other songs will surface at some point. It would be nice to hear them.

Yeah, I agree about hindsight. But you're right, nobody would have predicted that scenario.

As for the catalog, it can be dealt with and I think Steve A. would have been fine in the long run had precautions been taken. It's common knowledge what it did to Perry's range...that alone should have been Exhibit A in terms of why they all needed to be smarter about the level of touring they did and how they treated themselves on the road. But, again, hindsight.

[Idiosyncrasy]

I think Kevin would've sounded great with Journey around 1993. His range and power on the two Storm albums is amazing but, while I still enjoy his voice, it's nowhere near what it used to be. Still think Terry Brock would've done a good job too!

[RedWingFan]

Man, did this guy get fucked. Band should have moved on with Kev and never looked back.

you are so freaking right...

The first Storm cd smokes Eclipses..

And before you respond to that comment, i don't give a fuck what you say, so save it.