"Play everything with conviction AND INTEGRITY"
Posted: Fri Jun 30, 2006 12:04 amhttp://www.zwire.com/site/news.cfm?news ... 7983&rfi=6
Theyve sold more than 140 million albums during careers that have spanned four decades, and theyve been responsible for some of the biggest concerts in this history of rock n roll.
But perhaps the most amazing statistic about Journey and Def Leppard is that theyve never played a note together before this summer.
Not one single lick, said Journeys Jonathan Cain during a recent phone call. Weve been talking about it for the past six years. This is the right time to do it.
When the show visits Montage Mountain this Friday, Journey and Def Leppard will each perform 80-minute sets, with Journey playing first. Ticket sales were so strong that an entire leg was added to the tour after the summer season had been announced.
Though the bands have never performed together not even in a festival atmosphere the players are no strangers to each others work.
I know Phil Collen pretty well, Cain said. And we were at the same Diamond Awards ceremony where you get the glass pyramid for the 10-million seller and we partied there over a cup of coffee.
That was a weird day, man. We had Def Leppard, AC/DC, Kenny Rogers, Metallica, Boston, and Boyz II Men all drinking coffee talking about the business. The only thing that was missing was Simon Cowell.
The Cowell reference, though in jest, was a fitting one coming from Cain. Journey has enjoyed a surprise resurgence during recent years thanks in part to former bassist Randy Jacksons involvement with American Idol.
Idol showed video clips of Jacksons performances with the group during the 80s, and Clay Aiken won over voters with his rendition of Open Arms.
Journey again grabbed a national audience when the Chicago White Sox adopted Dont Stop Believin as its battle cry as it marched to a World Series title in 2005. The team flew former Journey singer Steve Perry to the games, and he led the team and the crowd in an a capella version of the tune during the Sox celebration in Chicago.
In effect, the song became one of the top 10 downloaded songs last summer, and given the recent crickets that came along with Journeys last few studio efforts, Cain said the band is more than happy new fans are embracing its timeless tunes. Were a special case, because we have lots of product out there thats platinum, so to knock on a door and ask a radio station to play a new Journey cut when they can play Dont Stop Believin is redundant, Cain said. Even with Def Leppard, you already have all these songs out there. A label has a tough road to market new music from bands like ours.
Cain indeed owns an iPod, and hes versed in modern rock. He listed Switchfoot, Crossfade, and Seether as bands making good music.
Theyre writing good songs again, he said. I like songs that have some spiritual hope to them. I think its great when bands have a conscience. I dont like whiny songs. We get screwed over every day. I dont need to listen to it. I see it everywhere. Dont whine at me.
Twenty years after the height of Journeys heyday, Cain finds himself catching up on modern rock through his 10-year-old son. Cain is the DJ during his sons Little League games, where he plays more than his recommended daily allotment of Green Day.
Theyre always yelling for it, he said. But Green Day made a good record. Im a little burnt out on it, but its strong.
The current trend with some legendary rock acts seems to be filling summer tours with sets written by other artists, or simply showing up to play the new album and leave. With Journey, the opposite is true. Cain said Journey respects its fans and tours simply to give it back to them.
This band has legacy, he said. Youre a knight at the round table. You have a responsibility to uphold the legacy. When I step my foot on stage as a member of Journey, I have my sword ready and Im going for it.
No matter what the set list is, Im going to play everything with conviction and integrity.
And, he said the fans dont seem to mind that Steve Perry isnt part of the group, which also includes founding member and co-writer Neal Schon.
Journey was Journey before Steve Perry. He didnt write it all. Neal and I wrote it, too. We share two-thirds of the creation of Journey. Its more than just one guy. The sound of the band has remained intact and I would never compare the two, because theyre two different animals.
Theyve sold more than 140 million albums during careers that have spanned four decades, and theyve been responsible for some of the biggest concerts in this history of rock n roll.
But perhaps the most amazing statistic about Journey and Def Leppard is that theyve never played a note together before this summer.
Not one single lick, said Journeys Jonathan Cain during a recent phone call. Weve been talking about it for the past six years. This is the right time to do it.
When the show visits Montage Mountain this Friday, Journey and Def Leppard will each perform 80-minute sets, with Journey playing first. Ticket sales were so strong that an entire leg was added to the tour after the summer season had been announced.
Though the bands have never performed together not even in a festival atmosphere the players are no strangers to each others work.
I know Phil Collen pretty well, Cain said. And we were at the same Diamond Awards ceremony where you get the glass pyramid for the 10-million seller and we partied there over a cup of coffee.
That was a weird day, man. We had Def Leppard, AC/DC, Kenny Rogers, Metallica, Boston, and Boyz II Men all drinking coffee talking about the business. The only thing that was missing was Simon Cowell.
The Cowell reference, though in jest, was a fitting one coming from Cain. Journey has enjoyed a surprise resurgence during recent years thanks in part to former bassist Randy Jacksons involvement with American Idol.
Idol showed video clips of Jacksons performances with the group during the 80s, and Clay Aiken won over voters with his rendition of Open Arms.
Journey again grabbed a national audience when the Chicago White Sox adopted Dont Stop Believin as its battle cry as it marched to a World Series title in 2005. The team flew former Journey singer Steve Perry to the games, and he led the team and the crowd in an a capella version of the tune during the Sox celebration in Chicago.
In effect, the song became one of the top 10 downloaded songs last summer, and given the recent crickets that came along with Journeys last few studio efforts, Cain said the band is more than happy new fans are embracing its timeless tunes. Were a special case, because we have lots of product out there thats platinum, so to knock on a door and ask a radio station to play a new Journey cut when they can play Dont Stop Believin is redundant, Cain said. Even with Def Leppard, you already have all these songs out there. A label has a tough road to market new music from bands like ours.
Cain indeed owns an iPod, and hes versed in modern rock. He listed Switchfoot, Crossfade, and Seether as bands making good music.
Theyre writing good songs again, he said. I like songs that have some spiritual hope to them. I think its great when bands have a conscience. I dont like whiny songs. We get screwed over every day. I dont need to listen to it. I see it everywhere. Dont whine at me.
Twenty years after the height of Journeys heyday, Cain finds himself catching up on modern rock through his 10-year-old son. Cain is the DJ during his sons Little League games, where he plays more than his recommended daily allotment of Green Day.
Theyre always yelling for it, he said. But Green Day made a good record. Im a little burnt out on it, but its strong.
The current trend with some legendary rock acts seems to be filling summer tours with sets written by other artists, or simply showing up to play the new album and leave. With Journey, the opposite is true. Cain said Journey respects its fans and tours simply to give it back to them.
This band has legacy, he said. Youre a knight at the round table. You have a responsibility to uphold the legacy. When I step my foot on stage as a member of Journey, I have my sword ready and Im going for it.
No matter what the set list is, Im going to play everything with conviction and integrity.
And, he said the fans dont seem to mind that Steve Perry isnt part of the group, which also includes founding member and co-writer Neal Schon.
Journey was Journey before Steve Perry. He didnt write it all. Neal and I wrote it, too. We share two-thirds of the creation of Journey. Its more than just one guy. The sound of the band has remained intact and I would never compare the two, because theyre two different animals.
