Perry's voice

by **Toph** » Fri Sep 18, 2009 1:49 am

If Steve Perry's voice is really shot - what did it in? Was he a smoker? Maybe a pot smoker? Did he not rest it enough on tour?

Because you think about Dennis DeYoung, who sang as much and toured as much as Perry, and his voice is as good (or even better) than it was in Styx's heyday. But he was only singing 2/3 of the songs - Tommy Shaw was there to sing at least 6-7 songs a night. Steve didn't have that back up.

by **Playitloudforme** » Fri Sep 18, 2009 3:16 am

Toph wrote:If Steve Perry's voice is really shot - what did it in? Was he a smoker? Maybe a pot smoker? Did he not rest it enough on tour?

Because you think about Dennis DeYoung, who sang as much and toured as much as Perry, and his voice is as good (or even better) than it was in Styx's heyday. But he was only singing 2/3 of the songs - Tommy Shaw was there to sing at least 6-7 songs a night. Steve didn't have that back up.

Uh..ya might wanna read up a bit. Perry's voice is far from "shot". All reports are that it's in supreme shape as heard on recent recordings of a CD that is rumored to be released in 2010.

by **Rockindeano** » Fri Sep 18, 2009 4:15 am

Toph wrote:If Steve Perry's voice is really shot - what did it in? Was he a smoker? Maybe a pot smoker? Did he not rest it enough on tour?

Because you think about Dennis DeYoung, who sang as much and toured as much as Perry, and his voice is as good (or even better) than it was in Styx's heyday. But he was only singing 2/3 of the songs - Tommy Shaw was there to sing at least 6-7 songs a night. Steve didn't have that back up.

Listen up Turd Brain,

Please don't run in here insinuating Perry was hitting the bong or snorting lines. He was a rock star, however, the guy took great care of his voice. He sang arguably the most difficult catalog in music history, so of course it took it's toll, but there is so very much out there that you nor I have zero idea of what affected the man to not perform or to just stay out of the industry, that to not comment at all is a much classier move than to guess what vices he may or may not have done.

by **strangegrey** » Fri Sep 18, 2009 4:22 am

Dean's right on, with this!

Not only that...but I firmly believe that the propensity for a voice to break down is greater with your gravely tenors, i.e. perry, coverdale, tyler, etc...

Dennis Deyoung is a voice that verges on operatic low tenor/upper baritone....but sung with a cleaner timbre. You don't hear about guys like this having massive vocal troubles....but 1 out of every 2 or 3 upper tenors with gritty timbres have severe vocal issues.

Then, when you combine the fact that the catalog is arguably the most difficult to sing....well, perry's chances weren't looking too good from the mid-80s onwards.

by **bluejeangirl76** » Fri Sep 18, 2009 5:28 am

Rockindeano wrote:
Toph wrote:If Steve Perry's voice is really shot - what did it in? Was he a smoker? Maybe a pot smoker? Did he not rest it enough on tour?

Because you think about Dennis DeYoung, who sang as much and toured as much as Perry, and his voice is as good (or even better) than it was in Styx's heyday. But he was only singing 2/3 of the songs - Tommy Shaw was there to sing at least 6-7 songs a night. Steve didn't have that back up.

Listen up Turd Brain,

Please don't run in here insinuating Perry was hitting the bong

Of course he wasn't!

He was merely interested in Glaucoma research. :lol:

http://norml.org/

by **Saint John** » Fri Sep 18, 2009 8:22 am

Perry's voice is the greatest of all-time and I'm actually grateful that it changed. What makes the guy impossible to replicate is the fact that he had several voices. There were the early years...yuck. Maybe two or three songs I like, but not one single album prior to Escape interests me in totality.

Then came the Escape album and there was a hint of rasp. He had an absolutely angelic voice with just a touch of edge to it. Perhaps the pinnacle of his voice. At the very least, the middle ground between what his voice was and what it would come to be.

Frontiers and Raised On Radio ushered in a moodier, darker Steve Perry. However, the albums couldn't have been different. Frontiers had some in your face rockers, and ROR was mostly Journey with a touch of R&B. Anyway, vocally, there was a grit to his voice. A lot of resonance, but he still had the magic touch and could combine raw power (Frontiers) with the ability to carress and lay down sultry lyrics (ROR).

TBF gets an incomplete. Nothing live to go by so I can't comment.

In short, the guy's voice evolved, or whatever you want to call it, but it was a blessing in that it always gave the fans something to look forward to. Journey's albums never sounded the same post-Escape because Perry never did. I think that was an awfully incredible blessing and curse. There's not a fucking singer that has graced this planet that could hang with Perry from 1980-1983.

PS As far as what caused his voice to go I would speculate that it was a combination of an insane touring schedule, booze and age. I'm sure he can still sing, but I highly doubt it would be anything like 1986 or prior. He could sound like Darth fucking Vader and I'd pay at least $2,000 to see him on stage one more time with Schon, Cain, Smith/Castronovo and Valory.

by **donnaplease** » Fri Sep 18, 2009 8:36 am

Saint John wrote:Perry's voice is the greatest of all-time and I'm actually grateful that it changed. What makes the guy impossible to replicate is the fact that he had several voices. There were the early years...yuck. Maybe two or three songs I like, but not one single album prior to Escape interests me in totality.

Then came the Escape album and there was a hint of rasp. He had an absolutely angelic voice with just a touch of edge to it. Perhaps the pinnacle of his voice. At the very least, the middle ground between what his voice was and what it would come to be.

Frontiers and Raised On Radio ushered in a moodier, darker Steve Perry. However, the albums couldn't have been different. Frontiers had some in your face rockers, and ROR was mostly Journey with a touch of R&B. Anyway, vocally, there was a grit to his voice. A lot of resonance, but he still had the magic touch and could combine raw power (Frontiers) with the ability to carress and lay down sultry lyrics (ROR).

TBF gets an incomplete. Nothing live to go by so I can't comment.

In short, the guy's voice evolved, or whatever you want to call it, but it was a blessing in that it always gave the fans something to look forward to. Journey's albums never sounded the same post-Escape because Perry never did. I think that was an awfully incredible blessing and curse. There's not a fucking singer that has graced this planet that could hang with Perry from 1980-1983.

PS As far as what caused his voice to go I would speculate that it was a combination of an insane touring schedule, booze and age. I'm sure he can still sing, but I highly doubt it would be anything like 1986 or prior. He could sound like Darth fucking Vader and I'd pay at least $2,000 to see him on stage one more time with Schon, Cain, Smith/Castronovo and Valory.

Now that's the St. John that I know and love!!! :wink:

by *Laura » Fri Sep 18, 2009 8:58 am

Saint John wrote:Perry's voice is the greatest of all-time and I'm actually grateful that it changed. What makes the guy impossible to replicate is the fact that he had several voices. There were the early years...yuck. Maybe two or three songs I like, but not one single album prior to Escape interests me in totality.

Then came the Escape album and there was a hint of rasp. He had an absolutely angelic voice with just a touch of edge to it. Perhaps the pinnacle of his voice. At the very least, the middle ground between what his voice was and what it would come to be.

Frontiers and Raised On Radio ushered in a moodier, darker Steve Perry. However, the albums couldn't have been different. Frontiers had some in your face rockers, and ROR was mostly Journey with a touch of R&B. Anyway, vocally, there was a grit to his voice. A lot of resonance, but he still had the magic touch and could combine raw power (Frontiers) with the ability to carress and lay down sultry lyrics (ROR).

TBF gets an incomplete. Nothing live to go by so I can't comment.

In short, the guy's voice evolved, or whatever you want to call it, but it was a blessing in that it always gave the fans something to look forward to. Journey's albums never sounded the same post-Escape because Perry never did. I think that was an awfully incredible blessing and curse. There's not a fucking singer that has graced this planet that could hang with Perry from 1980-1983.

PS As far as what caused his voice to go I would speculate that it was a combination of an insane touring schedule, booze and age. I'm sure he can still sing, but I highly doubt it would be anything like 1986 or prior. He could sound like Darth fucking Vader and I'd pay at least $2,000 to see him on stage one more time with Schon, Cain, Smith/Castronovo and Valory.

Dear Dan,

Congratulations on finally completing the Twelve Steps.

Sincerely,

Perry & Barry

:lol:

p.s. Well thought out post. Nice.

by **Red13JoePa** » Fri Sep 18, 2009 10:37 am

For a guy who was "losin it" (and I DO acknowledged the advanced rasp, even from ROR when it first REALLY showed up. And RASP IS NOT A NEGATIVE FOR HIM)...he sounded mighty appealing in the FTLOSM/ROR era.
Absolute pinnacle of perfection Escape, Frontiers just a 1/2 notch below (but preferable to me), ROR a notch or 1/2 notch below that and 94-96 a relatively different voice but I loved it even if I didn;t love all the songs.

by **WalrusOct9** » Fri Sep 18, 2009 11:21 am

His voice isn't "shot" as much as "he's 60 and can't sing the way everyone expects him to."

Problem with Perry is that unlike a lot of singers, he hasn't aged onstage....other than the diehards who saw the FTLOSM tour, no one's seen or heard Perry sing since the mid-80's. You look at guys like Elton John or Paul McCartney who also can't sing like they used to...everyone knows it, but it's not a shock since we've watched and listened to their voices change over the years, and we're used to the ways they have compensated for it.

For whatever reason, Perry never did this, and so whatever he does sound like now has to sound like Steve Perry in the 80's for it to really succeed and people to be like "holy shit, that's Steve fucking Perry." It's not a good place to be in...he doesn't have the luxury of doing something like Robert Plant or Johnny Cash and using their aged voices in a new style to great success, for Perry it's all or nothing, vocally. I hope it works out for him, but I'm not holding my breath.

by **journey361** » Fri Sep 18, 2009 12:03 pm

All the above opinions are correct but it really boils down to ones taste to music or in this case, a music legacy. But my 2 cents is different than everyones above. I'm one who thinks he was at the untouchable status (GODLIKE) before he ever stepped on stage with Journey including 2 years after joining the band.
His vocals were almost weird or strange and he toyed with his tools-of-trade during that period of time.
I saw him live twice when he was just 6 months into the Journey gig and he was shy and insecure from a vocal and professional standpoint. At that time, what he didn't think he had is probably what made gave him his unmatched legacy and legend he is today. His voice was flowing with little or no strain which included him reaching his unreal-sounding endtop and his falsetto was like i stated earlier, really weird.
When Infinity came out, it was pretty much what i saw live, and to this day, no one, i repeat no one could manage sustaining such a god given tenor sound he had for such a short time.
That now brings me to your prefered periods of time and although he was great and outstanding in so many vocal areas, he either changed his technique or just moved forward as his vocals had a sure-fire direction with the teaming of Journey and beyond. Perry was a master at vocal change which like stated from you all, is one of a kind.
I frankly cannot think of another artist who could shoot the 3, take the ball to the basket, and shut down the other teams best offensive player as Perry did over his run to stardom. I guess thats why his nickname is the voice.

by **Enigma869** » Fri Sep 18, 2009 12:14 pm

WalrusOct9 wrote: "he's 60 and can't sing the way everyone expects him to."

Ding, ding, ding! We have a winner. Perry is over 60 years old, and he isn't re-capturing 1983 any more than you and I are. The dude was a vocal GOD and his body of work speaks for itself. The speculation about whether or not Perry can still sing...what he might sound like...should he reunite with that douchebag Schon, etc. has never mattered one iota to me. He will always be THE REASON that any of us ever came to know the name "Journey" and for that, he should always be respected!

by **Ehwmatt** » Fri Sep 18, 2009 12:34 pm

Walrus you make a great point about fans of guys like Elton and Paul hearing the voice changes gradually over the years - never thought of it that way.

As for why some people break down and some people hold strong like DDY, I think part of it is just plain old physiological luck. Just like there's some athletes who can't seem to do a pre-practice warm-up without incurring two injuries while some guys who get banged around always seem to stay healthy, I think some guys voices just naturally hold up or break down partly through physiological luck/misfortune. Yeah, taking care of your body, warming up properly and all that stuff plays a factor as it does in athletics, but sometimes, it's just the way your body is.

That's not EVERYTHING, but I think it certainly plays a factor.

by **Toph** » Fri Sep 18, 2009 1:29 pm

bluejeangirl76 wrote:
Rockindeano wrote:
Toph wrote:If Steve Perry's voice is really shot - what did it in? Was he a smoker? Maybe a pot smoker? Did he not rest it enough on tour?

Because you think about Dennis DeYoung, who sang as much and toured as much as Perry, and his voice is as good (or even better) than it was in Styx's heyday. But he was only singing 2/3 of the songs - Tommy Shaw was there to sing at least 6-7 songs a night. Steve didn't have that back up.

Listen up Turd Brain,

Please don't run in here insinuating Perry was hitting the bong

Of course he wasn't!

He was merely interested in Glaucoma research.

http://norml.org/

LOL!! Yeah, Perry never smoked weed...yeah right....His music company was only called WeedHigh Music...

by **texafana** » Fri Sep 18, 2009 5:56 pm

"Dennis Deyoung is a voice that verges on operatic low tenor/upper baritone....but sung with a cleaner timbre. You don't hear about guys like this having massive vocal troubles....but 1 out of every 2 or 3 upper tenors with gritty timbres have severe vocal issues. "

And the #1 reason for their voice going out and getting node damage is lack of vocal chord lubrication. Seriously... this style of singing, a bit "airy" if you will, puts tremendous amounts of air over the vocal chords causing them to dry out quicker. The solution is to constantly sip (luke warm) water, during the performance and a gallon of water a day if you're performing. You can only lubricate the vocal chords through internal hydration, that's what the gallon of water is for. The sips during performance just help smooth out (moisten) the throat due to smoke, pollution, etc, etc, during the show.

That David Archfkinletta kid from American Idol is the POSTER BOY for this situation. Remember all the lip licking, tounging going on during his performances? Trying like hell desperately to lubricate his quickly drying vocal chords due to improper singing/breathing/preperation technique. Gawd he almost make me puke watching him sing. I seriously doubt he could handle more than 20-30min shows unless he's finally getting some proper training.

by **Red13JoePa** » Fri Sep 18, 2009 11:26 pm

Enigma869 wrote:
WalrusOct9 wrote: "he's 60 and can't sing the way everyone expects him to."

Ding, ding, ding! We have a winner. Perry is over 60 years old, and he isn't re-capturing 1983 any more than you and I are.

Yep that's half the problem w/ this...most of the loons flat out stone cold GUARANTEE he will sound like 83, and those that don't SAY it still think it.
Like Billy Wagner said when turning down Philly to go to Boston, "No way, they (philly) expect too much."

by **swataz** » Sat Sep 19, 2009 2:17 am

God I hope this supposed CD comes out soon...all hell is gonna break loose in here waiting. lol

Cmon, someone leak a demo! Someone, anyone!

by **journeyrock** » Sat Sep 19, 2009 2:18 am

swataz wrote:God I hope this supposed CD comes out soon...all hell is gonna break loose in here waiting. lol

Cmon, someone leak a demo! Someone, anyone!

by **portland** » Sat Sep 19, 2009 2:20 am

swataz wrote:God I hope this supposed CD comes out soon...all hell is gonna break loose in here waiting. lol

Cmon, someone leak a demo! Someone, anyone!

We have a better chance of snow in LA....than we do a leak from the Perry camp!! So we sit and wait!!!!

by **journeyrock** » Sat Sep 19, 2009 2:57 am

portland wrote:
swataz wrote:God I hope this supposed CD comes out soon...all hell is gonna break loose in here waiting. lol

Cmon, someone leak a demo! Someone, anyone!

We have a better chance of snow in LA....than we do a leak from the Perry camp!! So we sit and wait!!!!

A-N-T-I-C-I-P-A-T-I-O-N!!!!

That's half the fun!!!! :shock:

by **portland** » Sat Sep 19, 2009 3:00 am

journeyrock wrote:
portland wrote:
swataz wrote:God I hope this supposed CD comes out soon...all hell is gonna break loose in here waiting. lol

Cmon, someone leak a demo! Someone, anyone!

We have a better chance of snow in LA....than we do a leak from the Perry camp!! So we sit and wait!!!!
A-N-T-I-C-I-P-A-T-I-O-N!!!!

That's half the fun!!!!

Than I must be having a REALLY good time these days :wink:

by **journeyrock** » Sat Sep 19, 2009 3:08 am

portland wrote:
journeyrock wrote:
portland wrote:
swataz wrote:God I hope this supposed CD comes out soon...all hell is gonna break loose in here waiting. lol

Cmon, someone leak a demo! Someone, anyone!

We have a better chance of snow in LA....than we do a leak from the Perry camp!! So we sit and wait!!!!
A-N-T-I-C-I-P-A-T-I-O-N!!!!

That's half the fun!!!!

Than I must be having a REALLY good time these days

I am told that I am on a daily basis. Sometimes I fail to see the humor!!!! Until I enter MR land.

by *Laura » Sat Sep 19, 2009 3:27 am

Red13JoePa wrote:most of the loons flat out stone cold GUARANTEE he will sound like 83, and those that don't SAY it still think it.

Seriously, where did you see that being said? On here? Or you just say that that's what they think?
I don't know...Expecting SP to be his 83-86 self IS delusional, no matter how big of a "loon" anyone is.

Personally, I expect him to sing like he did in 2003-2004 on Jeff Golub's song. Maybe a tad better if he polished his voice a bit for a comeback.
In 2005, on Pack's album he sounded just as great. A soulful, jazzy voice that fits him perfectly.
He should know that no one sane expects him to shatter glass anymore.

by **Red13JoePa** » Sat Sep 19, 2009 3:55 am

*Laura wrote:He should know that no one sane expects him to shatter glass anymore.

WELP!!! that rules his fans out then so the pressure's off!

by **annpea** » Sat Sep 19, 2009 7:09 am

Red13JoePa wrote:
*Laura wrote:He should know that no one sane expects him to shatter glass anymore.

WELP!!! that rules his fans out then so the pressure's off!

I only do what the little voices tell me to. :lol:

by **Saint John** » Sat Sep 19, 2009 7:23 am

WalrusOct9 wrote:Problem with Perry is that unlike a lot of singers, he hasn't aged onstage

I've mentioned this more than a handful of times in the past. It's kind of like seeing the high school homecoming queen 20 years later. She's gained 25 pounds, looks a bit aged, but while being pretty darn good looking for her age, she still isn't what you remember her as. Had Perry's voice aged on stage, it went have gone relatively unnoticed. Shit, listen to his first album and then listen to Frontiers. It sounds like 2 different people! But no one cared because, like Walrus said, he aged on stage.

Personally, I don't give a shit. If it took me swallowing sand and shitting glass to see him perform with Journey again I'd be a beach eating motherfucker. But, sadly, he doesn't seem to be able to cross some mental and/or physical barrier to make that happen. I'm of the opinion that Journey will always have an unfinished legacy until he returns one last time and closes out a show one last time. Such incredibly supportive fans and such a fantastic voice and co-contributor to a genre of music deserve to have a proper farewell. Steve Perry deserves a proper farewell and so do Journey fans. Sorry, folks, but TBF wasn't that ending. But, hey, not all fairy tales have happy endings. :wink:

by **cyndy!** » Sat Sep 19, 2009 7:32 am

annpea wrote:I only do what the little voices tell me to.

some people claim that i do only what "the voice" tells me to do. :wink:

by **tammy** » Sat Sep 19, 2009 1:00 pm

portland wrote:
swataz wrote:God I hope this supposed CD comes out soon...all hell is gonna break loose in here waiting. lol

Cmon, someone leak a demo! Someone, anyone!

We have a better chance of snow in LA....than we do a leak from the Perry camp!! So we sit and wait!!!!

Once it did snow it L.A.! It was so bizarre and cool...I was driving in a night time winterland of snowy palm trees.

by **tammy** » Sat Sep 19, 2009 1:01 pm

cyndy! wrote:
annpea wrote:I only do what the little voices tell me to.

some people claim that i do only what "the voice" tells me to do.

by **Jeremey** » Sat Sep 19, 2009 6:34 pm

Cyndy, did you by any chance steal Trent's jacket? How can I get one like that!?

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