While becoming the drummer for Journey would be a major accomplishment for any musician, Deen Castronovo’s talents went far beyond a single band. Throughout his career, Castronovo was the drummer for Bad English, Hardline, Paul Rodgers, Ozzy Osbourne, and GZR. With a career spanning decades and numerous bands, Castronovo eventually found himself behind the kit for Journey. Although just the latest chapter in his career, tragedy struck during a recent concert when Castronovo needed medical attention while on stage.
On Thursday night, thousands of fans packed the BOK Center in Tulsa, Oklahoma, to hear a few hit songs from Journey. While the show started as normal, only a few songs into the concert, Castronovo was helped off the stage. Not wanting to concern fans, Jonathan Cain, the Keyboardist for Journey, told the crowd, “We’re going to see what happens as this progresses. It’s an unfortunate situation. We’re very sorry. We’re hoping it’s only a delay, but please — I’m sorry. Don’t worry. Have your prayers ready. Have your prayers ready for Deen Castronovo, everybody. Thank you.”
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Deen Castronovo Replaced After Escorted Off Stage
With Journey having to navigate a show without a drummer, the band turned to the drum tech, Steve Toomey, to fill in for Castronovo. When introducing the musician, Neal Schon explained that Castronovo was heading to the hospital. “He’s heading to the hospital. We’re going to continue the concert, and Deen’s tech, his drum tech, is going to sit in with us tonight. Please give a big hand for Steve Toomey. We’ll be back in about 15 minutes. We love you all; we’re really sorry about the inconvenience.”
Journey did return with Toomey behind the drums. And while the concert continued as planned, singer Arnel Pineda gave some encouraging news about Castronovo. “We ask for your prayers for our brother Deen Castronovo. He’s gonna be fine. Too much Gatorade.”
As for Schon, he wasn’t sure about the Gatorade comment, but he promised fans, “This concert’s for Deen tonight. I’d love you all to pray for him. Everybody’s been going through a lot. I think he’s going to be fine.”
Thankfully, both Pineda and Schon appeared confident that Castronovo would be fine. And after Cain asked thousands of fans to “have your prayers ready,” Castronovo had an entire BOK Center sending them his way.
(Photo by Rick Kern/Getty Images)
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