Meet Neal Schon, Michaele Salahi's other man

[tater1977]

Meet Neal Schon, Michaele Salahi's other man

Before White House party crashers Tareq and Michaele Salahi went their separate ways, before Michaele walked into Neal Schon's open arms — before Schon became the Other Man in the latest Salahi scandal — Journey's lead guitarist was known for making music, not headlines.

http://www.usatoday.com/life/people/sto ... 50514796/1

By Olivia Barker and Elysa Gardner, USA TODAY




Journey guitarist Neal Schon finds himself back in the spotlight thanks to his new girlfriend, 'Real Housewives of DC' and White House party crasher, Michaele Salahi.....


Last week, after Michaele Salahi was reported missing by her husband, she turned up on tour with Schon, her boyfriend from the late '90s. (Just last night, the new couple was snapped smooching backstage at a Journey show in San Antonio.) Schon called the reunion a "fairy tale." Tareq Salahi called himself "blindsided." He filed for divorce.

The hair may be shorter and the trousers a tad less tight, but Schon, 57 — the only founding member to perform on every album, according to his website — is still cranking out arena rock to sold-out crowds. (Before that, Schon played in Santana.) In November, the band, now fronted by Arnel Pineda — Steve Perry and Journey went their own separate ways in 1998 — will release Greatest Hits Volume 2, featuring singles, album tracks and rarities from 1978 to 1996. (Remember Stone In Love? Still They Ride? A lot of biggies were on the first volume, of course.)

Salahi's new beau is generous: While on the road, Schon has been giving away a new Paul Reed Smith SE guitar (his signature brand) that he personalizes before the concert. After the set, he has a security guard bring up an audience member and hands it over during the encore song, Any Way You Want It, encouraging the fans to play, or sing, along.

Schon wasn't born and raised in south Detroit but at Tinker Air Force Base near Oklahoma City and then San Francisco, which remains his home base. (His parents were musicians.)

His marital history is a bit murkier. There's debate about whether his union two months ago with 1986 Playboy Playmate Ava Fabian is legally binding (he refused to talk about her to Diane Dimond, who interviewed Schon and Salahi for The Daily Beast). E! News tallies his trips down the aisle at four, including with Amber Kozan, a Michaele look-alike who split from Schon in 2008 after seven years and one child together, Aja, 9, a dead ringer for her dad.

On Kozan's MySpace page, there's a picture of Aja strumming an acoustic guitar. Maybe she'll follow in the fret-steps of big (half-) brother Miles, a guitarist who has jammed with his dad Schon onstage. It's unclear who his mother is.

[tater1977]

They need to leave the kids out of this...

[steveo777]

They need to leave the kids out of this...

Ditto!

[perryswoman]

sickening. People are posting lots of ugly things on his musician facebook page. Of course his real facebook is down. What a surprise

[Rick]

Someone, I think Argus posted a real life article about all of this. It should be read before passing judgement. I'm too tired to look it up.

[slucero]

Someone, I think Argus posted a real life article about all of this. It should be read before passing judgement. I'm too tired to look it up.

Neal's entitled to his love life... and for the most part he's kept it private... till now...


Mrs. Salahi's morale character aside... I think most folks are more disgusted with how they got together, not so much who he's with...

[Rick]

Someone, I think Argus posted a real life article about all of this. It should be read before passing judgement. I'm too tired to look it up.

Neal's entitled to his love life... and for the most part he's kept it private... till now...


Mrs. Salahi's morale character aside... I think most folks are more disgusted with how they got together, not so much who he's with...

The real life story explains a lot about that. There is a woman who is/was writing a book about the Salahis, and apparently, Tareq, is a miserable bastard to live with. Micheale or however you spell it, and Neal were together years ago, she dated him and Tareq pretty much at the same time. She has MS and decided that life on the road with Neal would not bode well with her condition, so she went with Tareq. His empire, if he ever had one, is collapsing to the point that their cell phone have been disconnected and so forth. So she decided to jump ship and go with Neal, who, as she said the the aforementioned biographer, has been the love of her life, for a long time.

[Don]

Someone, I think Argus posted a real life article about all of this. It should be read before passing judgement. I'm too tired to look it up.

Neal's entitled to his love life... and for the most part he's kept it private... till now...


Mrs. Salahi's morale character aside... I think most folks are more disgusted with how they got together, not so much who he's with...

The real life story explains a lot about that. There is a woman who is/was writing a book about the Salahis, and apparently, Tareq, is a miserable bastard to live with. Micheale or however you spell it, and Neal were together years ago, she dated him and Tareq pretty much at the same time. She has MS and decided that life on the road with Neal would not bode well with her condition, so she went with Tareq. His empire, if he ever had one, is collapsing to the point that their cell phone have been disconnected and so forth. So she decided to jump ship and go with Neal, who, as she said the the aforementioned biographer, has been the love of her life, for a long time.

You might want to check into the chic writing the book, she lives for this garbage. I'm sure Toe-rag is an asshole but I'd want to hear both sides of the story first.

[Rick]

Someone, I think Argus posted a real life article about all of this. It should be read before passing judgement. I'm too tired to look it up.

Neal's entitled to his love life... and for the most part he's kept it private... till now...


Mrs. Salahi's morale character aside... I think most folks are more disgusted with how they got together, not so much who he's with...

The real life story explains a lot about that. There is a woman who is/was writing a book about the Salahis, and apparently, Tareq, is a miserable bastard to live with. Micheale or however you spell it, and Neal were together years ago, she dated him and Tareq pretty much at the same time. She has MS and decided that life on the road with Neal would not bode well with her condition, so she went with Tareq. His empire, if he ever had one, is collapsing to the point that their cell phone have been disconnected and so forth. So she decided to jump ship and go with Neal, who, as she said the the aforementioned biographer, has been the love of her life, for a long time.

You might want to check into the chic writing the book, she lives for this garbage. I'm sure Toe-rag is an asshole but I'd want to hear both sides of the story first.

I laughed so hard at this that Debbie and Neelee came in here to see what I was laughing at. They don't get it.

[Saint John]

I'd want to hear both sides of the story first.

Don, that's not how we roll around here!

[Don]

That woman has no ass.

[perryswoman]

She dumped hubby cause he was broke!!! That's how she rolls

[StevePerryHair]

That woman has no ass.

Yes she does... she's kissing him

[portland]

That woman has no ass.

Yes she does... she's kissing him

[Rick]

That woman has no ass.

That's a deal killer for me.

[tater1977]

That woman has no ass.

Yes she does... she's kissing him

[slucero]

Someone, I think Argus posted a real life article about all of this. It should be read before passing judgement. I'm too tired to look it up.

Neal's entitled to his love life... and for the most part he's kept it private... till now...


Mrs. Salahi's morale character aside... I think most folks are more disgusted with how they got together, not so much who he's with...

The real life story explains a lot about that. There is a woman who is/was writing a book about the Salahis, and apparently, Tareq, is a miserable bastard to live with. Micheale or however you spell it, and Neal were together years ago, she dated him and Tareq pretty much at the same time. She has MS and decided that life on the road with Neal would not bode well with her condition, so she went with Tareq. His empire, if he ever had one, is collapsing to the point that their cell phone have been disconnected and so forth. So she decided to jump ship and go with Neal, who, as she said the the aforementioned biographer, has been the love of her life, for a long time.

I read the story... and it boggles my mind that Neal would put his family, and bandmates through this bullshit... if he loves this woman he could have quietly paid for her to divorce Toe-rag... and put her up in a hotel until it was done.. then they could have gotten together privately then taken it public at the appropriate time..

But lady is a famewhore... nuff' said.

[JohnH]

That woman has no ass.

Oh my god, what's with white chicks and the no ass thing? I remember a gig in Orange County a few years back, all white chicks there and it was a total no ass night. I like latins, I'd rather have no tits and an ass then the other way around. Seriously, some of these chicks, they just have legs that end and that's it.

[Argus]

I bet The Girl Can't Help It [perfect song for them]

[Greg]

Someone, I think Argus posted a real life article about all of this. It should be read before passing judgement. I'm too tired to look it up.

Neal's entitled to his love life... and for the most part he's kept it private... till now...


Mrs. Salahi's morale character aside... I think most folks are more disgusted with how they got together, not so much who he's with...

The real life story explains a lot about that. There is a woman who is/was writing a book about the Salahis, and apparently, Tareq, is a miserable bastard to live with. Micheale or however you spell it, and Neal were together years ago, she dated him and Tareq pretty much at the same time. She has MS and decided that life on the road with Neal would not bode well with her condition, so she went with Tareq. His empire, if he ever had one, is collapsing to the point that their cell phone have been disconnected and so forth. So she decided to jump ship and go with Neal, who, as she said the the aforementioned biographer, has been the love of her life, for a long time.

I read the story... and it boggles my mind that Neal would put his family, and bandmates through this bullshit... if he loves this woman he could have quietly paid for her to divorce Toe-rag... and put her up in a hotel until it was done.. then they could have gotten together privately then taken it public at the appropriate time..

But lady is a famewhore... nuff' said.

I agree! Look, Neal can be with whoever he wants to be with, whenever he wants to be (wow, this is starting to sound like the "crack the stone" line from Perry) but I think allowing all of this stuff to be front page news, along with dragging the band into it, is just not good for Journey. But, for the love of everything Neal Schon, we fans better not talk about this, otherwise we're going to be labeled as "singer stalkers".

[Art Vandelay]

Just a silly theory, as I really don't care...but any chance this is just another way for Schon to garner the attention that Eclipse has failed to produce? In my eyes, the band is nothing more than media whores who look for whatever other avenues (other than playing the dirty dozen) to stay in the public eye. Schon has tried over and over again to break away from the classic Journey mold, and has time and again failed. Arnel's cinderella story got them on Oprah, Ellen and featured on other news feeds, but that well is now dry.

Ok, let the lashings begin....

[Saint John]

Just a silly theory, as I really don't care...but any chance this is just another way for Schon to garner the attention that Eclipse has failed to produce?

This is very possible. But there's 2 problems with it. First, it's far too late to successfully be promoting an album. They had their window and they blew it. Besides, it's priced so wrong and such an aesthetically poor package that it's just not gonna sell a lot.

[Deb]

Just a silly theory, as I really don't care...but any chance this is just another way for Schon to garner the attention that Eclipse has failed to produce?

This is very possible. But there's 2 problems with it. First, it's far too late to successfully be promoting an album. They had their window and they blew it. Besides, it's priced so wrong and such an aesthetically poor package that it's just not gonna sell a lot.

You're stretching there. I can't see that having anything or extremely little to do with it. IMO, most people, me included, if they like the music/band, don't really care what the cd is wrapped in. People are going to buy it for the name and/or the music. If I like the music, I wouldn't care less if it's wrapped in a garbage bag.

[Jubilee]

Just a silly theory, as I really don't care...but any chance this is just another way for Schon to garner the attention that Eclipse has failed to produce?

This is very possible. But there's 2 problems with it. First, it's far too late to successfully be promoting an album. They had their window and they blew it. Besides, it's priced so wrong and such an aesthetically poor package that it's just not gonna sell a lot.

You're stretching there. IMO I can't see that having anything or extremely little to do with it. I think most people, me included, if they like the music/band, don't care what the cd is wrapped in. If I like the music, I wouldn't care less if it's wrapped in a garbage bag.

Strangely, I have to agree with SJ on this one. Yeah, you can wrap your new CD in garbage bag if you're high-profile act. But considering there was little to no promotion prior to the release of the new CD, and precious little afterward, they seem to have been solely relying on word of mouth within the already established hardcore fan base to carry sales. Prior to this Journey album covers have always been eye-catching. This thing looks like a colored pencil drawing on a matchbook. Nothing to draw the eye or pique the curiosity of passers by who may not (or probably were not) aware there even was a new Journey CD.

[brywool]

It'd be interesting to know if sales of Eclipse have changed since this whole thing.

The whole deal is so silly.

[Art Vandelay]

With the rumors that a reality show about this is being shopped around by Michaele, I find this video she posted interesting. Even more intriguing is what she put in the description area under the video:

It was fun and loved it! Stay tuned for more information about my next upcoming television project!

This was just posted in April of this year. RHODC wasn't coming back and she already had something in mind to get back on tv. Hmmmmm.....

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3En5R_CZ6ac&feature=related

Rumor has it that Graham Dent is directing the new show, and it opens up with fanfare of trumpets in the balcony and Neal dressed as Camelot on the top of a staircase. 'Pure Shakespeare!'

[Deb]

Rumor has it that Graham Dent is directing the new show, and it opens up with fanfare of trumpets in the balcony and Neal dressed as Camelot on the top of a staircase. 'Pure Shakespeare!'

LOL....good one!

[Saint John]

Just a silly theory, as I really don't care...but any chance this is just another way for Schon to garner the attention that Eclipse has failed to produce?

This is very possible. But there's 2 problems with it. First, it's far too late to successfully be promoting an album. They had their window and they blew it. Besides, it's priced so wrong and such an aesthetically poor package that it's just not gonna sell a lot.

You're stretching there. I can't see that having anything or extremely little to do with it. IMO, most people, me included, if they like the music/band, don't really care what the cd is wrapped in. People are going to buy it for the name and/or the music. If I like the music, I wouldn't care less if it's wrapped in a garbage bag.

All valid points. My main point was that, as an impulse buy, it's just going to be something you glance right over. It looks like a $5 product, but has a $10 price tag. Not a good combination for those impulse buyers.

[Deb]

Just a silly theory, as I really don't care...but any chance this is just another way for Schon to garner the attention that Eclipse has failed to produce?

This is very possible. But there's 2 problems with it. First, it's far too late to successfully be promoting an album. They had their window and they blew it. Besides, it's priced so wrong and such an aesthetically poor package that it's just not gonna sell a lot.

You're stretching there. I can't see that having anything or extremely little to do with it. IMO, most people, me included, if they like the music/band, don't really care what the cd is wrapped in. People are going to buy it for the name and/or the music. If I like the music, I wouldn't care less if it's wrapped in a garbage bag.

All valid points. My main point was that, as an impulse buy, it's just going to be something you glance right over. It looks like a $5 product, but has a $10 price tag. Not a good combination for those impulse buyers.

Now that I think about it......one of the highest selling albums I bought back in the 80s, the album cover WAS a wet garbage bag...........

[Don]

It'd be interesting to know if sales of Eclipse have changed since this whole thing.

The whole deal is so silly.

No sales surge or anything like that, Eclipse continues to sell less than half a thousand copies a week as has been the case for awhile. The Greatest Hits dropped below 4,000 sales a week also.