Resurrection: A Journey Tribute performs at F.M. Kirby Center in Wilkes-Barre on March 4
From a press release:
FriendlyHart Productions announced today that Resurrection: A Journey Tribute will perform the legendary rock band’s biggest hits at the F.M. Kirby Center in Wilkes-Barre on Friday, March 4.
Doors open at 6 p.m., and the music starts at 8 p.m.
Tickets, which are $32.50, $42.50, and $52.50, plus applicable fees, go on sale this Thursday, Nov. 18 at 10 a.m. and can be purchased at the Sundance Vacations Box Office at the F.M. Kirby Center (71 Public Square, Wilkes-Barre), online at kirbycenter.org and ticketmaster.com, and by phone at 570-826-1100. A Kirby Member pre-sale begins Wednesday, Nov. 17 at 10 a.m.
Keyboardist Vic White first heard “the voice” of Ryan Christopher while they performed with a popular Nashville-based ’80s act in 2011.
“Ryan knew one of the guys in the band, and he had been invited to sit in that night to sing ‘Separate Ways’ and ‘Lights’ with us,” White explained. “The moment Ryan took the stage, my jaw hit the floor from watching his precise Steve Perry mannerisms and hearing his spot-on rendition of Perry’s voice! Since I grew up a big Journey fan during the ’80s, that was the most fun I had experienced on stage in quite some time.”
Although the two exchanged contact information that night, White and Christopher were active with other bands, so some time passed before destiny caught up with them. In the fall of 2013, Christopher reached out to White, expressing frustration with the stagnancy of his current band.
“Ryan told me he needed a guitarist and a keyboardist to cover two remaining dates on his calendar and asked for the contact info of a talented guitarist I knew. The whole time Ryan’s talking, I’m thinking, ‘You said you needed a keyboardist too… dude, what am I? Chopped liver?'” Christopher confessed. “I knew Vic was perfect for the gigs, but I didn’t want to come between him and the band he was currently playing with. I sort of danced around the issue thinking if Vic was interested, he would see the opening.”
Fortunately, by the end of the conversation, White was invited to help assemble players for the two remaining gigs Christopher had on his books and perhaps resurrect Christopher’s project in the process.
“That night, while listening to Journey’s latest album, ‘Revelation,’ Vic and I came up with the name, ‘Journey Resurrection,’ which later became ‘Resurrection – A Journey Tribute,'” Christopher recalled.
Over the next six months, they put together what Journey fans would consider an all-star roster of musicians for the ultimate Journey tribute.
Setting out to create the most authentic Journey experience anyone has ever witnessed, the band spent countless hours discussing the look, sound, production, and feel needed for this Journey tribute to deliver a live experience that would resonate on the highest level with the most avid Journey fan. Over two rehearsals, the newly assembled musicians learned eight of Journey’s greatest hits for a promotional video shoot.
On March 10, 2014, at Gray’s on Main in Franklin, Tennessee, the band struck its first notes in front of a live audience. The response quickly validated the passion White and Christopher had poured into the project for half a year and cemented the reality that this was going to be much more than a rehearsal to cover two shows scheduled for Branson Landing that summer.
Some hardcore Journey fans, who had been following Ryan’s performances from years prior, traveled from as far away as Arkansas and Missouri to see what the recent Facebook buzz was all about. They were quickly struck with the power of the performance, a few singing along with tears welling in their eyes from the raw emotion of seeing a singer they long hailed as the closest replica to the voice of Steve Perry finally putting it all together with a band worthy of his amazing talent.
Just one month later, the band sold out legendary Nashville music performance hall 3rd & Lindsley for their first full-length performance, and the response from those attending was spectacular. Resurrection has been on a whirlwind journey ever since, growing quickly from a weekend warrior act into one of the most highly sought-after tribute experiences in the country.
