JOURNEY – Captured [Blu-Spec CD2] [DSD remastering Limited Pressing] Out Of Print

Some of you asked for JOURNEY classic albums here in its Japanese DSD Remastering edition and pressed on Blu-Spec CD2 (similar to SHM-CD). “Captured” is Journey’s awesome first live album recorded during their ‘Departure tour’.

“Captured” was a turning point for Journey. After this, they went from mega to uber-mega. It was their first live album, and their last with founding keyboardist and singer Gregg Rolie (who actually sang lead in Journey on their first three albums, before they discovered Steve Perry). When Rolie left and Journey hired on Jonathan Cain, they went in an even more radio-friendly direction.
The live album captured (pun intended) the end of the Rolie era with basically every hit they had. They were more of a rock and roll band back then, and this album shows it.

The scorching heat of “Where Were You” is the perfect track to prime the rock n’ roll BBQ. Journey’s brand of rock is driving, but polished to a shimmery gleen. This is partly due to the impeccable pipes of Steve Perry. I’m not sure if Steve has even heard of a bum note, let along sung one.
But Perry was only one of two singers in Journey, and Rolie has his first lead on the mid-tempo pleaser “Just the Same Way”. Although he is not comparable to Perry, he’s no slouch and the different singers gave Journey more dimension.

Blazingly fast, the gleeful “Line of Fire” is the hardest rocker on the album. And then we have “Lights”. This live recording is a definitive version, better than the studio take. You simply need it…
It merges into another beautiful ballad, “Stay Awhile”. Perry’s singing here is so splendid, so perfect, so soulful and powerful that it’s hard not to just be amazed.
Not to be outdone is Neal Schon with one of his most memorable guitar solos on “Lights”. A pretty version of “Too Late” makes it a trilogy.

One of the coolest treats on Captured is a new song, “Dixie Highway”, that was never recorded on a studio album. Boogie with Journey down the Dixie Highway and listen to that blazing musicianship, more progressive rock at times than radio friendly AOR.

Then it’s the Rolie/Perry duet “Feeling That Way”, an out-and-out classic. The combined sheer lung power on that stage that night could not be measured by science. It is said by some that all the canines within the city of Detroit suddenly perked their ears simultaneously at that moment, with a spill-off effect happening in areas of close proximity across the border in Canada.
The University of Marysville is currently investigating these reports, hoping to calculate numerically just how much Steve and Rolie sang their f@cking balls off that night.

Rolling right into “Anytime” and “Do You Recall”, the listener is treated to some lesser-recognized Journey classics that are as good or better than their biggest hits. “Do You Recall” in particular boasts the kind of melodies and smooth rock grooves that radio hits are made of.
With that out of the way for now, they go into a blues jam with “Walk Like a Lady”. According to Steve Perry, “We got two of the best blues players in the whole world here tonight. Two of the best! We got Mr. Gregg Rolie on the Hammond B-3 and Mr. Neal Schon on the Stratocaster!”

After a blazing Schon solo, Journey blast into “La Do Da”, another one of their lesser-known rock blitzes. Bass solos! (By Ross Valory!) Drum solos! (by Steve “Machine Gun” Smith!).
And then the listener is rewarded for their patience with a string of their biggest hits: “Lovin’, Touchin’, Squeezin’”, “Wheel in the Sky”, and “Any Way You Want It”.

It’s not over though: Journey included a new studio song here, and their first ever without Gregg Rolie on keys. Studio cat Stevie “Keys” Roseman filled in, on the ironically piano-based “The Party’s Over (Hopelessly In Love)”. This unsung classic is one of the strongest Journey songs in the canon. It’s too bad that it rarely gets pulled out for compilations, instead residing near-forgotten at the end of this live album.

That’s a hell of a double live album right there. No, Journey’s “Captured” is not regarded as one of the best live albums in Rock history, but it is.
Can you remaster a live album and make it better? A difficult task. This Japanese on Blu-Spec CD2 did it, it sounds awesome, indeed lively.
A MUST

Columbia / Sony Japan ~ SICP-30138
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01 – Majestic
02 – Where Were You
03 – Just The Same Way
04 – Line Of Fire
05 – Lights
06 – Stay Awhile
07 – Too Late
08 – Dixie Highway
09 – Feeling That Way
10 – Anytime
11 – Do You Recall
12 – Walks Like A Lady
13 – La Do Da
14 – Lovin’, Touchin’, Squeezin’
15 – Wheel In The Sky
16 – Any Way You Want It
17 – The Party’s Over (Hopelessly In Love) [studio]

Steve Perry – lead vocals
Neal Schon – guitar, vocals
Gregg Rolie – keyboards, vocals
Ross Valory – bass, vocals
Steve Smith – drums, percussion
additional musician;
Stevie “Keys” Roseman – acoustic piano, keyboards (17)

Out Of Print
www.cdjapan.co.jp/product/SICP-30138
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