by BlackWall » Thu Jul 13, 2006 4:06 am
It's kind of funny, I was at a Chicago concert a couple of weeks back, and before the show, a girl sitting near us started talking about how great Chicago was going to be, and how much she loved Peter Cetera.. I kind of joked with my friend, and said, she does realize he's not in the band anymore, right? Well, right before it started, she mentioned Cetera again, and my friend actually said something to the fact of him no longer being a part of the group, and she was shocked. She had even seen them in concert a couple of years before, and had just assumed Jason Scheff was Peter Cetera.
My point being that these types of fans are the majority at concerts.. This is how bands like Journey, Styx, Foreigner, and yes, even Chicago keep rolling. In Chicago's case, at least Scheff has been at it for 21 years, and has had a couple of big hits with them as lead vocalist(not that they actually play anything beyond 1982). In fact, he's been in the band now a couple of years longer than Cetera was. Now, personally, even if I'm not a diehard fan of a band, when I go to a concert, I still like to know who does what, and at least a little bit of info about the group, but that's just me.
For me, I think it depends on how much influence the person had in the band, and the reason for their departure, as to whether I can accept a replacement. In the case of Styx, Dennis had a huge influence, and I still think his departure is a major loss, but Shaw also had some decent influence, and I still feel that a split was probably kind of inevitable. if I need to see Dennis, I can still go to a solo show, so I'm willing to accept both camps. I actually think the solo thing has allowed both sides to develop a little more, but a DeYoung concert is definitely a more rewarding experience, hands down.
For Journey, I'm not that big of a fan in the first place(so don't take anything I say too seriously), but I think it's fair that they keep going. I'm not 100%, but didn't Perry want out? I think whenever a band member wants out, and there are still other key members(Schon, Cain), then why not keep at it? I do think losing Perry was a blow to the band, simply because his vocals were a huge part of Journey's sound, but he wanted out, and while he played a part(a huge part)in their commercial period, it could be argued that he wasn't actually even an original member. As for the latest Steve, I feel for him, especially because it sounds like it wasn't his choice, but again, they still have the other key members, and only recorded what, two albums with him?
As far as Foreigner, I might be seeing them at a future Dennis show, but I don't think I'll ever be able to accept someone other than Lou doing their vox. Foreigner never really had other key members, outside of Mick Jones, and Lou did all the vocals, helped compose songs, and his health is the reason why he can no longer tour.. I think people sometimes take for granted the fact that the voice of a lead vocalist is like an instrument in of itself.
Last edited by
BlackWall on Thu Jul 13, 2006 5:58 am, edited 1 time in total.
