Bad English
Journey
During their initial 14 years of existence (1973-1987), Journey altered their musical approach and their personnel extensively while becoming a top touring and recording band. The only constant factor was guitarist Neal Schon (born February 27, 1954), a music prodigy who had been a member of Santana in 1971-1972. The original unit, which was named in a contest on KSAN-FM in San Francisco, featured Schon, bassist Ross Valory, drummer Prairie Prince (replaced by Aynsley Dunbar), and guitarist George Tickner (who left after the first album). Another former Santana member, keyboard player and singer Gregg Rolie, joined shortly afterward. This lineup recorded Journey (1975), the first of three moderate-selling jazz-rock albums given over largely to instrumentals.
By 1977, however, the group decided it needed a strong vocalist/frontman and hired Steve Perry (born January 22, 1949). The results were immediately felt on the fourth album, Infinity (1978), which sold a million copies within a year. (By this time, Dunbar had been replaced by Steve Smith.) Evolution (1979) was similarly successful, as was Departure (after which Rolie was replaced by Jonathan Cain). Following a live album, Captured (1981), Journey released Escape, which broke them through to the top ranks of pop groups by scoring three Top Ten hit singles, all ballads highlighting Perry's smooth tenor: "Who's Crying Now," "Don't Stop Believin'," and "Open Arms." The album topped the charts and sold millions. Frontiers (1983), featuring the hit "Separate Ways," was another big success, after which Perry released a double-platinum solo album, Street Talk (1984). When the group got back together to make a new album, Valory and Smith were no longer in the lineup and Raised on Radio (1986) was made by Schon, Perry, and Cain, who added other musicians for a tour.
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Following the tour, Journey disbanded. Perry went into a prolonged period of seclusion as Schon and Cain formed Bad English with vocalist John Waite. Bad English had several hit singles, including the chart-topper "When I See You Smile," before breaking up. Perry returned to recording in 1994, releasing For the Love of Strange Medicine. Although the album went gold, it was a commercial disappointment by previous standards. In 1996, Perry, Schon, Cain, Valory, and Smith staged a Journey reunion, releasing the million-selling Trial by Fire, which featured the gold-selling Top 20 single "When You Love a Woman," and going on tour. Perry and Smith opted out of the reunion after the tour, but Journey continued, hiring a new lead singer, Steve Augeri (formerly of Tall Stories), and a new drummer, Bad English's Deen Castronovo, who made their debuts on "Remember Me," a track on the 1998 Armageddon soundtrack. The band next reconvened in 2001. Arrival, Journey's 11th new studio album, was released in April, followed by a national tour.
The band received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame on January 21, 2005. That same year they released a new album, Generations, and embarked on their 30th anniversary tour. Shows on the tour stretched over three hours long and were divided into two sets -- one focusing on pre-Escape material, the other on post-Escape material. The archival release Live in Houston 1981: The Escape Tour appeared on both DVD and CD in 2006, the same year that the group brought Jeff Scott Soto aboard as a replacement for Augeri, who developed a throat infection that prevented him from singing. However, Soto's time with the band was limited; in 2007, Journey announced that they had parted ways with the singer and were once again seeking a frontman. They found him in Arnel Pineda, a Filipino vocalist that they discovered after seeing him perform on YouTube. Pineda made his debut with the band in 2008, the same year that Journey released Revelation.
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BAD ENGLISH
Bad English were an American rock band in 1988 formed by Jonathan Cain (keyboards), John Waite (singer) and Ricky Philips (bass). The members decided on a name for the band while playing pool. John Waite missed a shot and Jonathan Cain made a comment on how bad his ‘English’ was (referring to the spin a player puts on the cue ball) and the band decided to use the phrase. Jonathan Cain and guitarist Neal Schon, who had enjoyed huge success in Journey, formed Bad English with Waite after Journey disbanded.
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The first album entitled, ‘Bad English’ was a big seller with hit singles, including the number one power ballad hit ‘When I See You Smile’ written by Diane Warren. The track "Best of What I Got", was featured in the soundtrack to 1989's ‘Tango and Cash’. The album enjoyed platinum status and rocketed the band to the top of the soft rock scene.
The band's second album in 1991, ‘Backlash’ was a flop and did not make much impression. The only single, ‘Straight To Your Heart,’ just missed the Top 40, peaking at number 42. Ricky Phillips claimed that the group had parted company before the second album had been finalized. Both Phillips and Schon expressed frustration with the ‘pop’ side of the band’s songs and wanted a harder edge. In the end, it proved to be the band's undoing as everyone left to pursue other projects.
Waite revealed that although he loved playing to stadium audiences, he was uncomfortable with the corporate rock image that he felt the band had presented and has been a solo artist ever since. The band released a compilation album, ‘The Lost Tapes’ in 2002, however it failed to make any serious impression, as it did not reach the top 40 by a long way.
Bad English drummer Deen Castronovo later went on to join a reformed Journey with singer Steve Augeri, Neal Schon, Jonathan Cain, and Ross Valory. Castrovono also featured on Ozzy Osbourne's album, ‘Ozzmosis’ in 1995.
Discography:
Bad English, 1989
Backlash, 1991
Source: Mathew Jones
This information is provided as a brief overview and not as a definitive guide, there are other sources on the net for that. If however you have a story or information that is not generally known we would love to hear from you. Content@rokpool.com
