Will Augeri Return?

[separate_wayz]

Hardly seems much worse than disparaging comments Neal has periodically made throughout Augeri's tenure.

And for those Journey fans who have been paying attention, we know Jon and Neal were actually being quite reserved.

Oh I don't disagree. In interviews, Schon frequently damned by faint praise, especially after he started playing with JSS in Soul Sirkus. At the time I thought "Jeezus .... I think Neal's getting ready to dump Augeri in favor of JSS." In fact, that's what I thought Soul Sirkus basically was -- a front to familiarize Journey fans with JSS, get their buy-in, then at the appropriate time, dump Augeri and bring in someone that had already posted on JT and gained some Journey fan approval. Then the response would be "Oh he's not replacing Augeri -- he's just filling in .... you know .... cuz Steve A has 'health issues'." A seamless transition -- no harm, no foul (except to SteveA, who I'm sure knew he was being unceremoniously dumped).

By doing what they did to Augeri, they basically validated everything Journey/SteveA critics have said all along.

[JeremyP]

You can do a lot of things in a studio.

Seriously, I mean...Augeri could go in and give it all and sing one chorus on, say, FITH, and once it's copied and pasted into the other choruses in the song, that's half the tune. I thought his vocals sounded good on that album, but I don't doubt it was done piece by piece, and with a lot of ProTools help.

My guess is that the struggle to get good Augeri vocals is partially the reason the rest of the band sang tracks on that album, regardless of what they said in interviews. Augeri could've easily sang the two Deen songs, but it probably would've taken too long so they just said "fuck it, let Deen do it."

I would say that it's very rare for any musician, regardless of whether they sing or play an instrument, to record a single song in one take all the way through. One normally uses the best takes and then pieces all of them together to construct the final track. Also, copying and pasting is standard studio technique for maaaany professional singers. It's not just a band-aid work around for singers who have damaged their vocal cords. As far as Deen's vocals, I would be really surprised if they were recorded in one take...it's just not how things are normally done in my experience.

[Rockindeano]

I would say that it's very rare for any musician, regardless of whether they sing or play an instrument, to record a single song in one take all the way through.

Perry did it.

[conversationpc]

I would say that it's very rare for any musician, regardless of whether they sing or play an instrument, to record a single song in one take all the way through.

Perry did it.

On which songs? The guy is famous for doing multiple takes of a vocal track and being meticulous about picking just the perfect take.

[Marc S]

Perry probably could do a song in one take, but in my view, the quest for perfectionism which is inherent in this style of music (grunge and punk can get away with ideosyncrasies - read tuning fluctuations) inevitably means the best elements from various takes will be comped together. A bit more labourious in 1981, but with the Turd Polisher (sorry, Auto-tune) its not an issue now. It a shame because over the last few years everyone is bang in key.....I wonder why. The only time the technology doesn't really work is in the 'live' environment, I remember even Jeff posted that he wouldn't or couldn't use auto-tune live.

[STORY_TELLER]

On which songs? The guy is famous for doing multiple takes of a vocal track and being meticulous about picking just the perfect take.

Off Perry's greatest hits album, "when you're in love", that was a one take song. It was, in fact, a demo and he was just happy with the way it came out and left it as the final song. Sometimes the first take is the best and overworking it takes away an organic or emotional quality. Perry's meticulous nature is about the artistry involved in molding a melody to his standards. Certainly not about the vocal quality or skill.

There are plenty of times when a singer nails it in one take. Gnarls Barkley's "Crazy" was a one take song. Celine Dion's "my heart will go on" was a one take. The list goes on and on.

[Marc S]

Off Perry's greatest hits album, "when you're in love", that was a one take song. It was, in fact, a demo and he was just happy with the way it came out and left it as the final song. Sometimes the first take is the best and overworking it takes away an organic or emotional quality. Perry's meticulous nature is about the artistry involved in molding a melody to his standards. Certainly not about the vocal quality or skill.

There are plenty of times when a singer nails it in one take. Gnarls Barkley's "Crazy" was a one take song. Celine Dion's "my heart will go on" was a one take. The list goes on and on.

Errr, says who? Were you in the studio operating the multitrack? Or just something someones dads brothers auntie heard about?

[STORY_TELLER]

Errr, says who? Were you in the studio operating the multitrack? Or just something someones dads brothers auntie heard about?

Documented in interviews from the artists own mouths and other's who were in the studios at the time of the recording (of course you'll say "they're lying"). The Celine Dion instance was also backed up by an interview with James Horner.

Doubt can be raised about anything. Doesn't mean it doesn't happen and isn't possible. Pro Tools is a recent addition to the music recording process. Neal has stated in several interviews how much he hated digital recording (pro tools in particular) and prefers the analog sound. I think you can find that interview right here on melodic rock in fact.

[Marc S]

Doubt can be raised about anything. Doesn't mean it doesn't happen and isn't possible. Pro Tools is a recent addition to the music recording process. Neal has stated in several interviews how much he hated digital recording (pro tools in particular) and prefers the analog sound. I think you can find that interview right here on melodic rock in fact.

Well... "he (Schon) would say that wouldn't he"? Look what he 'said' about booting JSS out...

What people say and what they actually do are unrelated. Call that cynical, but you'll be telling me next that Rick Allen actually played the drum tracks for Leppard?

[STORY_TELLER]

Doubt can be raised about anything. Doesn't mean it doesn't happen and isn't possible. Pro Tools is a recent addition to the music recording process. Neal has stated in several interviews how much he hated digital recording (pro tools in particular) and prefers the analog sound. I think you can find that interview right here on melodic rock in fact.

Well... "he (Schon) would say that wouldn't he"? Look what he 'said' about booting JSS out...

What people say and what they actually do are unrelated. Call that cynical, but you'll be telling me next that Rick Allen actually played the drum tracks for Leppard?

[Marc S]

Whatever...

[jrnyjetster]

This has been everywhere, but here is the TS II demo eternal light if you haven't heard it

http://www.yousendit.com/transfer.php?a ... A02F626351

Think Robert Plant - Manic Nirvana era - not Journey

I'm not crazy about this song at all...does nothing for me.

[strangegrey]

I would say that it's very rare for any musician, regardless of whether they sing or play an instrument, to record a single song in one take all the way through.

Perry did it.

On which songs? The guy is famous for doing multiple takes of a vocal track and being meticulous about picking just the perfect take.

Depends how you look at this. It's *very* common for artists to 'comp' a track. Short for Composite. That menas they record either several lead vocal (or guitar, bass, etc) tracks and pick the best verses, segments from each one and make a new master track from those best segments and discard the rest. Another way to do it (and the way I've done it in the past) is to sing a track one line or verse at a time, punching in additional lines/verses on each take...when the line/verse sounds good, you move on to the next take, etc.

The *real* magic is when an artist walks into a studio, hears the song, goes into the boot, says 'lets do it' and 3 minutes and 46 seconds later you have a flawless lead vocal track. Sammy Hagar reportedly did that for Man on a Mission off of F.U.C.K. One take, no redos....wham bam thank you man!

[strangegrey]

...and his voice is gone.

I've been questioning this from the get go. I'm convinced that the 'chronic vocal infection' was simply a cover story, much like the bullshit about Steve Perry's hip injury. To date, Perry's injury was never specifically attributed to an action. You heard mountain biking, mountain climbing, rock climbing, hiking, running, swimming, bovine sex, etc...But it was never specific enough for it to be a credible story.

Granted, 'chronic vocal infection' is a specific thing, but it still shakes my head. If it were an infection, antibiotics would have cleared it up. A more *plausable* cover story would have been vocal nodes that need to be surgically removed...which has affected other singers before. The thing about vocal nodes is that there are plenty of other singers of other bands that have had this and returned to work....Schonbag and Fucka didn't *want* Augeri returning to work...so they needed to dream up something that sounded serious enough to send him back to Brooklyn with his tail between his legs.

This is pure speculation, but I think it was *nothing* more than Augeri getting older and being unable to tour every year, 5 nights a week...singing THIS catalog, without a break and without any help by dropping key signatures. I don't care who you are, singing this catalog repeatedly CAN do damage to your voice. Hell, in the 80s, how many summers did Journey actually tour? 1980, 1982, 1984 and 1987? With some dates of exception, we're talking 4 years. Perry shut down and clammed up into a ball after 1987. Augeri was expected to sing every summer from 1998 straight through to 2006. NO VOICE CAN TAKE THAT.

I really think it was Steve's voice crying uncle. The band decided to stretch it along with tapes...but in the end, Steve had simply fatigued out. He probably needed 2006 off....he got that...and I'd be willing to bet his vocal tracks on TSII will sound great!

[donnaplease]

I've been questioning this from the get go. I'm convinced that the 'chronic vocal infection' was simply a cover story, much like the bullshit about Steve Perry's hip injury. To date, Perry's injury was never specifically attributed to an action. You heard mountain biking, mountain climbing, rock climbing, hiking, running, swimming, bovine sex, etc...But it was never specific enough for it to be a credible story.

Although I don't know anything about it other than what I saw on BTM and have read here and elsewhere, I believe SP said he was diagnosed with a 'degenerative' bone disease. If that is true, there may not have had to have been a specific injury (ie biking, climbing, etc.). In some of these conditions, the first time you know of it is when you have damaged a bone. For example, many older people with "degenerative joint disease" who have hip fractures don't fall first and break their hip; in fact, because of the degeneration of the bone tissue, the hip breaks which in turn leads to a fall. It can be very vague. It usually leads to a hip replacement surgery, because the bones are too brittle to tolerate a pinning. In the facility that I work, we recently had a patient who broke both bones in her lower leg when she simply stood up out of her chair. It happens.

Again, I don't know if this is true in SP's case. But it is plausible that the stress on the joints from the hike led to his pain/injury. If there were no occult or obvious fractures, I do believe that the conservative measures were appropriate. Based on my somewhat limited knowledge, it is a credible story to me. Of course, I'm a loon, and choose to believe...

[txfirefighter]

I've been questioning this from the get go. I'm convinced that the 'chronic vocal infection' was simply a cover story, much like the bullshit about Steve Perry's hip injury. To date, Perry's injury was never specifically attributed to an action. You heard mountain biking, mountain climbing, rock climbing, hiking, running, swimming, bovine sex, etc...But it was never specific enough for it to be a credible story.

Although I don't know anything about it other than what I saw on BTM and have read here and elsewhere, I believe SP said he was diagnosed with a 'degenerative' bone disease. If that is true, there may not have had to have been a specific injury (ie biking, climbing, etc.). In some of these conditions, the first time you know of it is when you have damaged a bone. For example, many older people with "degenerative joint disease" who have hip fractures don't fall first and break their hip; in fact, because of the degeneration of the bone tissue, the hip breaks which in turn leads to a fall. It can be very vague. It usually leads to a hip replacement surgery, because the bones are too brittle to tolerate a pinning. In the facility that I work, we recently had a patient who broke both bones in her lower leg when she simply stood up out of her chair. It happens.

Again, I don't know if this is true in SP's case. But it is plausible that the stress on the joints from the hike led to his pain/injury. If there were no occult or obvious fractures, I do believe that the conservative measures were appropriate. Based on my somewhat limited knowledge, it is a credible story to me. Of course, I'm a loon, and choose to believe...

You are correct about the issue of a bone breaking and then the fall occuring. I have seen this many times in my work environment. It becomes a scenario of what came first. Once the fall has happened, it is very hard to determine the etiology of the break of the bone.....did it happen as a result of the fall, or did the fall occur because of a break? And in the case of hip fractures, not all are surgically repaired. Some are treated with a conservative approach.

[Enigma869]

I've been a fan of Journey since before Perry entered into the picture

Ahhhhhh...You're the one!


John from Boston

[stevew2]

...and his voice is gone.

I've been questioning this from the get go. I'm convinced that the 'chronic vocal infection' was simply a cover story, much like the bullshit about Steve Perry's hip injury. To date, Perry's injury was never specifically attributed to an action. You heard mountain biking, mountain climbing, rock climbing, hiking, running, swimming, bovine sex, etc...But it was never specific enough for it to be a credible story.

Granted, 'chronic vocal infection' is a specific thing, but it still shakes my head. If it were an infection, antibiotics would have cleared it up. A more *plausable* cover story would have been vocal nodes that need to be surgically removed...which has affected other singers before. The thing about vocal nodes is that there are plenty of other singers of other bands that have had this and returned to work....Schonbag and Fucka didn't *want* Augeri returning to work...so they needed to dream up something that sounded serious enough to send him back to Brooklyn with his tail between his legs.

This is pure speculation, but I think it was *nothing* more than Augeri getting older and being unable to tour every year, 5 nights a week...singing THIS catalog, without a break and without any help by dropping key signatures. I don't care who you are, singing this catalog repeatedly CAN do damage to your voice. Hell, in the 80s, how many summers did Journey actually tour? 1980, 1982, 1984 and 1987? With some dates of exception, we're talking 4 years. Perry shut down and clammed up into a ball after 1987. Augeri was expected to sing every summer from 1998 straight through to 2006. NO VOICE CAN TAKE THAT.

I really think it was Steve's voice crying uncle. The band decided to stretch it along with tapes...but in the end, Steve had simply fatigued out. He probably needed 2006 off....he got that...and I'd be willing to bet his vocal tracks on TSII will sound great!

I hope I am wrong,It would great here Steve sing again. If I am wrong about this,someone correct me, TS 2 is other songs that they didnt put on Tall Stories 1, not new material

[stevew2]

and his voice is gone.

No it's not, apparently from what I keep getting told. Good for Steve A.

Thats good news Ed,keep us posted

[ohsherrie]

On which songs? The guy is famous for doing multiple takes of a vocal track and being meticulous about picking just the perfect take.

Off Perry's greatest hits album, "when you're in love", that was a one take song. It was, in fact, a demo and he was just happy with the way it came out and left it as the final song. Sometimes the first take is the best and overworking it takes away an organic or emotional quality. Perry's meticulous nature is about the artistry involved in molding a melody to his standards. Certainly not about the vocal quality or skill.

There are plenty of times when a singer nails it in one take. Gnarls Barkley's "Crazy" was a one take song. Celine Dion's "my heart will go on" was a one take. The list goes on and on.

Melody from the GH+5 and One More Time from the remastered FTLOSM were also one take demos that he left alone because he liked the sound.

[whocares]

no thanks to seeing Augeri anymore live, but correct me if I'm wrong. Wasnt' the Tall Stories CD supposed to come out at the first part of the yar? Now it's the second half, and still nothing out. Pretty messed up, considering it was supposed to be material that was completed years ago.

[chf34jmac]

Let's see if we can put Augeri coming back to rest in plain simple terms. If you were left standing out there to take the heat he took by his "Family" would you ever consider dealing with them again? I know I wouldn't. I don't think the guys' ass has stopped bleeding yet from the fuckin' his buddies in the band gave him. And the TS II album cannot come out until October because of the No compete clause he signed in his settlement is what I have heard.

[whocares]

What's there to compete with? Journey hasn't had any new stuff released in 2 years.

That wouldn't make any sense. A no compete clause in Rock n Roll. Now I've heard it all (almost).

[chf34jmac]

Thought I had heard it all until the other week when this shit hit the fan. Nice to see you dude.

[whocares]

nice to be seen

[Liz22562]

JohnfromBoston....

Yes, I am the one.....

[JeremyP]

And the TS II album cannot come out until October because of the No compete clause he signed in his settlement is what I have heard.

You heard right. *shakes head*

If that isn't completely effed up, I don't know what is.

[Crazie Scarab]

And the TS II album cannot come out until October because of the No compete clause he signed in his settlement is what I have heard.

You heard right. *shakes head*

If that isn't completely effed up, I don't know what is.

Yep. What competition? Is Journey touring? Better yet! Does Journey even have a singer to compete with? Not that I'm aware of.