Q&A: Journey's Arnel Pineda

It has got to be fun, on tour, to be seeing the whole country, right?
Oh, I never get to enjoy them because, it's all buses, stage, microphone, hotel rooms. I never really get to go around and walk out and just see the place. I have off days, but I would prefer resting.

It has got to be lonely at times without your family.
It is. It is very, very sad. There are days I would break down and cry. But, you know. I just have to be man enough to face that this is a job I'm doing for my family. That's all the consolation that I'm getting. That's the only thought.

It's got to be fun to be onstage, though, and see all these huge crowds.
Yeah, it is. Of course. Until now ... I still feel I'm wondering, "Why am I here with these very famous guys onstage every night?" I'm still like, "Wow, this is not really happening." But it is, you know. It's a wonderful feeling, but at the same time, it's scary. I'm just trying to enjoy it while it lasts.

Do you think it's going to be done some day? Do you think maybe you'll quit if it's too much touring?
Well, I personally told Mr. Neal Schon that the only thing that will make me quit is if I get sick. If I can't do it anymore, then I just need to go. I guess that's the same reason Steve Perry bailed out.

The guys are good to me, so with that part I have no problem. But it's just with the tour. The schedule is so grueling for me. It's so new to me. Until now, my body hasn't really adjusted to all of these amazing things that have been happening.

But the tour is done in a few weeks, right?
It will be over around October 5th.

Then you go home, right?
Yeah, but only for a short time and then I think they're planning to go out again second week of November for another three-week tour and then, yeah, Christmas-time.

So is this not all the fun that you thought it would be?
When Neal Schon told me I had the gig I already thought how hard it was gonna be, the touring and everything. I knew then. That's why I told my manager back then, "I think I can't do this."

Right, but you're doing it.
Yeah. One day at a time.

Related Links:

• More from Issue 1062
• Journey Finds New Singer the Old-Fashioned Way: On the Internet