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With the Eels of all groups...turns out that he loves the Eels and finally decided to do an appearance here in St. Paul during an encore. Funny story involving...croquet?
A lot of croquet contributed to the first performance in two decades by the former lead singer of Journey.
Steve Perry, whose pipes were responsible for Journey’s most epic hits, took the stage Sunday night at the Fitzgerald Theater in St. Paul, Minn. The occasion wasn’t a hell-freezes-over reunion with his former “Don’t Stop Believin’” bandmates. Instead, his unannounced appearance (his first public performance since his last solo tour in 1995) happened during an encore by Eels. A 1990s alt-rock band known for introspection, wry wit and melancholy, Eels would seem to have zero in common with Journey.
That made the joint performance “such a non-sequitur,” said Eels frontman Mark Oliver Everett, who goes by E. “Eels has a rich secret life that is rarely revealed, and part of it is that we’re good friends with Steve Perry.”
Everett, the group’s singer and primary songwriter, explained that the cameo was at least six years in the making, and started with Perry’s love for Eels–which initially went unrequited. Perry had been attending Eels concerts and occasionally sent word backstage that he wanted to meet the band. But Everett dodged his overtures because he worried that the rendezvous would be awkward. Unlike Tom Waits, Pete Townshend and other stars who have reached out over the years, Perry wasn’t on his list of musical influences. “I feel bad saying this now, but I was never into Journey,” he said.
Steve Perry, whose pipes were responsible for Journey’s most epic hits, took the stage Sunday night at the Fitzgerald Theater in St. Paul, Minn. The occasion wasn’t a hell-freezes-over reunion with his former “Don’t Stop Believin’” bandmates. Instead, his unannounced appearance (his first public performance since his last solo tour in 1995) happened during an encore by Eels. A 1990s alt-rock band known for introspection, wry wit and melancholy, Eels would seem to have zero in common with Journey.
That made the joint performance “such a non-sequitur,” said Eels frontman Mark Oliver Everett, who goes by E. “Eels has a rich secret life that is rarely revealed, and part of it is that we’re good friends with Steve Perry.”
Everett, the group’s singer and primary songwriter, explained that the cameo was at least six years in the making, and started with Perry’s love for Eels–which initially went unrequited. Perry had been attending Eels concerts and occasionally sent word backstage that he wanted to meet the band. But Everett dodged his overtures because he worried that the rendezvous would be awkward. Unlike Tom Waits, Pete Townshend and other stars who have reached out over the years, Perry wasn’t on his list of musical influences. “I feel bad saying this now, but I was never into Journey,” he said.