We conclude this week's review of Voices Without Peer with a man simply known as The Voice. He was a struggling artist in the late '70s, trying to get a record deal but having no success. Perhaps the time wasn't right, or The Voice was ahead of his time.
His record label (Columbia) decided what The Voice needed was a band. And so they forced The Voice on a Bay-area jam band that was trying to make a name for themselves. The story goes that the band members weren't too keen on having a lead singer foisted on them with little or no input. They liked their 8-minute guitar solos (the guitarist being something of a prima donna himself) and didn't see how a new voice would help all that much.
But record contracts being what they were, they had no choice. At first, they limited The Voice to joint duty with their original lead singer. But when concert goers insisted on hearing more of The Voice and less of the other guy, the die was cast. And off they went on a 20-year rocket ride that saw multiplatinum album after multiplatinum album, sold-out tours, and a worldwide following.
Training for another tour, The Voice hurt his hips, and had to cancel. The rest of the band was not very happy about it, and acrimony ensued. VH-1 immortalized the conflict in an episode of Behind the Music that laid out all the bad blood for everyone to see. There was a brief reconciliation, but it didn't last. Eventually the band found a Filipino singer on YouTube who sounded exactly like The Voice. A new lead singer was found.
They tour to this day, playing the old hits originally sung by The Voice and now done by the sound-alike. But nothing diminishes the power, the emotion, and the soaring tenor that made the band who they are today. I'm choosing a solo song done by The Voice after he left his band, Journey. It's a bit raspier than it was 15 years earlier, but it's still got "it". My Voice Without Peer to end the week, Steve Perry...
Yep, THAT'S a Voice Without Peer...
See you next week...
Pete
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