Tribute albums are a tricky business. On one hand, if an artist interprets a familiar song in a fresh way he or she can be accused of ruining a classic. On the other, if an artist re-creates the familiar song note for note he or she can be accused of having no imagination. It's a no-win situation. Released in 2006,
An '80s Metal Tribute to Journey features new recordings of 13 beloved songs from the peak of
Journey's gigantic mainstream success with vocalist
Steve Perry. The stars here are vocalists, but many of them are more in the '70s arena rock and AOR vein than '80s metal. However, this fact just proves how the lines separating genres can be blurred. The biggest names among the featured vocalists are
Mickey Thomas (
Jefferson Starship,
Starship),
Bobby Kimball (
Toto),
Kip Winger (
Winger),
Tommy Shaw (
Styx,
Damn Yankees),
Jack Russell (
Great White),
Robin McAuley (
MSG),
Kelly Hansen (
Hurricane,
Foreigner), and
John Corabi (
Mötley Crüe,
Ratt). Musically speaking, the arrangements of virtually all of the songs are so close to the originals that it's scary. (There are crunchy, '80s-style rhythm guitar extras here and there.) Half of
An '80s Metal Tribute to Journey was produced and performed -- with the exception of drums -- by former
Yes member
Billy Sherwood. He has previously produced
AC/DC,
Queen, and
Pink Floyd tribute albums, among others. Ultimately,
An '80s Metal Tribute to Journey lives or dies by the vocalists. Given
Perry's distinctive style, the special guests had their work cut out for them. Sometimes a few of them strain to reach
Perry's range, but they usually sound like themselves.
Kimball tackles "Who's Crying Now,"
Winger handles "Send Her My Love" quite well,
Shaw treats "Open Arms" respectfully,
Russell cuts loose on "Any Way You Want It," and
Hansen adds extra muscle to "Wheel in the Sky" and "Separate Ways." As for the less famous participants,
Mark Knight of
Worry Beads takes a slightly subdued yet interesting approach to "Only the Young," while
Stevie Rachelle of
Tuff offers a straightforward version of "Lights." Considering that
Rachelle eventually came forward as the creator of the infamous, metal-mocking website Metal Sludge, shouldn't he rip himself for simply being a part of this album?
An '80s Metal Tribute to Journey, despite the partially inaccurate title, should appeal to fans of
Journey and the guest vocalists.