Journey Unveils a Memorabilia Case at the Hard Rock Hotel

Photo Credit: Erik Kabik

Legendary rock group Journey unveiled its memorabilia case inside Hard Rock Hotel on Wednesday in honor of the band’s residency at The Joint.

Chas Smith, vice president of entertainment at Hard Rock Hotel, was on hand to introduce Neal Schon, Jonathan Cain, Ross Valory, Deen Castronovo and Arnel Pineda to the crowd of cheering fans. Smith recognized the band for its current residency at the award-winning entertainment venue, including sold-out shows on Saturday, May 9 and Saturday, May 16, as well as the property’s memorabilia curators, Warwick Stone and Beau Dobney, who masterfully created the display. Afterwards, the band pulled down the curtain to unveil the case and took turns on the mic to explain what memorabilia they chose to showcase including:

·         Schon’s Paul Reed Smith custom guitar and Jordan Betten designed leather pants and jacket;
·         Cain’s sequential circuits “Prophet 5” keyboard used on “Faithfully,” “Open Arms” and “Who’s Crying Now;”
·         Valory’s early 80s Steinberger bass guitar used mainly for the Frontiers album and tour;
·         Castronovo’s custom DW snare drums used on tours and the Arrival, Red 13 and Generations albums; and
·         Pineda’s leather vest, red pants and white Converse sneakers worn during the 2009 “Live in Manila” performance.

The case, located in The Joint hallway, also features iconic items from the band’s history including its Hollywood Walk of Fame star, the plaque Matt Lauer presented to the group during their performance on the TODAY show in recognition of 4.6 million digital song sales of “Don’t Stop Believin’,” the Hollywood Bowl Hall of Fame induction award presented to the band this week and more.

Following the Journey unveiling, Schon led fans to his own display case, which features four custom guitars from his personal collection. Stone addressed the crowd to let guests know that this is the first time Hard Rock Hotel has ever displayed memorabilia that is also available for purchase. The guitars range from $40,000 to $125,000 and if they are bought during Journey’s residency, the buyer will get to meet Schon and receive a replica Journey Platinum record. Any or all guitars can be seen and played by appointment by calling 702.693.5000.