From Deseret News archives:
'Generations' a nice addition
Music notes
The San Francisco-based band, which was an offshoot of Santana, had spent a few years in the jazz-fusion rock style before Herbie Herbert, who was the band's manager at the time, decided to change directions.
The band had already gone through two vocalists, George Tickner and Prarie Prince, and Herbert wasn't happy with new vocalist Robert Fleischman.
That's when he heard Steve Perry.
The singer, who grew up in Fresno, Calif., had a clarity that blew Herbert away. The 1978 album "Infinity" would be Perry's worldwide debut.
For nearly six years, Perry's distinct tenor put a stamp on Journey's sound. Then, in 1984, to fans' dismay Perry left after butting heads with everyone else in the band. He returned in 1996 for a reunion album, and a few months later, he left again — for good.
In 1998, another vocalist, Steve Augeri, joined the Journey machine, and while his voice sounded close to Perry, the new boy was scrutinized by fans — and even the band.
It's now 2005 and Augeri has come into his own. After one album ("Arrival"), and an extended play ("Red 13"), Journey is back with a new full-length release, "Generations."
Augeri sounds confident and attacks the songs with vigor. At times he sounds like his predecessor. At times he's in a world by himself.
What brings the music back to the fans is guitarist Neal Schon's riffs, bassist Ross Valory's foundation and keyboardist Jonathan Cain's harmonic instrumentals. Those three, who are the only members left of the band's heyday line-up in the 1980s, have found balance with drummer Deen Castronovo and Augeri.
The band also reunited with producer Kevin Elson, who produced past Journey albums "Departure," "Captured," "Escape," "Frontiers" and the Japanese soundtrack "Dream after Dream."
Opening the album is the Schon-, Cain- and Augeri-penned "Faith in the Heartland," which zeroes in on the '80s Journey sound. The band's trademark, restless-ballad-of-lost-youth theme comes into view with "A Better Life," written by Schon and Cain, and Augeri went solo to write the empowering "Butterfly (She Flies Alone)."
One nice surprising rocker is the track "In Self-Defence." This double-time jam features Schon on lead vocals and his edgy guitars, Valory's rumbling bass lines and Castronovo's shuffle flair. What's more, the song was written by Schon, Cain and the long-departed Perry.
Two more songs to note are the ZZ Top-like boogie of "Gone Crazy," sung by Valory, and the straight-forward rocker "Never Too Late," sung by Castronovo.
The album is a nice balanced mix of rockers and ballads — something the band had struggled with during its later years. While Journey has had its share of rock-anthem singles — "Wheel in the Sky," "Lovin' Touchin' Squeezin'," "Any Way You Want It" and "Separate Ways (Worlds Apart)," most casual listeners only remember the ballads — "Lights," "Stay Awhile," "Who's Cryin' Now," "Don't Stop Believin'," "Open Arms," "Send Her My Love," "After the Fall," "Faithfully" and "When You Love a Woman."
Although album rock doesn't hold the power it did in the '80s, "Generations" is a nice addition to any Journey fan's collection. If only for Schon's superb guitar work.
E-mail: scott@desnews.com
