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The Band
A (Very) Brief History
Since Journey began in San Francisco in the early
70s, it has gone through many different line-ups. Most people
don't know that when Steve Perry joined the band in 1978, Journey
had already released three albums, with a line-up consisting of
Neal Schon, Gregg Rolie, Aynsley Dunbar, and Ross Valory. Before
Steve joined, Journey's music had a progressive feel to it. In
fact, the band was so progressive, they were told they needed to
get a singer if they were ever to have any amount of commercial
success. Steve's voice and song-writing ability gave Journey
several Top 40 hits, including "Lovin,' Touchin,'
Squeezin'" and "Anyway You Want It." In 1979,
Aynsley left the group and was replaced by Steve Smith, whose
jazz-influenced drumming gave the band a little more kick.
However, when Jonathan Cain joined the
group in 1980, Journey really took flight. Jon co-wrote every
song on 1981's Escape, including the #2 hit, "Open
Arms." As previously noted, Jon is my favorite Journey
member, not only for his looks, but also for his incredible
talent. He is the guy who wrote "Faithfully," the
ballad that summed up the feelings many Journey fans had for the
band. Jon is still a member of Journey, although a few members
have come and gone since Escape, including Steve Smith
and Ross Valory, who left in the mid-80s due to "creative
differences."
The line-up for 1996's Trial By Fire was
the same one that made Escape such a success--Steve
Perry, Jonathan Cain, Neal Schon, Ross Valory, and Steve Smith.
Unfortunately, Steve Perry was injured while on vacation in
Hawaii, so the band never toured like this, which means fans may
never be able to see this line-up perform again. Both of the
Steves were replaced in 1998 with singer Steve Augeri and drummer
Deen Castronovo, and this is the current line-up that performs
around the country and is going to record the new Journey album.
Stay tuned!
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