Thinking of SP while seeing Elton John in concert....

[Foolish Heart]

Last week, i had the opportunity to see Elton John in concert in Las Vegas. During the concert, I thought about Steve Perry quite a bit. After the concert, I came away with some thoughts and I just wanted to hear what people have to say about them.

First, have any of you seen EJ in concert in Las Vegas?? If so, what did you think? My first thought when he started singing was that his voice was definitely not the same as it was at one time. (For obvious reasons, of course). He struggled with the high notes and at times was almost screaming the lyrics. He sang all of his hits - the show was a solid two hours long. He had a band with him that seemed to provide backup vocals for him especially during the rough spots. While I thought he was pretty good, one thing that disturbed me was (and for anyone who has seen the show will understand this.....) what surrounded him as he sang. The entire time he sang, there was a huge background for everyone to see that had, what I call a video or montage, that corresponded to the particular song he was singing. And, believe it or not, the entire time there was an awful lot of nudity in the background and also an orgy and someone attempting suicide. There was also several blowup items that were on stage at different times -- one being a half peeled banana between two cherries and a very large blowup hanging on one side of the venue of breasts with big nipples.

OK why am I saying all of this....... well, first of all let me say that my personal feelings were that he wanted all of these distractions in his show to divert people's attention from the fact that his voice isn't as good as before. And while it probably worked for some, it didn't work for me. I thought he had more class than this. He didn't have to put on the show the way that he did. While I am not a prude, after awhile it became extremely annoying. I kept thinking would SP does this to overcome his possible voice shortcomings? NO..... HOWEVER, let me say this.....I made it a point of listening to people's comments after the show and the PEOPLE LOVED HIM -- even though his voice wasn't like it was before. And I'm thinking why did he have to resort to the distractions when in reality, people would have loved the concert just as much if he would have come out, sat at his piano, and just sang with none of the theatrics. The people DIDN'T CARE one iota that he was older, heavier and not the same singer he was before. They LOVED HIM and were just so happy to have seen him. While the venue only held about 4,500 people, it was an awesome place to see him - it was intimate, the sound was perfect and he sells out just about every show he does there.

So, I'm thinking.....while I know SP wouldn't stoop to that level in regard to the type of show he would put on, I know that there are a whole lot of people that just want to hear him sing again even if he is not the same as in the past. His millions of fans would be very accepting of him, regardless. And I know he would sell out every show he would put on. It would be the perfect setting for him and he would be in one place, not touring all over.

Any thoughts????

[Ehwmatt]

I'm certainly in your camp... I'd love to see Steve Perry sing in any capacity. I also think he'd still "have it." Elton John is great, but he's not "The Voice" by any means. Maybe it'd be tough for SP to sound great over the course of a long tour, but hey, most of the groups getting close to their 60s do shorter tours of 2-3 months at a time instead of the 6-8 that Journey has been doing... I still am convinced that rumors of the demise of SP's voice are greatly exaggerated.

[Arkansas]

I agree. All I can assume is that Journey can't let go of their past and move into their future.
It's not rocker vs. lounge act.
It's not young stud vs. old fart.
It's about accepting who you are and exploring all the musical possibilities.

I'm afraid, that just like Perry still cries for his Mom, he's stuck in a 1981 Journey.
And much like him, the current Journey can't move on either.

I think that realizing that they are older, and that their music has a mature life too, is something that they may not be able to do.
Too bad...for them. Too bad...for America.


later~

[lidobar]

steve perry being the perfectionist that he is knows that he can't sing as well as he did in his hey day. Just listening to his later cds trial by fire, love for strange medicine confirms it. his voice was not what it once was. he's smart to not want to be a caricature of his old self. let some other young golden throat to take his place.

[mistiejourney]

steve perry being the perfectionist that he is knows that he can't sing as well as he did in his hey day. Just listening to his later cds trial by fire, love for strange medicine confirms it. his voice was not what it once was. he's smart to not want to be a caricature of his old self. let some other young golden throat to take his place.

But I don't care if the Voice is different - it is still the Voice. I was just as happy with FTLOSM and Street Talk's lower registers as I was with Departure's high notes. My feeling is that Steve Perry doesn't want to sing. Doesn't want the hassle of touring. Is happy where he is at. I don't know if that is living in the past or being happy with the present, but I miss the Voice in all its incarnations.

BTW - I saw Elton with Billy Joel just a few years ago and he was fantastic. None of what you describe - and his voice was great. Wonder why the new-style crude stage set up?

I don't expect my favorite singers to be GQ material, just like I'm not Vogue material - we all get older. Maybe it's harder for some to accept.

[annie89509]

As fans, we can only speculate what may or may not be on their minds. We don't know anything, but isn't it fun to piece bits of info here and there, analyze and glean from their own words from interviews, and form an opinion about the band situation as it relates to any of the past and present members?

I agree with Arkansas on his take about SP.

[annie89509]

Some time ago, on a Perry board, I actually suggested that SP do a Vegas-type show ala Celine Dion. That way, he wouldn't have to be traveling, wearing himself out. People would be coming to see him.

I don't remember exactly what the responses were, but they were generally not favorable. I recall someone thought this would be "selling out."

[finalfight]

Some time ago, on a Perry board, I actually suggested that SP do a Vegas-type show ala Celine Dion. That way, he wouldn't have to be traveling, wearing himself out. People would be coming to see him.

I don't remember exactly what the responses were, but they were generally not favorable. I recall someone thought this would be "selling out."

But amazingly on another thread people would happily pay to see Steve Perry miming with Journey!

[Moon Beam]

Thanks for the review Foolish Heart.
Yup EJ always has been a shock rocker.

[Tomulator]

I just want to "chime in" here and point out something.

For those of you who are "skeptical" that SP's voice is shot, you only need to give listen to TBF and/or FTLOSM. Check ANY clip out there from the FTLOSM tour and you will hear it...assuming you have ears.

With that being said, there is no reason why SP couldn't have been working / training his voice again to recover some of what he lost but, there is ABSOLUTELY NO WAY he has vocal capabilities even to the level of the ROR era...just ain't happening folks.

SP knows he's lost "most of it" in terms of his voice. We know it, he knows it. My wish is that he would just COME OUT AND ADMIT IT to the public that he can no longer perform because his voice is shot.

Admitting the obvious would be SO LIBERATING for him...and us.

Peace.

[conversationpc]

I just want to "chime in" here and point out something.

For those of you who are "skeptical" that SP's voice is shot, you only need to give listen to TBF and/or FTLOSM. Check ANY clip out there from the FTLOSM tour and you will hear it...assuming you have ears.

Those were over 10 years ago. Dude is almost 60 now. Can he work his vocals back into shape? Maybe but the older you get, the more difficult it is to do.

[lights1961]

Hey speaking EJ... on the Brillance of the Seas this past two weeks, we saw a Jonathan Kayne,
yes that is his name doing a tribute to Elton John piano and all. He had all the manurisms
and music down to a T. Makes me want to see Elton John now!!!
They also had the American Drifters as entertainment too. They were GREAT!!


Rick

[Saint John]

Steve Perry is NOT the perfectionist people make him out to be. What he is, unlike many, is dedicated to his craft. People throw the "perfectionist" term around like he's Mozart or something. Steve has always elected to take his time and ensure that anything with his voice on it is the best take, in his mind. That is not being a perfectionist. That's being true to yourself, true to your bandmates, and most importantly, true to your craft.

A "perfectionist" would not have embarked on the FTLOSM tour. It would have been impossible to replicate the sound of prior albums because his voice had changed so much. However, the artist in him was able to change things up a bit and make them sound just as good as they ever did. Just as I think he could do today, tomorrow or this summer.

[PROPERRY]

[quote="Arkansas"]I agree. All I can assume is that Journey can't let go of their past and move into their future.
It's not rocker vs. lounge act.
It's not young stud vs. old fart.
It's about accepting who you are and exploring all the musical possibilities.

I'm afraid, that just like Perry still cries for his Mom, he's stuck in a 1981 Journey.
And much like him, the current Journey can't move on either.

I think that realizing that they are older, and that their music has a mature life too, is something that they may not be able to do.
Too bad...for them. Too bad...for America.




Well I'm in total disagreement with the remarks about Perry being stuck in 1981. Perry has made "new music" with other artists well after his time period with Journey. Right now though, it appears he is just living his own life.

As for the DVD's of HIS time period in Journey, those DVD's were made because I recall that a huge amounts fans were HEAVILY requesting those Journey's DVD's for a very long time. He and JDK worked together to make it happen for the fans, the band didn't have time to spend on the DVD's they were touring at the time.

As for all the reisssues of Journey's cd's and his solo were done because SONY was already going to to reissue the cd's with todays' technology standards, so Perry wanted to be involved to make sure it was done right in the way he and the guys wanted it to be.

As for his voice , I believe Perry would sound amazing singing with his matured voice of today!

[heardonthestreet]

"As for his voice , I believe Perry would sound amazing singing with his matured voice of today!"


I second that!

[NealIsGod]

"As for his voice , I believe Perry would sound amazing singing with his matured voice of today!"


I second that!

You two think he would sound amazing taking a shit.

[journeyrock]

"As for his voice , I believe Perry would sound amazing singing with his matured voice of today!"


I second that!

I third that. And Yes, NIG, he would sound amazing doing anything!

[*Laura]

Let's not forget the "Reading The Phone Book" CD. I'd buy that,especially if he'd use his Lovemonkey voice.

[conversationpc]

"As for his voice , I believe Perry would sound amazing singing with his matured voice of today!"


I second that!

You two think he would sound amazing taking a shit.

He probably has a multi-octave grunt.

[Saint John]

"As for his voice , I believe Perry would sound amazing singing with his matured voice of today!"


I second that!

You two think he would sound amazing taking a shit.

He probably has a multi-octave grunt.

With perfect pitch, no doubt!!!

[squirt1]

When Steve sang with David Pack - A Brand New Start 2yrs ago he sounded like Trial by Fire '96 to me. I'd go.

[Rick]

You could get him out of retirement if ProPerry and HOTS would just go to his house and talk him into it. Let him finish his shit first though.

[Foolish Heart]

I have to admit I am not a huge Elton John fan - but he is famous and had a lot of good songs so I thought his show might be worth seeing. And during the concert I thought about putting SP in EJ's shoes -- and wondering how he would do in a venue such as this. I think he would do very well. And while I am curious as to why EJ had to resort to such crude videos and blowups, I was torn in that, while I know SP has way too much class and dignity to put on a similar show, is the reason why EJ did this was to distract from the fact that his voice isn't what it used to be???? On that side, I was thinking ... well maybe that's why he doesn't want to do this anymore if this is what is comes down to.

Regardless, on the other hand, the thing that did stick out in my mind is that even with the theatrics and the different voice, the people went crazy for him. It didn't matter to them one bit that his voice was different. They were just so glad to see him. Although I think people would have been just as happy seeing him, his piano and his band and nothing else. No theatrics.

I, for one, still think SP has a voice left. And I'll be honest with you - I loved how he sounded on ST, FTLOSM and TBF. I agree with everyone in regard to him sounding amazing with a mature voice. And with the resurgence of 80s music/musicians coming back these days, the time is perfect for him to make a comeback. We are all accepting people.......who just are frustrated.

[journeyrock]

"As for his voice , I believe Perry would sound amazing singing with his matured voice of today!"


I second that!

You two think he would sound amazing taking a shit.

He probably has a multi-octave grunt.

With perfect pitch, no doubt!!!

And he would make one grunt into 20 syllables!

[Rhiannon]

"As for his voice , I believe Perry would sound amazing singing with his matured voice of today!"


I second that!

You two think he would sound amazing taking a shit.

He probably has a multi-octave grunt.

With perfect pitch, no doubt!!!

And he would make one grunt into 20 syllables!

Turd vibrato???

[mistiejourney]

"As for his voice , I believe Perry would sound amazing singing with his matured voice of today!"


I second that!

You two think he would sound amazing taking a shit.

He probably has a multi-octave grunt.

With perfect pitch, no doubt!!!

And he would make one grunt into 20 syllables!

That's it. You guys are killing me here!

[scarygirl]

A very well thought out post. Let me cast my vote with the other loons and say, yes, he still has it. His voice is damaged yes, but LOST? HELL NO!

[Carlitto H@kk]

HOLY CRAPOLA!!! I CAN POST!!!
Gosh, its been so long; feels like gettin' to first base for the first time all over again

Anyhoo, I wanted to chime in w/ an opinion on this thought.
Personally, I think Perry's voice could still be in TBF-shape these days, if not better.
Think about it, aside from screamimg his guts out cheering on the Sox a few years back,
it doesn't seem like he's done much to put any wear & tear on his voice. I'm sure he probably
sings in the shower and while driving around... He will never be in '81 form-- NO ONE
could ever be in '81 Perry form!

But the emotion and depth in the TBF recordings is amazing, some of Perry's greatest
vocal performances (even if most of the songs were boring/mediocre).
He could STILL easily draw crowds if he chose to perform, whether it in Vegas
or a small-venue, intimate setting type of tour. His fans would go crazy and enjoy
themselves because HE is performing the music; we wouldn't care if he hit those
highs.

I thought of perry recently too. I was inthe Barber Shop over here and
one of the TCNs (3rd Country Nationals work on base here) put in a new
Lionel Ritchie DVD from a Paris performance. here's a guy that had vocal cord
damage from a knife attack still performing... Sure, he didn't sound as good as
he did in the 70s and 80s, whether it was a Commedores classic or his solo material.
But the sold out crowd WENT ABSOLUTELY NUTS after every song because it was Lionel
singing these songs that he created, songs these fans had grew up onand cherished.

Same goes for Perry and he would get the same kind of fanfare he were to ever give it go...
Here's to always hoping...

[stevew2]

i saw EJ with Bille Joel about 10 years ago,He was really good,then he came out of the closet, and was talking about how how he feel in love with the man he is with now.It grossed me out, When I here him sing now, i think about him sucking a dick.He is a flaming fag,ruined it for me.He said he was gay, fine, dont fucking glorify it

[Foolish Heart]

Yes Carlitto -- I like what you said. Hope you are doing well.