7/4/2023 0 Comments Journey tour![]() ![]() ![]() It was pretty much hit after hit after hit, yet the music didn’t sound nearly as vibrant - and definitely not as urgent - as what Toto delivered. Journey opened its set with “Only the Young,” one of four numbers the band would perform from its 1983 offering “Frontiers.” In all, the group delivered 19 songs, with more than a third of them coming from its jam-packed seventh studio album - 1981’s “Escape.” SAN FRANCISCO, CALIFORNIA – MARCH 31: Journey lead singer Arnel Pineda performs in concert at Chase Center in San Francisco, Calif., on Thursday, March 31, 2022. The band closed the show with its two best-known songs - “Rosanna” and “Africa” - which resulted in mammoth sing-alongs in the crowd. Toto included a phenomenal cover of the Beatles’ “With a Little Help from My Friends,” which was more Joe Cocker than Ringo Starr, but unfortunately left out its rendition of Weezer’s “Hash Pipe” (done in tribute to the alt-rock troupe famously covering “Africa”). Joseph Williams - son of film composer John Williams and actress Barbara Ruick - was a mighty force on vocals, as he has been since joining the band in the mid-’80s. The pure musicianship was extraordinary, with the blazing Lukather joined by bassist John Pierce, drummer Robert “Sput” Searight, keyboardists Steve Maggiora and Dominique “Xavier” Taplin, and multi-instrumentalist Warren Ham. Rock band Journey fires two members after failed ‘coup’ (And, no, this is not some elaborate April Fools joke - Toto actually was that good.) For ticket information, visit. Hopefully fans won’t make that mistake when the potent doubleheader checks into the Golden 1 Center in Sacramento on April 1. In other words, if you decided to skip seeing the opener in order to avoid traffic on Thursday night, you definitely made the wrong decision. The whole arena was abuzz between the two bands’ sets and you could hear Journey fans muttering in astonishment about how great Toto was onstage and the number of good songs the band delivered in its set. Yet, the opening act was nothing short of a revelation, wowing Journey fans - many of whom walked in only knowing the big Toto hits “Rosanna” and (in part due to Weezer) “Africa” - with a fully engaging set built from superb songs and even better musicianship. Sure, the hometown headliners were good, delivering remarkably faithful renditions of many of the hits from the group’s recording heyday of late ’70s and first half of the ’80s - despite now missing a number of the key players from that time period. Call the concert police, because Toto stole the show from Journey on Thursday night at Chase Center in San Francisco. ![]()
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