A Letter to Deano

[Matthew]

aww that was goooey sweeeeeeet------

[Its Me]

great post Mandi and Deano!!!!!

And yes, the guys are kicking ass now!!!! Lets go Jeff, keep on rockin!!!

[Dyzzi]

Wowwww Mandi,
That was quite a touching letter to Deano, and Deano that was also a touching post coming from you for a change, fairplay to you both.

[Enigma869]

Mandi,

Thanks for posting this.

Look, I am just a guy, a fan, a fan with passion, and I just felt like my heart was broken (not to be taken as gay, mind you)...Anyway, you know, I hated doing this, and the way it went down, but Goddammit, someone had to do it, and who better than me. I can take heat, take abuse and give it right back ten fold.

I want to move on, as does the band. I know these guys want to move on. They know me and know what I did. They can't say anything, and I can't blame them, but it had to happen. If this had not happened, where we would be now? Seriously, where would we be as fans right at this moment? I know Jeff would be in some slinky bar singing his black ass off to Boogie Knights, and no Jeff, that is NOT a slam. I know Neal, Ross, Castro and The Frig would be up on stage NOT having a good time, and going through the motions, like last year. I wish I could do it all again, because I would do it differently. I would not be so abusive, but then again, I had a lot of shit flung my way too.

Journey are my buddies. All of them even, Friga. They know I would steal your coal to keep them warm and then come back and steal your stove. Neal Schon. Is the guy an angel? hell no. Do Ilove that guy? Fuckin A I do. jeff Scott Soto is the shit, and Ross is the all knowing Modern Marvel king. I LOVE these guys. I only did enough to affect change. I NEVER was going to go far enough to injure the band. I told the members this. They believe me.

Now, the subject at hand. This will be the last time I address this.

Steve Augeri, Dude, I do NOT hate you. In fact, I like you, I was/am just kinda sortof pissed at you. You had an impossible job filling in for that Perry guy, but you know what, you did that fine. Hell, I thought you were great. It's just this that bothered me Steve:

Man to man.

Steve, I know it was getting tough, but you had to know it wasn't right to want to go on doing this. I am not even saying you lipped..I am just saying that maybe you should have stepped down with grace and dignity. You did a Helluva job for 5 years. I, personally, just thought that the fact that you wanted to keep going along as such....well that is the thing that pissed me off the most. I don't blame you soley, no. Is Neal, Friga and others to blame? Maybe, However, I can't blame Neal for knowing or NOT knowing how much was being "PA'd" nightly. Neal has so much shit going through his mind....He has selective rememberance going on all the time. I DO blame you for not being the man who everyone says is "stand up." Steve, you should have stepped down, and I think you agree with me that it would have been a smart move.

I would love to talk to you Steve, to smooth over each and every bump;

I, as a Journey fan, want to move on. The band is pretty fucking good right now. Better than last year? Hell, Stevie Wonder could see the difference.

I stand by what I did, but I also say, "let's stop the abuse, the fighting, the ridicule" and recognize unity, if that's possible.

I might be the only person who hates "gay" posts more than Deano (ask the clan over at BT who I fought with for 6 years!). That said, I was thrilled to see this post from you, Dean. I've been telling everyone since I joined this site that behind your "schtick" , there is substance and a guy who loves Journey just like the rest of us! Thanks for proving me to be correct!

John from Boston

[The_Noble_Cause]

Among many things, this thread completely omits the fact that Augeri mentioned taking a year off in '05 interviews.
The pretext was for family time, but more than likely he knew his pipes had been run thru a cuisinart and he needed rest - immediately.

So why wouldn't the band provide him the down-time he needed?

Why did Azoff Mngt. ceaselessly book more and more tours (UK, Def Leppard) when they knew their singer was by then wholly and utterlly vocally-immolated?

And if it were an attempt to circuitously force Steve out, why not actually be men and fire him, u guttersnipe cowards.

[The_Noble_Cause]

I could tell something was wrong with the band. They were mechanical, unsmiling, lacked energy and it was easy for a die-hard fan to see that something was very wrong.

Funny.
I think u just described the duration of the 30th anniversary tour.

The on-stage chemistry has long been wanning since 2005 and beyond.

[ArnelRox]

What a great thread. I feel like some healing is starting among Journey fans. Oh boy is it ever time? There's been such a huge rift for 8 yrs culminating in what happened w/Tapegate. I've said it before. I'll say it again. I hate seeing Journey fans fight about this stuff to the point of absolute hatred. We all started liking Journey for the music. Sure maybe we liked Perry's voice. But if he hadn't been singing Journey's great songs we might not have ever heard him &/or liked his voice so much. I never liked Augeri's voice a lot. But that's my preference. He stepped into a rotten job & for several yrs he kept doing it. Yeah maybe someone else could have done it back then. They could have done it worse. They could have done it better. We'll never know b/c we can't turn back time. The band chose him. They must have had their reasons at the time. Maybe b/c he was such a nice guy & after dealing w/Perry telling them what to do, they wanted someone who just did what they wanted. They wanted to go on. Perry didn't want to. Maybe b/c he was sick or maybe b/c he was sick of touring. We'll never really know that either. He sure toured a lot in his day & sang his heart out. Augeri sang his heart out too & obviously ruined his voice along the way. Sure he got a paycheck. But he was older, had another job, this was his dream & he went out & did it. Even tho I didn't like his voice, he could sing a whole lot better than I could ever have hoped to. & let's face it, a lot of people liked him up there. He even brought the band some new fans.

When I see/listen to the boots of Augeri lipping, I cringe to be honest. I waffle between wondering why the hell he did that & wondering how it felt to do that & know you were doing it. I don't know what happened for sure & I'm sure I never will. Maybe he thought he'd use tapes for a few shows at first. But then he got away w/it & it was a slippery slope so he kept going. Maybe he was hoping to keep going thru this yr to promote his Tall Stories CD & he was going to step down then. Maybe mgmt wanted him to continue. Maybe Cain wanted him to continue & argued w/Neal about it. I don't know b/c all this is nothing but speculation. It could have been a combo of all of the above. I wish Augeri had stepped down before he became a laughing stock. I don't know how he let himself fall to such a level. But I bet when it all broke & he had to do those shows where he couldn't sing, he wished he stepped down a long time before.

My other cringe is why the band let it go on as long as they did. I'll never know that either. Maybe they thought it would be hard for the fans to accept another lead singer change? Maybe mgmt didn't want them to have another change as there was a nice profit as it was. Maybe Neal figured he'd ride it out while he established SS & then was bitterly disappointed when that didn't go where he expected. Again, all stuff I'll never know the answers to.

It happened. It's history. The nice thing now is a) we have a guy fronting the band who can really sing live & do justice to the songs. There are still a few who are not agreeing w/this but when they see the band live & see that not only can Jeff do it but the energy he is bringing to the other guys, they will most likely jump on the bandwagon. I bet they'll go see Journey when they come to their town. They say they won't, but they'll be tempted to & when they do, they'll kick themselves for not buying better seats. b) we have a guy now who is communicating w/the fans. That's something we never had before & will never have for most bands we are fans of. It's unusual & totally cool & will bring the band even more fans & endear people to Jeff. I wondered why Jeff had so many loyal fans before Journey. Now I know. He brings that out w/his coolness. c) Perry-only fans are getting behind Jeff & liking him. They (me) will never let go of our love for Perry. He was our hero for a long time & still is. But we also love Journey & want more from them. We know Perry isn't coming back. We'll probably always hope that some day, Perry will walk on that stage w/Journey and even do one song. Maybe it will never happen. But the Eagles said they'd never get back together either & they did. I don't want to lose Jeff now. But I'm all for a Jeff/Perry duet some day or them sharing the stage. While I don't think Perry would have ever shared the stage w/Augeri, I think it's more likely he might some day w/Jeff. Maybe I'm wrong but I'll keep hoping. We (Perry fans) like Jeff b/c he brings the energy Perry did & he's not trying to sing the songs exactly like our guy did, but at the same time giving them enough respect to sound like Journey. Dean's boot made me think of Perry back in the day @ his very best. It was different but there was that special something I hadn't heard in yrs. d) Even some of the Augeri-only fans are jumping on here and starting to really like Jeff. Why? They see the energy in the band & they see how nice Jeff is. They know he wasn't responsible for whatever happened & he's very talented & doing the best he can w/a rotten situation he had to step into. Actually Jeff might have had a worse situation to step into than Augeri in many ways. Augeri stepped in when Perry didn't want to continue. Jeff had to step in mid-tour after a big scandal. & by then Journey fans were split 2 ways on the lead singer. Yikes. No fun. But Jeff took the challenge, came on this forum & took some abuse, stood up for himself, & earned boatloads of respect.

Conclusion: unity is beginning again w/Journey fans. Jeff is bringing us together & to me, that's awesome. We're starting to ask each other about Journey history & which songs we like best again. This is fun. I don't think I've looked forward so much to a Journey show as I'm looking forward to 11/7. I totally cannot wait. Whatever mistakes the guys made in the past, this time, they did something right, really right. Let's give them a chance. We all make mistakes. None of us are perfect. But let's live in today instead of yesterday. & just enjoy the good things that are happening.

[Off the soapbox]

[Citygirl]

I still say Neal wanted Jeff in there back when Soul Sirkus was on the go.

But yeah I agree with you, why didn't they just give him the boot before the tour started?

[yogi]

Mandi,

I will make this as brief and to the point as possible.

As President and CEO of The Ogre Relief & Charity Fund I take offense to your implications and characterizations that all ogres are 'freakish and monster like'.

Many ogres have made positive contributions to all societies.

Have you used a toaster lately? The modern toaster was invented by an ogre. The treatment regiment for Elm Trees suffering from Dutch Elm disease was also borrowed from the ancient Southern Canaidian Boomdock Ogres. The triple toilet paper roll was also an ogre idea as was the 3 door Tee Pee that the Navaho Indians now use. Finally, the plastic clothes hanger with clips that are used at clothing stores such as Old Navy & The Gap was invented by an ogre.

If you would like to become better educated about the plight of ogres worldwide or even give a contribution please visit our website@ www.deanoogre.com.

[brywool]

Steve Augeri, Dude, I do NOT hate you. In fact, I like you, I was/am just kinda sortof pissed at you. You had an impossible job filling in for that Perry guy, but you know what, you did that fine. Hell, I thought you were great. It's just this that bothered me Steve:

Man to man.

Steve, I know it was getting tough, but you had to know it wasn't right to want to go on doing this. I am not even saying you lipped..I am just saying that maybe you should have stepped down with grace and dignity. You did a Helluva job for 5 years. I, personally, just thought that the fact that you wanted to keep going along as such....well that is the thing that pissed me off the most. I don't blame you soley, no. Is Neal, Friga and others to blame? Maybe, However, I can't blame Neal for knowing or NOT knowing how much was being "PA'd" nightly. Neal has so much shit going through his mind....He has selective rememberance going on all the time. I DO blame you for not being the man who everyone says is "stand up." Steve, you should have stepped down, and I think you agree with me that it would have been a smart move.

Great post Deano. I think Augeri was backed into a corner at the time. I totally feel for the guy. He took a bad way out and you know, he's paid the price. I still like him and I'm still waiting for TS to come out. I DO kind of feel the band threw him under the bus, but it's a pretty delicate situation and I can only give my perspective of it as an outsider. As JSS said, nobody outside the band knows the whole story.

[bionic]

Hello Dean,

After seeing your photo posted I am feeling pretty confident that you aren't really an ogre or some kind of freakish monster. You look very human, and to me that translates into "decent and reasonable". So, I am going out on a limb here, knowing I am not a favorite of yours, and knowing that I risk embarressment and humiliation.

I don't post very much, and when I do my posts lack the expertise and musical insight that most of the other posters here display. I am not a Journey expert. I am only someone who happened to catch a Journey concert in 1998, and fell instantly in love with the music, the band, and yes dare I say it, the lead singer. I became a die-hard Augeri fan, and a Journey fan all at once. I bought every single cd of theirs they have ever made, every one. I was a casual fan, I liked Steve Perry's voice, but that was it. That changed for me in 98.

Why am I boring you with this? OK, I will get to the reason for this letter.

I hated you at first, (sorry, I know that is a very strong word) for what you claimed about Steve Augeri. I resented your obvious gift for getting your point across and making people feel belittled. I read every thing you posted. Everything. Then I began to doubt. Not you, but the band. And your claims began making sense, and I hated you for that as well.

I was there at the first show of the tour, in Camden. It was one of at least two dozen concerts I attended since 98. I could tell something was wrong with the band. They were mechanical, unsmiling, lacked energy and it was easy for a die-hard fan to see that something was very wrong. I was also at Mohegan Sun a few days later. Things were a little better, but Steve could hardly sing, could barely speak. The sound was clearly rigged to drown out the vocals. I thought about you. I thought about everything you had claimed so vehemently. You were relentless in your claims of taped vocals, and sure enough in Raleigh, everything you said fell into place. I thought about you alot during that time. I thought about one concert back in 2005, where I was in the second row, and how for one fleeting moment it seemed like Steve wasn't really singing. I thought about how I pushed that out of my mind, and soon forgot all about it. Until you brought up "tapegate". And I started to see you in a very different light.

Have you ever had your heart broken, Dean? I would guess you have. Well, it sounds stupid to most, but I was heartbroken over what happened to Steve Augeri and to Journey. Everything you said came true. You were right all along. I now believe it. I know you are thinking "big deal". But I just wanted to let you know that I have a new respect for you. I think you were heartbroken over Journey, too. And you got angry and you did something about it. That is something many people wouldn't do and I have to admire and respect you for having such deep convictions. You are a man of character, and a truthful one. Very colorful at times, but still truthful.

I don't ever agree with the Augeri bashing you do, however. And I will never change my mind about Mr. Augeri's contributions to the band. I am grateful for what he gave us, I continue to love his work on Arrival and Generations. I still like him, just not so much, if you know what I mean. I guess I am disappointed. And I don't hate you anymore. In fact, I have enormous respect for your courage, and conviction to do what you did. To believe in something so strongly and to stand up for that belief is something I wish I had more of in myself. Maybe we could all use a little more of that quality.

And now, Journey has JSS! Thank you, Dean. You stuck to your guns. I would ask you to go a little easier on Steve Augeri once in awhile but I don't want to incurr your wrath! I have a million questions, but I won't ask. I will just wait and see what happens next. I was not going to post this publicly, because I don't want to start this debate all over again. We have all had enough of that, and should leave it in the past. We have the future to look forward to, and it is looking very bright for Journey fans.

I am so sorry to everyone that this is so long. I just felt I needed to say it. Thank you Dean, for reading.

Regards,
Mandi

Good post a real dose of reality,something lacking on other Journey boards

[A Fire Inside]

So why wouldn't the band provide him the down-time he needed?

Why did Azoff Mngt. ceaselessly book more and more tours (UK, Def Leppard) when they knew their singer was by then wholly and utterlly vocally-immolated?

And if it were attempt to circuitously force Steve out, why not actually be men and fire him, u guttersnipe cowards.

Totally agreed - they have handled it like pussies. "Let's let these fans create enough stir to have an excuse to get him out because we can't do it ourselves." If they really hated him since '03 they should have just voted him off the island. This isn't a government position... people can be fired if they're not doing their job...

[NealIsGod]

Mandi,

I will make this as brief and to the point as possible.

As President and CEO of The Ogre Relief & Charity Fund I take offense to your implications and characterizations that all ogres are 'freakish and monster like'.

Many ogres have made positive contributions to all societies.

Have you used a toaster lately? The modern toaster was invented by an ogre. The treatment regiment for Elm Trees suffering from Dutch Elm disease was also borrowed from the ancient Southern Canaidian Boomdock Ogres. The triple toilet paper roll was also an ogre idea as was the 3 door Tee Pee that the Navaho Indians now use. Finally, the plastic clothes hanger with clips that are used at clothing stores such as Old Navy & The Gap was invented by an ogre.

If you would like to become better educated about the plight of ogres worldwide or even give a contribution please visit our website@ www.deanoogre.com.

[Carlitto H@kk]

Mandi,

I will make this as brief and to the point as possible.

As President and CEO of The Ogre Relief & Charity Fund I take offense to your implications and characterizations that all ogres are 'freakish and monster like'.

Many ogres have made positive contributions to all societies.

Have you used a toaster lately? The modern toaster was invented by an ogre. The treatment regiment for Elm Trees suffering from Dutch Elm disease was also borrowed from the ancient Southern Canaidian Boomdock Ogres. The triple toilet paper roll was also an ogre idea as was the 3 door Tee Pee that the Navaho Indians now use. Finally, the plastic clothes hanger with clips that are used at clothing stores such as Old Navy & The Gap was invented by an ogre.

If you would like to become better educated about the plight of ogres worldwide or even give a contribution please visit our website@ www.deanoogre.com.

LOL! And I actually tried going to the link!

[larryfromnextdoor]

Mandi,

I will make this as brief and to the point as possible.

As President and CEO of The Ogre Relief & Charity Fund I take offense to your implications and characterizations that all ogres are 'freakish and monster like'.

Many ogres have made positive contributions to all societies.

Have you used a toaster lately? The modern toaster was invented by an ogre. The treatment regiment for Elm Trees suffering from Dutch Elm disease was also borrowed from the ancient Southern Canaidian Boomdock Ogres. The triple toilet paper roll was also an ogre idea as was the 3 door Tee Pee that the Navaho Indians now use. Finally, the plastic clothes hanger with clips that are used at clothing stores such as Old Navy & The Gap was invented by an ogre.

If you would like to become better educated about the plight of ogres worldwide or even give a contribution please visit our website@ www.deanoogre.com.

yogi, that is the most off the wall post ive read in a while,, dig that !!! strange humor is a great thing!! dang south texas boys! have you ever been to this beer and guns store?!!

[yogi]

Larry,

The spyware here will not allow me to see the picture that you have posted. I can not answer your question.

I can tell you that we(Uvalde) have a Liquor and Gun store about 5 miles from our home. The sign out front says Liquor ( on Top) and Guns below or vice versa. What a combo huh?????

True stroy- about 4 years ago on New Years eve an 18 or 19 year old went in to rob the joint. He got the money, but then he goes back to the cooler to steal an 18 pack of Bud. Joe dumbass puts his gun down to grab the beer then puts the Bud down to shut the door on the cooler and gets shot in the ass by the store owner.

Thats the honest truth. We raise em smart here too!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[dcvader]

Mandi,

I, as a Journey fan, want to move on. The band is pretty fucking good right now. Better than last year? Hell, Stevie Wonder could see the difference.

Great line and very true. Onward and upward.

[tammy]

That is a very heartfelt, eloquent letter, Mandi. I think a lot of fans felt the same way you described - disbelieving, but then little things that seemed "off" popped back into the memory & then hearing the evidence made all the more sense. I don't agree with bashing either, but I applaud conviction for bringing truth out & unfortunately sometimes that takes a lot of guts & forcefulness especially against a huge entity.

[jrnyman28]

Among many things, this thread completely omits the fact that Augeri mentioned taking a year off in '05 interviews.
The pretext was for family time, but more than likely he knew his pipes had been run thru a cuisinart and he needed rest - immediately.

So why wouldn't the band provide him the down-time he needed?

Why did Azoff Mngt. ceaselessly book more and more tours (UK, Def Leppard) when they knew their singer was by then wholly and utterlly vocally-immolated?

And if it were attempt to circuitously force Steve out, why not actually be men and fire him, u guttersnipe cowards.

I am starting to wonder if Steve was trying to make the time off happen by publicly announcing it. Maybe he had hoped the guys would just agree to it since it was out there? It could be the first they heard of it, or it could be a final push from a singer who needed the break.

Do you wonder if Neal and Jon think about the "rule of Hindsight"?

[Carlitto H@kk]

Among many things, this thread completely omits the fact that Augeri mentioned taking a year off in '05 interviews.
The pretext was for family time, but more than likely he knew his pipes had been run thru a cuisinart and he needed rest - immediately.

So why wouldn't the band provide him the down-time he needed?

Why did Azoff Mngt. ceaselessly book more and more tours (UK, Def Leppard) when they knew their singer was by then wholly and utterlly vocally-immolated?

And if it were attempt to circuitously force Steve out, why not actually be men and fire him, u guttersnipe cowards.

I am starting to wonder if Steve was trying to make the time off happen by publicly announcing it. Maybe he had hoped the guys would just agree to it since it was out there? It could be the first they heard of it, or it could be a final push from a singer who needed the break.

Do you wonder if Neal and Jon think about the "rule of Hindsight"?

You know, I've thought of something along the same lines before...
Everyone is giving the band and management grief over aoll this stuff with Augeri being replaced...

Has ANYONE ever considered that Augeri WANTED to step down and saw this whole Tapegate scenario as an easy exit, not worrying about the repracussions to his reputaion?

Hmmmmmm....

[The_Noble_Cause]

Has ANYONE ever considered that Augeri WANTED to step down and saw this whole Tapegate scenario as an easy exit, not worrying about the repracussions to his reputaion?

No, that's irrational.
Steve Augeri did not intend to go out this way.
I am pretty sure of that.

In fact, I have a sneaking suspicion that he had every intention of returning to this in-progress tour.
Upon trying to come in from the cold, however, he found the locks had been changed and someone else now smoking his pipe and wearing his bedroom slippers.
Permanently.

[ArnelRox]

Has ANYONE ever considered that Augeri WANTED to step down and saw this whole Tapegate scenario as an easy exit, not worrying about the repracussions to his reputaion?

No, that's irrational.
Steve Augeri did not intend to go out this way.
I am pretty sure of that.

In fact, I have a sneaking suspicion that he had every intention of returning to this in-progress tour.
Upon trying to come in from the cold, however, he found the locks had been changed and someone else now smoking his pipe and wearing his bedroom slippers.
Permanently.

I don't know if he wanted to return TNC. Like TNC, I'm pretty sure he didn't want to go out like he did, Carl. Somehow I suspect he thought he'd string (or lip) this out till the new TS CD came out so he could get some sales & promotion as a "parting gift". But he has to have known his days were numbered. Maybe he just hoped to get thru this & then hang it up. Dean could probably elaborate on that if he chose to.

[Saint John]

Has ANYONE ever considered that Augeri WANTED to step down and saw this whole Tapegate scenario as an easy exit, not worrying about the repracussions to his reputaion?

No, that's irrational.
Steve Augeri did not intend to go out this way.
I am pretty sure of that.

In fact, I have a sneaking suspicion that he had every intention of returning to this in-progress tour.
Upon trying to come in from the cold, however, he found the locks had been changed and someone else now smoking his pipe and wearing his bedroom slippers.
Permanently.

I don't know if he wanted to return TNC. Like TNC, I'm pretty sure he didn't want to go out like he did, Carl. Somehow I suspect he thought he'd string (or lip) this out till the new TS CD came out so he could get some sales & promotion as a "parting gift". But he has to have known his days were numbered. Maybe he just hoped to get thru this & then hang it up. Dean could probably elaborate on that if he chose to.

This is my take. Steve Augeri was getting "assistance" as early as 2003. That continued, albeit at a minimal rate, til 2005. The Generations tour is planned and the band and management figure they can pull it off. After all, Augeri did get some much needed rest. However, turns out it wasn't nearly enough and his voice is trashed. Their use of minimal backing help turns into major vocal help...basically, the vocals are canned. The band, once again, plans on taking a year off. Then, along comes a promoter or whomever, and throws out the Def Leppard co-headlining idea. Journey (ALL band members) and management agree to possibly risk their legacy for the quick buck. The Manchester show raises more than a few eyebrows and all hell breaks loose. Basically, the band is busted. They have Augeri suffer through a few live shows and then pull the plug. JSS is flown in and continues the tour. Augeri disappears, the lawyers start working out his departure details, and gag orders and such are discussed and/or finalized. My guess would be that Augeri is not to be seen or heard from in any way, shape or form unless the band's lawyers give consent and outline the "do's and dont's." Augeri will surface after the tour announcing he is no longer able to continue. JSS will then be "officially" made permanent. In the future, Augeri will respond to any allegations the way he and the Journey lawyers agreed that he must, or face legal ramifications. This whole thing reminds me of the TBF fiasco and how no one to this day (band members) brings it up. I suspect this will be no different.

[whocares]

brings what up, SJ?

[Ms_M]

[Saint John]

brings what up, SJ?

I have NEVER heard Neal, Ross or Jon talk about Perry's hip surgery specifically. I haven't heard any of them comment on whether they thought the story is bullshit, he did have the surgery or if they simply don't know. It seems like there is some type of gag order regarding much of what happened around the TBF era. I suspect the "tapegate" incident will be very similar.

[squirt1]

Steve Smith said in an interview that Perry had the surgery. He also talked of the ice packs at the WYLAW video . Steve Smith was on tape from some source. I still can see him talking.

[Monker]

Among many things, this thread completely omits the fact that Augeri mentioned taking a year off in '05 interviews.
The pretext was for family time, but more than likely he knew his pipes had been run thru a cuisinart and he needed rest - immediately.

So why wouldn't the band provide him the down-time he needed?

Why did Azoff Mngt. ceaselessly book more and more tours (UK, Def Leppard) when they knew their singer was by then wholly and utterlly vocally-immolated?

And if it were an attempt to circuitously force Steve out, why not actually be men and fire him, u guttersnipe cowards.

Better yet, why couldn't they take that year off to write and record an album...as they kept saying they were going to do, over and over and over again? It's NOT just Augeri's fault...it's the ENTIRE band's fault. And, you're right, if Azoff was pushing for more tours, it's his fault too.

THAT is what I wish more people would see. Has any of this changed? As far as I can tell - NO, it hasn't. So, treat the symptom and change the lead singer...but, the bigger problems in the band still exist.

[Monker]

brings what up, SJ?

I have NEVER heard Neal, Ross or Jon talk about Perry's hip surgery specifically. I haven't heard any of them comment on whether they thought the story is bullshit, he did have the surgery or if they simply don't know. It seems like there is some type of gag order regarding much of what happened around the TBF era. I suspect the "tapegate" incident will be very similar.

The hip surgery happened, or didn't happen, a couple years AFTER he was replaced in Journey...So, why would the band comment on it?

[A Fire Inside]

In fact, I have a sneaking suspicion that he had every intention of returning to this in-progress tour.
Upon trying to come in from the cold, however, he found the locks had been changed and someone else now smoking his pipe and wearing his bedroom slippers.
Permanently.

That's a great metaphor.