Jonathan Cain Reflects on Journey Farewell Tour and Plans for Solo Music After 45 Years

Journey keyboardist Jonathan Cain says the band's farewell tour has been demanding and that he looks forward to pursuing other musical projects once the tour ends.

"It's a grind. This is a 'one off, two on, one off, two on,' so there's a lot of that," Cain said on the Rock & Roll High School podcast. "You're getting consumed getting to the gig, and then playing the gig. And then when we have four shows in a week, it's pretty grueling. We're doing 'evening with,' so it's two hours and 15 minutes every night. There's no support act, so it makes it doubly hard for Arnel [Pineda]."

Cain announced he plans to leave Journey after the Final Frontier tour, which is set to end Nov. 28 in San Francisco. His departure will mark the end of a 45-year run that began with the band's 1981 album "Escape."

Cain said he is ready to focus on his solo Christian music career but remains grateful for the group's fans.

"I think the only reason I'm still out here is the fans," Cain said. "It's time for me to close the chapter. It's a beautiful time to say goodbye. We are at 45 [years] this year. I'm honored to celebrate 45. After playing the stadium tour with Def Leppard last year, I just felt like we've done it. And we're just repeating ourselves."

Cain said Journey's recent albums "don't seem to move the needle," which is why he turned to Christian music. "I can still sing a melody there and praise the Lord, and it still gets received. I'm leaving something behind, and I get to express my melodic and spiritual self there. So it's a good place for me to be right now."

Meanwhile, guitarist Neal Schon said he is "nowhere near done" playing Journey's music. Schon has applied for a trademark for the name Journey Beyond, which would cover sound recordings, video releases, live performances and merchandise.