Gregg Rolie is one of the underrated talents of rock history. He was the lead singer of Santana, which would have been enough to secure himself a place in the hearts of listeners. He's in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame as a member of the band. Rolie decided to leave Santana, however, and create another iconic band that he eventually left: Journey.
Rolie and ex-Santana guitarist Neal Schon were two of the founding members of Journey in 1973. The band was launched as a proggy, art-rock outfit that focused on instrumental prowess. The band struggled to get its footing commercially, however, which led to the addition of a second lead singer alongside Rolie. Steve Perry was eventually brought in, and transformed Journey into the pop rock titan its best remembered as. Rolie recorded three albums with Perry and quit the band in 1980.
Gregg Rolie left Journey in 1980
The keyboardist and singer has been transparent about his reasons for walking away, despite the band's subsequent commercial success. He cited exhaustion with Journey's touring schedule, and general unhappiness with his personal life at the dawn of the new decade.
"I left because I was unhappy with what I was doing in my own life," he told Rolling Stone in 2019. "I loved the management. I loved the music. I loved what we built. I just wasn’t happy, so I had to blow the horn on it and just stop it." There's a widespread belief that Rolie left because he didn't like the attention Steve Perry was getting as lead singer, but the former adamently denies this.
In fact, he claimed the addition of Perry made his life easier. "Everyone thinks it was because Perry came in and started singing all the leads," Rolie acknowledged. "My God! Again, I was spread so thin with all these keyboards parts and singing leads, he was a welcome sight to me. And he could sing like a bird! It wasn’t too hard to figure out. I was never against it."
Rolie continues to release solo music
Rolie continued to release music, albeit at a less frantic pace. He dropped two solo albums in the 80s before founding the band the Storm in 1991 alongside fellow ex Journey members Steve Smith and Ross Valory. The band stuck around for five years and recorded two albums.
Gregg Rolie never reunited with Journey in an official capacity, but he does not have any animosity toward the band. In fact, Rolie was inducted as a member of the band in 2017, making the singer and keyboardist the rare two time inductee. Not a bad legacy to leave behind.