Kevin Shirley on TBF/Journey

[DK23]

The Big Journey Reunion That Kind of Happened, And What Might Have Been
By Bryan Reesman • 10/21/16 3:34pm

http://observer.com/2016/10/the-big-journey-reunion-that-kind-of-happened-and-what-might-have-been/

[FamilyMan]

Last graph is the most interesting to me... How their view of the record industry is dated.

[STORY_TELLER]

Thanks for the link. Tater posted the article in an earlier thread.

I always felt Perry sounded inexplicably "raw" on some tracks but not others. Caveman's process of making them perform the songs over and over and over again explains why.

All the details regarding the relationship between Neal and Jon confirms what I've been thinking for a long time: These guys lock their creative horns a lot.

Journey's magic happens when they find that sweet spot of compromise. When their tug of war is in balance. Unfortunately, I think it's mostly off the mark without Perry's creativity in the mix. The vocal melodies just aren't as strong. Perry had a really unique take on that stuff.

Don't get me wrong: They still make strong, solid, music, but without Perry's "it" factor choices, it doesn't reach the creative levels they achieved with him.

Shirley's comments regarding Perry's tendency to second guess himself makes sense. Took him 3 years to complete FTLOSM. Have to believe he's having the same issue on whatever he's working on now. It's a shame because he comes up with the most amazing spontaneous choices when he's on stage. Brilliant stuff, most even better than the studio version. Everyone has their creative process, but It's a shame he can't just relax, have fun with it in the studio the way he does live. Then again, maybe that's why Shirley pushed them all to do so many live takes on TBF...

[FamilyMan]

Thanks for the link. Tater posted the article in an earlier thread.

I always felt Perry sounded inexplicably "raw" on some tracks but not others. Caveman's process of making them perform the songs over and over and over again explains why.

All the details regarding the relationship between Neal and Jon confirms what I've been thinking for a long time: These guys lock their creative horns a lot.

Journey's magic happens when they find that sweet spot of compromise. When their tug of war is in balance. Unfortunately, I think it's mostly off the mark without Perry's creativity in the mix. The vocal melodies just aren't as strong. Perry had a really unique take on that stuff.

Don't get me wrong: They still make strong, solid, music, but without Perry's "it" factor choices, it doesn't reach the creative levels they achieved with him.



Shirley's comments regarding Perry's tendency to second guess himself makes sense. Took him 3 years to complete FTLOSM. Have to believe he's having the same issue on whatever he's working on now. It's a shame because he comes up with the most amazing spontaneous choices when he's on stage. Brilliant stuff, most even better than the studio version. Everyone has their creative process, but It's a shame he can't just relax, have fun with it in the studio the way he does live. Then again, maybe that's why Shirley pushed them all to do so many live takes on TBF...

I agree with you, Story Teller. The track I may love the most from TBF is "When I Think Of You," and it's by far the least polished and most raw of Perry's vocals on the record. And you're spot on about the melodic misfires the band seems to make on tracks since his departure. That - I think - even more than the poor sales, is the reason Jon doesn't want to make more albums. I don't think he enjoys the writing process without Perry there.

[STORY_TELLER]

I agree with you, Story Teller. The track I may love the most from TBF is "When I Think Of You," and it's by far the least polished and most raw of Perry's vocals on the record. And you're spot on about the melodic misfires the band seems to make on tracks since his departure. That - I think - even more than the poor sales, is the reason Jon doesn't want to make more albums. I don't think he enjoys the writing process without Perry there.

I fell in instant "like" the first time I heard "When I Think Of You". I fell in LOVE with it when I heard what it was about: A love letter to Perry's mother (may she rest in peace). Very emotional track. Hits home all the more when you realize its referencing such a huge loss for Steve.

We may be thinking of the term raw from different perspectives. I was referring to Perry sounding like his vocal chords were being over worked. From that perspective, Castles Burning and Can't Tame The Lion sounded very raw to me, whereas When I Think Of You, sounds more clean (compared to the other TBF tracks). Makes me wonder about the order in which they were recorded. Did they lay down Message of Love and When I Think Of You early in the recording process? Was Castles one of the last tracks to be recorded, etc., etc.?

I think the sales are a big factor for Jon (work and expense vs. reward), but I agree that the creative differences between Neal and Jon are a huge factor as well. Jon had a musical ally in Perry because they were very like minded about the musical direction. Now it's Jon and Neal going head to head with pretty different directions in mind. Bad enough there isn't much reward for making new music, but when it becomes a chore that leads to fighting during the process? Yeah, that can extinguish the enthusiasm...

Cheers
ST