5th March 2007
Journey Tour Photos!

By concert photographer Marty Moffatt...

www.martymoffatt.com/journey2007newcastle
www.martymoffatt.com/journey2007sheffield

And here...

www.jimrich.co.uk/sheffield

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22th February 2007
2006 Melodicrock Awards!

For full article by Andrew McNeice at www.melodicrock.com, click here!

Listed below are the highlights relating to Jeff Scott Soto. (Check out the last article relating to future plans for Journey!!!)

ALBUM OF THE YEAR 3rd PLACE



Talisman '7'
Heralded as their swansong release, this was also a very important release for Jeff Scott Soto and the band. And they nailed it. Just like Toto, Talisman took elements of their past records and mixed it all into one record, with a couple of fresh new twists for good value. Great songs a fresh vibe and overall, a really consistent record that runs very smoothly start to finish.



The winners of the Top 3 albums Of 2006 (and Andrew!) as drawn by Michael Ward (Wardy).

BEST COMPILATION OR LIVE ALBUM:

1. Honeymoon Suite - Feel It Again (The Anthology)
2. Danger Danger - Live And Nude
3. Foreigner - Live In '05
4. Jeff Scott Soto - The Essential Ballads
5. Scandal - We Are The 80s
6. Whitesnake - Live In The Shadow Of The Blues
7. The Rembrandts - Greatest Hits
8. Treat - Weapons Of Choice
9. Cinderella - Extended Versions (Live)
10. Poison - 25 Years Of Rock (The Best Of...)

Also Talisman were listed in the Song Of The Year category:

4. Talisman - The 1 I'm Living For
23. Talisman - Succumb To My Desire

And in Honorable Mentions:

Talisman - Nowhere Fast
Talisman - Falling
Jeff Scott Soto - Last Mistake

Bassist of the year:
Marcel Jacob (Talisman)
Awarded for some truly superb funk and bass slapping grooves on the Talisman album. He is an underrated talent and the album was made even more special by the fact Marcel also supplied much of the guitar work.


THE BIGGEST STORY OF 2006
(by Andrew McNeice at www.melodicrock.com)

I guess I would have to describe 2006 as featuring the very best experiences I have enjoyed whilst running this site and also the very worst. And to show just what a complex world this is, both experiences revolved around the same band - Journey.

When the controversy surrounding vocalist Steve Augeri's alleged use of backing tapes broke, it was on my message board. There has been talk of this issue for some time previous, long before it broke out early in 2006 - but I never wanted my message boards to be the focal point of the controversy.

Over the years I have allowed the boards to be known as a place where free speech is allowed so long as personal attacks are not made.
But, being that this was such an emotive and complex issue, with so many people very passionate about their respective opinions, it was not long before all hell broke loose and I was caught very much in the middle.

I did my best to allow everyone to have their say, but with two clear and defined points of view being so far apart, the board quickly turned into a nightmare to moderate.

Safe to say that I lost a great deal of time out of my year to that board.

I recall getting messages thanking me for allowing the debate to be conducted; messages demanding that I stop the debate and ban those that mention it; messages that I was being too controlling or not controlling enough; messages claiming that I was part of a conspiracy started by the band to oust their singer (seriously!!); messages claming that I was supporting a fraud by not speaking out about it more and still more....you name it.

The reality was far less exciting. The Journey message board was running rampant and I was left to deal with the mess. That was my role in this - cleaner. Cleaning up the crap left on my board between warring factions of the Journey fanbase.

The whole allegation of tape use was a huge story, except no one was going to go on record about it. Why would they? It was a no win situation.
In the end I made a fairly broad statement outlining the issue on my front page. A lot of people understood where I was coming from. Most did. I was trying to be diplomatic and I tried to force the issue back on the band - pleading for them to make a statement to try and bring the issue and the fanbase to a point where things could move forward....except I knew they would not comment. They will deal with it somewhere down the line, but I expect it will be done so with as few words as possible.

Like I said, most could see where I was coming from and could understand that I was trying to straddle a very thin fence, without falling over into any particular side.

Yet, still some folks demanded that I take a side. Demanded - not asked. Demanded.

Basically I wasn't ever about to cover what was one of the biggest stories I have covered without anyone from anywhere going on record!

Eight dates in to the 2006 US tour with Def Leppard, singer Steve Augeri left the tour with throat/vocal problems and was replaced by Jeff Scott Soto, who as we all know, was made permanent just before the end of the year.

The events of 2006 are well known and have been covered enough, but the problems among the fan base only intensified.

I was left with a choice to heavily moderate the message board or simply do my best to control it and let people have their say - get it off their chests so to speak. I think that we are now already on the path back though. Things since the announcement of JSS as singer, things have been progressively more peaceful and I expect this year to be a far more sedate affair for online fans.

Back to the band though. The Journey legacy has always been a complex affair as there were two distinct factions to their fanbase. Now we have a third. The division caused by the controversies of the past year will take a long time to heal and I'm not sure some will ever forgive what happened. But I also believe that JSS is the man to help heal the divisions.

But for Journey and for me, a lot of good has come from this year also.

Jeff Scott Soto clearly did a stand up job for the guys when asked to join the tour and as his confidence grew, so did the respect from the crowd and the positive reviews of the tour performances - from both fans and critics alike.

Everyone knows JSS and I are buds - a friendship grew from my early coverage of the singer on my site and eventual hook up to bring him to Australia for a tour and his ongoing involvement with Neal Schon - who I originally gave Jeff's phone numbers to.

I was sad to see Steve Augeri leave Journey - yes, I was sad. Why wouldn't I be? I have supported and championed this band and this line-up since my earliest days online and have interviewed Steve a few times and met him in person once. Tremendously nice guy and someone who I have a lot of respect for. No one wants to see a situation like this go down and no one wants to see fans that have devoted their time and hearts to that line-up, upset and despondent.

At the same time I was rapt to see JSS get his big chance - long over due and just so fantastic to see him playing to bigger audience sizes and in turn to see them responding to his stage persona. I'd be thrilled to see Jeff fronting any major band, so much better that it is a band that were already a personal favourite.

That point brings me to the upside of the Journey year - as you all know the band had me as their guest in LA to cover 2 shows and to do interviews with the guys before one of the shows. To bring everything back and present it as a big feature - the first for the new line-up.
To be in LA with the guys was a huge honor and it was of course great to spend some time hanging out with Jeff again.

I put more work into the Journey feature than any other special artist feature before and I was overwhelmed with the response from most towards it.

It definitely set the bar higher for site features (aside from the annual MelRock Awards I think) and I am hoping that I will get the chance to do something similar again in the not too distant future. I also learnt a few things from doing the feature that I will improve upon next time around.

Sadly the feature was not without its own controversies. Obviously dedicated fans of Steve Augeri were hurt by the contents of the band interviews - there was little reference to Steve and some spent considerable time reading stuff into the interviews that in reality really wasn't there at all.

The feature and the interviews was all about moving forward and that was my focus.

Deen Castronovo was the one hit hardest - something which I still fail to understand. Perhaps the written word can look more emotion free in the absence of a one on one or video interview. The fact is that Deen was a great supporter of Steve and those that attacked him for not being sympathetic enough have quickly forgotten that it was Deen that helped Steve though many tough times.
It was Deen who would fill in high notes when requested, it was Deen who took on a few of the ballads to allow Steve time to rest during the lengthy shows and it was Deen that reluctantly stood out front for Steve, when he clearly couldn't go on during that last US show in June.

The criticism of Deen was unwarranted and I hope people realize that. At the time I interviewed him, he had just lost his step father, who he was very close to and had a very emotional family base on and off the phone to him constantly. To be able to concentrate on anything, let alone give a coherent interview and then hit one out of the park on stage is a credit to him.
No one is asking anyone to forget Steve or the events of 2006, but Deen is not the fall guy.

And for that matter - nor am I. After the positives of the feature had died down, it was time for some of the Augeri fan base to have their say and once again I was caught in the crossfire of an angry mob. I don't hold that against anyone, but was very disappointed at some of the comments that came my way. Again, the product of a divided fan base and a number of people unhappy with how things were dealt with by the band and management.

Time heals all wounds and I hope 2007 brings closure to those upset with the events of 2006. No doubt a Steve Augeri solo record and the unearthed second Tall Stories record will go a considerable way to help.


And what of the future plans for Journey?
Andrew McNeice writes...

Journey...yeah, let's get straight to the biggie! You all know that the anticipation and expectation behind a new studio album is going to be huge. In fact, bigger than huge. But we'll have to wait for early 2008 for this I think. First up the band have another idea. This is not yet set in stone, but there is an idea to get together before mid-year and re-record some of the band's classic songs. Yes, you read correctly. 2 new Journey albums in the pipeline if this idea comes to fruition, although at this stage it is not yet guaranteed. As with everything to do with the band's back catalogue of tunes, Steve Perry must first sign off on this idea.
As stated earlier in this feature, the re-recording one's hit songs (especially with a new singer) will trigger debate among fans, but I have heard Jeff record 4 classic Journey tracks in the studio himself and he really sounds fantastic and very much at home, so I have no reason to doubt this record will be amazing and a fresh and interesting alternative to the originals (which obviously will never be replaced or overtaken).
The on to that all-new studio album - the one everyone is waiting for. Will it be released this year? Not if the re-recorded hits album comes together. The new album should be recorded later this year, but will likely be held over for an early 2008 release. We'll know more about this by mid-year.

The fans long for a true classic and the band (with new frontman Jeff Scott Soto) knows they must deliver a classic. I have no doubt this could be the band's best release since the 80s.
I don't want to hear any talk of Soul Sirkus, the guys know what fans want to hear. It will be a true Journey album without doubt.


The entirety of this article has been reproduced with kind permission from Andrew McNeice at www.melodicrock.com!

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21th February 2007
JSS Special Guest At Fantasy Camp!

Jeff was invited up on stage and sang last night at the closing day for this year's Hollywood Rock & Roll Fantasy Camp.

http://www.rockandrollfantasycamp.com

"Spike Edney was one of the camp counselor's this year & invited me out for the jam finale. Onstage playing &/or singing backing vox with me were Spencer Davis, Bruce Kulick (KISS/Union), Mark Slaughter, Kelly Keagy (Nightranger), Spike, Artimus Pyle (Lynyrd Skynyrd), Jane Weidlin (Go-Go's) & singer Patti Russo (Meatloaf) dueting with me on We Will Rock You/We Are The Champions while Paul Stanley & Carmine Appice were watching from the wings."

JSS

Jeff sang Queen's 'We Will Rock You' and 'We Are The Champions'.

A couple of video clips are available on YouTube:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-zXDbW8zBlo

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Uh_SUk8Sypc