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Why I became a Journey fan and don't fit the mold
by Greg Moore
I have not particular reason for writing this, but as my wife has disappeared without a trace, visiting her parents in Mexico, I find myself drawn back to the guilty pleasures of my college years: Journey.
Frankly, I don't fit the mold for Journey fans as I have always imagined them. I came into this world kicking and screaming in 1980 and didn't really discover Journey until seeing 'MTV's 25 Lame', a program chronicling the 25 worst videos of all time. Among the ranks sat the video for 'Separate Ways,' which while extremely weird and interesting in its style, I enjoy much more with my eyes closed? no offense. After watching this program, I did a little research and found that 99 % of the retro tunes I loved and found myself singing on occasion originally came belted out of the mouth of Steve Perry, or even Gregg Rollie.
With that moment came the end of my innocence as I began my 'obsession' with Journey phase. I spent the better part of my college years collecting Journey memorabilia. Records, posters, promotional material; you name it; I had it hanging on the wall. Needless to say, my friends didn't understand my wild collecting and eBay hunting, seeing as the likes of Britney Spears and N*Sync had just burst upon the scene, but they accepted it as all good friends do.
The culmination of my fandom came as I was studying my chosen field, Spanish, in Cuernavaca, Mexico during the spring and summer of 2001. For those who don't know, an annual festival called Acafest takes place in Acapulco in May every year, and we came in to Acapulco right at the tail end up it. My roommate shocked and filled me with joy when he read the lineup for the last days of Acafest. The Wednesday before we got there, the B 52s had graced the convention center in Acapulco, and that very night, the band listed on the calendar was Journey!!!!!! I became ecstatic and ran directly to the convention center to buy tickets for this, my first Journey concert. Who would have imagined, of all places for a concert, my first Journey concert blew my mind in Acapulco, Mexico.
After buying my ticket, a quiet fear gripped me. Would Journey actually play a full show, or would they make up the smaller part of a much bigger compilation of musical acts. Not everyone in Mexico speaks English, and certainly, not everyone in Mexico loves Journey the way dedicated Journey fans do. So, it would not come as a surprise if Journey played one or two songs, then left the stage open for more popular Mexican bands to wow the crowd.
Needless to say, I decided to take my chances, knowing that one or two Journey songs live easily beat out a night of boredom that surely awaited me back at the hotel. I'll never forget that night. The concert space held quite a few people, and as Journey took the stage, not a one seemed excited. Maybe it's because the band's on stage banter between songs made no sense to the majority of the Spanish speaking audience, or maybe it's because most people in the audience had come to the concert to see the much more famous group (at least in Mexico), Kabá, but as Journey kicked it into high gear with 'Separate Ways' (weirdly a milestone song in my time as a Journey fan), I took to my feet along with my roommate and belted out the lyrics from my seat. The band surprisingly played what seemed like a complete concert set and their segment of the show lasted well over an hour. Maybe the majority of the people in the crowd didn't get it, but my trip to Mexico had been made. I had seen the best band in the world, at least in my eyes, and I even got some decent pictures of the show.
Well, back to the topic of returning to guilty pleasures; After college I moved to Mexico for a year and met my wife Jocelyn. Open arms played as we danced our first dance, but my marital responsibilities soon filled my time, and Journey fell by the wayside. I did pick up their Greatest Hits DVD, but didn't really have much time to watch it. Well that has recently changed as my wife has just left for Mexico, and while she visits her family, I have kept myself busy rediscovering Journey. Don't get me wrong, I do love my wife, and would much rather have her here that not here, but devoting endless amounts of time to hobbies and things like all time favorite bands becomes difficult if your spouse doesn't share your obsession.
Since the start of my forced solitude, I've watched the Greatest Hits about three times in as many days, and picked up the Live 2001 Arrival DVD and have watched that about twice. This band continues to feed my need for 'real' music in a time when bands don't seem to care how machine made their sound comes across.
As I said, I don't have a real reason to write all this, but I guess the point remains this: Journey fans don't come out of a set mold. They range in age from young to old, and are not made up completely of women that listened to Journey in the 80's during their teens and twenties. Journey continues to tour and put out amazing rock songs and ballads that blow anything produced in the last fifteen years or so out of the water in terms of quality. That keeps me dedicated as a fan, and no matter what happens, during the times I don't have so much time for the music, or during the times when I only have time for the music, Journey will remain the great ones of rock and ballads in my eyes.
Copyright © 1994-2006 Dan Stacy, Journey Digest, JourneyDigest.com
No portion of this article may be reprinted without express written permission from the author and JourneyDigest.com