Review of opening night

by **metal rednex** » Tue Jun 28, 2005 2:45 am

Two words describe the first night of the "Generations" tour.......... almost perfect. As hard as it could be to put 30 years of history into 3 hours, they pulled it off. Deen was the surprise of the night. If he didn't drum, he could have been the vocalist full time. The only real downside for me was the fans. Or should I say the fans of, as Neal put it, "the dirty dozen". There was one drunk moron screaming, " play something good" through most of the first set. I know I am some what of a rock snob, but if you are just a greatest hits fan, show up late, or better yet, not at all.

Thanks to the "real" fans in Loge 7, row EE.

The Metal Rednex

by **jrnyman28** » Tue Jun 28, 2005 3:09 am

This tour is definately gearded toward the die-hard fans. That is why this is a bit of a risk. I imagine this will be the last time for something like this too. There is a difficulty with the somewhat Chronological order as so many people do not care about the first 3 albums. Maybe we will see a change in the order of songs as the tour continues, but I hope not. My feeling is that they already have the audience there, the money has been paid, do what YOU want. At the same time, I am sure Journey realizes that there will be a lot of 'less enthusiastic' response from the crowd as a whole. But that's OK! They still hear the music, especially the newer stuff! It is important to get that out there no matter what.

But I just thought of a question: Are the new songs being introduced to the crowd?

I think it is important to inform the crowd when a song is from the new CD. The first one may send people to the bathroom or the Beer line, but by the third one there will be less reasons to leave your seats. And even if people do get up, they will still hear it!

by **NealIsGod** » Tue Jun 28, 2005 3:36 am

Was this show sold out? What is the estimate of attendance?

by **Rockindeano** » Tue Jun 28, 2005 3:45 am

Well I was there.......

I don't think Deen was the surprise.....I thought the material played was the surprise.

800P....I am getting some grub and checking out motorcycle which is nice....Oh the reason I was late..the CD giveaway needs to be better done. The guy giving the disc away took forever! Nice guy and all, but he would give a few out, and stop, and tell everybody to go over and fill out the Hall of Fame petition...the line was so long, many said "screw it" and went in without one...

Back to the show...I really still don't know if I liked the old old stuff..The first 4 songs, I couldn't tell you what they were...very progressive, jamming...felt like a Yes concert, but I knew it was changing..
They introduced very well the entire night. Neal said, "well now we have reached the Evolution level" and broke into Daydream....
After Daydream, Feeling that Way/Anytime got the crowd going, and Anyway You Want It ended the first half of the show.

On the way down to the show, Neal called into the radio and said they wanted to play 4 hours but curfews were curtaling that, so they will play for 1:15, then :20 min break(which was too short, because everyone was stuck in the pee line or beer line)...and 1:50 to close the show.

Upon returning, the band broke into Generations material, which they introduced each and every song..They broke out with "Faith in the Heartland" which sounded very very good, and got a decent applause. Place in Your Heart was next, and was awesome too. Neal sang lead on Self Defense. Steve said.. "Something new, and something familiar"...they broke into Lights, and the crowd was back...They played Butterfly, a ballad, and Jon sang lead on "Every Generation" and the band played Out of Harms Way, and I want to mention that there were screens, about 7 of them..1 big one over the stage for close-ups, and 6 hanging in the lighting..on the new songs, they would show colors, and designs, but during Out of Harms Way, they showed helicopters and tanks and war....cool song

Oh, about this time, Neal breaks out the best ever "Star Spangled Banner" I have witnessed, with 14,000 little lights, illuminating the venue and up the hill into the grass section..this got the crowd going big time.

Faithfully was played, Wheel in the Sky, Escape, Don't Stop Believin', Seperate Ways,Open Arms, Stone In Love, Only the Young, Be Good to Yourself, and Lovin' Touchin' Squeezin" was the encore. Those songs were not in that order by the way. It was a long night, almost too long, for a Sunday night. I think the idea was good, but I would either start it at 730P or shorten it a bit.

For a first night, I thought they were as tight as a ducks' ass. I have never seen Augeri this good. He is finally getting bolder, interacting with the audience, and the crowd was reacting to him!! He would also share duties with Deen throughout the night, and also share on certain songs too. They work well together. Schon was fantastic. Augeri DID play guitar, and at one point, he addressed the audience--"Neal told me to strap on the guitar..which is ridiculous when you're on the stage as him" audience busted up...

I am sure I forgot something. Any questions??

Dean

by **NealIsGod** » Tue Jun 28, 2005 3:51 am

How was the attandance? Was it pretty full? How do you like the CD?

by **Rockindeano** » Tue Jun 28, 2005 4:15 am

Attendance was 14,000..about 1000 short of sellout...

CD is awesome :wink:

Also let me add this snippet.

When Neal called in to the radio station, the radio guy asks about "Steve Perry." Neal was really agitated, but kept his cool. Neal said, "hey the guy was a huge part of this band, and is welcome anytime he chooses. We saw him at the Walk of Fame and it was great. I think he needs to sing again, he needs to be heard."

Also when Neal called in he said, "ya, we got like 12, 5 sold tonight." he sounded surprised...well, he got more than 12.5... walk up was huge

by **NealIsGod** » Tue Jun 28, 2005 4:20 am

Neal's standard answer for Perry quesitons should be, "Steve Augeri has been with us for seven years, and he is the voice of Journey now. And our fans love him."

by **Rockindeano** » Tue Jun 28, 2005 4:24 am

NealIsGod wrote:Neal's standard answer for Perry quesitons should be, "Steve Augeri has been with us for seven years, and he is the voice of Journey now. And our fans love him."

Well I agree..Neal didn't mention Augeri, but wasn't asked about him either. Neal was very positive about Perry...perhaps they have buried the hatchet??

by **NealIsGod** » Tue Jun 28, 2005 4:29 am

Deano, I can't believe I almost forgot to ask you the most important question of all...

Did you sign the flag?

by **Rockindeano** » Tue Jun 28, 2005 4:47 am

NealIsGod wrote:Deano, I can't believe I almost forgot to ask you the most important question of all...

Did you sign the flag?

Dude, shut the fuck up..I just spit Cinnamon Toast Crunch all over my keyboard!! You dickhead!! :lol:

Oh and because of you NIG, everytime I kept looking at Neal, i thought of your sig..too funny.. Neal is God..what is that?! lol I love it dude..

by **NealIsGod** » Tue Jun 28, 2005 4:49 am

LOL! I'll take that as a "Yes, I signed it and kissed it all over."

by **The_Noble_Cause** » Tue Jun 28, 2005 4:53 am

Rock'ndeano wrote: I have never seen Augeri this good. He is finally getting bolder, interacting with the audience, and the crowd was reacting to him!!

Augeri has always been a master showman, but what of his voice?
Did he sound good?
That seems to be the focus of most peoples' attacks at BT at the moment.

by **Rockindeano** » Tue Jun 28, 2005 4:56 am

The_Noble_Cause wrote:
Rock'ndeano wrote: I have never seen Augeri this good. He is finally getting bolder, interacting with the audience, and the crowd was reacting to him!!

Augeri has always been a master showman, but what of his voice?

I never thought so, but IMO he is getting better..

Did he sound good?
That seems to be the focus of most peoples' attacks at BT at the moment.

Screw those whackos over there.. He sounded fine

by **Rockindeano** » Tue Jun 28, 2005 5:15 am

One last comment, and for me at least, it was a lowpoint..

"Gone Crazy" the song in which Ross sings... Uh, how do I say this? I hated it. Sounded like a poor attempt at a country song gone wrong..harmonica and whatever else..IMO, the second worst Journey song ever behind the perry classic, "Baby I'm Leavin' You."

by **LAWoman** » Tue Jun 28, 2005 11:11 am

Irvine was a great show. Catch one of the shows this year if you can. I thought the sounds was great. The set and lighting was great and different. The choice of songs was excellent and the progression really nice. With such a long show all the boys got to do a little something different. And thankfully they played a bunch of things I had not heard live before. Excellent show.

by **OpeningAct** » Tue Jun 28, 2005 11:16 am

NealIsGod wrote:Deano, I can't believe I almost forgot to ask you the most important question of all...

Did you sign the flag?

DOH!!! What a riot!!!!

by **Rockindeano** » Tue Jun 28, 2005 11:21 am

OpeningAct wrote:
NealIsGod wrote:Deano, I can't believe I almost forgot to ask you the most important question of all...

Did you sign the flag?
DOH!!! What a riot!!!!

Opening Act, seriously, you are going to kill me with your non stop flag issues..!!

They do need a courier to take the flag from point to point. I gave them your screenname last night..hope you don't mind. They said they would PM you on MR...<-------------Hahahaha, look at his face!! :shock:

by **OpeningAct** » Tue Jun 28, 2005 6:13 pm

Rock'ndeano wrote:
OpeningAct wrote:
NealIsGod wrote:Deano, I can't believe I almost forgot to ask you the most important question of all...

Did you sign the flag?
DOH!!! What a riot!!!!

Opening Act, seriously, you are going to kill me with your non stop flag issues..!!

They do need a courier to take the flag from point to point. I gave them your screenname last night..hope you don't mind. They said they would PM you on MR...<-------------Hahahaha, look at his face!!

I would PROUDLY carry the Backtalk flag...What a proud moment that would be in my life.... :roll:

by **JohnH** » Tue Jun 28, 2005 7:08 pm

I'm glad they are playing some different stuff....I am a Journey fan that also likes non greatest hits songs....I pulled Arrival off the shelf for a long ride to a gig last weekend and proceeded to play it several times during the week. That one is getting better every time I hear it, to have gone to that show and not hear one Arrival song would have been a huge disappointment. I can live without hearing any Trial by Fire songs, although that is a great album, sheesh, why no Arrival tunes? That's the current lineup!!!!!!! However kudos to Journey for playing so many new songs, but that would also be a bummer if I don't have the album yet. I'm sure there's nothing wrong with Steve Augeri, he was probably sick or had done too much rehearsing. I saw them in Sept 2002 and he nailed every note like the records. The choice Sunday night was Whitesnake at House of Blues or Journey....Whitesnake and Coverdale were totally mindblowing. I don't regret what show I chose, after hearing Steve was sick.

John

by **yak** » Wed Jun 29, 2005 5:55 am

Wow! Sounds great, everybody. Deano, great critique, fun reading between the lines about everything else that happened besides the concert. And great attendance too.

metal rednex wrote:The only real downside for me was the fans. Or should I say the fans of, as Neal put it, "the dirty dozen". There was one drunk moron screaming, " play something good" through most of the first set. I know I am some what of a rock snob, but if you are just a greatest hits fan, show up late, or better yet, not at all.
The Metal Rednex

Agreed, Metal, that fans who imbibe too much can ruin things for those around them, not to mention for themselves. Makes you wonder why those people even go to begin with. :roll:

LAWoman, anything you wanted to hear, but didn't? I love that they're playing their new material. Were they telling their audience that these were new songs from the album?

NealIsGod wrote:Neal's standard answer for Perry quesitons should be, "Steve Augeri has been with us for seven years, and he is the voice of Journey now. And our fans love him."

I totally agree! Wake UP, Neal! :wink:

by **yak** » Wed Jun 29, 2005 6:05 am

Rock'ndeano wrote:CD is awesome

Soooooo...give us your take on the album....

Be a bit more specific. I like what I've heard so far, but want to hear more!

LAWoman, and anybody else who is listening to the album?

by **LAWoman** » Thu Jun 30, 2005 12:57 am

yak wrote:
LAWoman, anything you wanted to hear, but didn't? I love that they're playing their new material. Were they telling their audience that these were new songs from the album?

[

Personally, I would have loved to hear more of the older more obscure stuff, but I know that would not go over well at a show. I am so done with some of the classics like Lights and Open Arms, but I know that's what many people want so why complain? There are many, many Journey songs that sound fabulous live, but they only have so much time to work with. I thought the progression of songs was beautifully done. It will be interesting to see if they change it up.

Yes, they were telling the people when the launched into a new song. I was actually surprised that the audience seemed pretty receptive toward the new songs.

by **LAWoman** » Thu Jun 30, 2005 1:03 am

yak wrote:
Rock'ndeano wrote:CD is awesome

Soooooo...give us your take on the album....
Be a bit more specific. I like what I've heard so far, but want to hear more!

LAWoman, and anybody else who is listening to the album?

I really like the new CD. It is hard to describe music to other people, so I'm not sure what you want to know. I think my favorites so far are Faith in the Heartland, Out of Harms Way, In Self-Defense and surprisingly, Gone Crazy. They did all of those at the Irvine show. Heartland is very majestic in the same way I think U2's It's a Beautiful Day feels. It's just a big song that sort of takes you up flying--especially when you can watch the vid screens at the show. Out of Harms Way is heavy--it's about the Iraq war--a little dark and more of a SS kind of heavy feeling. Gone Crazy is the Ross song, but especially live I thought it really works--fast but bluesy--nice change but totally not Journey. In Self Defense is Neal's song and although it seems sort of simple, it probably sticks in my head more than the others--catchy. I just wish they would publish the lyrics to these things somewhere so I could figure out what the songs are about.

by **NealIsGod** » Thu Jun 30, 2005 1:25 am

I am very curious to hear Gone Crazy. Reviews of that song go from one extreme to the other. Some like it, some can't stand it. I have low expectations for this song, so I will probably like it.

by **mnmsjrny** » Thu Jun 30, 2005 5:29 am

jrnyman28 wrote:But I just thought of a question: Are the new songs being introduced to the crowd? t!

Most of them were. I had to pull the CD out of my purse once or twice to figure out which song it was.

by **mnmsjrny** » Thu Jun 30, 2005 5:32 am

NealIsGod wrote:I am very curious to hear Gone Crazy. Reviews of that song go from one extreme to the other. Some like it, some can't stand it. I have low expectations for this song, so I will probably like it.

Yep, this is definitely gonna be a love it or hate it song... it's the most unlike Journey song you can imagine. I'm leaning towards the like it. Won't ever be in a top fave, but it's enjoyable.

by **yak** » Sun Jul 03, 2005 5:26 am

LAWoman wrote:Yes, they were telling the people when the launched into a new song. I was actually surprised that the audience seemed pretty receptive toward the new songs.

Great news! The new songs are great, so why were you surprised?

I know you are a major Journey fan, so I was just curious as to your take on everything.

LAWoman wrote:I really like the new CD. It is hard to describe music to other people, so I'm not sure what you want to know. I think my favorites so far are Faith in the Heartland, Out of Harms Way, In Self-Defense and surprisingly, Gone Crazy. They did all of those at the Irvine show. Heartland is very majestic in the same way I think U2's It's a Beautiful Day feels. It's just a big song that sort of takes you up flying--especially when you can watch the vid screens at the show. Out of Harms Way is heavy--it's about the Iraq war--a little dark and more of a SS kind of heavy feeling. Gone Crazy is the Ross song, but especially live I thought it really works--fast but bluesy--nice change but totally not Journey. In Self Defense is Neal's song and although it seems sort of simple, it probably sticks in my head more than the others--catchy. I just wish they would publish the lyrics to these things somewhere so I could figure out what the songs are about.

That's exactly what I was interested in knowing! Your descriptions have given me an insight into what the songs actually ARE. It sounds as though Journey is mixing up the songs nicely, and now of course it's being said that they will be changing the set list as they go. It will be a concert of great variety. I like that! I really don't want to go and hear greatest hits all the time. They seem to be selling tickets well, so this "Evening With Journey" apparently has some mass appeal.

by AR » Fri Oct 19, 2007 5:56 am

Reading this is almost like being in "The Twilight Zone".

by **RedWingFan** » Fri Oct 19, 2007 6:16 am

AR wrote:Reading this is almost like being in "The Twilight Zone".

I know Deano called the "Generations" cd great! :lol:

by AR » Fri Oct 19, 2007 6:54 am

RaiderFan wrote:
AR wrote:Reading this is almost like being in "The Twilight Zone".

I know Deano called the "Generations" cd great!

There's a lot of of hilarious reading in the archives. I'm not going to bump anymore old threads, but I encourage everyone who wants a laugh to take a trip down memory lane. :lol:

MR

Review of opening night

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