Brian May on Journey - could appy to Styx or any other band

[styxfanNH]

This was on the Journey board from Brian May, but it could easily be applied to Styx

From Brian May's site - http://www.brianmay.com/whatsnew.html

**Thu 14 Jun 07**
MOVED TO WRITE - ASTROPHYSICS AND JEFF SCOTT SOTO

Well, folks, it's been a long time ... I'm sorry ... I have just been submerged in Astrophysics. When I re-signed for that PhD which I had put on ice over 30 years ago, I had no idea it would so utterly consume a year of my life. At first it was just my own private journey back into my old hand-written notes, but once Prof Michael Rowan-Robinson offered to be my Supervisor, a whole world opened up, ready to engulf me. This was a dream opportunity for me ... taken on board by the Head of Astrophysics at Imperial College, not only one of the most prestigious in the world, but the college where I had begun the Doctorate back in 1970. But Imperial College is also the most academically demanding scientific college in Britain, and it was not going to be an easy ride. I'll write more about all this soon, if you folks out there are interested, but my silence about it on this site was originally a choice, because I didn't want a glare of publicity affecting my work or that of my colleagues. Only from about three months ago did I realise that to achieve the "Gold Standard" which I needed to reach for, everything had to go. So I went back to my old habits of working obsessively all through most nights, but ALL on the thesis. There was no other way. So I ask forgiveness from my friends, my family, all you folks out there, and ... Music. I have been on a long and difficult journey. Many times I felt I wanted to quit - but like the guy in the "Alps" film, somehow I have been doing this for my Dad as well as me. Well, that's another story, but I have certainly been 'driven'. The end is in sight now, and I hope I'll be able to resume a lot more contact ..... but gradually !! I'm not there yet.

I was actually moved to write a new page tonight [early hours of 14 June], by thinking about our great pal, Jeff Scott Soto. Many of you have been writing to me about the shock of seeing him suddenly erased from the Journey website, as if he had never existed. It's a strange place that I view this from. Journey are, in a way, in a very similar position to ourselves. They have a legacy of hits which people will always want to hear played live. And their singer all through their Golden Age can no longer perform with them (Steve Perry, a truly luminous singer, in my opinion - a voice in a million). So the Journey guys (I wrote about them just a couple of months ago when they visited - Neal Schon is a fabulous player and an esteemed friend of mine) have a similarly difficult and maddeningly set of options to juggle.

Option 1: They (or we) throw in the towel and say, "It can never be as good, so let's put on our carpet slippers and live off the past". In other words, it's over, and all the talent and experience now goes for nothing. (Some 'fans' actually ask for this, unable to let the artists move on.)

Option 2: They go out on tour with a 'replacement' for the legendary singer - someone who looks and sounds like Steve Perry; in this case they find themselves in a stale situation, where they are stuck in the past. I was always against this in our case - I could not stand being a fossil, going out there and effectively saying, "We can't improve on what is past - we have nothing more to say".

Option 3: They forget the name "Journey" and start from scratch with a new line-up and a new 'image'. I know the Journey guys have been some way down that road. It's brave, but it's very unrewarding, because you tend to end up disappointing all the people who grew to love the old band, and effectively you are turning your back on everything you spent half your life building. Most times you end up playing the old hits anyway ... because why would you not want to play your own music?!

Options 4: They find a singer with something NEW to offer, a new foil, someone who has a musical world of his own, and is worth arguing with! Even someone who can steal some of the limelight. This is what I have LOVED, working with our wonderful colleague, Paul Rodgers - yes, we can play the old stuff, and yes we can be, in a sense, a continuation of Queen, but everything is new - the sky is the limit - because, like in the Old Days, we are working with a brilliant creator, we are sharing a new creative process, feeding off each other's ideas - experimenting, growing. This is what excites me, at the age of ...oh, forget it!!! ha ha ....

When I saw Journey this year, live in London, I felt excited, because I felt they had taken Option 4 by the horns. Knowing Jeff, I knew that he had jumped in without a parachute - he turned around the whole direction of his life, not only into being a worthy part of a great band, but pushing ahead, experimenting, looking for ways to be new, within the framework. I was truly astounded by his range, power, and interpretations, and his contact with the audience. The band looked energised - even dangerous. How cool.

Well, now we get a shock. I know in my heart Jeff would never have walked out on this - he is way too loyal. It saddens me that he seems to been shed like a used pair of boots. Those boots sure covered some good ground. You know, for all the reasons above, it's understandable that Journey might decide to make a U-turn. I just hope that they will be man enough to say so if this is the case, rather than hiding behind some kind of pretence that it was a mutual decision. That's an integrity thing, and a Karma thing. You have to own yer own poo. And I hope they will see fit to recognise Jeff's lasting contribution to the Family, and realise that he deserves to be treated with respect. And ... I desperately hope they don't go down that other road: Journey is worth a whole lot more than Option 2.

Well, folks, I'm back!!

cheers
Bri

[stabbim]

Not for the first time, I genuflect toward the Greatness that is Brain May. Right on.

Thanks very much for posting that, NH.

[bugsymalone]

A wonderful analysis of all sides of this issue. And yes, it does have a broader context. Thanks for posting that one, NH.

Bugsy