'80s Legend Talks About His Surprise Remake With Willie Nelson
has kept a low profile since he left Journey for good in 1998, but now the reclusive singer is back with a high-profile project.
Perry has covered his 1983 Journey hit 'Faithfully' with music legend for a good cause. The proceeds from the single will benefit Farm Aid, the charity that's celebrating its 40th anniversary that was started by Nelson, and John Mellencamp.
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In a new interview in the Los Angeles Times, Perry, 76, spoke about the project and what it was like working with the 92-year-old music legend.
'I think that the lyrics are so sound that they're timeless. But I must tell you that Willie Nelson set a tone when he sang it. That launched me in his direction, of how to interpret those lyrics and sing with him. It sets the tone and the watermark. Willie is the Sinatra of country music. When you sing laid back like that, like Tony Bennett does, he just says it like he feels it, and he puts it where he feels it. It takes a minute to really fall into that relaxed emotional expression. It was a new experience for me to sing with such a legend like this guy,' Perry told the L.A. Times.
Perry's last solo album was the 2021 Christmas release The Season, but he has guested on other recordings, including 's 2023 all-star Rockstar album, in which he and the country legend covered another Journey classic, 1981's 'Open Arms.''At this point in my life, I'm really enjoying doing anything that feels just emotionally expressive to me. It's a new freedom for me. You know, Willie used to come to the shows in Texas when we were touring in the early '80s, that's where I first met him. When we were doing the song 'Faithfully,' I swear to you, back then, I always wanted to hear his voice on it. This is the 40th anniversary of Farm Aid, so it was the perfect time to just for us to be together, and it's a bucket list thing to sing with Willie Nelson,' Perry told the outlet.
Aside from working with Nelson, Perry told the L.A. Times that 'Farm Aid is close to my heart, because I know how difficult it is to be a farmer. You've really got to love it.'
He also revealed he has personal ties to farming.
'I was raised in the San Joaquin Valley,' he told the Times. 'My grandfather had two dairy farms. I remember getting ice cream made from that fresh cream at the top of that vat. I saw the commitment that farmers have to what they do.'
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