Don't Stop Believin': The Man, the Band, and the Song That Inspired Generations by Jonathan Cain

Author:Jonathan Cain
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: Non-Fiction > Biographies, Music, Biography
Publisher: Zondervan
Published: 2018-05-01T00:00:00+00:00

FIFTEEN

“LAY IT DOWN”

When the moment came, I showed up armed with ideas, ambition, and enough energy to see them through. I arrived at the Journey camp with more than a decade of experience, and since I already knew the band and had jammed with them, joining them felt natural.

At the end of 1980, I received a life-changing phone call from San Francisco. It was Pat Morrow, the road manager for Journey, informing me that I had been chosen as the new keyboardist for the band. I dropped the phone on the kitchen floor of our small Encino apartment in disbelief.

“When do I audition?” I asked Pat.

“No need to audition. We’ve watched you enough with The Babys. You never missed a lick. Steve and Neal have been raving about your versatility and how much you know about music.” Pat told me that even the departing keyboardist, Gregg Rolie, had given his blessing.

By the time I arrived in Oakland for the first day of rehearsal with the band, I had already told everybody, said my good-byes, and prepared myself as much as possible. An important call had gone out to John Waite to explain that I’d been invited to join Journey. I told him I’d still be there if he needed me. Waite assured me he had already decided to go solo. He hadn’t undergone his knee surgery yet, so there wouldn’t be any touring for at least a year. He was planning to leave Chrysalis and get another label, probably EMI Records, he explained. The Babys were still nearly a million dollars in debt, and there was no way, short of a miraculous hit album, to get even. Every dollar of revenue we earned from touring and album sales went toward this insurmountable debt. It was like we were in the army, living off our per diems.

Chrysalis Records, our label, seemed indifferent about us as well. “It’s all about Blondie, Pat Benatar, and Ian Hunter anyway,” John said.

The excessive cash demands The Babys had racked up in their early days had finally caught up with them. I wondered if John could walk away from his obligations there. I had been lucky to have kept my publishing. I knew they had his. John congratulated me on my new gig and wished me luck as we ended our conversation.

The Babys were suddenly just a footnote in rock history. I couldn’t help but be relieved. John Waite was a swashbuckling rock star with a tortured poet’s heart. He had also been a good friend and bandmate. Excited as I was to start with Journey, I would miss him and the rest of the guys.

I spent the rest of that afternoon calling Tony Brock, Wally Stocker, and Ricky Phillips, who weren’t quite as understanding about my departure. Even dropping the bomb that Waite had decided to go solo didn’t seem to get through to them. They vowed to find a new vocalist so they could continue as The Babys. Tony seemed to take it the hardest.

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