Jonathan Cain

Last updated

Jonathan Cain
Jonathan Cain (10728).jpg
Cain in May 2018
Background information
Birth nameJonathan Leonard Friga
Born (1950-02-26) February 26, 1950 (age 74) [1]
Chicago, Illinois, U.S.
Genres
Occupations
  • Musician
  • singer
  • songwriter
Instruments
  • Vocals
  • keyboards
  • guitar
Years active1965–present
Member of Journey
Formerly of
Website jonathancainmusic.com

Jonathan Leonard Friga (born February 26, 1950), known professionally as Jonathan Cain, is an American musician, singer and songwriter. He is best known as the keyboardist and rhythm guitarist for Journey. He has also worked with The Babys and Bad English. Cain was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame as a member of Journey in 2017. [2] He also maintains a solo career as a contemporary Christian artist.

Contents

Early life and education

Cain was born in Chicago to Leonard and Nancy Friga. At the age of eight, Cain began accordion lessons, and by the time he was in his teens, he was playing accordion and piano at parties and in clubs. He also plays guitar, bass, and harmonica. Cain is a survivor of the Our Lady of the Angels School fire of 1958, which took the lives of 92 students and three nuns. [3]

In 1968, Cain graduated from East Leyden High School [1] in Franklin Park, Illinois, a Chicago suburb, and later attended the Chicago Conservatory of Music.

Career

Cain in 1980 Jonathan Cain.jpg
Cain in 1980

After releasing two 45s on Dial label as Johnny Lee from tapes recorded at Golden Voice in South Pekin, Illinois, he released a 45 under the name of Jonathan Cain on "October" on an obscure independent label. [4] In 1976, Cain released another record as the Jonathan Cain Band, Windy City Breakdown, on Bearsville Records. In 1979, he joined The Babys, appearing on their albums Union Jacks and On the Edge.

In 1980, Cain left The Babys to join the rock band Journey, taking Gregg Rolie's place on keyboards. [5] Cain aided Journey's rise to the top of the charts with his first collaborations on the album Escape , composing and playing the piano on songs such as "Don't Stop Believin'", described by AllMusic as "one of the best opening keyboard riffs in rock". [6] Perhaps his most notable contribution was as sole author of the Journey ballad "Faithfully", a song about life on the road while in a band. Cain would go on to appear on at least 13 other Journey albums and compilations.

The song "Working Class Man" sung by Jimmy Barnes is one of Cain's compositions and is considered to be Barnes' signature song.

Cain reunited with former Babys bandmates John Waite and Ricky Phillips, fellow Journey bandmate Neal Schon, and future Journey drummer Deen Castronovo to form the band Bad English. The band released two albums before disbanding in the early 1990s.

In 1996, the Journey lineup from the album Escape was reunited. They reformed and recorded the album Trial by Fire . After suffering a hip injury while hiking in Hawaii that required surgery, in 1998 Steve Perry again left the band. Journey has continued on with three subsequent lead singers, Steve Augeri from 1998 to 2006, Jeff Scott Soto from 2006 to 2007, and Arnel Pineda from 2007 to the present.

Cain is known to perform a piano solo at every Journey concert, usually right before the band performs "Open Arms." He started this tradition when he first joined the band in 1980.

In addition to his work with Journey, Cain has released eight solo albums and contributed to solo albums by fellow Journey member Neal Schon. His solo work includes a move to making Christian music since 2016.

Cain serves as the worship leader at City of Destiny, where his wife Paula White is the pastor. [7]

In May 2018, Cain became a published author with the release of his memoir, Don't Stop Believin': The Man, the Band, and the Song That Inspired Generations. [8]

Personal life

Cain has been married three times. His first wife was singer Tané McClure, for whom he wrote the 1983 hit song "Faithfully".

In 1989, he married his second wife, Elizabeth Yvette Fullerton, with whom he has three children: Madison (1993) and twins Liza and Weston (1996). [1] He and Elizabeth divorced at the end of 2014. Madison is married to Trev Lukather, Steve Lukather's son. [9]

In April 2015, he married minister Paula White. [10] This is the third marriage for both. They reside in Apopka, Florida.

Jonathan has two younger brothers, Thomas and Harold. [1]

Cain and David Kalmusky designed and built Addiction Sound, a recording studio in Nashville, Tennessee.

Cain is a devout Christian and believes this is reflected in his work creating and sharing Christian music. [11]

In November 2022, Cain performed "Don't Stop Believin'", which he co-wrote, at a party at Donald Trump's Mar-a-Lago estate. Journey bandmate Neal Schon's attorney sent Cain a letter accusing him of damaging the "Journey brand" by performing at a political event, and asking him to refrain from representing Journey at such events. [12]

Solo discography

Cain performing in 2007 JonathanCain.jpg
Cain performing in 2007

Awards

He has received two BMI songwriter awards, both for songs co-written with Steve Perry, "Open Arms" and "Who's Crying Now". The Journey song, "When You Love a Woman", which he co-wrote with Perry and Schon, was nominated for a Grammy Award in 1997.

See also

Related Research Articles

<i>Escape</i> (Journey album) 1981 studio album by Journey

Escape is the seventh studio album by American rock band Journey, released on July 20, 1981, by Columbia Records. It topped the US Billboard 200 chart and featured four hit Billboard Hot 100 singles – "Don't Stop Believin'", "Who's Crying Now", "Still They Ride" and "Open Arms" – plus rock radio staple "Stone in Love". In July 2021, it was certified Diamond by the Recording Industry of America (RIAA) for at least ten million sales in the US, making it the band's most successful studio album and second most successful album overall behind Greatest Hits. Escape was the fifth-highest selling album of 1981, just behind Bella Donna from Stevie Nicks.

<i>Raised on Radio</i> 1986 studio album by Journey

Raised on Radio is the ninth studio album by the American rock band Journey, released in April 1986 on the Columbia Records label. It is the first album not to feature founding bassist Ross Valory, who was replaced initially by session bassist Bob Glaub and then by Randy Jackson. Drummer Steve Smith contributed to a few tracks, but was replaced during the recording by session drummer Larrie Londin and then Mike Baird for the subsequent tour.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Journey (band)</span> American rock band

Journey is an American rock band formed in San Francisco in 1973 by former members of Santana, the Steve Miller Band, and Frumious Bandersnatch. The band as of 2024 consists of guitarist/vocalist Neal Schon, keyboardist/guitarist/vocalist Jonathan Cain, keyboardist/vocalist Jason Derlatka, drummer/vocalist Deen Castronovo, bassist Todd Jensen, and lead vocalist Arnel Pineda.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bad English</span> American rock band

Bad English was an American/British hard rock supergroup formed in 1987. It reunited Journey keyboardist Jonathan Cain with singer John Waite and bassist Ricky Phillips, his former bandmates in the Babys, along with Journey guitarist Neal Schon and drummer Deen Castronovo. The band is known for their hit single "When I See You Smile", which peaked at number 1 on the Billboard Hot 100 in November 1989.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Neal Schon</span> American guitarist (b. 1954)

Neal Joseph Schon is an American musician and songwriter, best known as the co-founder and lead guitarist for the rock band Journey. He is the last original member to remain throughout the group's history. He was a member of the rock band Santana before forming Journey. He was also a member of the group Bad English during Journey's hiatus from 1987 to 1995, as well as an original member of Hardline.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Gregg Rolie</span> American musician (b. 1947)

Gregg Alan Rolie is an American keyboardist, singer and songwriter. Rolie served as lead singer of the bands Santana and Journey – both of which he co-founded. He also helmed rock group the Storm, performed in Ringo Starr & His All-Starr Band until 2021, and since 2001 with his Gregg Rolie Band. Rolie is a two-time inductee of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, having been inducted both as a member of Santana in 1998 and as a member of Journey in 2017.

<i>Time<sup>3</sup></i> 1992 box set by Journey

Time3 is a 1992 three-CD compilation box set by the American rock band Journey. The tracks are arranged chronologically and include both studio and live tracks. A booklet documenting the band's history and song details is included.

<i>Trial by Fire</i> (Journey album) 1996 studio album by Journey

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Open Arms (Journey song)</span> 1982 single by Journey

"Open Arms" is a song by American rock band Journey. It was released as a single from the Heavy Metal soundtrack and their 1981 album, Escape. Co-written by band members Steve Perry and Jonathan Cain, the song is a power ballad whose lyrics attempt to renew a drifting relationship. It is one of the band's most recognizable radio hits and their biggest US Billboard Hot 100 hit, reaching number two in February 1982 and holding that position for six weeks. It also reached number two in Canada.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Don't Stop Believin'</span> 1981 single by Journey

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<i>Journey</i> (1983 video game) 1983 video game

Journey is an arcade video game released by Bally Midway in 1983. Rock band Journey had enjoyed major success in the early 1980s, and Bally/Midway decided to ride this wave of popularity by creating an arcade game based on the group. Its release was intended to coincide with a US tour by the band.

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Who's Crying Now</span> Single by Journey

"Who's Crying Now" is a song by the American rock band Journey. It was written by Jonathan Cain and Steve Perry. It was released in 1981 as the first single from Escape and reached No. 4 on both the Billboard Hot 100 and the Mainstream Rock Tracks charts. The song charted at No. 46 in the UK Singles Chart, and was the band's highest charting single in the UK until "Don't Stop Believin'" incurred a resurgence in UK popularity in 2009.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Arnel Pineda</span> Filipino singer

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Be Good to Yourself</span> 1986 single by Journey

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References

  1. 1 2 3 4 "Jonathan Cain Biography". jonathancain.com. 2003. Archived from the original on August 20, 2006. Retrieved July 7, 2020.
  2. ↑ "Inductees: Journey". Rock & Roll Hall of Fame. Retrieved December 20, 2016.
  3. ↑ "The Jonathan Cain Picture Pages". Superiorpics.com. Archived from the original on February 3, 2013. Retrieved June 6, 2017.
  4. ↑ Illinois Entertainer. September 1981.{{cite magazine}}: Missing or empty |title= (help)
  5. ↑ Daniels 2011, pp. 48–51.
  6. ↑ "Don't Stop Believin' - Journey - Song Info". AllMusic . Retrieved June 2, 2018.
  7. ↑ "Jonathan Cain". Paula White Ministries. Archived from the original on November 19, 2021. Retrieved August 25, 2020.
  8. ↑ Greene, Andy (April 26, 2018). "Journey Keyboardist Jonathan Cain's New Memoir: 10 Things We Learned". Rolling Stone. Archived from the original on August 8, 2020. Retrieved August 25, 2020.
  9. ↑ "Madison Friga-Cain and Trev Lukather". Zola . Archived from the original on April 24, 2024.
  10. ↑ "Megachurch pastor Paula White marries 'Don't Stop Believin' rocker Jonathan Cain". Christian Today . April 30, 2015. Retrieved June 6, 2017.
  11. ↑ Strong, Amber C. (February 14, 2017). "Rock Star Jonathan Cain's Journey to Christ". CBN News. Archived from the original on April 5, 2023. Retrieved August 25, 2020.
  12. ↑ Sisario, Ben (December 22, 2022). "Journey Guitarist to Bandmate Who Played for Trump: No Political Gigs". The New York Times. ISSN   0362-4331 . Retrieved December 22, 2022.

Sources

Preceded by
Stevie Roseman
 Journey keyboardist
1980 – present		Succeeded by
incumbent
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