Don't stop believin', hold on to that feeling, streetlights, people... ohohohhhhhhhhhh. Hahaha. Hey, kids, welcome to the Phile for a Thursday. How are you? The President of the United States, jealous of a 16-year-old girl for having been declared TIME's Person of the Year, mocked her on Twitter, Being decidedly not Best. Trump tweeted that Greta Thunberg, the young activist seeking to save the planet from extinction, "must work on her Anger Management problem," and then offered the advice, "go to a good old fashioned movie with a friend! Chill Greta, Chill!" If you don't believe me check it out...
While Trump fancies himself to be a Twitter expert, he has nothing on the Extremely Online teens who were raised on social media. Thunberg proceeded to troll Trump by changing her Twitter bio to reflect Trump's trolling.
This isn't the first time Thunberg changed her bio after being mocked by an esteemed head of state. Thunberg was cyberbullied by Trump once before, and was also called a brat by the Brazilian president behind the Amazon fires. Trump has spent two days fuming about being on one less magazine cover. On Wednesday, the Trump campaign tweeted out a picture of the president's face placed on a 16-year-old girl's body, his weirdest Photoshop since he pretended to be Sylvester Stallone. Thunberg's response to Trump is getting the obvious "yaaaas queen" tweets, and people are also taking the opportunity to mock First Lady Melania Trump, who completely lost her shit last week when a professor made a pun on her son Barron's name. Is Trump tired of whining yet?
Presidential candidate Marianne Williamson, the Hillary Clinton of Gwyneth Paltrows is giving hope to little girls everywhere that they too can grow up to spread conspiracy theories, granted they haven't died from a preventable disease because people like Williamson told their parents not to vaccinate them. The aspiring crackpot-in-chief took to Twitter Sunday night to share her dismay over Donald Trump's posthumous presidential pardon of his fellow cult leader Charles Manson, a thing that did not happen. There's no need to make up new controversies... Trump has done dozens of terrible things. Enough terrible things that people see headlines like "Trump Pardons Charles Manson" and don't immediately assume it's a dumb lie. The headline came from a site called Moron Majority, which makes Williamson's gullibility a little (a lot) on the nose. Williamson later corrected the record, writing, "I erroneously tweeted that President Trump had posthumously pardoned Charles Manson. Glad [sic] To have been wrong."
If the impeachment inquiry into Donald Trump's attempt to bribe Ukraine taught us one thing, it's how to pronounce "Kyiv." And if it taught us a second thing, it's that Republican subservience to Trump it's that people who sign up to work for Donald Trump ain't the sharpest tools in the shed. The House Judiciary Committee hosted a hearing Monday to discuss the evidence collected on Trump's behavior towards Ukraine. While Democrats were focused on Trump's behavior, Republicans focused on the Democrats' behavior. Republicans' lawyer takes his job so seriously, he showed up to his televised hearing with his notes in a reusable shopping bag. He hadn't appeared to have read his grocery binders, because multiple times, the Democrats' lawyer had to explain to him facts about his own report. Democratic counsel Barry Berke cited a testimony in which a Pence aide said that she viewed Trump's request to get dirt on Joe Biden as "political in nature." "Did you leave that out of your report: yes or no?" Berke asked. After fumbling around for an answer, Berke said, "I'm telling you you did," to which Castor shrugged and said "okay," and the hearing room erupted in laughter. It's likely not ideal for the Republicans that their chosen counsel has become the hearing's comic relief, but it's definitely fun for watchers of C-SPAN.
After a 10k runner slapped the butt of WSAV reporter Alex Bozarjian as he ran past her live broadcast on Saturday, December 7th, the race’s organizers vowed to track him down and ensure he faced consequences. Bozarjian called the then-unidentified runner out on social media for his bad behavior. Now, it seems the runner has been identified and banned from any future races. The Savannah Sports Council tweeted on December 8th that they had identified the man and reported his name to the wronged parties. They made it clear behavior like this man’s will not be tolerated at any of their sporting events. The Savannah Police Department have commented that they are communicating with Bozarjian and “are definitely going to be working with her in any capacity on how she’d like to move forward with this incident.” Twitter was glad to see the offending party faced such swift and decisive consequences. Hopefully, this incident will dissuade other people from physically assaulting others in the pursuit of a joke.
A report has been submitted after an 8-year-old girl went to visit her father in jail the week of Thanksgiving and was strip-searched by the corrections officers. The girl, who remains anonymous, was visiting her father at the Buckingham Correctional Center in Dillwyn, Virginia. It was customary for her to visit every week, though this visit was particularly important during the holiday. Her father's girlfriend, Diamond Peerman, accompanied her on this particular visit. Upon entering the facility, Peerman and the child went through the usual, routine checks that all visitors must go through when going into a correctional facility. However, a Department of Corrections K-9, who was trained to detect drugs and other contraband, approached Peerman, which prompted a required strip-search. Peerman asked if the girl would also have to be searched, which led to mixed reactions. According to the report, the guards initially said that the girl would not need to be fully searched, but a captain then gave an overriding order for her to be included in the check. Peerman and the girl were then informed that if they did not participate in the strip-search, they would be banned from the state prison for any further visits. Peerman said, "I told her, that means you have to take all of your clothes off or you're not going to be able to see your dad. That's when she starting crying." According to the report, Peerman informed the guards that she was not the girl's legal guardian, but they demanded she sign a waiver of consent for the minor anyway. State policy allows for these searches involving minors when needed, but a legal guardian is always required to be present and sign before that can happen, according to Lisa Kinney, the spokesperson for the Department of Corrections. Kinney said, "It is deeply troubling and represents a breach in our protocol. We sincerely apologize to this child and her family and will be taking immediate disciplinary action against the person responsible." Kinney also added that the staffer who made the decision for the girl to be strip-searched didn't have the authority in the correctional facility. As a result of the search, no items were found in the girl's or in Peerman's possession, or in Peerman's car. To make matters worse, they were able to visit the girl's father that day, but they had to settle for a no-contact visit through a pane of glass. It's been included in the report, as well, that the girl suffers from bipolar disorder, depression and ADHD. As a result of this incident, she has struggled to cope and has missed multiple days of school. Her mother shared that she would not be taking her daughter back to the prison anytime soon if it meant subjecting her to these conditions. Many have taken to Twitter to share their distaste for the situation. While it's no secret that a prisoner, if desperate enough, will have items smuggled in through any means necessary, it's still difficult to think of someone involving a child. It's unclear how extensive the investigation will be, beyond taking action against the staffer who made the decision to strip-search the girl, but hopefully, improvements will be made to the searching protocol, so something like this doesn't happen again.
If I had a TARDIS I would go to Macy's in New York City in the 40s, but knowing my luck the store will be closed and this guard dog would be staring me down.
And why would I be in the girls section? Haha. Did you guys see the new Wonder Woman trailer? Did you guys see that commercial with E.T. in it? I love dit but was kinda taken back when I saw who played E.T.
Now that's just fucking creepy. You know about this Elf on the Shelf thing, right? Well, sometimes the Elf takes things just a little bit too far.
I wouldn't mind if that happened to me. Are you guys looking for "Baby Yoda" merchandise for Christmas? Well, good news... there's a brand new "Baby Yoda" toy that just came out. Take a look...
Looks pretty good, right? Hahaha. That's as creepy as the E.T. pic. If you're looking for a present for your daughter or son, all depends, check out this sleeping bag in the Sears catalogue.
That is I think it's a sleeping bag. Ever go to a museum and see yourself in a painting? This gurl did...
Do you know your neighbors? I know one of mine. I hope you'll never receive a letter like this one...
Yeesh. If you're cheating on your loved one you might wanna think twice after seeing this...
A Florida teacher’s assistant was arrested for engaging in sexual intercourse with two minors and providing them with marijuana and alcohol. According to Fox 4, Kirstie None Rosa, 27, was charged with three counts of lewd and lascivious battery sexual activity with a 15-year-old and for providing nicotine and alcohol to the minors. Surveillance footage also revealed Rosa being intimate with two 15-year-olds at her condo’s community pool, although it was not made clear if the video showed all three engaging in sexual activity together or on separate occasions. Collier County deputies reported she had sex with one of the minors a couple of times, once at his home and a second time after driving him to her East Naples residence. Many on Twitter are calling her out for what she really is. She allegedly took the teens to her condo after going to a party where they were imbibing alcohol and smoking pot. When pressed for details about the pool footage, she denied going into the pool and “hanging out with the students.” She also claimed to leave the party after the teens arrived. But the Naples Daily News reported that the person having the party kicked them out upon discovering they were high school students. Rosa denied going back home, but two witnesses allegedly saw her in her home with the 15-year-old. Shannon Van Antwerp, a mother of a former student at the Phoenix Alternative School, told NBC 2 that Rosa should no longer work there or at any other school if the allegations are true. “These students are in there for a reason and for a teacher to do that I just think it’s really horrible.” Kevin Buja, who lives near the school, also expressed his shock after hearing about the allegations. “It makes me angry and wary about what’s going on over there.” The two boys were interviewed separately at the Children’s Advocacy Center on November 19th. According to the Collier County Sheriff’s Office arrest report, both admitted to corresponding with Rosa via Snapchat and having sex with her. On December 9th, Collier County School District school officials recommended terminating Rosa to the school board.
This is so stupid... if you spot the Mindphuck let me know. Okay, it's time to talk football with my friend Jeff.
Me: Hey there, Jeff, how are you? Welcome back to the Phile.
Jeff: Hey Jason, always good to be back here on the Phile talking a little football. Hard to believe the season is almost over. There's just 3 weeks left in the regular season!
Me: Yeah, it's crazy. So, Steve Perry is on the Phile today. Were you a fan of Journey, Jeff?
Jeff: Nice! While I'm not a fan of the band persay, I do like a handful of their songs. I mean anyone who doesn't want to rock out anytime "Don't Start Believin'" comes on is just not a good person. Though "Faithfully" is a better song. I'll stand by that fact!
Me: So, first things first... what the hell is wrong with these Patriots? The NFL found 8 minutes of recorded Bengals play calls, hand signals and substitutions on Patriots videotapes? Yeesh! What do you think of this?
Jeff: Wait? The Patriots got caught taping another team? What year is this? Yeah, I saw Belichek's comments. At this point it's hard to trust New England. And why tape the Bengals? They have one win! I don't understand that. If this was the first Patriot scandal I would possibly dismiss it. But this is now the third time. Plus a few minor ones. I remember when the Steelers played there a few years ago, they were picking up radio broadcasts in their headsets instead of communicating with each other. But somehow I'm sure they will just get a light slap on the wrist because it's New England.
Me: Eli is BACK! He threw a 60-Yard touchdown pass to cap off an incredible first half performance! Did you see that?
Jeff: Eli looked good in the first half. It's what happens when you give a veteran like him eleven weeks off. Unfortunately he wasn't able to maintain his performance in the second half. It's been that kind of a season for the New Giants (cause you know, the York decal fell off? Last week? No? Moving on!)
Me: Yep. I remember. This is interesting... Odell Beckham Jr. told Patriots, Seahawks and 49ers players” to come get him out of Cleveland. San Francisco was one of the teams that were in heavy pursuit of Beckham last season, and Beckham has stated publicly how much he admires the Patriots and quarterback Tom Brady... he even gave Brady a pair of his sneakers. Do you think he'll leave the Browns and if so, where do you think he'll end up? I hope not the Patriots.
Jeff: Beckham needs to be careful. He's under contract with Cleveland. Telling any team to come "get him" could be considering collusion. I understand he's not happy in Cleveland, and why should he be? But that's not cool of him to call out specific teams asking for a trade. Honor your contract or do it another way. Honestly? If I was Cleveland I would keep him. I think they will only be considered a contender with him. But you know what? Suck it, Cleveland.
Me: Ha! I'm slacking this week, Jeff... what NFL news do you have?
Jeff: For me the biggest story of the week was something that almost happened. I've been following football for over 30 years and I don't think I have ever heard of this. The Kansas City Chiefs almost had to forfeit their game in New England before the game even started. Why? Because somehow their helmets, pads etc got sent to Giants Stadium in New York instead of New England. The gear was then given a police escort from one stadium to another. And again, if this happened in any other stadium I would be willing to shrug it off. The fact it almost happened in New England makes me completely suspicious. I'm not saying New England did anything wrong... But I'm not saying they didn't either! In other news the league is seeing a few injuries this time of year. Richard Sherman of the 49ers and Alshon Jeffrey of the Eagles are two of the bigger names that will be out. The Eagles have announced Alshon is done for the year. Meanwhile the Steelers should get back not one but two of their players back from injury. WR Juju Smith-Schuster and RB James Conner are both expected to play in the Sunday night game against Buffalo. In another story that just won't die, Antonio Brown has once again called the NFL racist in a tweet. He commented that a Caucasian player can get assault charge, spend jail time and still play in the NFL. No word if that player is a locker room cancer who whines on Twitter, can't find a helmet he can play with, calls the team owner a cracker, has several pending sexual assault chargers and had cryogenically frozen his feet.
Me: America has gotten a team back from Britain and renamed it and changed the logo again...
Me: What do you think?
Jeff: The British clearly are not completely familiar with the geography of the U.S. That should be in Philadelphia. Or at least ship to Liberty Bell to Los Angeles? Otherwise, I'm down with the logo!
Me: Okay, so, your bloody Steelers won and my Giants bloody lost... so how did we do?
Jeff: I went to bed with the Giants up big at half. So I assumed they lost. I even penciled it into our word document as a win. You shouldn't have told me! I would have never known! I went 1-1 with a Steeler win and you had the anti-perfect week, 0-2 with a Giant loss. So I gained a few more points on you. As it stands the score is 42-26 me!
Me: Ugh! Okay, let's do this weeks picks... I say Ravens by 20 and Chiefs by 17. What do you say?
Jeff: I thought you and I discussed this before! Everytime you go with a huge point spread you lose. But hey, it's your funeral! I'm going to go with Seahawks 9 and Rams by 4.
Me: I know, but I thought that the hell. Okay, I will see you back here next Friday. Have a good week.
Jeff: See you next week!
Hello, 911? There's been a murder. It's Thursday, kids, you know what that means...
Hmmmm... this McDonald's egg nog shake is so good. Sorry of you kids have a week stomach. So, a friend of the Phile has something to say about the New England Patriots' fans. It's time for...
LET TALK ABOUT IT! Pats fans... How DARE YOU! No really... How fucking dare you? Like... come on! You guys are the kings of getting stupid ass calls that go your way. The league has evolved to go... YOUR WAY. So how dare you be so salty and pissed about a game not going your way when half of y'all season has been like that for every other team? That is CRAAAZZZZYYYY talk. Yes, you guys was robbed. I'll admit it. But are we going to act like Brady's squad was was dropping balls like mad, or Brady getting SACKED TO HELL. Yet you was in a position to win the game still. So lets not act like you guys was in no position to get the win. Point is... You got screwed... Booo fucking HOOOOO. Now you got a taste of what the rest of the league has felt playing the Pats. Now suck it up, act like a champion franchise, and move on. That easy!
Yikes. And now weird...
Broom hiding. Yup, you read that right. This is one of the weirdest Christmas traditions is weird but not uncommon, that is, if you live in Norway. This tradition dates back centuries to when people once believed that witches and evil spirits came out on Christmas Eve and looked for brooms to ride on. To this day, the tradition stands firm and people still hide their brooms in the safest place in their house to stop them from being stolen.
The 110th book to be pheatured in the Phile's Book Club, and the last for this year is...
Demi will be the guest on the Phile next Friday. Now for some...
Phact 1. In the 1950s the California deserts were transformed to provide fantasized portrayals of the Middle East. Instead of swimsuits, and evening gowns young women attended festivals dressed as harem girls, with bare midriffs, and billowing pants.
Phact 2. There is a charity in the United States called the Clean Slate Org, which offers discounted tattoo removal for former gang members.
Phact 3. McDonald's in Hong Kong will host a cheap McWedding for couples for around $1200. They will provide food and drink for 50 people and an apple pie cake.
Phact 4. In 1835, a man attempted to assassinate the king of France with a hand-made 25-barrel rifle. The discharge killed 18 people and wounded 22. The king was only grazed by a bullet.
Phact 5. As a knife-wielding assassin jumped out of a crowd of people and lunged toward the President of the Maldives, a quick-thinking Boy Scout who was standing in the crowd in his uniform grabbed the blade and saved the leader’s life. As in the U.S., the motto of the Maldivian Boy Scouts is “Be Prepared.”
This is very cool... today's pheatured guest is an American singer and songwriter. He is best known as the lead singer of the rock band Journey. His latest solo album "Traces" is available on iTunes, Amazon and Spotify. Please welcome to the Phile the one and only... Steve Perry!
Me: Hey there, Steve. Welcome to the Phile. It's so cool to have you here. How are you?
Steve: It's great to be here on this fantastic blog and doing press again, Jason. How are you?
Me: I'm good, sir. I was watching some videos of Journey the other day and I saw a video of you on "Midnight Special." Do you remember that?
Steve: Oh, my God, yes. I can remember what I was wearing... I was wearing all white. White pants, white shirt, long hair, "She" was lovely by the way, "she" was lovely.
Me: Haha. I read that that was the performance to introduce you to America as the singer for Journey. What was that whole experience like?
Steve: Well, it was just surreal to be on that stage at the "Midnight Special." That was a dream come true. What I do remember was that the venue wasn't as big as it looked on screen. It wasn't that big. It's amazing what lenses could do.
Me: When you hear Journey songs on the radio or in movies or anywhere else what is that like for you?
Steve: Oh, man. Jason, it's a wayback machine. It seems like another lifetime. It also seems this kid was so fortunate to be in the music business. It's a dream come true and it actually happened for "him."
Me: So, when did you first start singing, Steve?
Steve: You got to remember I was born in the Central San Joaquin Valley in Hanford, California, an agricultural community. And my dad was a singer but he never got the opportunity to get out from the agricultural way to live and follow his dream. So here I am deciding I'm going to chase it.
Me: You weren't an original member of Journey, so how did you get to be the lead singer?
Steve: I was so, so fortunate that the manager believed in me, he heard my tape, he played it to for the Journey guys, they liked it, they gave me a chance and the next thing we know we are writing songs like "Lights in the City." They already had "Wheels in the Sky" started and we finished it.
Me: What was it like recording and working on your first album?
Steve: I think we did that record from November, December to January and it came out shortly there after at the end of January, first of February. Somewhere in there. It was '78 if my memory serves me or something like that. The next thing I know is we're playing venues and I'm performing. Let me tell you a little secret people don't know... is back then the band was still transitioning from their two albums previous to me which were very traditional orchestra sort of like songs. Like fusion jazz. And so would go out there in my Levis, no one knew who I was because I was new. I would get the soundboard up, I would get all the fares up while they were playing the first half of the show, get the sound just right, tell the second engineer this is my mic, I will mute it when I walk on. I go back to change my clothes and the middle of "Feeling That Way" Greg would start it and I would walk on "when the summer's gone, she'll be there, standing by the light." So I used to do sound before I walked on stage. Ha ha ha. That's how we did it back then. Nobody knew.
Me: Ha. You quit Journey twice and were gonna give up with music before you even joined Journey. What's the deal?
Steve: Yeah, well, that's interesting. I tried to go back to the band and give it a shot but it didn't work out. That's because sometimes you can't go back. We'd all like to go back to what we remember what it once was but things change, everybody changes and time moves on and never ever is anything ever the same again. So I have to adjust myself along the way, grow with the times or grow with the change of life in order to survive. It really didn't work for us the second time when I went back.
Me: What about when you were going to leave the music business before you even joined Journey?
Steve: That was when my bass player in my band got killed in a car wreck, just before we were about to be signed to Columbia Records. That's when I told my mom, "I don't think I'm supposed to be doing this. I keep on thinking I can every time I get close something locks me back." She said, "Don't give-up. Something will happen." I said, "Come on, mom, come on, the bass player just got killed in a car wreck. I'm not supposed to do this." So a week or two later Don Ellis from Columbia Records calls me and says, "Look, I'm sorry about that, we really loved your band, we think you're great so would you be interested in meeting the guys from the band Journey because they think they want to make a music change and do more songs." I said, "Well, yeah! I always loved Neal Schon's guitar playing so that's the beginning of that. The next thing I knew I was in Denver, Colorado with Neal Schon and we wrote out first song, "Patiently" together.
Me: When you left Journey the first time you stopped enjoying music, is that right?
Steve: That's true. I think after the fortunate success we had and how hard we used to work I just got totally burnt out and I just started to get PTSD for music in general. I can't explain it except the passion I had for it just wasn't there.
Me: So, why did you leave Journey?
Steve: We band members weren't getting along that great. Band members don't get along sometimes. It isn't all roses and candy. I mean bands are tough. They're tough on each other, that's what makes it work and that also what tears it apart. So at that point I was feeling a part of it and I wasn't really voicing my feelings about it. So when I did finally say I don't think I could do this anymore it was a shock to them because I have not been talking about it. I was at the end of my rope and I know the fans were going to be disappointed but there was nothing else I could do accept to walk away from it and try to be comfortable in my own skin away from the lights, away from the song, away from the crowds, alway from the adoration, that I just reached for my whole life. I had to get away from it and just try to be okay on my own. So I went back to my hometown and just stayed there for a while.
Me: Did you even to listen to music then?
Steve: I did not listen to anything you would remotely thing I would be listening to. I listened to ambient as it was called back then. That's the kind of music that was comfortable for me. "Liquid Mind," things like that. I didn't want to listen to anybody singing and I didn't want to hear nobody playing drums, because I would just go back to work, I would just go back to that place of "yes, no, maybe, I don't know, pretty good, not so good." My mind is bouncing around with opinions. I just didn't want them anymore.
Me: "Don't Stop Believin'" I think is one of the most recognized and popular song ever. I think when it wsa used at the end of "The Sopranos" that kinda helped the song get even more famous. What did you think of that song being used for the show, I read you weren't happy about that, am I right?
Steve: Only from the stand point I didn't want to see the whole family get whacked while the song was being played. Scorsese would do that and I didn't know if David Chase had that in mind. Since it was the end of the entire amazing run of the show I didn't know what he was going to do. I held out simply, I was the only member of the songwriting team of "Don't Stop Believin'" to hold out because I just wanted them to tell me what happens. I promised I wouldn't tell anybody so Thursday at 4:30 that evening I get the phone call, "Okay, this is what happens..." They explain it to me but they didn't tell me it went to black. But I got enough of what was going on to know they could do it and it aired that Sunday after that Thursday. I did hold out because I just wanted to make sure no one was getting whacked.
Me: Wow. That was the biggest secret in the United States at that time, Could you believe you had to carry that secret?
Steve: I had to carry that secret, but they didn't tell me it went to black. They were very smart.
Me: Okay, so I have to talk you about the new album "Traces." So, why a new album out now after 24 years?
Steve: A big reason that the album exists is because of a relationship with a woman named Kellie Nash who sadly passed away in 2012.
Me: Awe. So, who was Kellie and how did she inspire you?
Steve: Well, I saw her for the first time on a Lifetime network special that my friend Patty Jenkins was directing called "Five." I saw her sitting in this scene and I asked Patty who she was and she said she's not an actress, she's a PhD psychologist who struggled with cancer and since the theme of the show is about cancer she put real patients on the set. I said, "Do you have her number or email?" I don't do that stuff but Patty looked at me funny and I said, "I'd like you to send her an email for me. Please." She said, "I'll send it but there's something I need to tell you first." I said, "What's that?" She said, "Well, she was in remission but it came back. It's in her bones and she's struggling with her life right now." I just thought oh, man, I don't know what to do now. There was something about her when I saw her that just went through me. It jumped out at me, I can't explain it, it was a connection. The next thing I know I'm looking at Patty and said send it, send the email. So she sends it and I sat on pins and needles for two weeks waiting for her to get back. I keep badgering poor Patty and she said she'll send another email. Finally Kellie got back to her and one night she got back to me on the email and gave me her phone number. So I called her and we were talking. We started about 6:30 that night and we talked to midnight. Then I remember June 14th I think it was she finally was back in town, we went to dinner and the same thing happened, six to midnight that night. We closed that place down. We just couldn't separate ourselves from each other, we were so connected and I never felt like that with anybody in my whole life.
Me: So, how did she end up inspiring the music?
Steve: Well, one night, as many nights, we would go to bed after we smooched and turned the lights off we would talk until we fell asleep. I'll talk her to sleep or she'll talk me to sleep. One night she said, "I need to ask you a favor." I said, "What's that?" She said, "I need you to make me a promise." I said, "What's that?" "If anything would ever happen to me," she said, "Promise me you won't go back into isolation for I think it would make this all for not." And I went, "Oh, boy." That whole statement was like she was looking at the entire arc of her entire life and I said I promise. She wasn't talking about going to the fair or movies or dinner, she was talking about isolating from singing. She heard some of my songs but I was still reluctant to getting back into music. It's just not a friendly place. The music is beautiful but the business is not. It comes with other stuff, I don't know, I think I already emotionally been too burnt out with it before and I didn't want to open up the demons about that but I did say I promise. After I lost her for two years of grieving my passion for music came back and... man, these songs started to show up and I'm so glad the record got done now. I think it would've been a big mistake for my heart and Kellie's promise to not do this record.
Me: Steve, you returned to the stage about this time with another band... Eels. I watched that on YouTube and I think that the audience thinks that E from Eels is lying to them. What do you think of that?
Steve: I know because he's got such a dry sense of humor, I know they think he's just putting them on.
Me: He announced you and almost no one claps. They're like, sure, right... hahaha. Why don't you think they believed it?
Steve: Because he said something like "somebody is coming out who left because he wasn't feeling it anymore." The audience laughed, thinking what is he talking about.
Me: Then you walk out and the place goes to their feet, yelling and screaming. What was that like? You stepped out in front of an audience for the first time in two decades.
Steve: I honestly didn't know what to think so I stayed out of any expectations because it was a different time, years have gone by, I'm an older guy, to being on stage in 25 years and it's an Eels crowd, which is an indie crowd. Every generation has their own stamp. So that was an indie crowd. I thought gee, I'm an Eels fan, they're not going to know much about me. So I walked out there and they know and I was a bit overwhelmed to be honest with you. I was amazed.
Me: Steve, it was so great to have you here on the Phile. Please come back again soon so we can talk more about your music. I have one more question... do you ever see yourself going back with Journey?
Steve: People asked me that question and I don't know if people could ever go back to anything. I start to really believe in life we can't go back, we got to move forward. For me right now, where the passion is in my life is this new music that is sort of life sustaining for me. Uncle Steve is no spring chicken, that's for sure and I am loving the rediscovery of the passion that lost for so many years in music. I rediscovered it. If anything I'm kind of off the wall with it. Nuts about it again. Everybody I'm listening to now, even some new music I'm writing so I'm more into exactly this record and the passion for new music.
Me: That's great. Please come back on the Phile, sir, and continued success. Good to have you back making music.
Steve: Thanks, Jason. I'll definitely come back.
That about does it for this entry of the Phile. Thanks to my guests Jeff Trelewicz, Cadence Hall and of course Steve Perry. The Phile will be back Monday with Lizzo. I'm told that's a pretty big deal. Spread the word, not the turd. Don't let snakes and alligators bite you. Bye, love you, bye.
I don't want you, cook my bread, I don't want you, make my bed, I don't want your money too, I just want to make love to you. - Willie Dixon
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