Journey concert reviews 2015

[tater1977]

Journey, Steve Miller Band served up nostalgia and guitar solos in abundance

http://www.nola.com/music/index.ssf/201 ... _serv.html

By Keith Spera, NOLA.com | The Times-Picayune
March 09, 2015

An hour into Journey's set at a full Smoothie King Center on Sunday (March , founding bassist Ross Valory proudly, and somewhat defiantly, noted that, "Over the last 15 years, this band has recorded five studio albums." Of the 15 songs Journey presented Sunday, "Ritual," from 2011's "Eclipse," was the only selection from those post-Steve Perry albums. The steady of stream of fans headed to the bathrooms and beer booths during "Ritual" confirmed what the musicians already knew: This was a night for nostalgia, even nostalgia with a twist.

Journey topped a triple bill of bands that originated in the Bay Area of California in the 1960s and '70s. The horn-heavy Tower of Power concluded its early eight-song set with a crisp "What Is Hip." The Steve Miller Band followed with a no-frills, business-like presentation. He briefly wore a mask like the one he sported on the cover of his 1973 album "The Joker," but otherwise his set was without artifice.

Miller still employs a stylized Pegasus as a logo. But these days, the guitarist also rocks a sensible haircut, glasses, and a neat black sportcoat and slacks, his right pant leg tucked into a black cowboy boot, so as not to hinder his manipulation of effects pedals.

His voice was craggy in the opening "Jungle Love," but soon settled into his familiar range. The chugging "Sugar Babe," the opening track of "The Joker," was the first of several pleasant surprises he and his sturdy four-piece band delivered. "Living in the U.S.A.," written during the upheaval of the 1968 Democratic convention in Chicago, has not aged as well as other cuts. He introduced "Serenade" with, "I think it's from 'Fly Like An Eagle' ... I have to check." (It is.) He dedicated "Shu Ba Da Du Ma Ma Ma Ma," with its rolling, big-bottom bass, to the rhythm section of the original Santana band, a San Francisco contemporary.

Keyboardist Joseph Wooten decorated "Take the Money and Run" with an extra piano flourish, and inserted an extended keyboard solo in "Dance Dance Dance." But the instrumental focus remained mostly on Miller's economical guitar solos.

"The Joker," goosed by a slide solo, brought the fans on the arena floor to their feet. They remained standing through "Come On and Dance," "Fly Like an Eagle" - beefed up with a big run by Wooten and a David Gilmour-esque solo by Miller - and "Rock'n Me." In the encore, Miller returned to his blues roots with the chiseled 12-bar-blues "Just Got Back From Texas." Carlos Santana, among others, has covered it; Miller approached it more like Stevie Ray Vaughan. "Jet Airliner" touched down as his farewell.

Miller actually played more songs than Journey -- 17 versus 15 -- though Journey's set, at exactly an hour and a half, was 20 minutes longer than Miller's. And it was Journey that sold the majority of Sunday's tickets.

New Orleans has embraced Journey as far back as late-1970s gigs at the Warehouse and a 1983 headlining show at Tad Gormley Stadium in City Park, with an undercard consisting of Foghat, Zebra and a little-known Canadian named Bryan Adams. Decades later, the songs apparently matter more than who sings them. Since Journey hired Filipino cover band vocalist Arnel Pineda in late 1997, the band has filled the Smoothie King Center three times in less than six years -- a feat accomplished by no other act of any genre. From the stage, founding guitarist Neal Schon made a point of thanking promoter Don Fox, whose independent Beaver Productions continues to carve out a niche in a concert landscape dominated by corporate behemoths Live Nation and AEG.

Journey opened strong with "Be Good to Yourself," "Separate Ways (Worlds Apart)" and the chestnut "Anyway You Want It" in quick succession; the set late bogged down as the band delved into deep cuts. Ballads account for a sizeable component of Journey's appeal, but Schon, Valory, keyboardist Jonathan Cain and drummer Deen Castronovo can also raise a racket. Schon grinned in approval after Castronovo pounded a big finish on "Separate Ways." The guitarist replicated his own solos faithfully -- pun intended -- except when he didn't, as in his "Open Arms" variation.

The 1981 album "Escape" was represented not just by the hits "Open Arms" and "Stone In Love," but by the more obscure title cut -- a show highlight -- and "Mother, Father," which Castronovo sang. During Cain's keyboard solo, he quoted the intro of that album's other massive hit, "Who's Crying Now." A big cheer went up, but he continued on with his showcase; oddly, the band never returned to "Who's Crying Now."

The video wall that served as a stage backdrop was underutilized. Mostly it displayed primary colors, or seemingly random animation. Finally, as the musicians took their final bow and the credits, literally, rolled, vintage photos of the old band materialized onscreen. The smiling faces of Perry and former drummer Steve Smith peered down; if memory serves, neither was acknowledged at all in either of Journey's previous two visits.

The set-closing "Don't Stop Believin,'" one of the most downloaded songs in the history of iTunes, did not receive the ecstatic reception it has on past visits, even with an overabundance of confetti cannons and streamers. The lone encore consisted of "Lovin' Touchin' Squeezin." The show felt shorter than it was.

Pineda is an energetic, agreeable, eager-to-please cheerleader for the band's catalog, a dervish in near constant motion. He scurried to and fro, flipping his microphone, making eye contact with fans down front, and doing what he was hired to do: Sing like Steve Perry. At times, as during the San Francisco sing- and sway-along ballad "Lights," he was a near-perfect mimic. But his phrasing elsewhere, as in "Only the Young" and "Faithfully," was awkward.

Any opinion on latter-day Journey essentially boils down to Pineda. His stepping into the shoes once worn by Perry -- and at least two other post-Perry replacements -- is different than, say, Sammy Hagar replacing David Lee Roth in Van Halen. Hagar came to Van Halen with his own established track record, and his own distinctive voice and writing style. He also helped craft hit singles and albums. Hagar's replacement, Gary Cherone, did not work out so well; his one poorly selling album and poorly attended tour with Van Halen nearly doomed the band.

Pineda's tenure with Journey may not have yet yielded any classic songs, but commercially, it's proven to be enormously successful. The popular vote, at least, is clearly in his favor.

[jrny84]

http://www.nola.com/music/index.ssf/201 ... oothi.html

Journey's appearance at New Orleans' Smoothie King Center on Sunday, March 8 marked something of a milestone. No other band, of any genre, has filled New Orleans' second-largest indoor venue three times in less than six years.

The current version of Journey, featuring Filipino-born lead singer Arnel Pineda, visited what was then still called the New Orleans Arena in the fall of 2009, and again exactly two years later. For many bands, returning for a third visit so soon would result in diminished returns, and ticket sales.

But Journey's deep catalog of 1980s FM radio classics has proven especially durable, especially with a generation of loyal fans that came of age in that decade. These fans continue to turn out to sing along to the hits, even if the person who sings them now isn't the guy that first recorded them.

That was Steve Perry, who has long been retired from rock 'n' roll. Pineda's high tenor is remarkably similar to Perry's, and he has demonstrated himself to be an enthusiastic, likable replacement.

He's backed by three members from Journey's 1980s roster - founding guitarist Neal Schon and bassist Ross Valory, and keyboardist/songwriter Jonathan Cain. Together, they have kept the lucrative Journey franchise alive and on the road.

When Journey tours these days, the band brings along insurance in the form of other bands with familiar catalogs. In New Orleans on Sunday night, those bands included opener Tower of Power followed by the Steve Miller Band.

But Journey was the main attraction. The chance to become reacquainted with "Don't Stop Believin," "Faithfully" and the like is what sold the majority of the tickets for Beaver Productions, the independent promoter that has presented all three of the band's latter-day visits.

Check back for a full review of the show on Monday morning. Meanwhile, enjoy Peter Forest's first-look photos from Sunday night's show.

[jrny84]

I'm surprised Journey doesn't test the waters in places like Detroit and Chicago (where they are still huge) and play the 24,000+ seat Palace of Auburn Hills or 20,000 seat United Center in Chi-town. I think Journey could get pretty close to a sellout at The Palace in Detroit. Heart is giving it a shot this year and playing there with Joan Jett in March. It will be interesting to see the attendance for that show.

[FamilyMan]

An image of Steve Perry appears on the video wall?! Interesting...

[wednesday's child]

An image of Steve Perry appears on the video wall?! Interesting...

You mean this?

Finally, as the musicians took their final bow and the credits, literally, rolled, vintage photos of the old band materialized onscreen. The smiling faces of Perry and former drummer Steve Smith peered down; if memory serves, neither was acknowledged at all in either of Journey's previous two visits.

Nice touch, IMO.

[JourneyHard]

Journey did play the Palace of Auburn Hills in 1998, and sold it out, and they weren't part of any triple bill.

[tater1977]

Steve Miller-Journey concert could get in the way of Wednesday vote on bonds deal

Posted: Mar 11, 2015

By Will Whitson
http://www.wistv.com/story/28397351/ste ... bonds-deal


COLUMBIA, SC (WIS) -
A bonds bill which would borrow millions of dollars could be on borrowed time in the House of Representatives.


... Many Republicans continue to stand against it because any money borrowed would have to be paid back, with interest, by taxpayers.

Democratic Rep. Jerry Govan was against the bill in the first place because South Carolina State University was left off the higher education projects getting money, but he said now politics has made the deal even less appealing.

"Why should I support it? My taxpayers, we pay taxes too down in Orangeburg County," Govan said. "I've been here a long time, and I'm sick and tired of the money being divied up to certain areas of the state, and everybody else has to pay for it."

There is also a possibility, according to Democratic staff, if the bonds package doesn't have enough votes to pass. lawmakers may not bring it up at all.

Despite another full day of debate, it still hasn't been brought up and it may not Wednesday night.

Many lawmakers said they had tickets to the Journey-Steve Miller Band concert in Columbia tonight and wanted to adjourn by 6:30 p.m.

- video at 1.55

[tater1977]

Journey, Steve Miller Band, Tower of Power
Colonial Life Arena
March 11, 2015

http://www.free-times.com/blogs/live-re ... and-031215

The last time I saw Journey, it was 1986. I was a sophomore at the University of South Carolina, and little did we know that it would be the last time any of us would see the band with Steve Perry on lead vocals. He quit after the tour concluded. [online copy corrected]

As anyone who lived through the group's heyday knows, Perry's iconic rock 'n' roll pipes were Journey’s ace in the hole. The band knew it, too, breaking up for a decade following his departure. Today, the group is eight years into its new life with frontman Arnel Pineda, formerly the singer with a Journey tribute band in the Philippines. Wednesday night, Journey returned to Columbia with Pineda in tow, delivering a set that frustrated the crowd even as it fed their nostalgia.

The show was billed as a “San Francisco Fest,” as the opening Tower of Power and the co-headlining Steve Miller Band came up in the same Bay area scene of the late ’60s and early ’70s.
The former brought its famous horn section to kick off the evening with a fun set of classics and extended, funky jams, capping it all by once more posing the eternal question put forward by its biggest hit: “What Is Hip?”

Steve Miller Band was a crowd favorite as much anticipated as Journey, perhaps more so, and the group presented a solid, no-frills selection of familiar hits. Knowing his place as one of rock’s elder statesmen, one who hasn’t had a hit in decades, Miller stuck to the script and reeled off classic after classic. From opener “Jungle Love” to a hefty revision of the ’80s smash “Abracadabra,” the band took the audience through a well-paced program that also included hits such as “The Joker”, “Serenade,” “Swingtown” and “Rock n' Me.”

Miller made several references to the history that led to this show, telling a story about how all three acts came through the famous Fillmore Auditorium in San Francisco (and how the Steve Miller Band holds the record for most appearances at the venue, having played there 121 times) before ripping into “Sha Ba Da Du Ma Ma Ma Ma” from 1973's The Joker. Here, and later on “Fly Like an Eagle,” Miller stretched his considerable blues chops during elongated jams that never outstayed their welcome.

The same can’t be said for Journey. The group’s set was muddied by too many solo detours and an almost lethargic pace — despite the youthful, energizing effect of Pineda’s excitable energy. At one point, during an exceptionally painful and long-winded intro handed down by guitarist Neal Schon, the entire front section of the crowd sat down, evidently tired of waiting to hear the next hit.

It's not like Journey is lacking in that department, and they played all of them — eventually — scattered between the required solo turn from drummer Deen Castronovo, more momentum-killing indulgences from Schon (including a rote “Star-Spangled Banner”) and piano noodling from Jonathan Cain that eventually led into “Open Arms,” one of the band's biggest hits. “Separate Ways,” “Be Good To Yourself” and the obvious, expected closer “Don't Stop Believing” appeared by the end of the night.

Otherwise lacking the spirit to perform its hits the way fans remember them, Journey devolved into self-indulgence. The band could — and should — take a lesson from Steve Miller's unpretentious efficiency, giving the crowd what it wanted and not making them wait.

[tater1977]

Journey, Steve Miller play hit after hit after hit at Jacksonville concert


By Tom Szaroleta Thu, Mar 12, 2015
http://jacksonville.com/entertainment/m ... cksonville

Nothing sums up ‘80s music quite like the power ballad. You know the type — starts with a gentle piano and soaring vocal, moves on to a ripsnorting guitar solo, then closes with the piano and vocal. There were only about a million of ‘em that made the charts in the ‘80s.

And nobody’s power ballads resonated through the decades quite like Journey’s.

The San Francisco band, whose biggest hits are 30 years old, teamed up with the Steve Miller Band, whose biggest hits are pushing 40, and darned near filled Jacksonville Veterans Memorial Arena Thursday night.

Journey’s biggest power ballads were aimed at teenage girls back in the ‘80s, which is why a Journey concert was a perfect date back in the day. Those same teenage girls are no longer teenagers, but just because you’ve been married for 25 years to the guy who took you to a Journey concert in ‘83 doesn’t mean the two of you can’t go see them again, right? They were out in force Thursday, singing at the top of their lungs to “Faithfully” and “Open Arms” and “Who’s Crying Now.”

Steve Perry, the guy who sang all those songs, is long gone, but new frontman Arnel Pineda (the third since Perry) certainly has the sound, right down to the phrasing, even if he’s a lot more energetic onstage than Perry every was. Of course, the drummer sang one song and sounded quite a bit like Perry, so maybe it’s just something they feed these guys.

Journey played 18 songs over the course of an hour and a half, and every one of them had been a hit for the band, so there was no real break throughout the entire set. The hits just keep coming — “Be Good to Yourself,” “Separate Ways,” “Any Way You Want It,” “Stone in Love,” “Lights,” “Wheel in the Sky.”

The most enthusiastic response, of course, came for “Don’t Stop Believin’,” which took on a life of its own decades after its release thanks to “Glee” and “The Sopranos.” It was a huge singalong, complete with confetti cannons that briefly made it snow in Florida.

Journey has always been guitarist Neal Schon’s band, regardless of what his lead singers may think. He can still stroke a solo with the best of them even if, dressed in a bandana, shades, jean jacket, silver chains and high-top shoes, he kind of looked like a parody of a rock star. This is, after all, a guy who was tapped to be in Santana when he was still a teenager, and that was more than 40 years ago, so it’s safe to say he knows his way around a six-string.

Miller also poured out hit after hit in his 80-minute set. Other than one B.B. King song, anyone even passingly familiar with Miller’s career would have recognized nearly everything he played. Put it this way: His “Greatest Hits 1974-78” album sold about a bazillion copies, and he played all of it Thursday night. Every song. From the big hits such as “Fly Like an Eagle,” “Jet Airliner” and “The Joker” to more obscure favorite such as “Wild Mountain Honey” and “Winter Time,” he played the whole thing.

Miller also sprinkled in few non-greatest hits — “Sugar Babe” and “Shu Ba Da Du Ma Ma Ma Ma” were particularly tasty — but for the most part his set was about the hits as much as Journey’s was. Miller started off a little stiff, and the sound was muddled for the first half-hour or so of his set, but he hit his stride with “The Stake” and never looked back. He’s a pro’s pro, and he plays some really gorgeous guitars.

Tower of Power opened the show, making for a rare Bay Area triple-header. The band was a lot funkier than Miller or Journey. It’s hard to go wrong with a dynamic lead singer, a Hammond B3 organ and a five-piece horn section and they made the most of their 40 minutes on stage, hitting their peak with the closing number, “What is Hip.”



Tom Szaroleta: (904) 359-4548

[Gina3008]

Journey, Steve Miller play hit after hit after hit at Jacksonville concert

By Tom Szaroleta Thu, Mar 12, 2015
http://jacksonville.com/entertainment/m ... cksonville

Journey has always been guitarist Neal Schon’s band, regardless of what his lead singers may think. He can still stroke a solo with the best of them even if, dressed in a bandana, shades, jean jacket, silver chains and high-top shoes, he kind of looked like a parody of a rock star. This is, after all, a guy who was tapped to be in Santana when he was still a teenager, and that was more than 40 years ago, so it’s safe to say he knows his way around a six-string.

Tom Szaroleta: (904) 359-4548

No one can disagree that Journey is and always has been Neal Schon's band. Also, Neal's guitar prowess has been and is still definitely a force to be reckoned with. But what gives Tom Szaroleta the right to say what was in or still may be in the mind of any of Journey's lead singers. I have never heard or read anything stating that Perry, Augeri etc. has ever insinuated that Journey wasn't Neal's band. Or that any lead singer thought it was his band, not Neal's. Where did this come from?

[tater1977]

An image of Steve Perry appears on the video wall?! Interesting...

Think this is what the writer was referring to.

CAG0CYPUUAAHD_H.jpg

[Gina3008]

Awesome pic. Thanks, Tater.

[jrny84]

Cruzan Amphitheatre-West Palm Beach, FL

http://www.bocamag.com/blog/2015/03/16/concert-review-journey/

Perhaps no band in rock history has ridden the wave of one song’s repeated and unexpected splash into the cultural mainstream any better than Journey.

As evidenced by the overflow crowd standing as one and in full throat during the band’s performance of it Sunday night at Coral Sky Amphitheater, “Don’t Stop Believin’” has moved beyond a simple audience-pleasing set-closer. It’s officially an anthem for the ages, one that, for different reasons, resonates with everyone from Baby Boomers to generations X, Y and Z.

All of which must drive Rolling Stone absolutely crazy.

This is the same song that, upon its release in 1981, a reviewer for the magazine wrote, “Lord knows how many weary pilgrims have managed to tramp down the memory lane of adolescent lust without the side trip that Journey [makes] to the dank hole of dreck-ola … addressing [its] audience as ‘streetlight people.’” Another Rolling Stone writer once referred to the Bay Area band’s music as “Stepford Wives rock.”

OK. So Journey may never be a critical darling. But what does that matter when you’re the people’s choice? Can the estimated 18,000 in attendance at Coral Sky for Sunday’s show with Steve Miller Band really be that wrong?

For the record, I bring a bit of bias to the discussion. Journey was my first concert, back in the general admission days of 1980, and I've been a fan ever since. My friend and I that night had maneuvered our way next to the stage at Lee County Arena in Fort Myers. Just as guitarist Neal Schon tore into the first notes of “Any Way You Want It” (which Journey opened with at Coral Sky), the third member of our party passed out. Unbeknown to us, he had ingested an illegal substance of some kind—which, combined with the wall of sound, caused him to black out. We dragged him into the bathroom (he survived), and reclaimed our prime position.

Journey killed it that night—and 35 years later, they’re still killing it. Along the way, the band has cycled through its share of players, including, at one point, future “American Idol” judge Randy Jackson on bass. The current incarnation includes three members from the heyday of the band’s commercial success—Schon, keyboardist Jonathan Cain and bassist Ross Valory—as well as drummer Dean Castronovo, who turned in one of the show’s highlights with his take on “Still They Ride.”

But it’s lead singer Arnel Pineda, who, in his own way, has helped to write the most recent chapter in a history that dates back to 1973, when Journey was positioning itself as a jazz fusion group in San Francisco. The diminutive Filipino front man not only does justice to the songs made famous by Steve Perry—one of the more unmistakable rock voices of the last four decades—but he has a story straight out of the Mark Wahlberg movie “Rock Star.” Schon discovered Pineda on YouTube performing Journey songs with a cover band—and hired him in 2007.

On stage, Pineda couldn’t be more different than Perry, who relied more on the strength of his dynamic vocals than his personality. Pineda, on the other hand, is like a human pinball, zigzagging between band members and jumping off platforms. For Schon and Cain, who are in their 60s, the energy must be contagious. Schon, who never met a guitar solo he didn't like, squeezed two of them into an abbreviated set; Cain, sporting some serious porkchop sideburns, turned in a keyboard solo and handled some guitar work at times. Both men brought as much enthusiasm to songs like “Separate Ways” and “Wheel in the Sky” as they did during their stadium-headlining days of the early ’80s.

Pineda brought the house down with a powerful rendition of the 1983 hit “Faithfully,” which preceded the song that everybody had come to hear. What makes the rise of “Don’t Stop Believin’” even more remarkable is that it wasn’t even the biggest hit off the 1981 album “Escape.” That distinction belonged to “Open Arms,” which became Journey’s highest-charting single on Billboard’s Top 100 at No. 2 (“Don’t’ Stop” only reached No. 9.)

But then, more than two decades after its release, a funny thing happened to “Don’t Stop Believin’.” It started showing up—everywhere. The Chicago White Sox adopted it in 2005 during their playoff run. “The Sopranos” made it the soundtrack of the series’ famous final scene. “Rock of Ages” brought it to Broadway. Rock Band brought it to video gamers. The TV show “Glee” performed it multiple times.

Suddenly, “Don’t Stop Believin’” was having a second act like no song in recent history—and maybe ever. It became one of the most downloaded songs since iTunes debuted, selling more than 6 million units in the U.S. alone.

On Sunday, Pineda got the song started, and the crowd took it from there. And so it goes for a band that could have wound up a guilty pleasure—but instead, for many people, has become a national treasure.

Journey Set List

Any Way You Want It

Separate Ways

Neal Schon guitar solo

Stone in Love

Lights

Still They Ride

Jonathan Cain keyboard solo

Who’s Crying Now

Open Arms

Escape

La Do Da

Be Good To Yourself

Neal Schon guitar solo

Wheel in the Sky

Faithfully

Don’t Stop Believin’

Encore

Lovin’ Touchin’ Squeezin’

[tater1977]

Journey and Steve Miller Band Brought the Hits with Skill and Aplomb to Coral Sky in West Palm Beach, March 15

http://www.browardpalmbeach.com/music/j ... 15-6906961
By Abel Folgar

Tuesday, March 17, 2015

There might be an inherent nostalgia in a concert featuring Tower of Power, Journey, and the Steve Miller Band; the heydays are well in the past, the casual fan familiar only with the monster hits. That’s fine — it’d be tough to sell it otherwise — but what gets lost in all of that is the craftsmanship. Sure, the hits were made years ago, but these groups have persisted for a reason.

And that reason is that all three are composed of excellent musicians. Due to an alarming number of accidents on the I-95, I missed Tower of Power’s set, and for that I apologize. Surely the complete experience of the show was to capture all three together, given that they all germinated in the same Bay Area scene.

Steve Miller is 71 years old, and it's a credit to him that he brings tons of energy to his playing, and his vocals, though a bit aged, have the necessary animation and inflection that his songs need. Sometimes it’s easy to forget the sheer amount of hits he's penned that have permeated popular culture.

For a concert showcase like this, the sure bet is that the set list will favor the audience. And Miller did not disappoint in that, even if he remained a fixture at his microphone stand – a forgivable point; the man’s schedule and age should allow for a chair too if he so damned pleases.

One of the strengths of his band is Joseph Wooten on keys, himself from a distinguished musical family that features Roy and Victor Wooten of Béla Fleck and the Flecktones fame. Miller is an excellent guitarist, and his set allowed his talents fly (see what I did there?) while respecting the contributions of his band. “The Joker,” “Fly Like an Eagle,” and “Rock’n Me” fired out in succession, and the crowd responded in earnest before he closed out his part of the night with “Jet Airliner.” That old hippie ethos of “love, peace and happiness… take care of each other” was fitting given the Bay Area reunion feel of the tour.

Coheadliner Journey took the stage shortly after. While its set proved to be generated to please the crowd, I’ve now had the pleasure of interviewing Deen Castronovo and Jonathan Cain and know that the band enjoys catering to its fans while being fully aware that the hit-making days are behind it. This does not detract from the performances, but it was indicative that in comparison to past shows in South Florida, last night’s had a little more heaviness and muscularity while retaining the pop balladry the band is known for.

Singer Arnel Pineda was almost unrecognizable with his stylized Mohawk and excruciatingly hip clothing – if he had thrown a hoodie on, he could’ve been dressing up as Justin Bieber. Regardless, Pineda’s energy and chutzpah as the man hired to replace, and to a certain degree emulate, Steve Perry belied his 47 years of age as he jumped, whirled, and entertained the crowd. While I first thought his vocals were suffering from his onstage antics, it was more than likely a combination of microphone technique and Neal Schon’s aggressive ax-wielding. While Schon is undoubtedly a dynamo, he does tend to be a little loud and louder than the rest of the band.

Drummer Castronovo and bassist Ross Valory helmed the rhythm with precision and a bit of flair, compliments of Castronovo’s powerhouse drumming. His versatility on the kit has been an asset to the band since he joined, and his vocals on “Mother, Father” were spot-on. Keyboardist and rhythm guitarist Jonathan Cain explained to me last week that this tour’s keyboard solo, a live highlight, would be a medley of their ballads and that “if people throw stuff at me, I'll stop. But you know, let's see what happens.” Nothing was thrown, and the Coral Sky crowd was appreciative.

It’s not a Journey show without “Open Arms,” “Lights,” “Faithfully,” and “Don’t Stop Believin’,” which the band performed with aplomb and gusto before closing out with an extended sing-along version of “Lovin’, Touchin’, Squeezin’” to a happy crowd. Hell, there was even a lighter or two flicked on for good measure in a vast sea of cell phones capturing the band.

Do tours like this cash in on past success? Sure. But as long as the bands perform their songs with respect for their fans, it’s OK. Doubly so if they perform them with an energy that indicates they, as musicians, are still excited to play them live. Both bands did just that.

[tater1977]

Delira el público con Journey

Doting public con el Journey == google translated

Por Sara Del Valle Hernández
03/22/2015 |00:14 a.m.

http://www.primerahora.com/entretenimie ... y-1072521/

The Coliseo de Puerto Rico José Miguel Agrelot in San Juan, became a time machine for fans this Saturday appointment at the entertainment center occurred to attend the concert which featured the American rock band Journey.

The audience, composed mostly of adults over 40 years, enjoyed many of the most memorable hits of the band on a journey that lasted about three hours.

The concert started at 8:00 pm with a special appearance by Lou Gramm, former singer of Foreigner. The artist, who opened the public while still settled into their seats, played classics like "Double Vision", "That Was Yesterday", "Juke Box Hero", "Cold as Ice", "Hot Blooded" and "Midnight Blues" (from his first solo album).

Gramm, who was presented with his own band, demonstrated potent voice that earned him many and loud applause, as when he sang "Urgent". Another moment that captured the public's attention was his portrayal of romantic hit "I Want to Know What Love Is".

Journey took the stage at 9:30 pm after a break of half an hour. It started with three major successes began to dance and sing to the public at that time had already filled the call Choliseo in middle mode. Orchestrating "Anyway you want it", "Separate Ways" and "Be Good To Yourself" fans stood to accompany the singer Arnel Pineda.

Pineda, who joined the band in 1997 , was friendly and energy during the day saying a few words in Spanish, dancing and jumping around the stage. Likewise, were members of the group, led by guitarist Neal Schon, only original member of Journey and who made a spectacular solo at the end of "Only The Young".

Another sublime moment was when the group sang one of his biggest hits, "Open Arms", which had the effect that the concert hall was united in one voice to sing. At the end everyone applauded with delirium.

The concert intensity down a bit when the group performed numbers like "Stone in Love", "Mother Father" and "La Raza del Sol" where Schon and bassist Ross Valory made a string duel was much applauded.

The same happened when keyboardist Jonathan Cain made one before the group play "Who's Cryin Now". At that time, those present gave him a round of applause to the musician. Likewise, fans stood to hear the first chords of "Who's Cryin Now".

Latest songs from the concert went to lift all attendees, who sang so loudly "Wheel In The Sky", "Faithfully" and "Do not Stop Believing". The group fired about 11:10 pm with the hit "Lovin ', Touchin', Squeezin '".

On the technical aspect of the concert, it should be noted that the sound was heard diaphanous, although in rare moments Pineda's voice was lost. Lights should be noted that fully met its mandate to give elegance to the presentation.

In the end, the show closed as he opened with a delirious audience who sang and danced as if were a bit younger.

[Final Frontiers]

An image of Steve Perry appears on the video wall?! Interesting...

Think this is what the writer was referring to.

CAG0CYPUUAAHD_H.jpg

This picture is AWESOME!!!! The writer of the article should mention that the most important past members are shown on the video screen. Not just Steve Perry. Gregg Rolie, Aynsley Dunbar, Steve Smith are there too. Randy Jackson didn't make the cut- but you did your thing dawg, you did your thing.

[tater1977]

Santana concert opens Journey - google translation

Teens accompany their parents whose ages are between 40 and 60 years

http://www.milenio.com/hey/musica/Journ ... 51565.html

Sandra Rivera 3/26/2015 Guadalajara

Traffic and distance did not stop what more than ten thousand people reached the VFG arena located in Tlajomulco de Zuniga.

The Journey band concert started at 20:27 with the theme "Any way you want it." "Goodnight Guadalajara. How are you? Are you ready?" Was hailed as the vocalist to Guadalajara.


The audience raised their arms to register on their mobile what happened during the performance of "Open arms". Teens accompany their parents whose ages are between 40 and 60 years.

[tater1977]

Carlos Santana gives his heart to Mexico - google translated

The Jalisco musician did stop in the capital to take their music to more than 15,000 people gathered at the Palacio de los Deportes.
Move Journey to the veterans
http://www.milenio.com/hey/musica/Carlo ... 51058.html
José María Cantú

03.28.2015 2:33 a.m.

Mexico


After visiting several cities tour with Heart Carlos Santana wrapped Sports Palace with last night at 23:00 when he appeared before the 15 000 127 souls awaiting him. When you hear the sound that is created between the drums, maracas and guitar performer, carrying his trademark black hat, ceased boos that were generated by its absence and the focus shifted to admire during "Toussaint L'Overture".

Santana walked from end to end of the stage strumming his instrument that increased his power with the support of the 9 musicians and two singers on stage.

"Good night. What spirit, how strong ... So much heart, so much soul. We invite my brother Gregg Rolie, he and I started this band in 1967, when electricity was created, "were the first words of Santana before the euphoria came with" Black Magic Woman ".

"And as Manna says 'no Mam, dude,'" Carlos said in a pause provoking laughter from the audience.

"We want to devote tonight or mother, Josefina. If it were not for her I would be dead, she saved my life many times; also my sister and my wife. Most of all we hope tonight is memorable, "said then perform" Mary, Mary ".

Part of emotion that projected the musician to press time, through his songs could be attributed to that in addition to reunite with their country of origin, this presentation celebrating the birthday of his mother.

"Happy Birthday, Josefina, divine mother. I love you. Carlos and family, "published in its accompanied by a photograph of his mother in white and black hours before his concert facebook.

Before leaving the stage vibrated with Santana rock Journey. The band at 70 was composed by original members of Santana, of which only remains Neal Schon on guitar, and since 2007 is commanded by the voice of Arnel Pineda, was well received by the audience jumped to their sound over time ½.

"How are you, beautiful, beautiful?" Said vocalist in his effusive out on stage wearing a red jacket.

"Any way you want it", "Separate ways", "Be good to yourself" and "City of Hope" were some of the themes that made up his repertoire, but the total ovation from the audience to the original group of San Francisco occurred Neal Schon when performed his guitar solo.

"Thank you, Mexico City", articulated repeatedly vocalist.

Journey concert ended with "Do not Stop Believin '" and "Lovin', Touchin ', Squeezin'", then a "I love you, Mexico" in voice Arnel disappear from the stage he looked forward the emergence of Carlos.

Today Santana revive his show at the Angel of Independence. The stage, accompanied by two giant screens, is ready to free of charge on jalisciense pleased with his guitar to his fans from 20:00.

The route

Santana tour began on March 7 in Miami and performed 10 concerts in different cities before stepping on Mexican soil.

Heart Tour arrived in Monterrey on March 21, visited Veracruz under the Cumbre Tajin Festival, was also presented in Guadalajara and Mexico City will be his last stop.

The tour will take the band through Europe during June and July.

[tater1977]

I Saw Journey and Santana in Mexico and Learned a Lesson About Life

We Saw This

By Luke O'Neil Mar 29 2015

http://noisey.vice.com/blog/journey-santana-mexico

They say that an addict is never going to be able to begin the journey to recovery until they've hit rock bottom. For me, that moment came in the bowels of a rodeo and musical stadium in Guadalajara last night. I'd snuck off from the group I'd been sitting with and lurked into an empty service corridor of the venue to get a hit of the international traveler's crack: an electrical socket and a passable phone signal. Carlos Santana, favorite son of Jalisco, was about to take the stage, and I could not have cared less. I needed this. I'd been wrestling with spotty wi-fi for days, and I didn't have much to talk about with the people I'd met, particularly because I speak Spanish like a brutish toddler. Disinterested security guards considered me like a circus curiosity, laying there on the cold concrete with my phone balanced precariously on an outlet. Spiders crawled all over my prone body, although I may have been imagining those. I felt the surge rush through my phone. I was getting my medicine.

But then, after a while, something strange happened. I managed to have fun like a normal, functioning human being. It was supremely fucked up.

None of which is to say I don't have the appropriate amount of musical respect for Carlos Santana, for whom this concert served as a sort of annual home-coming, not to mention Journey – fucking Journey!– who co-headlined the bill. But the thing is, after a certain number of thousand concerts in a man's life, you sort of get the idea, and a show at a 15,000-seating arena like this is defininitely not something I'd ever go to in my normal life, due to being a veteran cool guy who is better than everyone else; definitely not without the crutch of a Twitter feed to crack jokes to in order to let everyone know how above it all I am, anyway. But here I was, trapped, phone prospects grim, and no cash on hand—they didn't take credit cards here—to even drink my way to oblivion. Wait, maybe I have two addictions. At least you could smoke inside, god bless this beautiful country. Three addictions I guess.

Journey, though, as they say. I defy anyone, no matter how far your musical head is up your own ass, to try to maintain your cool when those unfrozen prog-cavemen are sweating through their dad jeans. The band, now fronted by the much younger Fillipino whirlwind and vocal powerhouse Arnel Pineda (who was famously asked to join the band after Neal Schon saw videos of him singing covers online) has an unfairly stacked catalogue of hits, more hits than you probably even remember, spread out over 14 albums since 1975. It only took about five seconds of “Anyway Way You Want It” for the first tremors of human emotion to ripple their way across my stone grill. What is this feeling? How do you humans call it? Joy? By the time they'd sprinted through “Open Arms”, “Faithfully”,” Who's Crying Now”, and “Wheel in the Sky,” I'd almost forgotten what I was so grumpy about in the first place. Almost. I think I finally understand what normcore is.

While most people know Journey for their Steve Perry years, the band has long had its roots in jizz-sock jazzy-prog noodlings, and they took advantage of the opportunity to make that very clear throughout. This is why it's crucial to never upset the delicate band hierarchy ecosystem—once you lose the important checks and balances provided by a frontman who's on equal footing with the guitarist, it can lead to all sorts of wankery: a half dozen guitar solos from Schon (who I kept thining I recognized as the gross-ass dad in some babysitter porn I'd watched recently), a lengthy—lengthy —piano solo from Jonathan Cain, the damn drummer gets to take lead on a song (although Deen Castronovo, whose kit looks like the Mars rover, was in fine, Perry-like voice). Musicianship is like fucking—it's all well and good to be able to do it for an hour, but most people are just interested in getting the point, which is finishing it and going back to tweeting.

Musicianship is, of course, the word that defines Santana. And after being bludgeoned in the face by Journey's blues-hammer for about 30 minutes longer than one might've hoped, the idea of a dozen plus musicians on stage—three drummers, horns, multiple singers—sent me retreating into the embrace of my phone, where the world is safe and good and you don't have to make conversations with people that last longer than 140 characters. I texted a friend to explain my predicament, and she told me I was acting pathetic. "Get back in there and enjoy yourself, what the fuck is wrong with you?" I felt like a child being told to go to my room, only it's a room where a legend of rock and roll was about to perform with his supremely talented band and run through a half century of indelible music. NO ONE UNDERSTANDS ME.

But still, the hits came fast and furious. "Black Magic Woman" segued right into "Oye como va", and, well, you can probably imagine how excited a Mexican audience was to be at a Santana concert. It was infectious, even if a lot of the material did sound like it was threatening to transition right into the Law & Order theme song at any minute. Each band member got their own chance to solo, with drummer Cindy Blackman-Santana (I think), best known for her work with Lenny Kravitz, getting a particularly rapturous, and well-deserved ovation for hers, which lasted longer than a lot of entire punk sets I've seen. Heartbreakingly, Rob Thomas did not materialize out of the ether to perform “Smooth.” I will never get over that.

Schon, who actually began Journey with former keyboardist Gregg Rolie after they'd played in Santana together back in the early Seventies, joined the band on stage, trading solos back and forth with Carlos. They were like two old ,veteran athletes, effortleslly tossing the ball back and forth with no signs of aging—aside from, you know, all the literal signs of aging.

Through it all Santana was cool and humble. I'd had a chance to meet him before the show, in theory to talk about the tequila brand Casa Noble that he's got a part stake in, and whose distillery I'd visited earlier that day in the town of Tequila, not far from here he grew up. "You must hate this," I said to him, as he smiled gamely for a photo with a group of guests being herded through the staging area out back. “I actually don't mind it at all," he said. He was completely tranquillo. I could learn a lesson from that. In fact, I think I'l spend the rest of the day not staring at my phone the entire time in his honor, and maybe just enjoy the moment—just as soon as I check in to see what the reactions to this piece are.

Luke O'Neil is keeping it tranquillo on Twitter - @lukeoneil47