finalfight wrote:jtxfan wrote:After hearing the Guff tune, seeing SP sing DSB with the White Sox, I'm not 100% convinced SP could sing the older classic Journey tunes. Seeing a tribute band singer not handle all the notes can be forgiven, but regardless of his age, no one would ever give SP any slack if he did not sing the older songs like the originals. He would get raped by the press and legions of fans would post their disappointment with his performance IF he couldn't vocally handle it. Unlike other bands where it's "ok" if the lead vocals are not spot on, (The Police, Van-Halen), Journey with SP would be pretty much all about SP at that point. SP is a perfectionist, he probably is not coming back because he doesn't want to, he probably is not coming back because he simply can't do it anymore. I'm SURE we'll see some kind of music release from SP in the coming months/years, but my guess is it will be in a much softer, lower register voice, than we're used to. Wouldn't surprise me to see some kind of "jazz/ballad" hybrid from SP in the coming years.
So, does anyone know any male 58+ year old singer that could hit those classic Journey high notes?
Here's two for starters - Dennis DeYoung and Rob Halford.
Yes, Dennis DeYoung would be on the list, Halford too. I would also include Robert Plant, Ronnie James Dio, and Paul Stanley. However, the person who would compare the closest to Perry would be Dennis DeYoung in terms of the style of music they sing. I would argue that Dennis hasn't put the same amount of strain on his voice over the years because Styx never toured as heavy as Journey back in the day. He also got to split lead vocal duties with JY and Tommy Shaw for all those years. Styx took a lot of breaks from touring back then and, of course, there was all of that "rock 'n' roll opera" stuff around Kilroy. Over the past several years Dennis' touring schedule has been very limited and he does what he needs to in order to limit vocal strain.
At the same time, Perry and DeYoung are two different people and everybody ages differently. With all of these singers that try to do Perry...even SA and JSS, you can definitely see the strain when they sing. I saw Journey with SA live three different times and there were parts of the show where the veins on his forehead were about to burst. It looked like he was about to have an aneurysm. For the last couple of years of his tenure with the band, they helped him out by having Deen sing a few songs. His voice couldn't take an entire set anymore. Same thing with Jeff. He's got a much stronger voice than SA but, there were times when he would strain as well. Perry, on the other hand, had such a powerful, yet soulful voice. In his prime, no one had a stronger voice than Steve Perry and he could sing the highest of notes with no effort whatsoever. Even playing 160 - 180 shows per year, he could hit those high notes effortlessly. That was the most impressive thing about him and why people still look at him as one of the all-time greats. A good female comparison would be Aretha Franklin. Even in her 60's she will blow anybody off the stage. Absolutely effortless.
Posted: Sat Oct 20, 2007 8:47 pm
. FTLOSM and TBF have both been bashed on the boards because he sang in a lower register. Why would he want to sing now when he knows he'll just get skewered if he doesn't hit the 
