June 26, 2008
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Watching one of the morning programs, they told the tale of how the new frontman for Journey came to be. A tribute/cover singer from the Phillipines, Arnel Pineda had a huge following on YouTube doing his thang - singing, among other things - Journey songs. The guys from Journey heard about him and had to check it out. Looking for a new frontman, they were wowwed by the video. But the challenge came in locating Arnel. Apparently sparing no expense, they eventually found Arnel and had him flown to the states to audition. End result, Arnel is now the lead singer/frontman for the latest version of the band. (Yes, I know there was another one inbetween, but he wasn’t memorable, at least not to me.)
While I’m thrilled to see Journey live on, I’m also tainted in that there is no imitation better than the real thang. There’s nobody who can sing Steve Perry songs better than Steve Perry. They can try, and they may even come close. But, as they say - close only counts in horseshoes and hand grenades. For comparison and proof, I offer up the following live performances. While audio and video is not the best, the live vocals are still, at a minimum - remarkable (there were better versions but these were the only ones that could be embedded).
Send Her My Love - Steve Perry 1983:
Steve Perry Faithfully - 1983:
and the new version with the new frontman, Arnel Pineda, 2008:
Sound off. What do you think?
P.S. Here’s an audio clip to further whet your appetite.
~dKaye
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Tags: reels and squeals, rock and roll music, waxing nostalgic.
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When Arnel’s able to claim ownership of his OWN original hit songs in his repertoire with the band, then I’ll give him the accolades he deserves. Until then, if he continues to sing the Perry cover tunes, then he’s only as good as the next karaoke singer that comes along. Arnel’s a good imitation - but still doesn’t meet or surpass the original.