In a new interview with Noise 11, Journey guitarist Neal Schon spoke about Perry, who he hasn't seen in almost a decade. "You know what? I say nice things about him, and he says nice things about me," Schon tells Noise 11.

"I think, all in all, I have ultimate respect for the man, and the voice that he has. I wish him the best, but we haven't quite gotten around to speaking since we received the Hollywood Walk Of Fame star [in 2005]."

A tape featuring Perry made its way into the hands of Journey manager Herbie Herbert, but the guitarist wasn't sold at first. "Gregg and I heard it initially and I thought, 'the guy's got a great voice, but I don't know if it's us.' It's so far left-field compared to what we'd been doing," said Neal.