Neal Schon thinks he knows why Steve Perry declined the opportunity to sing with Journey at the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame Induction in Brooklyn, NY, last week.
Schon said in a new interview that he was choked up with emotional all night after seeing his former frontman again following so many years apart.
"I looked at him and said, 'Hey man, I really miss you,'" the guitarist told Rolling Stone of the pair's initial meeting backstage. "There was very good eye contact. It was real. It wasn't just things being said because of the ceremony and to keep things cool."
Schon then recounted his time onstage with all of his former Journey bandmates -- including Perry -- when he was too emotional to give the speech he prepared.
"He was very emotional too," Schon said. "It's understandable to me that he wouldn't want to sing.
"He was tearing up. I was definitely tearing up; I had tears running down my eyes. I was trying to keep my composure on the stage for that event, but it was something that was too strong."
After years of being pressed about a Journey reunion with Perry, Schon finally can express optimism about where the two sides stand.
"We have some talking to do," he said, "but I'd love to work with him on something on the side -- not necessarily Journey..."
The 2017 Rock and Roll Hall of Fame induction ceremony airs on HBO on April 29.
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