If you could ask Neal one question...

[carleysdad]

For kicks and giggles, let's pretend that Neal still looks at this board.

If you had the chance to ask Neal one (1) question, what would it be?

For me, it would be this. Why have you gotten so far away from your melodic guitar playing?

When I listen to Neal's soulful guitar-work on albums like Infinity, Evolution, and Departure, it makes me cringe knowing how much his playing has changed over the years. Heck, even Trial By Fire had some decent axe-work that likened back to the early years (i.e. Easy To Fall), but the crap that he has been putting out lately is just that, crap. I'm so sick of his "shredding" I could scream!

[jrnyman28]

I would love to hear that answer.

I would guess that he equates all the extra notes with "rocking". Neal wants to rock more and started basically "shredding". Problem for is his notes are too blurred. He's doing a lot, playing a lot, but we are not really hearing a lot. I long for a return to the more "vocal" style of playing from the albums of yore. Make it sing, Neal!

[ScarabFan]

I couldn't agree more with the original question. You listen to each of his solo albums and each one gets less melodic and more shredding as they go along. I can barely get through The Calling.

[Ehwmatt]

Trial by Fire has some of Neal's best work IMO if you're looking for that melodic style. You can definitely tell TBF and Beyond the Thunder come from the same era. Great stuff. Even Arrival has its moments (the Higher Place outro solo, the Signs of Life solos). From there, the memorable melodic moments are fewer and farther between, but not completely absent (I always liked the Never Walk Away intro solo, the outro to the Generations version of Faith in the Heartland, Beyond the Clouds, and the intro solo to Anything is Possible, among some others).

At first blush, you'd say it's because Neal has gotten complacent touring and playing so many shows, so he doesn't really practice or think his playing through any more. Hence the mindless shredding. But I think that's as lazy of an answer as his recent playing. Putting Journey's lack of output aside, it's not like Neal hasn't shown a desire to create and write, so I think merely saying that he's gotten lazy or complacent doesn't quite add up.

It's almost like he's just physically bored as a player, even if mentally, he still has that desire to write and create, so he just resorts to the same crap over and over. Maybe he doesn't even realize it. Listen to the random shit he plays in this video: http://www.premierguitar.com/articles/2 ... schon-2014. Pretty telling.

At any rate, I agree that his playing isn't as inspired in recent years.

[tater1977]

Thought I read in an article, not to long ago...that some don't even show up
for soundcheck most times.
But that's because they trust their techs.
The roadie band got to play a lot.

[Journey/Survivor]

On one hand, you can argue that the #1 thing that made Neal's playing so special is his unmatched melodic playing. With that said, I'm glad that Neal did increase the amount of shredding that he's done in more recent years. I hope that he does eventually record another mostly melodic album. But in the meantime, I hope that he continues to shred, especially on his solo albums.

[MysteryMountain]

You can answer this question any way you like, except "because it's what the fans want" ... With that, Why do you continue to play the same songs over & over every single concert every single year, yes, with VERY MINOR exceptions? I would then add: With a catalog like yours dating back so far into the 70s, why on earth do you not revisit the old stuff, especially since the crooner has been gone for so long? The stuff you wrote, loved, and enjoyed before someone, or some people deemed it necessary for you to hire a frontman? Personally, I would love to hear Arnel sing Opened The Door, and you jam, closing a show like you used to with about a 10 minute solo at the end of that song. Seriously - at this point in your career, is it more important, more fun to play one of your hits Vs. one of the songs you actually felt deeply about when you started this band, rather than the money makers written by Jon Cain & Steve Perry?

Yes, lots of heresay, opinion, and personal edits in that, but the question still stands.

Thank you - I will hang up & listen to your response now.

[Arkansas]

One question I've had for a few years now is - When will there be a 'Piranha Blues II'?

NS hints of doing power R&B on the next Journey album, but he should do it himself. That latest spot with Jimmy Barnes is perfect evidence of how good he is at that. And speaking of JB, get different guest artists on PBII. Trade licks with Joe B, or Carlos, even dig up some classic old timers maybe. Get some guest singers in. Make a big deal out of it. Yeah, it could get expensive, if done right it could garner another grammy nom. Who knows.

And I agree with the above posts. Cut back on the shredding. Get back to emotion. Bring some thunder & crunch...something really expansive that just shakes you. Good heavy blues is like making good BBQ - low & slow.


later~

[EightyRock]

I'm remembering a TBF era interview with Kevin Shirley about having to reign Neal in when he went off on a shredding tangents during the recording sessions. I think the Caveman came down on him pretty hard for trying to turn the Journey formula into something else entirely. Maybe somebody else remembers the interview specifics.

[RedWingFan]

Does the Eclipse CD "still have legs"?

[PianoMan1986]

Tough to settle on one question, but something I've missed reflecting on past shows I've been to...

Will Journey ever do another "Evening with..." tour, even if it means smaller venues?

[steveo777]

Why won't you play IBAWY????? Great song and placed at the proper time in the set, I feel people would go nuts, especially since it never gets played anymore. Something tells me that song is not in Arnel's wheel house, at least my gut says so.

[slucero]

"...why did you take a pic of your limp pecker?"

[Journey/Survivor]

Tough to settle on one question, but something I've missed reflecting on past shows I've been to...

Will Journey ever do another "Evening with..." tour, even if it means smaller venues?

Yes, I would love for them to do that again!

[hgwy407]

I think Neal's desire to shred is somehow seeded in his desire to be a respected player by other guitarists. Agree to disagree, but Neal is arguably the worlds most underrated guitarist and I think Neal knows or senses that, hence his move away from vocal, melodic phrasing and playing.

With that said, I would ask Neal when he felt he was at his creative peak as a player....

[Journey/Survivor]

I think Neal's desire to shred is somehow seeded in his desire to be a respected player by other guitarists. Agree to disagree, but Neal is arguably the worlds most underrated guitarist and I think Neal knows or senses that, hence his move away from vocal, melodic phrasing and playing.

With that said, I would ask Neal when he felt he was at his creative peak as a player....

Great post, I agree with everything you said!

[jrnyman28]

good call on Piranha Blues II.

[The_Noble_Cause]

"...why did you take a pic of your limp pecker?"

Why did you click it and make it your desktop wallpaper?

[Aaron]

Now that makes me laugh. What a POS! And still a weak moment for Mac at 100!

Now Somewhere in California ....

Does the Eclipse CD "still have legs"?

[Escape Artist]

I would love to hear that answer.

I would guess that he equates all the extra notes with "rocking". Neal wants to rock more and started basically "shredding". Problem for is his notes are too blurred. He's doing a lot, playing a lot, but we are not really hearing a lot. I long for a return to the more "vocal" style of playing from the albums of yore. Make it sing, Neal!

I agree, I loved the "singing" solos back in the day. Let's go back to that Mr. Schon

[AR]

Why did JSS have to find out his situation from Kevin Cronin overseas instead of you being a man about it and telling him yourself?

[AR]

Why did you lie to me in Boston, MASS at the Marriott saying you had no idea about the tapes and that your vocalist was not in your monitor?

Shall I go on?

Old news of course.

[Ehwmatt]

Why do you insist on playing those awful semi-hollow body PRS guitars? They sound terrible, especially within your genre/style.

[steveo777]

Why do you insist on playing those awful semi-hollow body PRS guitars? They sound terrible, especially within your genre/style.

Agreed. I liked his sound better when he was playing Gibsons.

[The_Noble_Cause]

And still a weak moment for Mac at 100!

How so? You sound disgruntled that Journey put out a killer album and you didn't enjoy it. Tastes are subjective. But don't blame Drew or Schon for *YOU* not getting it. Plenty of fans did. At this point, you sound like the haters around the time of Arrival, who claimed that cd's failure proved the band was washed up. Well, you know what? Arrival was a really good Journey album that didn't sell shit, and so is Eclipse.

[The_Noble_Cause]

I would love to hear that answer.

I would guess that he equates all the extra notes with "rocking". Neal wants to rock more and started basically "shredding". Problem for is his notes are too blurred. He's doing a lot, playing a lot, but we are not really hearing a lot. I long for a return to the more "vocal" style of playing from the albums of yore. Make it sing, Neal!

I agree, I loved the "singing" solos back in the day. Let's go back to that Mr. Schon

I agree with this. If you go on YouTube and watch some of Neal's recent concert solos, many just have me scratching my head. Not melodic at all. When I last saw the band, Joel Hoekstra of Night Ranger (now of Whitesnake), blew Neal off the stage.

[Aaron]

Opinions vary my friend. No hate here just expressing MHO. Eclipse really didn't sound like Journey where Arrival did, that's the deal for me.

And still a weak moment for Mac at 100!

How so? You sound disgruntled that Journey put out a killer album and you didn't enjoy it. Tastes are subjective. But don't blame Drew or Schon for *YOU* not getting it. Plenty of fans did. At this point, you sound like the haters around the time of Arrival, who claimed that cd's failure proved the band was washed up. Well, you know what? Arrival was a really good Journey album that didn't sell shit, and so is Eclipse.

[Aaron]

I agree with you 100% on Joel Hoekstra. I would add that Brad Gillis and Joel BOTH blew Neal off the stage.

Night Ranger are the best current band in America. Their live shows are great, they sound just as good as they did in the day, and their new material is as good or better than their popular material.

I would love to hear that answer.

I would guess that he equates all the extra notes with "rocking". Neal wants to rock more and started basically "shredding". Problem for is his notes are too blurred. He's doing a lot, playing a lot, but we are not really hearing a lot. I long for a return to the more "vocal" style of playing from the albums of yore. Make it sing, Neal!

I agree, I loved the "singing" solos back in the day. Let's go back to that Mr. Schon

I agree with this. If you go on YouTube and watch some of Neal's recent concert solos, many just have me scratching my head. Not melodic at all. When I last saw the band, Joel Hoekstra of Night Ranger (now of Whitesnake), blew Neal off the stage.

[Carlitto H@kk]

"Hey Neal, you got Perry's cell number? Could you text it to me?"