Fra Noi Embrace Your Inner Italian
Steve Augeri’s eight years at the helm of one of rock’s most successful groups was but a single stop in an ongoing musical sojourn that has spanned more than three decades.
From 1977-1987, the rock band Journey emerged as one of the most popular and commercially successful musical acts in history. “Don’t Stop Believin,’” “Open Arms,” “Faithfully” and several other of the band’s megahits have become anthems in the live music world, cherished by the young and young-at-heart alike.
But when Journey’s popular lead singer, Steve Perry, left the band in response to health challenges and internal conflicts, the group went on a live-tour hiatus. For the next few years, Journey continued to work on commercial projects, including a “Greatest Hits” compilation album. That one release spent 853 weeks on the Billboard 200 album chart, going 18 times platinum.
Meanwhile, vocalist Steve Augeri was helping to form the New York City band Tall Stories in 1988. Its self-titled record was nominated for Best Debut Album and Steve for Best Debut Male Vocalist at the 1992 NYC Music Awards. Tall Stories disbanded in 1995.
As news of Perry’s departure from Journey spread, Steve submitted an audition tape to the band at the suggestion of mutual friend Joe Cefalu. he was working as a maintenance manager at a Gap clothing store, a gig he got through a cousin. As he was about to hit his one-year mark with the store, making him eligible for 401(k) benefits, he received a phone call that changed his career path from maintenance man to magic man.
The call came from Journey keyboardist and co-writer Jonathan Cain and band founder and guitarist Neal Schon, offering him an audition. A bundle of nerves, he tried out live for the guys, winning them over with his charm, stage presence and vocal range. Steve joined Journey as lead vocalist in 1998. Although he was thrilled beyond words, replacing Perry was, in his words, “incredibly daunting.”
“I went from fixing toilets to fronting one of the biggest bands on the planet,” Steve recalls. “I remember my first show. It was June of 1998 in California. Before the show, I was standing next to a garbage receptacle. I stuck my head in there and relieved myself. I never had that happen to me before. My stomach was in jitters and butterflies. Once I was done, I cleaned up and hit the stage. I was fine for the first minute or so, but then I locked eyes with my son and my wife in the 20th row. That’s when the waterworks happened. That’s where the reality crept in. That’s where the emotions started: This is really true. This is happening.”
For the next eight years, Steve toured and recorded with the band. Bandmate Cain has stated, “Without Steve Augeri, Journey would not have continued.”
(On a side note, Cain was born in Chicago and was a survivor of the tragic Our Lady of the Angels School fire in 1958, which claimed the lives of 92 students and three nuns.)
As one of six lead vocalists in Journey’s half-century-plus history, Steve’s physical similarity to Perry and his command of the Journey catalog has made him one of the most memorable. But the fact that he was the official “replacement” for Perry made it exponentially more difficult for him.
“I was getting death threats, folks protested at the concerts … it was tough in the beginning,” Steve says. “I took it one day at a time, one concert at a time. Eventually, the fans came around. It speaks volumes about the power of the songs themselves.”
In 2006, Steve was forced to leave the band due to vocal cord damage. “They never really told me,” he says. “They sent me to doctors and soon after replaced me with Jeff Scott Soto. I understood, though. The touring train had to keep going.”
After extensive therapy and healing time, he formed the Steve Augeri Band in 2012 as a salute to the music he performed with Journey.
Steve was born in the Bensonhurst neighborhood of Brooklyn, New York. His father, Joseph, was of Sicilian descent and his mother, Emma, traced her roots to Calabria. His grandfather came to America and was a proud “sanitation engineer.”
“My grandfather worked hard as a garbageman,” he says. “He was the first guy on the block to have a car. If someone was having a baby and had to get to the hospital, he took them!”
Steve worked at Martino’s Dairy when he was 13 years old. “Mr. Martino made the best mozzarella in New York. I would make deliveries on my bike. I was busy. There was a pizzeria on every block, and a café on every other block. I visited every one of them!” he fondly recalls.
“I grew up in a close-knit, very Italian neighborhood,” he explains. “As we would walk to St. Rosalia Church on Sundays, we would smell the aroma of red sauce being made from every house we passed. To this day, I could still smell the garlic in the air.”
I have been lucky enough to work with Steve on many occasions. He has performed his show at the Arcada Theatre several times as well as at festivals and private events. He has been one of our most popular acts with one of the most electrifying shows we have presented.
It’s no secret that the songs of Journey are vocally taxing, possessing a huge range and high notes. The band’s power ballads are difficult to perform, especially in the course of a two-hour show. I have found it truly incredible that Steve not only “nails” the songs, but also can do that after permanent damage was done to his vocal cords — truly a magical feat.
These days, Steve continues to perform, and when we talk, it’s evident that his upbringing and the lessons learned back in his Bensonhurst neighborhood still resonate with him. He is always generous with the fans and never shies away from young future stars who seek his advice.
Beyond working hard, being professional and taking care of yourself, his words of wisdom come down to these three: “Don’t stop believin’!”
The Steve Augeri Band will perform at the Arcada Theatre in St. Charles on July 11. For tickets, visit oshows.com.
The article above appears in the June 2025 issue of the print version of Fra Noi. Our gorgeous, monthly magazine contains a veritable feast of news and views, profiles and features, entertainment and culture. To subscribe, click here.
