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Chris Willman
Senior Music Writer and Chief Music Critic
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Getty Images for Journey Journey drummer Deen Castronovo is out of the band, the group announced Friday, due to health issues that caused him to have to drop out of two shows mid-concert in the space of just over a month, the latest of which was Tuesday night in Boston.
After he was replaced by his drum tech as an emergency fill-in partway through the Tuesday Boston show, the band performed Thursday night in Cleveland with a new drummer, Steve Murphy. On Friday, the group finally addressed the issue in a statement and said that Murphy would be stepping into Castronovo’s shoes as their full-time drummer going forward.
The band’s social media post read: “Dear Friends… After careful consideration and an extensive year of touring, our talented, longtime drummer Deen Castronovo has decided to step away to focus on personal health matters that require his attention. He has our full support during this time and extends his heartfelt thanks to the fans for the love, encouragement, and kindness he has received. Native New Yorker Steve Murphy, who comes to us from working with bands such as Alan Parsons Project, Trans Siberian Orchestra, Christopher Cross and Jack Bruce, will be joining us for the remainder of November. We look forward to continuing to share unforgettable nights of music with all of you.”
The post did not include any photos of Castronovo, but did include shots of Murphy celebrating his first show with the band Thursday.
The message was also shared on Castronovo’s personal Facebook page. The drummer did not offer any additional comment of his own beyond the band’s statement, but none might have been expected, as he has previously noted he leaves it to someone else to oversee his social media accounts.
Castronovo, 62, who joined Journey in 1998, had to leave Tuesday’s show in Boston 12 songs into the show, according to reports posted on Setlists.fm. He was replaced for the rest of the truncated set by a fill-in, his drum tech, Steve Toomey, just as he had been a month earlier under similar circumstances in Tulsa. The length of Tuesday’s show was cut down from the usual 29 or so songs to 20, with eight songs following Castronovo’s stage departure.
On Oct. 8 in Oklahoma, he left the stage after just two songs and was hospitalized; Toomey also completed the show that night. Whatever was ailing Castronovo was not explained to the public. But at that time the band said publicly that he quickly bounced back and was in fighting trim to resume the tour. Castronovo indeed played their next show on Oct. 10 without incident, as he did all the subsequent shows through Nov. 7, before apparently falling ill again mid-show Tuesday.
Castronovo joined Journey in 1998 to replace original drummer Steve Smith. He was forced out of the group in 2015 after being charged with assaulting a woman, and was replaced at that time by Omar Hakim. He subsequently had nine charges dismissed and pleaded guilty to six others, receiving a suspended sentence. He came back to rejoin the Journey lineup in 2021, after performing with guitarist Neal Schon on a side-project tour in 2019.
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