A Rock & Roll Masterclass
Last night we were invited to see legends of Rock & Roll, Journey, at the Denny Sanford Premier Center in Sioux Falls, South Dakota. An invitation we were happy to accept and an evening of music we will never forget.
Few bands have had the kind of career success through five decades that Journey has sustained and even fewer are still actively touring at this point in their careers. This band has not only survived but has maintained cultural relevance over that span of time. It was evident looking at a cross section of the crowd last night that fans from every generation were just as excited as us to be there and watch them perform their hits on this the Final Frontier. Our seats were incredible and I need to send a massive thank you to the tour for providing this kind of experience for my wife and I.
As a musician it is impossible to not be in awe of the amount of skill and talent this band put on stage throughout the decades with last nights lineup being no different. I believe evolution is necessary in regards to the longevity of massive musical acts like Journey but sometimes change is hard to accept. At the highest peaks of the band's history it was long time front man Steve Perry who's voice captivated us all on those iconic records but for much of the last two decades it has been the voice of Arnel Pineda that has carried thousands of fans through the band's catalog of hits. The singing duties are spread around though with drummer Deen Castronovo, keyboardist Jonathan Cain, and second keyboardist Jason Derlatka, all stepping in to sing lead vocals during the show and each an incredible vocalist in their own right.
The band amazed the crowd with an incredible 2.5 hour non stop set that included all the favorites with the last five songs being some of the biggest rock songs ever written. The crowd sang along to every word of "Don't Stop Believin'" at the top of their lungs with fans born in the 60's to the early 2000's all sharing in the experience equally. The music was perfect all night with the band never missing a note including the original guitarist, founder of the band Neal Schon, who shredded through the night with that unmistakable tone that set the band apart from all the rest of the giants of the era. Every note sounded like it was right off the record itself but there was plenty of improvisation to prove that this was no backing track, this was real music played by some of the most amazing musicians I have ever seen live. Bassist Todd Jensen remained steady and true while providing plenty of back up vocals during the set and along with Deen set the stage for the soaring guitar solos. There was pyrotechnics, confetti in the sky, and smiles all around the stadium as the band covered all the hits from over 50 years of making music.
If you find yourself close to one of the remaining tour dates on the Final Frontier take the opportunity to go enjoy this amazing act one last time before the lights go down forever.
Find tour dates and ticket info using this link https://journeymusic.com/pages/tour
