My earliest connection with 80's and early 90's pop culture was through my older cousins. Not fully understanding context and appeal, I would daisy-chain together names like Brett Michaels, Guns 'n Roses, MTV, the Labyrinth, and Johnny Depp. Through through those occasional moments watching cable at my grandparents' house or on Cape Cod vacations, I was able learn about cable programming. A combination of SNICK, Nick at Night, Nicktoons, and MTV's "House of Style". Something about Fiona Apple's "Criminal" video was more taboo than Tawny Kitaene writhing along the hoods of two Jaguar XJ's. Somehow it was even more taboo than my parents' Herb Alpert CD which featured Dolores Erickson wearing chiffon and shaving cream. Through Fiona Apple's being so explicitly sexual, MTV became a generational bridge too far in my family until along came "Snookie" LaValle abd her friends from the Jersey Shore.
My one way if still enjoying music television was through MTV's sister station VH1. It wasn't as flashy or provocative, but there were the trivia-laden "Pop Up Videos", the revelatory "Storytellers" concert series and "Behind the Music" which provided even deeper dives into musicians lives. That is how I learned about rock as someone just past the MTV Generation. Def Lepard most immediately stood out to me because of Rick Allen's learning a new method of drumming to compensate for an amputated arm. Then, I factor in other cultural touchstones. All those times that I've heard "Pour Some Sugar On Me" play, and their playing on Live 8's Philadelphia stage in 2004. Yes, I understand that it sounds like I'm just skimming along the outer reaches of Def Leppard's repertoire. It's that I didn't start listening to more of their music until I found Pandora. While "Classic Rock" radio stations may now accept Nirvana and Soundgarden as part of their field of programming, they were picky about 80's and late 70's bands. At times, I would catch the old syndicated radio program "Rockline", but late airtime often got in the way. If you think that's a sheltered introduction to Def Leppard, guess how I built up an appreciation for Journey.
"Glee." In-canon, that would be the William Schuster's fascination with Journey when it came to selecting numbers for the William McKinley High School show choir. I'm not too sure who else watched Ryan Murphy's "Popular" series on the WB network, but Glee had a viral appeal on society (especially the LGBTQ community). I was still trying to figure out how I identified, but I loved the music, I identified with these characters with a passion for music, and I... I recognized Corey Monteith (RIP) from ABC Family's "Kyle XY". The Glee cast covering "Don't Stop Believing" gave Journey's impact a fresh new breath of life. It was through a love for Roxette and Pandora's music algorithm that I regularly hear some music from Journey. While enjoying it I admittedly mistake them for another band at times. I enjoy "Stone in Love", but the composition and harmonies get me wondering if the Roth era of Van Halen released any "soft rock" singles.
It was the planned inclusion of Heart which convinced me to get tickets for the big Journey/Def Leppard concert at Fenway Park. As I mentioned in my Cheap Trick post, Anne Wilson had to step back from touring in order to fight a battle with cancer. It was a great privilege to see Anne perform at the Wilbur Theater last year, and wish her the best. Missing the chance to see her sister Nancy play guitar was a bigger loss for me. I've been a big Heart fan ever since I got their Greatest Hits Vol. 1 CD from the Best Buy in Syracuse. And the DVD of a 2002 concert they gave in Seattle. Steve Miller was substituted in for Heart. Originally Miller and his tour band split this stadium tour's opening slot with Cheap Trick and and the Wilson sisters, so the transition of concert billing could have been less steady. For Steve Miller, I'm not as invested in his music, but would've enjoyed seeing him perform. 'Fly Like an Eagle" is very iconic, and I knew "the Joker" from "That 70's Show". There was even an episode of the RJ Cutler documentary series "American High" where one of teenagers sang along with "the Joker."
Unfortunately, I didn't get into Fenway Park's grandstand section until Steve Miller had just finished. When a friend missed out on seeing the Linda Lindas open for Green Day a few nights later, I didn't feel as bad about transit impacting how much of a concert I can see. In the seat next to me was a millennial woman who arrived in the middle of the Miller set. Between age and cultural exposure, I think that we were both drawn to the concert through similar pop culture references.
When Journey took the stage, I knew that legal matters had already caused one schism between bandmates over rights to the music. Frontman Steve Perry left the band in 1998. Following stints by two other frontmen, Journey found Arnel Pineda (who's sung for Journey since 2007). Both drummer Steve Smith and original bassist Ross Valory were "terminated"from the band in 2020. With many hit Journey songs written (or co-written) by Steve Perry, I shouldn't have been surprised by Jonothan Cain explaining from behind his keyboard the songwriting origin behind hits like "Faithfully". Within about a week, I heard about mid-tour legal battles between Cain and lead guitarist Neal Schon. It sadly goes along with Schon's reputation for being difficult. At least for authenticity sake, I would have rather seen a Journey concert before the COVID-19 lockdown. Given that drama, I appreciate Journey for what it is. Two bandmates at odds with eachother, a frontman who was a tween when the first album came out, two recent additions, and a backing band.
To his credit, Arnel Pineda still has the ability and personality to sing lead in an arena concert. A part of me wishes that it could have been the early Glee cast singing or at least Chris Colfer and Darrem Criss. With the losses of Naya Rivera (RIP) and the aforementioned Monteith, two other nostalgic Glee reprisal duets are no longer possible. Chris Daughtry and Lzzy Hale released a great cover of "Separate Ways" which may be more palatable to the more traditionalist Journey fans. Although Pineda's still often seen as "the new singer", I appreciate his efforts like I do Lena Philipsson's joining Per Gessle in Roxette. After the 2019 death of Marie Fredriksson (once more this post, RIP), the Gessle maintained the band's legacy before attempting any further performance. Journey's lead singer substitutions are like Roxette, but with Billy Corgan's 15 years of having waifish female bassists with attitude stabd in for D'Arcy. Or when Gene Simmons and Paul Stanley found it more lucrative with other musicians dressed as the stage personas of Peter Criss and Ace Frehley.
The Journey set wasn't as exciting before dusk. When an open air concert in a baseball stadium starts hours before the sun goes down, the visual experience lacks contrast. Spotlights have less effect, and it feels more like a festival setting. A stadium of Fenway's size can overwhelm the communal chemistry with the exception of some fan... communities. You'll see what I mean in the next post. I feel like the setlist was designed to time with the setting of the sun. There's a big guitar solos by Schon, and then five huge songs so recognizable that the audience all sang along. The music got bigger, the lights got more focused, and the audience participation grew as the energy of the heaviness of the moment rose up to meet Def Leppard's brand of metal.
With the exception of a few songs I knew well, this concert was pretty much my first deep dive into Def Leppard's music. A high quality performance with music mainly dating into the, 80's. A few songs were newer releases. In fact, "Just Like '73" first debuted this summer. Whilw Def Leppard continues to record new material, most of the songs performed were all from their first three albums. The band knew they're audience was mainly from that MTV Generation. As a special treat, this tour's set lists included "Comin' Under Fire" which had gone 41 years without Def Leppard playing it before a live crowd. Generally, it felt like I was experiencing a Def Leppard show at the band's height. The performance quality had changed so little, and technology has risen to the occasion. In that sense, it reminded me of seeing the Scorpions and Thundermother at Foxwoods Casino in Connecticut.
Getting all sappy, my favorite part of the Def Leppard set was the chemistry. That between the sinf along with all of the songs. Also that between the bandmates. I speak often about what longstanding comrades says about a band, and three of the musicians have been together since they were teenagers. With Phil Collen joining in the early 80's and Vivian Campbell ten years later, this brotherhood is close-knit and long-standing. Throughout the show, I marveled at how Collen and Campbell played lead guitar together (with Joe Elliott playing rhythm). Teamwork between lead guitarists reminds me of how Mickey Hart (of the Grateful Dead) often plays Dead shows together with a second drummer.
As the crowds poured into the Green Line's Kenmore Station after the concert, I decided to instead walk to the Orange Line station by Symphony Hall. After three concerts in four nights, the next show wasn't for a few days later.
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