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Chris hemsworth makes surprise appearance at ed sheeran’s concert in romania, journey members neal schon and jonathan cain ask judge to resolve corporate and musical differences.

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Journey founder and lead guitarist Neal Schon and longtime keyboardist/guitarist Jonathan Cain are asking a Delaware judge to resolve a business deadlock.

According to court filings, Schon is president of Freedom 2020, a company formed three years ago to oversee tour-related finances. He and Cain each hold a 50% stake in the company.

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“It is in crisis,” Liebesman said. “The damage is taking place during the tour.”

Liebesman alleged that Schon is wasting company assets and believes that, as president of Freedom 2020, “he can do whatever he wants.”

“It is his self-interest that is driving his decision-making,” Liebesman said.

In a court filing Monday, Schon’s attorneys claimed many of Cain’s allegations have no basis.

“Petitioner’s allegations that the company faces imminent irreparable harm from a purported inability of the company to meet its financial obligations has no basis in fact,” according to Schon’s attorneys, who will file a more complete response to Cain’s petition on Monday.

“Our client denies that there’s been any mismanagement,” Schon’s attorney Jack Yoskowitz told Laster. He said that any dysfunction has been caused by Cain acting in his own self-interest, including making allegations to the press that harm the band.

Cain’s attorneys say a quick resolution is needed because it’s become “a very much public battle” that also has created a “toxic internal environment” during the tour.

“Rather than focusing on the band’s performances during a major international tour, the band’s business manager, lead vocalist and crew members now find themselves caught in the middle of the directors’ disputes, afraid of performing their job responsibilities, and pressured to align with one director or another,” they wrote.

“Indeed, the band has lost multiple members of its crew because of such tensions over the past several months,” they wrote, adding that the company’s new business manager, its seventh, was hired two months ago.

Cain blames Schon’s taking $1.5 million advance from promoter AEG to cover tour expenses, despite Cain’s request for a more modest advance of $500,000. He also accuses Schon of “exorbitant and wasteful spending” on hotels and airfare for band and crew members, saying Schon ignored the company limit of $1,500 per night for hotel accommodations while spending up to $10,000 per night for hotel rooms for him and his wife.

Cain also alleges that Schon has used the company credit card for personal expenses and incurred hundreds of thousands of dollars in costs for private jets for himself, his wife, and various crew members.

The dispute also includes creative differences, including Schon’s selection of a substitute drummer for a Toronto performance last week, and whether Cain should play rhythm guitar during performances of the 1978 song, “Wheel in the Sky.”

“Even if that decision were within the scope of Freedom 2020’s business, which seems highly doubtful, matters of song arrangement are objectively not a type of disagreement that threatens the company with irreparable harm,” Schon’s attorneys wrote.

Associated Press contributed to this report.

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‘Don’t Stop Believin”: Journey Marks 50 Years With Summer Stadium Tour

Neal Schon and Jonathan Cain reflect on the band five decades later and discuss the co-billed trek with Def Leppard, which began July 6.

By Gary Graff

The path to 50 has not always been easy for Journey, whose members have been celebrating the milestone on the road, including a summer stadium tour with Def Leppard.

Over the decades, there has been rancor amid the music, lineup changes and lawsuits, periods of uncertainty and open-ended hiatus.

And yet the wheel — in the sky and elsewhere — keeps on turning for the group whose first show, at San Francisco’s Winterland Ballroom, ushered in 1974.

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The band has notched 18 top 40 singles on the Billboard Hot 100 , and one would be hard pressed to attend a sporting event where the 1981 hit “Don’t Stop Believin’ ” (also famously played in the finale episode of The Sopranos ) isn’t piped over the PA.

Given those accomplishments, Journey’s induction into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame in 2017 was long overdue.

Meanwhile, since the end of the pandemic, the act’s current lineup — including co-founding guitarist Neal Schon, longtime keyboardist-guitarist Jonathan Cain and, since 2007, Filipino frontman Arnel Pineda (whom Schon discovered on YouTube) — has been headlining arenas. And its summer stadium tour, which began July 6 at Busch Stadium in St. Louis, reprises its 2018 bill with Def Leppard.

“They’ve sold out every ticket everywhere we go — it’s kind of crazy, and well-deserved,” says Jeff Frasco, Journey’s agent at Creative Artists Agency. “The songs are amazing; people want to hear them. Combine that with putting on a great show, and it’s great. They give people their money’s worth.”

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All of that has somewhat mitigated the rancor of the past decade, which has included legal skirmishes that led to management changes and the departure of original bassist Ross Valory and longtime drummer Steve Smith, as well as trademark disputes with Steve Perry, singer of the band’s biggest hits. Schon and Cain have gone at each other, too, in well-reported conflicts over business issues that spilled into social media, most recently in 2023.

The good news, according to drummer Deen Castronovo — who played with Schon and Cain in the late-1980s group Bad English — is that “everybody has mended fences,” he says. “They’ve made amends and we’re all on one jet again, and it’s all for one and one for all.”

Clearly, “Don’t Stop Believin’ ” seems to be not just a song title, but an ethos for the band.

Fifty years is a big milestone for any act. What has kept Journey around and active — and successful — for this long?

Neal Schon: Well, it all started with the songs themselves, and I think we got some things right a long time ago and continue to bring it live. We made our statements and continued to move forward in writing new music.

Jonathan Cain: It’s something you respect and you’re grateful for; that’s how I feel about it. For me, it’s 44 years, and I’ve always felt like it was the highest honor to join such a prestigious band and then to be able to contribute and take it to another level.

Schon: Our fans are so loyal to us, and we have young fans now whose parents were fans of ours and now they have their own kids who are coming to the concerts, too, and they love the music. Bands usually disband because they stop growing, but we keep growing and getting new fans. That keeps it alive.

Take us back to Journey day one.

Schon: I had just come out of Santana and almost formed a band with Greg Errico and Larry Graham from Sly & The Family Stone. Then Herbie Herbert approached me; he was my guitar tech [in Santana] and he said, “Look, I’m starting a management firm. I want to manage you and wrap a band around you.” I was definitely looking for something to do. Herbie and I had always gotten along and he believed in me, and it just went from there.

Journey has been through a lot of changes — 18 members, give or take — and some major shifts, like when Steve Perry joined in 1977, or Cain in 1980, or Arnel Pineda in 2007. How has the group been able to navigate those changes and remain a draw?

Schon: I think the creativity. Any new person in a band brings out a different side in the chemistry in a band. We definitely had that chemistry between the three of us — me, Jonathan and Perry — in the old band, and we’ve shown signs as well in the [current] band.

Cain: The music’s bigger than [the band members]. Journey has always connected with the audience. It really comes down to the integrity of the songs and the message. It was positive music — which [critics] loved to hate. ( Laughs .) A song like “Don’t Stop Believin’ ” has a huge connection because there are a lot of small-town girls and city boys wanting to get on the midnight train to anywhere. We worked hard to write songs [for the fans] about their lives.

It’s no secret there has been a lot of drama, especially over the past few years. You two seemed to be at each other’s throats and yet managed to pull it back from the brink. How?

Cain: Just looking at the big picture: The music is louder than the noise of the grumbling and the arguments and the disagreements and stuff. The show must go on, right? It’s just the drive of knowing that there are fans out there that don’t care about our differences but care that we show up and play for them. They care that we carry on, so we’ve got to put aside our differences for them.

Schon: The one thing I can tell you is Journey is everything to me. Journey comes first, and I’m going to do anything I need to do to prevail and make sure that ship does not go down. You have to forgive and you have to move forward. We’ve chosen to do that.

The band is managing itself these days, right?

Schon: Yes. It’s like myself, my wife, Jonathan and his wife. It comes down to how much you understand what your situation is about. I would tell a young player, “Get involved in [the business]. Know what’s going down with the contracts, understand it, trademark yourself. If something shady comes by, know what question to ask.” It took a long time to learn all that, but I’m happy we have.

If you could only have one album to hand to someone as a representation of Journey — and not Greatest Hits — what would you choose?

Schon: Infinity [released in 1978]. To this day, that’s one of my favorite records. There are many bigger records, although that was no slouch of a record, and musically it’s very, very creative. We did an amazing job of turning that corner, of keeping some of the past and moving forward into the future with Steve on board and everything. It was like a new era for us.

Cain: I’d have to say Escape . That’s our biggest record, and there was no accident it was. It still sounds fresh and it connects with people. I think the chemistry between all of us at the time, we were just a good, good band. We were on fire, young dudes with a mission.

You put out Freedom in 2022, which was your first new studio album in 11 years. Will there be another?

Cain: A single here, a single there. I’ve just written a new song; hopefully we can get it out there. Albums don’t really matter much anymore. You have to accept reality and adapt to it. Fortunately, I’ve got a lot of albums under my belt. I’m just happy the catalog is continuing to cook along.

Schon: I continue to be creative; we all do. We recorded [ Freedom and] we recorded way more than what ended up on the album, a lot of great stuff that wasn’t used, so there is some stuff like that. But the business now is really about live performances and about whatever you can do with merchandise.

Speaking of live, you’re out this summer again with Def Leppard, like the two bands did in 2018. What are you anticipating?

Cain: It’ll be fun. It’s a rock’n’roll show, and there’s nothing better than playing in a big, open space and a place where you don’t have to worry about the echo coming back at you. It’ll be nice just letting it blow; a full-on rock experience.

Schon: We love those guys. We’ve always had an amazing time with them. We’ve had great chemistry together going way back to the first tour we did with them, when [lead singer] Steve Augeri was in the band.

Are there any archival projects in the pipeline related to the 50th anniversary or otherwise?

Schon: There’s lots of stuff I don’t think has ever been heard, live, from the early band. But I don’t think there’s anything from the older band, the ’80s band, that hasn’t been put out.

Cain: There was an album that came out in Japan, The Ballads , that I think would be a huge seller back here. You could even have [Volumes] 1 and 2; there are enough songs.

Has a stage musical or biopic about Journey ever been considered?

Cain: We’ve been down that road. I worked with Anthony Zuiker [creator of TV’s CSI franchise]; he’s a huge Journey fan and he had these songs in mind to create a play. And Perry shot it down. He didn’t want to know about it. Then [Zuiker] came back to me again; he had this Journey-Cirque du Soleil idea, and we were supposed to get something else with Netflix, the same producers who did the ­Arnold Schwarzenegger documentary. Right now, I think that’s in the hands of Steve Perry to say yea or nay. You can’t use his songs without his permission, obviously.

So that’s another gorilla in the room. Arnel has been with the band 17 years now. Steve wouldn’t even sing with you at the Rock Hall induction. People are always asking about it, but is it time to stop and realize he’s never coming back?

Schon: I love Steve’s voice. I just wish he continued singing. If Steve wanted to be heard, he’d be heard. He came with his last solo record [2018’s Traces ], and it showed hope that he was going to get out there and start doing things again. Without seeing him do it, I can’t answer something like that.

Cain: I just wish the guy well. Arnel is the longest tenured of any lead singer that we’ve ever had and he has crushed it for all those years, so you got to go, “How lucky are we to have a gentleman like that?” And [Perry] is always going to be judged on his contributions [to Journey] and the legacy he left behind. He wins more than he loses.

This story appears in the July 20, 2024, issue of Billboard.

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Don’t stop believin’, but do avoid Journey songs for political events, says guitarist

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Members of the rock band Journey can’t quite play their music any way they want it , according to lead guitarist Neal Schon.

On Wednesday, Variety reported that Schon’s attorney served fellow bandmate Jonathan Cain a cease-and-desist letter for performing Journey’s ubiquitous hit “Don’t Stop Believin’” at a November event for Donald Trump at Mar-a-Lago. Cain sang the beloved anthem with other notable members of the Republican party, including Marjorie Taylor Greene and Kimberly Guilfoyle.

Schon was not happy about that.

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“Although Mr. Cain is free to express his personal beliefs and associations, when he does that on behalf of Journey or for the band, such conduct is extremely deleterious to the Journey brand as it polarizes the band’s fans and outreach,” Schon’s cease-and-desist letter reportedly said. “Journey is not, and should not be, political.

“Mr. Cain has no right to use Journey for politics,” the letter added. “His politics should be his own personal business. He should not be capitalizing on Journey’s brand to promote his personal political or religious agenda to the detriment of the band.”

In a statement shared with The Times on Thursday, Cain fired back.

“Neal Schon should look in the mirror when he accuses me of causing harm to the Journey brand. I have watched him damage our brand for years and am a victim of both his — and his wife’s —bizarre behavior,” his statement said.

Cain also accused Schon and his wife, Michaele Schon, of “bullying” people who have done business with the band, including “accountants, road managers, and management firms.” Cain alleged that Schon also feuded with fans on social media, and the couple “recklessly [spends] Journey’s money.”

“If anyone is destroying the Journey brand, it is Neal — and Neal alone,” he added.

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This article was originally on a blog post platform and may be missing photos, graphics or links.

Sept. 15, 2009

In tweets posted Wednesday, Schon dismissed Cain as a “ hypocrite ” and claimed his bandmate kept telling “ lies after lies .”

The Times reached out to Schon and representatives for Journey but did not immediately hear back Thursday.

Journey released “Don’t Stop Believin’” in 1981. Cain, whose wife, Paula White, served as Trump’s spiritual adviser, shared writing credits with Schon and singer Steve Perry.

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Tension between Cain and Schon has been brewing for months. In November, Schon filed a lawsuit alleging Cain refused to give him access to records from the band’s American Express account, Billboard reported .

Schon tweeted Thursday that the Amex case, which was pending in November, was scheduled to be heard in February.

The cease-and-desist letter said Cain’s performance at Mar-a-Lago had only “further [added] to the animosity that is currently plaguing the band.”

Amid the musicians’ latest feud, some fans on social media are seeing red over Cain or Schon.

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“They should replace you in journey,” one Instagram follower commented on Cain’s latest post .

“Jonathan!!!! Please keep Journey songs away from that Lunatic Donald Trump!!!,” wrote another. “What are you thinking!!!?????”

Similarly, Schon’s facing his own share of criticism, with Instagram users calling him a “sell out, “ “old washed up fart” and “irrelevant” in the comments.

The band itself is set to continue its Freedom tour in 2023. It will kick off the new year with performances in Oklahoma, Georgia and Virginia. Journey is set to come to Southern California for gigs in Bakersfield, Fresno and Thousand Palms in April.

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Alexandra Del Rosario is an entertainment reporter on the Los Angeles Times Fast Break Desk. Before The Times, she was a television reporter at Deadline Hollywood, where she first served as an associate editor. She has written about a wide range of topics including TV ratings, casting and development, video games and AAPI representation. Del Rosario is a UCLA graduate and also worked at the Hollywood Reporter and TheWrap.

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Legendary classic rock bandmates tangled in lawsuit just shared a big update

• Published: Aug. 24, 2024, 5:00 a.m.

Journey founder Neal Schon took to social media to give an update on the ongoing legal feud between himself and bandmate Jonathan Cain. (Photo by Gems/Redferns via Getty Images)

• Christopher Burch | NJ Advance Media for NJ.com

Bandmates of the iconic rock band Journey , who have been at odds for months, recently shared an update to their ongoing legal dispute.

Neal Schon, co-founder and lead guitarist for the band, took to social media Thursday to address a lawsuit that Journey keyboardist Jonathan Cain filed against Schon in July.

“Anyone who follows Journey will know that Jon Cain and I don’t always see eye-to-eye on everything Or, sometimes, on pretty much anything,” Schon said. “Recently, Jon Cain made a number of claims and slanderous accusations about me and my wife – and I can’t stress enough how much it upset me and how wrong they are. I am determined to take the high road and push all this aside for the moment to focus on our fans, the tour and all who give so much to make things happen.”

Cain, 74, filed a lawsuit last month alleging Schon and his wife Michaele had been misusing the band’s funds, leading to issues paying the band’s production team and crew. The group’s tour dates in the U.K. and Ireland were then abruptly canceled later that week. Cain accused Schon of spending up to $10,000 a night on tour and paying for private jets with the company card.

Schon, 70, said in the post he would now be on board with bringing in a third party to neutrally mediate the situation, as he and Cain are the business entity’s only board members. Schon also asked the judge to restructure the company that manages Journey’s touring operations.

”I am determined to take the high road and push all this aside for the moment to focus on our fans, the tour and all who give so much to make things happen,” Schon wrote. “That’s why I’m so glad that Jon now agrees with me that the current dynamic can’t continue and it’s also why I’m pleased that we’re going to bring in someone impartial to help us resolve our disputes, bring clarity to what we’re doing and allow us, as a band, to get back to what we should all focus on – making music and performing for our fans.”

The legendary band is currently co-headlining “The Summer Stadium Tour” with Def Leppard, the Steve Miller band and Cheap Trick.

Journey was formed in San Francisco in 1973 by Schon, Ross Valory, George Tickner and Prairie Prince. Gregg Rollie joined the band shortly after its formation. Cain joined the band in 1980. Journey’s current lineup includes Schon, Cain, Deen Castronovo, Arnel Pineda, Jason Derlatka and Todd Jensen.

The classic rock band is best known for hits like “Don’t Stop Believin’,” “Any Way You Want It,” “Separate Ways” and “Faithfully.” Forbes crowned “Don’t Stop Believin’” as the biggest song of all time .

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Journey bring in outside party to help resolve Jonathan Cain-Neal Schon dispute

Cain recently filed a lawsuit against Schon - while the two were on tour together

Journey ’s Jonathan Cain and Neal Schon have called in a third party in an attempt to resolve their ongoing personal and legal dispute.

At the end of July, the band’s keyboardist Cain filed a lawsuit against guitarist Schon while the band was on a co-headline tour in the US with Def Leppard , along with guests The Steve Miller Band and Cheap Trick .

The suit was filed on grounds of frustrations over Schon’s “expenses related to the tour” including “budgeting and spending” of the band’s credit card over personal expenses.

Since then, the band have cancelled their UK and Ireland 50th anniversary arena tour , which was due to run in October and November.

Now, in a new Facebook post, Schon has offered his side of the story, and has revealed that the band have opted to bring in “someone impartial” to help smooth over their differences.

“Recently, Jon Cain made a number of claims and slanderous accusations about me and my wife – and I can’t stress enough how much it upset me and how wrong they are. I am determined to take the high road and push all this aside for the moment to focus on our fans, the tour and all who give so much to make things happen.”

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“That’s why I’m so glad that Jon now agrees with me that the current dynamic can’t continue and it’s also why I’m pleased that we’re going to bring in someone impartial to help us resolve our disputes, bring clarity to what we’re doing and allow us, as a band, to get back to what we should all focus on – making music and performing for our fans.”

Schon, who is the band’s lead guitarist and sole original member, owns 50 per cent of the band via entity Freedom 2020, with Cain owning the other half, making it a deadlock when it comes to company decisions, per  Bloomberg Law . Cain is the second longest serving member of the band, having joined it in 1980.

The document claims that Schon believes his role as president of Freedom 2020 authorises him to make decisions unilaterally on behalf of the company. The document also alleges that Schon’s actions “pose a severe threat of harm to the Company and to Journey’s storied history of musical greatness”.

Cain claims that Schon exceeded a nightly limit of US$1,500 for hotel accommodation, which was allegedly previously agreed upon, and has spent up to US$10,000 per night for hotel rooms for him and his wife.

Cain also alleges that Schon has allowed Journey’s road crew to fly business class, to book hotel rooms in their home cities, and to travel between cities via private jet – all without authorisation from Cain.

It was reported in March 2023 that, amidst lingering tension, Schon and Cain  hired off-duty police officers to guard their respective dressing rooms while on tour .

In 2022, Schon sued Cain over allegations that his bandmate had interfered with his access to the company’s Amex account, along with delaying payments to crew members and vendors.  Cain sued him back a few months later , claiming that his intervention was necessary in order to stop Schon from “misusing” the company’s credit card.

In December 2022,  Schon filed an unrelated cease-and-desist to Cain  after the latter was seen performing the band’s signature song ‘Don’t Stop Believin’’ at Donald Trump ’s Mar-A-Lago resort alongside Republican politicians.

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Journey’s Neal Schon Files Cease-and-Desist Against Bandmate Jonathan Cain for Playing Group’s Music at Trump Rallies (EXCLUSIVE)

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The members of long-running rock band Journey have long had fractious relations , but an inter-band cease-and-desist order is a new peak: Keyboardist Jonathan Cain, who performed “Don’t Stop Believin’” for Donald Trump at Mar-a-Lago last month with a backing “chorus” including Marjorie Taylor Greene, Kimberly Guilfoyle and Kari Lake, was served with a cease-and-desist order from an attorney for bandmate Neal Schon for that performance.

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The letter, obtained by Variety, reads in part: “Although Mr. Cain is free to express his personal beliefs and associations, when he does that on behalf of Journey or for the band, such conduct is extremely deleterious to the Journey brand as it polarizes the band’s fans and outreach. Journey is not, and should not be, political.

“Mr. Cain has no right to use Journey for politics,” the letter continues. “His politics should be his own personal business. He should not be capitalizing on Journey’s brand to promote his personal political or religious agenda to the detriment of the band,” calling it a “harmful use of the brand.”

Marjorie Taylor Greene, Kimberly Guilfoyle, and Kari Lake sang “Don’t Stop Believin’” along with Journey keyboardist Jonathan Cain at a recent event with Trump at Mar-a-Lago. pic.twitter.com/dvSp1z62BX — PatriotTakes 🇺🇸 (@patriottakes) November 23, 2022

Schon’s statement added that it did not intend to “further add to the animosity that is currently plaguing the band and the relationship between Mr. Schon and Mr. Cain,” which has been acrimonious for some time.

“The two haven’t been getting along for a while now,” says an inside source. “This just brings it all to the surface.”

Indeed, the two squared off legally earlier in the fall, with Schon contending that he’s being denied access to the group’s American Express card and its records. Meanwhile, Cain’s lawyer says that Schon’s access to the corporate account needed to have a lid put on it after he allegedly put more than $1 million in “improper personal expenses” on the card.

Schon and Perry previously expressed their displeasure over Trump using the song during his campaign rallies over his earlier election campaigns, as have artists ranging from the Rolling Stones and Aerosmith to Tom Petty. However, since such airings are considered public performances, there is little an artist can tangibly do except publicly distance themselves from the association.

Schon said in 2020, “I’ve stated how I felt about mixing religion and politics and how our music is not of one religion — Democratic or Republican. This is and has been an issue with myself, Mr. Cain and his wife. I’ve had to fight this whole time to protect the brand I built with Steve Perry, way before  Gregg [Rolie]  and I picked Cain to replace himself when he wanted to retire from the road back then. Well frankly, I’m tired of having to defend all by myself.”

The Mar-A-Lago performance was met with chagrin by many fans on social media. “That just ruined the song and the band for me,” one wrote, while another tweeted, “Goodbye Journey… you’re dead to me now.”

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Journey’s neal schon feuds with bandmate jonathan cain over playing music at trump events.

Members of the rock band Journey used to agree the band doesn’t get involved in politics . Now, founding member Neal Schon is making sure it stays that way.

The 68-year-old guitarist sent a cease-and-desist letter on Dec. 16 to attorneys for bandmate Jonathan Cain to prohibit him from playing Journey’s music at Donald Trump events after Cain sang “Don’t Stop Believin'” at a Mar-a-Lago gala last month .

The Post reached out to rep for Cain for comment.

In the letter obtained by The Post, Schon’s attorney claims Journey fans are “up in arms” over Cain’s affiliation with Trump. The keyboardist, 72, has been a part of Trump’s inner circle since his wife, televangelist Paula White, has served as Trump’s spiritual adviser.

Video of Cain’s performance at the November event, where Marjorie Taylor Greene , Kimberly Guilfoyle and Kari Lake acted as background singers, was widely spread on social media .

“Although Mr. Cain is free to express his personal beliefs and associations, when he does that on behalf of Journey or for the band, such conduct is extremely deleterious to the Journey brand as it polarizes the band’s fans and outreach. Journey is not, and should not be, political,” the Schon letter reads.

Cain, Schon and estranged Journey singer Steve Perry are credited as writers of the 1981 stadium anthem, but Schon wants to make a clear distinction between the individual artists and the band.

Marjorie Taylor Greene, Kimberly Guilfoyle, and Kari Lake sang “Don’t Stop Believin’” along with Journey keyboardist Jonathan Cain at a recent event with Trump at Mar-a-Lago. pic.twitter.com/dvSp1z62BX — PatriotTakes 🇺🇸 (@patriottakes) November 23, 2022

“Mr. Cain has no right to use Journey for politics,” the letter continues. “His politics should be his own personal business. He should not be capitalizing on Journey’s brand to promote his personal political or religious agenda to the detriment of the band.”

The letter’s intent is not to “further add to the animosity that is currently plaguing the band and the relationship between Mr. Schon and Mr. Cain,” which has been tense for many years.

“What Jon Cain has done here violates that duty” to the band and the Journey brand, the letter alleges.

When contacted by The Post, Schon’s attorney pointed to a 2017 radio interview Journey did in Singapore in which Cain agreed the band is “not political” and that members try to “stay in our lane.”

“The best place to stay is neutral, in the center, and just don’t take a side. Keep it to yourself, whatever you think,” Schon declared, adding that, “Politics and music, I don’t think it mixes.”

Cain visited Trump’s White House months after that interview — with the band’s singer and bassist in tow — reportedly without Schon or band management knowing beforehand. This angered Schon, but the two were able to “reset our friendship” to tour with fellow rock legends Def Leppard.

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The Journey Boys Are Fighting Again

As once prophesied, the wheel in the sky keeps turnin’ … out lawsuits for the current members of Journey . According to Bloomberg Law, keyboardist Jonathan Cain has sued co-founding guitarist Neal Schon for allegedly racking up an Anna Delvey–esque lifestyle of lavish spending that has made him an outlier within the band. Among the points of contention in the court filing: Schon has ignored a $1,500-per-night hotel-fee cap in favor of accommodations ten times the price, maxed out a credit card with a $1 million limit, excessively used private jets for travel, created an unnecessary security job for a close friend, and blocked efforts to pay debts and expenses associated with Journey’s ongoing summer tour. The lawsuit notes that this public animosity between Cain and Schon is “impacting the band’s reputation throughout the music industry” and “such negative publicity may potentially impact the band’s fan base.” Numerous crew members have also departed from the tour “because of such tensions.” (Meanwhile, Steve Perry is somewhere else minding his damn business.)

A similar lawsuit between the duo was waged in early 2023, when Cain alleged Schon’s spending problem was exacerbated by his wife — a woman who used to be a Real Housewife and once famously crashed a White House state dinner. At the time, it became so contentious that personal guards were hired to prevent the musicians from provoking each other when they weren’t performing. Maybe they just need to kick back and enjoy some peak TV .

• respect the classics
• jonathan cain
• classic rock

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NEAL SCHON And JONATHAN CAIN Reunite On Stage At JOURNEY's First Concert Of 2023

Legendary rockers JOURNEY played their first concert of 2023 last night (Friday, January 27) in Durant, Oklahoma. The two-hour performance at the 3,000-capacity Grand Theater at the Choctaw Casino & Resort marked the band's first appearance since JOURNEY guitarist Neal Schon and keyboardist Jonathan Cain publicly feuded over several issues, including Neal allegedly causing over $1 million in personal expenses to be charged to the band's shared American Express card and Schon demanding that Cain stop playing events for former U.S. president Donald Trump .

JOURNEY will play a second show in Durant tonight (Saturday, January 28),before officially kicking off the main portion of its 50th-anniversary tour on February 4 in Allentown, Pennsylvania, with TOTO once again on the bill.

JOURNEY 's setlist for last night's concert was as follows:

01. Only The Young 02. Stone In Love 03. Don't Stop Believin' 04. Lights 05. Send Her My Love 06. Feeling That Way 07. Anytime 08. Escape 09. Dead Or Alive 10. Who's Crying Now 11. Mother, Father' 12. Let It Rain 13. Lovin' Touchin' Squeezin' 14. Open Arms 15. Faithfully 16. Girl Can't Help It 17. Wheel In The Sky 18. Separate Ways (Worlds Apart) 19. Be Good To Yourself 20. Any Way You Want It

Earlier this month, Cain filed a lawsuit against Schon over the guitarist's personal expenses which were allegedly charged to the American Express card, including $400,000 in a single month last year.

Cain 's allegations come more than two months after Schon filed a lawsuit against his longtime bandmate, contending that he was being denied access to the American Express card.

In a countersuit filed in California state court, Cain said that during the first one-month billing cycle, after Schon obtained the AMEX card, Schon charged more than $50,000 in personal expenses for the billing period ending September 15, 2021. For the one-month billing period ending January 15, 2022, Schon allegedly charged more than $100,000 of his personal expenses on the AMEX card. For the one-month billing period ending February 13, 2022, Schon allegedly charged approximately $30,000 of his personal expenses on the AMEX card. For the one-month billing period ending March 16, 2022, Schon allegedly charged more than $400,000 of his personal expenses on the AMEX card. The charges allegedly included $42,000 to various PayPal accounts, over $104,000 to Chrome Hearts (jewelry and apparel),more than $31,000 to the Bergdorf Goodman department store in New York City, and over $54,000 for his personal insurance premiums.

According to Cain 's lawsuit, " Schon 's charges placed considerable pressure on JOURNEY and its ability to cover normal tour expenses. Schon was spending JOURNEY 's money, and Cain is the one who was and is ultimately liable for the AMEX Account and Schon 's charges on the AMEX Card. Even with the $30,000 limit on Schon 's card on the Nomota AMEX account," referring to the company Cain and Schon set up to operate the band, " Schon still managed to spend hundreds of thousands of dollars in additional, excessive personal expenses through other tour personnel and travel agents. For example, the budget allocated a maximum of $1,500 per night for hotel rooms for Schon and Cain . However, Schon demanded to stay in hotel suites that cost in excess of $5,000 per night. After the recent tour ended in Honolulu, Hawaii, Schon stayed an extra week in a hotel suite that cost $6,000 a night and charged more than $100,000 in expenses to the AMEX Account."

In a statement to Billboard , Schon 's attorney Skip Miller called allegations "ridiculous" and "as phony as a three dollar bill." He said the countersuit was merely "sour grapes" after a recent incident in which Schon demanded that Cain stop playing for Trump . "We want Cain to just focus on JOURNEY and its fans," Miller said.

Last month, Cain fired back at Schon when the JOURNEY guitarist called him a "hypocrite" for performing the band's 1981 hit song "Don't Stop Believin'" at Trump 's Mar-a-Lago property. Cain , whose wife, Paula White-Cain , is the former president's self-styled spiritual adviser, played the track in November with a backup chorus of U.S. Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene , Donald Trump Jr. 's fiancée Kimberly Guilfoyle and former Arizona gubernatorial candidate Kari Lake .

" Neal Schon should look in the mirror when he accuses me of causing harm to the JOURNEY brand," Cain said in a statement. "I have watched him damage our brand for years and am a victim of both his — and his wife's — bizarre behavior."

An attorney for Schon sent a cease-and-desist letter to Cain after he performed at Trump 's Florida estate.

The latest legal move came a few weeks after Schon filed his lawsuit against Cain . Cain , for his part, accused Schon of misusing the card, citing his "excessive spending and extravagant lifestyle."

A month earlier, former JOURNEY singer Steve Perry took legal action against both Schon and Cain , asking them to stop registering federal trademarks on the names of many of the band's hits.

Presented by AEG Presents , JOURNEY 's tour with TOTO will make stops in Austin, Montreal and Memphis before wrapping April 25 at the brand-new Acrisure Arena in Palm Springs, California.

The "Freedom Tour 2023" run includes rescheduled dates in Washington, D.C., plus Hartford, Toronto and Quebec, which were postponed last year due to the coronavirus.

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The battle between Journey's Neal Schon and Jonathan Cain is getting really messy

In the latest update to the ongoing legal saga, Neal Schon has alleged that Jonathan Cain's wife improperly accessed Journey's bank accounts

In the latest update to the ongoing spat between Journey members Neal Schon and Jonathan Cain, Schon's lawyer's have alleged that Cain's wife, Paula White-Cain - televangelist and "spiritual adviser" to former US President Donald Trump - accessed the band's bank accounts without Schon's consent.

In a cease-and-desist letter obtained by the New York Post , Schon's lawyers address White-Cain directly, saying “We have learned that despite the prior mutual agreement between Mr. Schon and Mr. Jonathan Cain that the business of the band and the Journey Related Entities would be handled only by Mr. Schon and Mr. Cain as individuals, your name appears as an authorised signatory on the City National Bank accounts of Freedom JN LLC.

“We further demand that you immediately cease and desist and refrain in the future from inserting yourself in any business of the band and any legal entities used by the band as this contradicts the existing agreement between Mr. Schon and Mr. Cain.”

The letter is the latest development in the ongoing battle between the two musicians, which kicked off in November when Schon accused Cain of setting up a credit card account without his knowledge , an account through which "millions of Journey funds" flowed.

Cain responded with a statement that read, "This is a matter that should have been resolved privately, but I am forced to publicly respond now to Neal’s malicious lies and personal attacks on my family and I in an effort to garner public support for his ill-conceived lawsuit – a lawsuit that has absolutely no merit."   

Cain went on to accuse Schon of "excessive spending" and enjoying an "extravagant lifestyle", leading him to run up "enormous personal charges on the band’s credit card account."

The following month, Schon issued a cease-and-desist order after Cain performed Journey's Don't Stop Believin' at an event at Donald Trump’s Mar-a-Lago resort in Florida, claiming that Cain "should not be capitalising on Journey’s brand to promote his personal political or religious agenda to the detriment of the band."

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Cain responded with another statement, which read, "Neal Schon should look in the mirror when he accuses me of causing harm to the Journey brand. I have watched him damage our brand for years and am a victim of both his and his wife's bizarre behaviour. Neal sued Live Nation twice, losing both times, and damaging our ability to ever work with them again."

The statement continued, "Neal and his wife recklessly spend Journey's money until there is none left for operating costs. If anyone is destroying the Journey brand, it is Neal and Neal alone."

In other Journey legal news, former singer Steve Perry has dropped a lawsuit against Schon and Cain, after initially claiming that the pair had registered a number of Journey song titles with their company with a view to using them on merchandise without Perry's permission.  Writing on social media, Schon wrote, "No more lawsuit with Steve. Time to talk."

Journey's Freedom tour kicks off early next month, and while both Cain and Schon were involved in the original announcement, Schon has since confirmed that founding member Gregg Rolie would be joining the touring line-up. It's unclear whether Cain is still involved. 

“In the end, he [Schon] needs me as much as I need him,” Cain told Classic Rock in 2022 . “You don’t like me or you don’t like my religion or my politics, fine. But in the end we come together to play music. That’s what it’s about.”

Online Editor at Louder/Classic Rock magazine since 2014. 38 years in music industry, online for 25. Also bylines for: Metal Hammer, Prog Magazine, The Word Magazine, The Guardian, The New Statesman, Saga, Music365. Former Head of Music at Xfm Radio, A&R at Fiction Records, early blogger, ex-roadie, published author. Once appeared in a Cure video dressed as a cowboy, and thinks any situation can be improved by the introduction of cats. Favourite Serbian trumpeter: Dejan Petrović.  

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Journey's Neal Schon and Jonathan Cain Bicker over Band's Music Playing at Trump Mar-a-Lago Event

The guitarist sent a cease and desist letter to the keyboardist over long-held tension regarding the former's connections to Trump and the resulting political implications

Journey's Jonathan Cain is speaking out after he was sent a cease and desist letter from Neal Schon accusing the keyboardist of damaging the band's "brand" by playing at Mar-a-Lago last month.

"Neal Schon should look in the mirror when he accuses me of causing harm to the Journey brand," Cain said in a statement. "I have watched him damage our brand for years and am a victim of both his — and his wife's — bizarre behavior."

Cain, 72, went on to offer a number of examples of how the 68-year-old Schon, in his estimation, has diminished the band's legacy.

"Neal sued Live Nation twice, losing both times, and damaging our ability to ever work with them again; Neal outrageously tried to take away trademarks from Steve Perry; Neal and his wife [Michaele] continually insult the professionalism of numerous accountants, road managers, and management firms with endless legal threats and their bullying, toxic, and incoherent emails; Neal argues online with fans who don't see eye to eye with him; and Neal and his wife recklessly spend Journey's money until there is none left for operating costs," he said. "If anyone is destroying the Journey brand, it is Neal — and Neal alone."

An attorney for Schon sent the letter to Cain after he performed "Don't Stop Believin'" at former President Donald Trump's Florida estate last month, Variety reported .

Cain reportedly performed the hit, which iconically capped the Sopranos series finale, at an event in which Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene , former Fox News personality Kimberly Guilfoyle and former Arizona gubernatorial candidate Kari Lake performed in a backing "chorus," per the outlet.

"Although Mr. Cain is free to express his personal beliefs and associations, when he does that on behalf of Journey or for the band, such conduct is extremely deleterious to the Journey brand as it polarizes the band's fans and outreach. Journey is not, and should not be, political," the letter read, per Variety .

"Mr. Cain has no right to use Journey for politics," the letter continued. "His politics should be his own personal business. He should not be capitalizing on Journey's brand to promote his personal political or religious agenda to the detriment of the band," calling it a "harmful use of the brand."

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Cain is a member of the former President's inner circle as his wife, televangelist Paula White, is Trump's spiritual advisor, the publication said.

The inter-band dispute is not the first in recent months.

In October, Schon filed a lawsuit against Cain alleging that he had been denied access to the group's American Express card and its records .

Cain's attorney, in response, said that Schon had allegedly put more than $1 million in "improper personal expenses" on the credit card.

A month earlier, estranged lead singer Steve Perry took legal action against both men asking them to stop registering federal trademarks on the names of many of the band's hits, per Rolling Stone .

Journey has no current plans to stop its Freedom tour next year, with concerts scheduled from February through April.

Related Articles

Journey: How Neal Schon & Jonathan Cain Put Their Differences Behind Them

Journey has been an unexpected source of band drama in recent years. For the most part, there were issues between guitarist Neal Schon and keyboardist Jonathan Cain. Fortunately, Schon and Cain’s issues apparently have been resolved, according to drummer Deen Castronovo.

The Journey drummer touched on this in a new interview with Ultimate Classic Rock . Castronovo said Schon and Cain’s wives were the ones to confront their husbands to work out their differences. He also shared that Journey is now being managed by Schon, Cain and their wives. Castronovo said this new arrangement is working very well.

“There was a lot of turmoil in both camps and nobody was talking … Now, they’re all talking and communicating and it’s working great, ” said Castronovo.

The drummer also noted that with Schon, Cain and their wives running the business affairs of Journey, it allows the rest of the band to focus more on performing.

A Brief History of Journey’s Drama Between Schon & Cain

The last few years in the Journey world have certainly not been dull, to say the least. There was the “ attempted corporate coup d'état ” by former drummer Steve Smith and bassist Ross Valory. There was even a lawsuit involving former singer Steve Perry .

The issues that seem to grab the most headlines involved issues between Schon and Cain. Things really started to get media attention in 2017 shortly after Journey was inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame. Back then, Schon and Cain were having it out on social media with creative differences being the reason for the drama. Thing were so intense that even singer Arnel Pineda took to social media and wrote, “Praying LOVE will prevail in the end.. #BrothersThen #BrothersWillBeAgain #inGodsGuidance.”

Praying LOVE will prevail in the end.. #BrothersThen #BrothersWillBeAgain #inGodsGuidance — Arnel Pineda (@arnelpineda) June 5, 2017

Journey and Politics

Another notable point of contention appeared to be Cain’s wife, televangelist Paula White-Cain, who served as the spiritual advisor for President Donald Trump. Notably, three Journey members — including Cain, Valory and Pineda — visited the White House during the Trump administration in 2017. Their visit included a photo op with then-President Trump.

This made Schon furious. He took to Facebook shortly after this White House visit and wrote, in part, “I will remain strong and consistent with the belief we’ve always shared and agreed upon – Journey should never be used and exploited by anyone, especially band members for politics or any one religion. I’ve been here since 1972, and this has always been our belief.”

Since 2017, much of the drama and tension between Schon and Cain seemingly stemmed from this incident. Things got even worse in December 2022 . Back then, Schon’s legal reps sent a cease-and-desist letter to Cain’s legal reps taking issue with the keyboardist performing “Don’t Stop Believin'” at a November 2022 gala event hosted at President Trump's Mar-a-Lago Club in Palm Beach, Fla. This event took place over the Thanksgiving holiday weekend. It featured Cain performing the Journey hit and being backed up on vocals by a number of people. Among those people were Marjorie Taylor Greene, Kimberly Guilfoyle and Kari Lake.

50 Best Power Ballads of All Time

50. ‘love song’ - tesla.

Soaring vocals from Jeff Keith? Check. Massive guitar solo from Frank Hannon? Check. Excellent use of “Du du du-du-du”? Big ol’ check right there! It’s no wonder this was one of Tesla’s biggest hits.

49. ‘The Ballad of Jayne’ - L.A. Guns

While the history of L.A. Guns is intertwined with Guns N’ Roses due to Axl Rose’s brief stint in the band in 1984, L.A. Guns only managed one hit with 1989’s “The Ballad of Jayne,” but they sure did make it count. And no, the song isn’t an ode to late actress Jayne Mansfield. Singer Phil Lewis said in a 2011 interview , “It’s not about [Jayne Mansfield] at all. It’s about a fictitious character, but I based it on so many of these young girls who leave their small towns and go out to LA to become a star.”

48. ‘Nothing’s Gonna Stop Us Now’ - Starship

All due respect to Andrew McCarthy and Kim Cattrall, but “Nothing’s Gonna Stop Us Now” was the best thing about the 1987 film Mannequin. The track features Mickey Thomas sharing vocal duties with Grace Slick, who just two decades prior was wailing “Feed Your Head!” on “White Rabbit.” (Honestly, that’s still jarring years later.) Penned by songwriting giants Diane Warren and Albert Hammond, “Nothing’s Gonna Stop Us Now” would go on to be nominated for the Academy Award for Best Original Song .

47. ‘Black Velvet’ - Alannah Myles

An ode to Elvis Presley, Alannah Myles’ “Black Velvet” was included on the three-track demo that eventually led to her being signed by Atlantic Records. The track, oozing with swagger and that giant chorus, would top the Billboard Hot 100 charts for two weeks and would earn Myles the Grammy for Best Female Rock Vocal Performance in 1991.

46. ‘I Miss You’ - blink-182

“Where are you? And I’m so sorry!” Sure, “I Miss You” feels more like a meme than a song in recent years, but it remains one of blink-182’s most enduring and endearing tracks in their catalog. And never forget when belting the chorus, it’s “yead,” not “head.” 

45. ‘High Enough’ - Damn Yankees

When the world was introduced to Ted Nugent, the last thing anyone thought — and this likely includes Uncle Ted, himself — was that a massive power ballad was in his future. But that’s what happened when the Motor City Mad Man joined forces with Styx’s Tommy Shaw, Night Ranger’s Jack Blades and future Lynyrd Skynyrd drummer Michael Cartellone to form Damn Yankees. The band’s self-titled 1990 debut would go on to sell two million copies, and it was thanks to this massive power ballad, which peaked on the Billboard Hot 100 chart at number 3. 

44. ‘When I See You Smile’ - Bad English

Yet another song written by Diane Warren! (BTW: She pops up another time later in this list.) Bad English – the supergroup made up of The Babys’ John Waite and Ricky Phillips and Journey’s Neal Schon, Deen Castronovo and Jonathan Cain, who was in The Babys and Journey – was only around for two albums. “When I See You Smile” was the second single released from their self-tited 1989 debut, and it was their biggest hit topping the Billboard Hot 100 in November 1989.

43. ‘Silent Lucidity’ - Queensryche

“It’s a place where you will learn/To face your fears, retrace the years/And ride the whims of your mind/Commanding in another world/Suddenly you hear and see/This magic new dimension.” This power ballad is as tender as it is beautifully haunting. We have Geoff Tates’ stunning vocals and guitarist Chris DeGarmo’s songwriting to thank for that.

42. ‘It Must Have Been Love’ - Roxette

Fun fact: This Roxette hit was first released in 1987 as “It Must Have Been Love (Christmas for the Broken Hearted).” (Yeah, it was originally a Christmas song!) It was only released in the duo’s native Sweden but would be edited and re-released internationally in 1990 as part of the soundtrack for the hit film Pretty Woman . Singer Marie Fredriksson would die in December 2019 from a brain tumor, but songs like “It Must Have Been Love” will live on forever as examples of her dynamic voice.

41. ‘Fly To The Angels’ - Slaughter

By the time Slaughter released their 1990 debut Stick It to Ya , there was already a popular formula in place for many rock bands releasing a new LP: First single is the rocker, and the second single is the power ballad. While the formula was successful, you still need quality songs for it to work. Slaughter definitely had them, especially with their second single “Fly To The Angels.” Just thinking about the notes Mark Slaughter hits during the chorus makes my throat hurt.

40. ‘Heaven’ - Bryan Adams

“Heaven” was a massive hit for Bryan Adams and was his first number-one single in the U.S. If you think the song is reminiscent of Journey’s “Faithfully,” you’re not wrong; Adams toured with Journey while they supported their Frontiers LP, and then-Journey drummer Steve Smith plays on “Heaven.” The song is so dreamy, it lent itself to a particularly swoon-worthy scene from Magic Mike XXL .

39. ‘We Don’t Need Another Hero (Thunderdome)’ - Tina Turner

After Tina Turner’s smash comeback album Private Dancer, many were likely wondering what her next move was. It turns out it was starring alongside Mel Gibson in 1985’s Mad Max Beyond Thunderdome and singing the film’s theme “We Don’t Need Another Hero (Thunderdome).” And by singing, we mean absolutely belting the hell out of it. It’s one of Turner’s best songs, which is saying something considering her incredible catalog of work.

38. ‘Iris’ - Goo Goo Dolls

A number of songs on this list are featured on soundtracks. It makes sense due to the bombastic, dramatic nature of power ballads. In the case of Goo Goo Dolls’ “Iris,” it was written for the 1998 film City of Angels starring Nicolas Cage and Meg Ryan. It went on to become a massive crossover international hit. And that booming chorus…wow! It still blows us away to this day.

37. ‘Close My Eyes Forever’ - Lita Ford & Ozzy Osbourne

A number of the songs on this power ballad ranking have something interesting in common: They’re often the artist’s biggest hits in their entire catalog. This duet of Lita Ford and Ozzy Osbourne is no exception. The third single from Ford’s self-titled 1988 studio album, “Close My Eyes Forever” who peak on the Billboard Hot 100 at #8.

36. ‘Don’t Know What You Got (Til It’s Gone)' - Cinderella

“I can’t tell ya baby what went wrong…”There’s something very poetic about this power ballad from Cinderella. Who hasn’t been in a relationship – romantic or not – that went sour, and you just couldn’t figure out why? It might be one of the most realistic and relatable songs on this entire list.

35. ‘Eternal Flame’ - The Bangles

“Eternal Flame” may have burned bright for The Bangles, but it ended up being the band’s last huge hit before their breakup in 1989. They would reunite about a decade later, but if a band is going to break up, there’s nothing like going out with a number one hit song. Talk about sun shining through the rain, right?

34. ‘Fall To Pieces’ - Velvet Revolver

Velvet Revolver was one of a number of supergroups to emerge in the early aughts. They were together for only six years, but that time produced some great tunes, including this power ballad from their 2004 debut LP Contraband . Scott Weiland’s unique vocals truly open up on the song’s sing-a-long chorus, and the track serves as yet another example of how a Slash guitar solo can take a song to another level.

33. ‘To Be With You’ - Mr. Big

When you’re waiting on a line just to be the next to be with someone, you got it bad . Turns out Mr. Big’s frontman Eric Martin did have it bad for someone he knew years before the song became a hit. Martin would say in an interview in 2011 , “T his girl had a lot of boyfriends who treated her like sh-t. I wanted to be the knight in shining armor, wanted to be with her. She wasn’t having it. It never came to play.” It’s too bad for her because Martin clearly had strong feelings for this woman. At least a great tune came out of it.

32. ‘More Than Words’ - Extreme

Brilliantly described by Max (Adam Pally) on the cult sitcom Happy Endings as “two men playing acoustic guitar at each other,” “More Than Words” sounded nothing like any of Extreme’s metal music. Regardless, the tender tune featuring the beautiful harmony vocals of Gary Cherone and Nuno Bettencourt would go on to top the Billboard Hot 100 chart.

31. ‘Why Can’t This Be Love’ - Van Halen

The first single of the “Van Hagar” era of Van Halen was this keyboard-happy power ballad. What a statement! Of course, “Why Can’t This Be Love” definitely had what it takes. It helped Van Halen’s seventh studio album, 5150, sell over six million copies.

30. ‘The Flame’ - Cheap Trick

“You were the first, you’ll be the last.” SWOON! Before “The Flame,” Cheap Trick hadn’t had a top 40 hit since 1979. At the request of Epic Records, they had their choice of two songs the label was certain were going to be number one hits. Cheap Trick chose “The Flame,” and as predicted, the song topped the Billboard Hot 100. (For what it’s worth: The other songs was “Look Away,” which was released by Chicago in September 1988, and it also topped the charts.)

29. ‘Wind of Change’ - Scorpions

Not every power ballad is about romantic love; sometimes, they’re an agent of peace. Such was the case of “Wind of Change” from Scorpions. Klaus Meine was inspired to write the song after Scorpions took part in the Moscow Music Peace Festival in August 1989. Shortly there after, Meine would write this epic tune that, to this day, is historically tied to the end of the Cold War and the Soviet Union. Of course, there’s also the conspiracy theory that the CIA actually wrote “Wind of Change,” but we’ll let you dive into that on your own via the podcast of the same name .

28. ‘Free Bird’ - Lynyrd Skynyrd

“Free Bird” isn’t typically in the power ballad conversation, but when you examine the classic tune per the aforementioned definition from the Cambridge University Press, it totally is! “Constant escalation and an expressive formula that combines the euphoric uplift created by rousing music with sentimental themes and ploys”? Um, yeah…”Free Bird” has that and then some! The guitar work from Allen Collins and Gary Rossington alone should be enough.

27. ‘Against All Odds’ - Phil Collins

Ever have a drunk cry to this Phil Collins classic after a brutal breakup? No? Just me? Oh, well…it’s quite therapeutic, as is belting out the anthemic chorus. Collins wrote the tune for the 1984 film of the same name that starred Rachel Ward, Jeff Bridges and James Woods. The film wasn’t a big hit, but the song sure was! It was even nominated for Best Original Song at the 1985 Academy Awards. It lost out to Stevie Wonder’s “I Just Called to Say I Love You” from The Woman in Red , which is really one of Wonder’s most pedestrian tunes, but that’s a rant for another day.

26. ‘It’s All Coming Back To Me Now’ - Celine Dion

Okay…now at this point, some of you might be mad to see Celine Dion on this list, but do yourself a favor and just revisit this epic from the singer’s 1996 hit album Falling into You. BTW: If you’re thinking that “It’s All Coming Back To Me Now” sounds a lot like a Meat Loaf song, it’s because it was written by composer Jim Steinman. He’s best known for writing Meat Loaf’s Bat Out of Hell and Bat Out of Hell II: Back into Hell.

25. ‘Bringin’ on the Heartbreak’ - Def Leppard

Many people were introduced to Def Leppard’s trademark group vocal via “Bringin’ on the Heartbreak” from their 1981 LP High ‘n’ Dry. A number of power ballads from Def Leppard could’ve made this list, but there’s something special about how this track builds into the chorus while also giving Joe Elliott plenty of time to shine on his own.

24. ‘Keep On Loving You’ - REO Speedwagon

The lead single from REO Speedwagon’s ninth studio album Hi Infidelity , “Keep On Loving You” was a massive power ballad that helped the Illinois-based band achieve a new level of stardom. Hi Infidelity would go on to be the biggest-selling album of 1981. This power ballad definitely helped make that happen.

23. ‘Shadows of the Night - Pat Benatar

Pat Benatar could be (and still is) an utter badass, but she also has a number of hits that showed off her sensitive side. “Shadows of the Night” finds Benatar walking the line between toughness and sweetness, and she walks that line brilliantly. (“You can cry, tough baby, it’s alright/You can let me down easy, but not tonight.”) Her powerful vocals certainly don’t hurt matters either.

22. ‘Blaze of Glory’ - Jon Bon Jovi

“Blaze of Glory” was Jon Bon Jovi’s first solo single, and out the gate, the track topped the Billboard Hot 100. Written for the 1990 film Young Guns II, the song came to be after Emilio Estevez wanted Bon Jovi’s “Wanted Dead or Alive” for his movie. JBJ declined and ended up writing this song and a whole soundtrack. (Jon even makes an uncredited cameo in the film, which was his first appearance in any film .) While there are theme similarities between “Blaze of Glory” and “Wanted Dead or Alive,” the former was certainly a better fit for a film about Billy the Kid and truly evokes that spirit of the Wild West.

21. ‘Heaven’ - Warrant

If you ever questioned what a great power ballad could do for a band, look no further than Warrant. The second single from their 1989 debut album Dirty Rotten Filthy Stinking Rich, “Heaven” would help propel the album to being certified double platinum and would peak on the Billboard Hot 100 at number two . The song that prevented Warrant from topping the chart? Milli Vanilli’s “Girl I’m Gonna Miss You.”

20. ‘Sister Christian’ - Night Ranger

Fine, let’s just say it: Who knew such a sweet song about a younger sister growing up would end up soundtracking such a bizarre film scene like in 1997’s Boogie Nights ? That movie moment aside, “Sister Christian” remains one of the most memorable power ballads thanks in small part to that ridiculously catchy “Motoring!” chorus.

19. ‘Mama I’m Coming Home’ - Ozzy Osbourne

Inspired by wife/manager, Sharon, “Mama I’m Coming Home” somehow increases in wholesomeness when you learn Motorhead frontman Lemmy Kilmister wrote the lyrics to this beautiful power ballad. Sure, that doesn’t make sense in theory, but after just one listen, it just sort of clicks. Listen below if you’re still having doubts!

18. ‘Lady’ - Styx

If you weren’t sold by the wholesomeness of the previous song, get ready for this. Originally released in 1973, Dennis DeYoung wrote “Lady” for his wife, Suzanne. They were married in 1970 and are still married to this day! This was also Styx’s first top-ten hit, too. How wonderful is that?! 

17. ‘I Found Someone’ - Cher

When Cher released “I Found Someone,” it was her first new piece of music in five years. (Cher opted to focus on her acting career for most of the mid-80s.) This time around, Cher embraced more rock elements, and it certainly paid off with the track becoming Cher’s first top-ten hit in nine years.

Fun fact: “I Found Someone” was written by Michael Bolton and Mark Mangold and originally recorded and released by Laura Branigan about a year-and-a half before Cher released her version. Bolton would serve as producer on Cher’s version, as well.

16. ‘Is This Love’ - Whitesnake

“Is This Love” was a monster hit for Whitesnake, but it almost wasn’t their song. In an interview with Ultimate Classic Rock , David Coverdale said, “‘Is This Love’ was for Tina Turner originally. EMI had asked me, and then David Geffen said, “You’re f—in’ keeping it!” And thankfully so! Arrogantly, I scream at the beginning of it, ‘This is a chorus that will take over the world’ — and it f—ing did! I am at least a man of my word.”

15. ‘Total Eclipse of the Heart’ - Bonnie Tyler

The late Jim Steinman will be best remembered for his work with Meat Loaf, but he also contributed some incredible tunes to other artists, as evident from number 26 on this list and “Total Eclipse of the Heart.” Bonnie Tyler absolutely belted the hell out of this ballad. The album version of this track was nearly seven minutes long, because Jim is gonna Steinman. The single version would be edited down to 4:30 so…you know…it would get played on the radio. (Note: One more composition from Steinman will appear on this list.)

14. ‘I Remember You’ - Skid Row

Believe it or not, Rachel Bolan and Snake Sabo – who wrote “I Remember You,” it should be noted – lobbied to keep the obvious hit off Skid Row’s 1989 self-titled debut album. Why? As Bolan put it in an interview with Ultimate Classic Rock , “We don’t want to be a chick band – We want to be a hard-rock band.” Clearly, Bolan and Sabo changed their minds, and thankfully they did. Who else but Sebastian Bach can you imagine hitting those high notes? Exactly.

13. ‘Kiss From A Rose’ - Seal

The Marvel Cinematic Universe is lovely and all, and it’s done wonders for classic rock with the soundtracks for Iron Man 2 and the Guardians of the Galaxy films, but when’s the last time it helped spawn a hit like this? While “Kiss From A Rose” was originally released as a single in July 1994, its inclusion in 1995’s Batman Forever and its subsequent soundtrack made Seal a star. The track also cleaned up at the 1996 Grammy Awards winning Record of the Year, Song of the Year and Best Male Pop Vocal Performance.

12. ‘The Show Must Go On’ - Queen

“Inside my heart is breaking/My makeup may be flaking/But my smile, still, stays on.” Without question, “The Show Must Go On” is the most devastating song on this list but one of the most beautiful. The track was released as a single just six weeks before Freddie Mercury died from complications related to HIV/AIDS. Brian May was the lead writer on the track, but it’s almost as if the entire group banded together in order to give their dear friend a grand, dramatic send-off fit for royalty.

11. ‘I Want to Know What Love Is’ - Foreigner

Most power ballads have big, booming choruses, but few of them make you scream-sing them in your car quite like Foreigner’s “I Want to Know What Love Is.” Foreigner had plenty of hits before “I Want to Know What Love Is,” but this one managed to top all of them, literally. It went to number one in the United States and ten other countries and remains Foreigner’s most successful single in their catalog.

10. ‘Always’ - Bon Jovi

If power ballads are an art, then Bon Jovi is Picasso or Van Gogh or whichever *really* famous artist you prefer. Bon Jovi is one of the reasons why this list limited artists to one entry, because Bon Jovi could easily dominate this entire list. One of two new songs on their 1994 greatest hits LP Cross Road , “Always” was a smash hit all around the world. How could it not with dreamy lyrics like, “When he holds you close, when he pulls you near/When he says the words you’ve been needing to hear/I’ll wish I was him ’cause those words are mine/To say to you ’till the end of time/Yeah, I will love you, baby, always/And I’ll be there forever and a day, always.” The song is so over-the-top delightful, it allows you to forgive the band for its weird music video with the plotline that makes no sense! 

9. ‘Every Rose Has Its Thorn’ - Poison

It’s a tale as old as time: Bret Michaels phones his girlfriend at the time while out on tour, and when she answered, he heard some other guy in the background. Thus, an iconic power ballad that’s a little bit country, a little bit rock and roll ballad was born! Oh, and like many other songs on this list, “Every Rose Has Its Thorn” would become Poison’s lone number-one hit.

8. ‘Nothing Else Matters’ - Metallica

“Nothing Else Matters” is at a particular status now where it’s almost like a standard. It’s hard to imagine a time when it could have been deemed controversial. (Unless you’re the type of metalhead that absolutely hates “The Black Album,” and if so, frankly, it’s baffling you’re reading this list in the first place.)

Anyway, James Hetfield said in an interview in June 2012 with The Village Voice , “It was a song for myself in my room on tour when I was bumming out about being away from home. It’s quite amazing, it’s a true testament to honesty and exposing yourself, putting your real self out there, and taking the risk, taking a gamble that someone’s either going to step on your heart with spikes on or they’re going to put their heart right next to it, and you never know until you try. That solidified, I think, that we were doing the right thing, writing from the heart about what we felt, and you can’t go wrong that way.”

7. ‘November Rain’ - Guns N’ Roses

“November Rain” is both a sonic and visual epic. Axl and his piano and Slash and his two massive guitar solos are the stars of this nearly nine-minute power ballad. Of course, even when listening to “November Rain,” you can’t help but think of its decadent music video. From Slash walking out of the church to Stephanie Seymour’s mullet wedding dress, some of the scenes are the most-memorable in music video history.

Fun fact: “November Rain” was the first music video released before the invention of YouTube to reach 1 billion views.

6. ‘Home Sweet Home’ - Motley Crue

In the realm of power ballads, “Home Sweet Home” is among the most quintessential. Even when listening to it in your car, you’re almost tempted to lift up your lighter or phone and just sway. Tommy Lee’s piano intro is instantly recognizable, and his little drum fill at the end of the track is the perfect cherry atop one epic tune. Add Mick Mars’ guitar solo and the way Vince Neil wails “Tonight, tonight!” during the chorus, it’s no wonder this tune penned by Nikki Sixx made our top ten.

5. ‘Alone’ - Heart

Written and recorded originally by songwriting duo Billy Steinberg and Tom Kelly, Heart would take “Alone” to new heights when they covered the tune for their 1987 album Bad Animals . If at this point you weren’t sold on Ann Wilson being one of rock’s strongest voices, just listen to “Alone” a few times on repeat. And, once again, this stunning power ballad would go on to be Heart’s biggest hit of their career topping the Billboard Hot 100 for three weeks in July 1987.

4. ‘I’d Do Anything For Love (But I Won’t Do That)’ - Meat Loaf

This delightfully over-the-top classic resurfaced following the untimely death of Meat Loaf, which sadly happened just nine months after the death of songwriter Jim Steinman. If the deaths of Meat Loaf and Steinman brought anything to the forefront it’s the importance of theatrics in rock and roll and how they’re incredibly missed.

“I’d Do Anything For Love” would resurrect Meat Loaf’s career, give him a number one hit in nearly 30 countries and net him a Grammy for Best Rock Vocal Performance, Solo.

Oh, and the thing he won’t do for love is cheat on his partner. He says so at the very end of the epic tune, in case this was somehow a mystery to anyone reading this.

3. ‘Open Arms’ - Journey

“Open Arms” truly took power ballads to a new level upon its release on Escape in 1981. The entire ‘80s decade saw a massive boom in the release of power ballads, and one could argue that Journey had a lot to do with that considering the success of “Open Arms.” Journey had plenty of other power ballads they would later introduce, but “Open Arms” was their best and grandest thanks to the sweet, sincere and soaring vocals of Steve Perry.

2. ‘Purple Rain’ - Prince

Similar to Lynyrd Skynyrd’s “Free Bird,” Prince’s “Purple Rain” isn’t typically in the power ballad conversation, because the idea of a power ballad is traditionally reserved for metal bands. However, Prince was never one for musical boundaries or limitations.

Upon the briefest of examinations, it totally is a power ballad. Prince once said of the meaning behind the classic track , “When there’s blood in the sky – red and blue = purple…’Purple Rain’ pertains to the end of the world and being with the one you love and letting your faith/God guide you through the purple rain.” It’s truly appropriate that a heavy song has such a heavy meaning.

1. ‘I Don’t Want To Miss A Thing’ - Aerosmith

Power ballads are traditionally based around grandness. With that considered, being the theme to 1998’s Armageddon — a film about an asteroid threatening to destroy Earth — is about as over-the-top as it gets. “I Don’t Want To Miss A Thing” wasn’t Aerosmith’s first power ballad, but it’s the band’s biggest both sonically and commercially. Written by Diane Warren, the track boasts a string section and one of Steven Tyler’s greatest screams ever recorded.

In 1998, there was truly no escaping this song. “I Don’t Want To Miss A Thing” was seemingly everywhere . It would top the Billboard Hot 100 chart for four weeks and is Aerosmith’s lone number-one hit in the United States. As if that weren’t enough, the song was a number-one song in nine other countries. And if the Bad Boys from Boston care about superlatives, “I Don’t Want To Miss A Thing” tops this Best Power Ballads list. While assembling this entire list was very difficult, putting this blockbuster at number one was the easiest part of the process.

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Neal Schon Gives in on Key Legal Request From Jonathan Cain

Journey ‘s Neal Schon has decided to go along with Jonathan Cain ‘s request for a third party to help resolve their growing differences.

Cain filed suit last month as Journey continued an ongoing stadium tour with Def Leppard and Steve Miller . He asked a judge to restructure the company that manages Journey’s touring operation to address financial disagreements with Schon. They are the business entity’s only board members, so a neutral intermediary would have to be appointed to break tie votes.

The lawsuit also included shocking allegations of overspending by Schon and his wife Michaele, which reportedly led to insufficient funds to pay the production team and the band’s crew. Cain described staff defections, even as they fought over minutia like who would fill in when their drummer missed a show.

READ MORE: 12 Infamous Rock + Metal Legal Battles

Schon initially said he would respond in court , but has now made a public statement agreeing to a mediator. This latest round of legal action follows years of disagreements , which Schon freely acknowledges.

“Anyone who follows Journey will know that Jon Cain and I don’t always see eye-to-eye on everything Or, sometimes, on pretty much anything,” Schon said in a social media post .

“Recently, Jon Cain made a number of claims and slanderous accusations about me and my wife – and I can’t stress enough how much it upset me and how wrong they are. I am determined to take the high road and push all this aside for the moment to focus on our fans, the tour and all who give so much to make things happen.

“That’s why I’m so glad that Jon now agrees with me that the current dynamic can’t continue,” Schon added, “and it’s also why I’m pleased that we’re going to bring in someone impartial to help us resolve our disputes, bring clarity to what we’re doing and allow us, as a band, to get back to what we should all focus on – making music and performing for our fans.”

Dear Friends, Anyone who follows Journey will know that Jon Cain and I don't always see eye-to-eye on everything Or,… Posted by Neal Schon on Thursday, August 22, 2024

U.K. and Ireland Shows Scrapped as Feud Continued

Schon began by pushing back on Cain’s charges of overspending, saying his expenses were “all ‘approved in our budget.'” Responding to fan questions about burning through as much as $10,000 a night while on tour, Schon replied on a since-deleted post , “BS and what do you care? I pay for it.”

He also didn’t sound ready to cede any control, pointedly describing himself as “the original and only founder in Journey that’s been there from the very early inception in ’72.” He noted that he’d “played on every single show – never canceled once! – and co-wrote and played on every single album,” while more than once claiming to have hired Cain in the early ’80s.

Journey’s fall 2024 dates in the U.K. and Ireland were abruptly canceled after Cain filed suit. It’s unclear what role, if any, was played by background financial issues or this new legal wrangling. Journey and Def Leppard previously toured together in 2018 . Their current dates conclude in early September with stops in Seattle and Denver.

Nick DeRiso is author of the Amazon best-selling rock band bio ‘Journey: Worlds Apart,’ available now at all major bookseller websites .

Source: Neal Schon Gives in on Key Legal Request From Jonathan Cain

Journey’s Jonathan Cain Accuses Neal Schon of ‘Excessive Spending’ in Clash Over Credit Card Access

By Charisma Madarang

Charisma Madarang

Journey keyboardist Jonathan Cain and guitarist  Neal Schon are battling it out in public over a lawsuit filed by Schon against Cain. In a lawsuit filed last month in California, Schon accused Cain of refusing to give him access to the group’s American Express card and its records, Billboard reported.

Cain released a statement Tuesday in response to the lawsuit filed by Schon on Oct. 31, as well as to the guitarist’s public statements on Monday.

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Cain added, “Neal has always had access to the credit card statements; what he lacks — and what he is really seeking — is the ability to increase his spending limits. Since Neal decided to publicize what is going on, I can tell you we will present the evidence to the court that shows that Neal has been under tremendous financial pressure as a result of his excessive spending and extravagant lifestyle, which led to him running up enormous personal charges on the band’s credit card account.

The lawsuit follows a previous lawsuit in September by former lead singer Steve Perry. Perry took legal action against both Schon and Cain to stop them from registering federal trademarks on the names of many of the band’s biggest hits, including “Anyway You Want It” and “Wheel In The Sky” (which Perry provided the golden vocals for). Perry, who left Journey in 1998, claimed the trio had an agreement that required unanimous consent for any business decision related to the trademarks and that he had not authorized said consent. The case is currently pending.

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Will Neal Schon and Jonathan Cain Go Their ‘Separate Ways’?

Neal Schon and Jonathan Cain have been the foundation of Journey for decades, but they could be at risk of falling apart following a lawsuit over a credit card.

Cain joined Journey in 1980, following the departure of co-founder Gregg Rolie . He and Schon soon started songwriting together, and the band quickly reached its commercial peak with 1981's Escape . Schon and Cain helped create many of Journey’s most iconic hits along with singer Steve Perry , including "Don't Stop Believin,'” "Only the Young” and "Be Good to Yourself.”

Schon and Cain also teamed up in the supergroup Bad English when Journey went on hiatus in 1987, before returning for various reunited lineups of their main band. By 1998, Schon and Cain became 50/50 partners in Nomota, a limited-liability corporation that handles band business.

An American Express card associated with Nomota is now at the heart of a dispute. Schon filed a lawsuit claiming that Cain “improperly restricted” the guitarist's access to the account and its documents. Cain then pointed a finger back at Schon, citing his “excessive spending and extravagant lifestyle, which led to him running up enormous personal charges on the band’s credit card.”

This is not the first time the two have exchanged a war of words. Schon openly bristled in 2016 when Cain began expressing more outward Christian beliefs. The two went through a more public fallout a year later after Cain and two other band members posed for a photo with President Donald Trump .

"Wow, this is not the Journey I started in 1972 and have been fighting to protect since the beginning," Schon wrote at that time. "I've discussed this many times with management and counsel, and they both agreed that there should never be anything to do with religious beliefs or politics with Journey."

Ironically, another legal matter involving other members of Journey brought Schon and Cain back together. They fired Ross Valory and Steve Smith from the group in 2020, accusing them of an "ill-conceived corporate coup d'etat ."

Schon and Cain had seemed to find a comfortable new balance, releasing Journey's first new album in more than a decade with 2022's Freedom . There was shared respect for one another musically, despite their inherent differences.

“In the end, he needs me as much as I need him,” Cain said earlier this year . “You don’t like me or you don’t like my religion or my politics, fine. But in the end, we come together to play music. That’s what it’s about.”

Schon agreed, describing their relationship as “more of a musical one. Jon and I have a great chemistry musically. When we get together, we always come up with something that’s happening.”

The credit card-related lawsuit may have tipped the scales, however, as they are now poised to air their dirty laundry in court. Schon has already accused Cain of “interfering with Journey, refusing to respond to booking opportunities, blocking payment to band members, crew and vendors." Meanwhile, Cain claimed Schon is “under tremendous financial pressure as a result of his excessive spending and extravagant lifestyle, which led to him running up enormous personal charges on the band’s credit card.”

They remain bandmates for now, despite the ongoing legal battle. A court date is scheduled for March 3, a month after the first in a series of dates commemorating the  band's fifth decade . "So sounds like the 50th-anniversary tour is dead then?" a fan asked on Twitter a day after Cain's first response to the new lawsuit. Schon's reply: " Not for me ."

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Journey's Neal Schon Responds to Jonathan Cain's Lawsuit (Again)

Photo : Paras Griffin / Getty Images Entertainment / Getty Images

Neal Schon has responded to the lawsuit filed against him by Journey bandmate Jonathan Cain.

In post on Facebook , Schon writes, "Jonathan Cain has created a very hostile work environment for not only myself, but other band members and crew members. The allegations are false and I intend to prove it in court."

"My answers to Mr. Cain’s false allegations and filing will be submitted by 5 PM ET Monday ( August 19th?) for all to read."\

The lawsuit of course alleges that Schon has abused the bands' AMEX, and it's the second time Cain has filed suit against Schon in regard to his spending. The first was in 2022, which was dropped.

(full statement from Schon below)

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Def Leppard, Journey and Steve Miller: Older, rawer and 100% banging

Def Leppard, Journey and Steve Miller Band ruled the airwaves of their day with three different approaches to hitting the mainstream where it lived, each one earning a spot in the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame as quintessential people’s bands for slightly different people.

And those differences were plain as day in downtown Phoenix when their co-headlining Summer Stadium Tour hit Chase Field for an all-star hit parade on Friday, Aug. 23, that presented the acts in order of appearance on the pop charts (if perhaps by sheer coincidence).

It started with Steve Miller Band, a psychedelic blues-rock combo out of San Francisco who started making waves in 1968 with “Living in the U.S.A.” before taking the mainstream by storm with a string of timeless rock hits in the ‘70s after topping the pop charts with “The Joker,” their first of three chart-topping entries on the Hot 100, two of which were brilliant.

Miller’s hit years overlapped a bit with Journey’s, to be fair. And Journey’s second-biggest album, “Frontiers,” hit the streets in 1983, the year Def Leppard stormed our shores as the New Wave of British Heavy Metal boys most likely to succeed with “Photograph,” the first of three Top 40 hits from “Pyromania.”

Not only did the songs get newer as the night progressed, the bands got louder as we made our way from Miller's unassuming old-school rock ‘n’ roll revival moves to the glam-metal stripper-pole anthem that brought the concert to a rousing climax, “Pour Some Sugar on Me,” with Journey as a sort of stepping stone between the two.

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And yet, it all made sense, to an extent, as a nostalgic trip down memory lane for anyone whose tastes were shaped by what rock radio was playing from those early Miller singles to when Journey and Def Leppard had their final mainstream pop hits, back when rock ‘n’ roll was still the people’s music, which it hasn't been in far too long.

Here's a look at all three acts.

Steve Miller still rock'n me, baby, decades after 'The Joker'

Steve Miller got the party started with a hit-filled set that opened on a very trippy note with "Space Intro," the keyboard-driven headphone-music masterstroke that welcomed unsuspecting listeners to "Fly Like an Eagle," Miller's biggest-selling studio release.

From there, he made his way through nearly every song on "Greatest Hits 1974-78," including "Rock'n Me," "The Joker," "Fly Like an Eagle," "Swingtown," "Jungle Love," "Take the Money and Run" and "Jet Airliner."

Miller sounded as good as he looked in his blue dinner jacket and frosty white hair, his phrasing of the lyrics somewhat looser than it was on "Greatest Hits" if no less focused on getting the lyrics across, from "Feed the babies who don't have enough to eat/ Shoe the children with no shoes on their feet/ House the people livin' in the street" to "I really love your peaches/ Wanna shake your tree."

And his guitar work was just as impressive, from the psychedelic majesty of "Serenade" to the gritty post-Chuck Berry approach of "Take the Money and Run." The man remains a criminally underrated lead guitarist. He's got it all — character, phrasing, tone and chops.

He also proved to be a charming presence in his interactions with the crowd, especially when he shared the story of a phone call he received from Eminem, who recently interpolated the Miller hit "Abracadabra" on a song called "Houdini."

His wife took the call.

"Maybe I'm in some kind of beef with Eminem," he recalled thinking. "These young people, they have beef."

His set lasted just over an hour, but could've gone longer, allowing time for — if I may — "Space Cowboy," "Heart Like a Wheel" and "True Fine Love" at the very least. See also: "Wild Mountain Honey" and "Dance, Dance, Dance."

Journey rise above the drama to deliver a hit-filled set

There's so much drama going on in Journey at the moment with founding guitarist Neal Schon publicly feuding with Jonathan Cain, the Babys' keyboardist who joined the fold in 1980 and contributed such Journey classics as "Don't Stop Believin'" and "Faithfully" to the mix, it's amazing that they made it through the set.

Cain recently filed a lawsuit against Schon over the use of Journey's credit card.

Schon responded with a statement this week, as reported by Stereogum , that read, in part, "I am determined to take the high road and push all this aside for the moment to focus on our fans, the tour and all who give so much to make things happen."

Whatever lingering resentment may exist between the two, which one imagines is just north of insurmountable, you never would have guessed there was dissension in the ranks as they made their way through a bevy of classics in Phoenix.

I'm not saying there was anything resembling chemistry between the warring factions, but they handled it like pros. Schon's playing on the songs that were clearly important to Cain was beyond respectful, faithfully recreating the parts he played on the original recordings when it mattered most and never doing anything that really felt like showboating.

He had plenty of other opportunities to flex his chops and he took full advantage of those opportunities, as he should. He's a brilliant guitarist and the only member of the band who's been there all along, through all the changes. I would pay to see him solo with no promise of an actual song.

The other recent drama in the Journey camp has been the recurring reports that their singer, Arnel Pineda, who joined in 2007 after being discovered on YouTube in a Journey cover band, isn't singing the way he was in 2007.

He was far from flawless Friday night in Phoenix. There were times when he was clearly struggling with his pitch, a situation made worse by the technical difficulties that caused him to stop singing, three songs in, on "Stone in Love," which then evolved into a lengthy jam as Pineda tried to figure out what happened.

But Journey recovered because that's who they are. Among the highlights of their set was drummer Deen Castronovo (whose drum fills were fantastic) stepping in on lead vocals on "Lights." And when Pineda was actually firing on all cylinders, which was frankly more often than not? The man was every bit as awe-inspiring as he was 2007, when he made it feel like Journey could perhaps survive without Steve Perry.

He's 17 years older now, but aren't we all?

Def Leppard Summer Stadium Tour setlist: Every song they played in Phoenix

Def Leppard treat the fans to Rock of Ages

Def Leppard followed Journey with a set that made it clear that we were dealing with the day's first proper heavy metal band, a point made abundantly clear from the opening strains of "Rock! Rock! (Till You Drop)," the first of seven songs they played from "Pyromania."

As Joe Elliott told the crowd before following "Rock! Rock! (Till You Drop)" with "Rocket," "Tonight, we're gonna celebrate an album that just passed its 40th birthday, 'Pyromania.'"

Before the night was through, they'd made their way through seven songs from "Pyromania," including "Photograph," "Rock of Ages," "Foolin'" and "Too Late for Love."

Their sound was massive, muscular and well-equipped to get you through the fact that Elliott can't always hit the notes he hit in 1983 the way he hit those notes in 1983.

It's just a harsh reality of singing really high on records that define you. When I spoke to Sammy Hagar just the other day about this very thing, he told me he needed to tour on the songs he recorded with Van Halen now because "I painted myself into a corner years ago singing these songs."

And that makes perfect sense. Joe Elliott, now 65, is clearly in if not the same boat then at least the same ocean. To be fair, I haven't heard him sound this good in years when he was on. His performance on "Love Bites," in particular, was stronger than it's been in years. And he remains a charismatic presence.

There were moments in the unplugged portion of the set that played directly to the strengths he now possesses, but the frequent attempts to turn those moments into rousing singalongs rarely generated the response he clearly thought they would, especially on "Two Steps Behind," one of their bigger '90s hits.

Still, they rallied in the end, bringing the set to a crowd-pleasing finish with the Broadway-worthy "Rock of Ages" and the far-from-faded "Photograph" before returning for an encore that ended, as you had to know it would, with "Pour Some Sugar on Me."

His bandmates rocked with the conviction you'd expect throughout, from the two-guitar army of Vivian Campbell and Phil Collen to powerhouse drummer Rick Allen, a true force of nature.

And Elliott proclaiming Campbell, Collen and bassist Rick Savage "three of the greatest voices in rock" may have been more sweet than accurate but the wall of harmonies they recreated on Def Leppard's greatest hits played a huge role in bringing those records to life in concert.

By the time Def Leppard brought the concert to a close with "Pour Some Sugar on Me," we'd heard 28 Top 40 hits spanning two decades, from "The Joker" through "Don't Stop Believin'" to "Two Steps Behind." It was the "Rock of Ages" Elliott promised, still rollin', rock 'n' rollin'.

Steve Miller Band setlist: All the songs they played in Phoenix

Here’s every song the Steve Miller Band played on the Summer Stadium Tour with Def Leppard and Journey at Chase Field in Phoenix on Friday, Aug. 23:

• “Space Intro”
• “Swingtown”
• ”The Stake”
• “Living in the U.S.A.”
• “Fly Like an Eagle”
• ”Abracadabra”
• “Rock n’ Me”
• “Jungle Love”
• “Take the Money and Run”
• “The Joker”
• “Jet Airliner”

Journey setlist 2024: All the songs they played in Phoenix

Here’s every song Journey played on the Summer Stadium Tour with Def Leppard and the Steve Miller Band at Chase Field in Phoenix on Friday, Aug. 23:

• “Only the Young”
• “Be Good to Yourself”
• Guitar solo
• “Stone in Love”
• “Ask the Lonely”
• “Send Her My Love”
• “Faithfully”
• “Lovin', Touchin', Squeezin'”
• “Open Arms”
• “Line of Fire”
• “Dead or Alive”
• “Wheel in the Sky”
• “Lights” (with drummer Deen Castronovo on lead vocals)
• “Separate Ways (Worlds Apart)”
• “Don't Stop Believin'”
• “Any Way You Want It”

Def Leppard setlist 2024: All the songs they played in Phoenix

Here’s every song Def Leppard played on the Summer Stadium Tour with Journey and the Steve Miller Band at Chase Field in Phoenix on Friday, Aug. 23:

• “Rock! Rock! (Till You Drop)”
• “Armageddon It”
• “Love Bites”
• “Just Like '73”
• “Comin' Under Fire”
• “Too Late for Love”
• “Die Hard the Hunter”
• “Two Steps Behind” (Joe Elliott solo acoustic)
• “This Guitar” (acoustic)
• “Bringin' On the Heartbreak” (acoustic/electric version)
• “Switch 625”
• “Rock of Ages”
• “Photograph”
• “Pour Some Sugar on Me”

Ed has covered pop music for The Republic since 2007, reviewing festivals and concerts, interviewing legends, covering the local scene and more. He did the same in Pittsburgh for more than a decade. Follow him on X and Instagram @edmasley and on  Facebook  as Ed Masley. Email him at [email protected].

Review: Journey, Def Leppard close out Stadium Rock Weekend with kinder, gentler, sweet sounds

After banging shows by Metallica and Green Day, these classic rockers drew 35,000 to Target Field.

By Jon Bream

On the fourth day of Stadium Rock Weekend in Minneapolis, they turned down the volume.

After two nights of pulverizing Metallica at U.S. Bank Stadium and one long evening of galvanizing Green Day at Target Field, it was a kinder and gentler — well, by comparison — but still beer-fueled marathon of classic rock on Monday with Def Leppard, Journey and Steve Miller Band at the Twins ballpark.

It was billed as the Summer Stadium Tour with its publicist insisting that the three Rock & Roll Hall of Famers are co-headliners and therefore do not call Miller “an opening act.”

Who’s on first?

The answer: the opening act. And Miller was on first with 63 minutes of pre-MTV hits that worked on both album-rock and Top 40 stations in the 1970s. Like the beloved novelty “The Joker” (it received the loudest and longest ovation Monday) and an epic and artful nine-minute rendition of “Fly Like an Eagle,” with Miller’s guitar soaring majestically.

Miller, 80, long the squarest looking dude in rock ‘n’ roll, is an underappreciated guitarist who infused jazz, Latin and space-age sounds into his expressive blues-rock solos.

The affable singer reminisced about last playing a Twin Cities stadium with the Eagles during a pouring rain in 1978 at the old Met in Bloomington. He mentioned that his grandfather was born in St. Paul, and he dedicated his closing “Jet Airliner” to Twin Cities musicians Billy, Ricky and Paul Peterson, each of whom played in Miller’s band at various times.

Speaking of dedication, Miller sent out 1982′s “Abracadabra,” his lone MTV sensation and last big hit, to Eminem, who sampled the song in his recent smash “Houdini.” Miller, the elder statesman on the tour, also thanked Joe Elliott of Def Leppard and Neal Schon of Journey for inviting him to join what he called a “transgeneration rock show” embracing the ‘60s (that’s when he started), ‘70s, ‘80s and ‘90s.

Who’s on second?

Celebrating its 51st anniversary, Journey is experiencing quite a trip. Once again. It’s an acrimonious, litigious situation between co-founder and guitarist Neal Schon and keyboardist-since-1980 Jonathan Cain, each of whom is a co-manager of the band. They are feuding over finances. More specifically, Schon’s use of the band’s credit card.

There was a 2022 suit by Cain against Schon for the same reason that was dropped with an agreement “to move forward with prejudice.” Another suit was filed and last week Schon posted on Facebook that Cain “has created a very hostile work environment” for him, the band and crew.

Related Coverage

Enough with the bickering. How was the music? Loud, slick and impactful, with plenty of speedy guitar runs by Schon, 70, whose playing was as skillful as it was emotional. The rich piano of Cain, 74, was prominent on ballads like “Faithfully.” Each co-leader was given an extended solo spotlight, with Schon’s including an interpolation of Prince’s “Purple Rain.”

But the real show was singer Arnel Pineda, 56, plucked from a Journey tribute band in the Philippines 16 years ago. He emulated original lead singer Steve Perry’s adenoidal voice faithfully but more importantly, he was a kinetic, leaping frontman who effectively worked the wide stage and the W-shaped runway. He had all 35,000 fans singing along to “Don’t Stop Believin’” about a city boy “raised in the Twin Cities” (instead of South Detroit).

Cain, who donned a Twins jersey for the second half of the 93-minute set, saluted the Twins and their three World Series championships (he must be including the 1924 title when they were the Washington Senators, the original team of the franchise). And for those keeping score, Schon logged much more time than Cain on the giant video screens during Journey’s performance. The feuding pair spent the night on opposite sides of the stage, only getting together for an end-of-set bow, with Pineda between them.

Who’s on third?

Celebrating the 41st anniversary of its blockbuster “Pyromania” album, England’s Def Leppard reminded the crowd what glam metal is all about. Rumbling rhythms, chiming tandem guitars, harmony-heavy choruses, high-pitched lead vocals and flashy outfits (leopard pattern is never out of date in rock).

“Every band on the planet has been here this weekend,” frontman Joe Elliott, 65, declared early in the set. His ears must have been ringing, too.

Unlike Journey, Def Leppard has had the same lineup since 1992. The San Francisco-launched group didn’t even have the same lineup when it rocked Target Field with the Lepps in 2018. But on Monday, the Brits’ music felt more dated than nostalgic fun. The group lost momentum mid-set with Elliott doing a solo acoustic reading of “Two Steps Behind” and then delivering a downer by transforming the ‘80s rock favorite “Bringin’ on the Heartbreak” into an acoustic number, with an electric final chorus.

To the fans’ delight, Def Leppard recovered with a 1-2-3-4 lineup of hits at the end of its 90-minute segment — “Rock of Ages,” “Photograph,” “Hysteria” and “Pour Some Sugar on Me,” a sweet walk-off for Stadium Rock Weekend.

about the writer

Jon Bream has been a music critic at the Star Tribune since 1975, making him the longest tenured pop critic at a U.S. daily newspaper. He has attended more than 8,000 concerts and written four books (on Prince, Led Zeppelin, Neil Diamond and Bob Dylan). Thus far, he has ignored readers’ suggestions that he take a music-appreciation class.

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Neal Schon Vows That He’s The One And Only Original And Founder Member Of JOURNEY, Not Jonathan Cain

• August 23, 2024
• 2 minute read

Journey’s Neal Schon took to his X page (former Twitter) by sharing that he’s the only original and founder member of Journey.

Here’s what Schon shared:

“Neal Schon the original and only Founder in Journey that’s been there from the very early inception in 72 and have played on every single show / never canceled once! Co-wrote and played on every single album … Jon Cain I asked to join in 81.”

On July 30, Cain sued Schon, saying he wasted too much of the band’s money. Cain claims Schon overused a credit card, went over hotel budgets, rented private jets, and hired a friend for security. Cain’s lawyers say this caused money problems and tension in the band.

After the lawsuit, Schon released a statement on Facebook, “I find Cain’s slanderous allegations are very disruptive and damaging with intent to try to harm me, the band, crew, promoter, and the tour. Truly disturbing to hear of Mr Cain’s filing in the middle of Journey’s very successful Stadium Tour with our good friends Def Leppard.”

The guitarist continued, “Journey has a great life and I thank the fans for that. Jonathan Cain has created a very hostile work environment for not only myself, but other band members and crew-members. The allegations are false and I intend to prove it in court.”

“My answers to Mr Cain’s false allegations and filing will be submitted by 5 PM ET Monday for all to read,” Neal also noted. “My focus is, as it always has been, and will be, the music and fans since when I began Journey in 1972, 51 years now for me.”

Neal lastly added, “I will continue to always do what’s right for Journey in protecting and making good decisions for the band, crew, music, and fans. All Journey band members you see on the stage with me I personally hired including Jonathan Cain. I will let the music do the talking.”

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• Jonathan Cain

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Neal Schon Gives in on Key Legal Request From Jonathan Cain

Journey's fall 2024 dates in the U.K. and Ireland were abruptly canceled amid this ongoing feud. Continue reading…

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Neal schon: ‘i’m the original and only founder in journey, not jonathan cain’.

In a recent tweet on X, Neal Schon called himself the ‘original and only founder’ of Journey.

“Neal Schon the original and only Founder in Journey that’s been there from the very early inception in 72 and have played on every single show / never canceled once!” the guitarist wrote. “Co-wrote and played on every single album … Jon Cain I asked to join in 81.”

On July 30, Cain sued Schon, saying he wasted too much of the band’s money. Cain claims Schon overused a credit card, went over hotel budgets, rented private jets, and hired a friend for security. Cain’s lawyers say this caused money problems and tension in the band.

After the lawsuit, Schon released a statement on Facebook, “I find Cain’s slanderous allegations are very disruptive and damaging with intent to try to harm me, the band, crew, promoter, and the tour. Truly disturbing to hear of Mr Cain’s filing in the middle of Journey’s very successful Stadium Tour with our good friends Def Leppard.”

The guitarist continued, “Journey has a great life and I thank the fans for that. Jonathan Cain has created a very hostile work environment for not only myself, but other band members and crew-members. The allegations are false and I intend to prove it in court.”

“My answers to Mr Cain’s false allegations and filing will be submitted by 5 PM ET Monday for all to read,” Neal also noted. “My focus is, as it always has been, and will be, the music and fans since when I began Journey in 1972, 51 years now for me.”

Neal lastly added, “I will continue to always do what’s right for Journey in protecting and making good decisions for the band, crew, music, and fans. All Journey band members you see on the stage with me I personally hired including Jonathan Cain. I will let the music do the talking.”

After Cain sued Schon, Journey canceled their UK and Ireland shows from their 50th-anniversary tour. Their North American tour with Def Leppard is still going as planned. Arnel Pineda recently posted a video of Journey preparing to fly to their next show in Phoenix, but fans noticed Cain was missing. Comments on the video asked about Cain’s absence but the band didn’t say anything.

Neal Schon the original and only Founder in Journey that’s been there from the very early inception in 72 and have played on every single show / never cancelled once! Co wrote and played on every single album … Jon Cain I asked to join in 81. pic.twitter.com/FDE8v0i2J8 — NEAL SCHON MUSIC (@NealSchonMusic) August 21, 2024

Bihter Sevinc

Hi! I'm Bihter. I'm interested in rock music, literature, cinema, and doing research in Cultural Studies. Please don't hesitate to contact me if you have any suggestions. [email protected]

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