Neal George Joseph Schon was born on 27th February 1954 at Tinker AFB (Air Force Base), Oklahoma USA, of Italian and German descent. Neal Schon is a rock guitarist, songwriter and vocalist, best known for being an important member of several hugely popular bands, namely Santana, Bad English and Journey.
So just how rich is Neal Schon? Neal’s net worth has been calculated to be over $30 million, amassed during his successful career of more than 40 years in the music industry.
Neal Schon Net Worth $30 Million
Neal Schon was lucky to be born into a musical family – his father Mathew Schon was a famous musician and mother Barbara Schon sang in a band. So Schon picked his first guitar at the age of five years, and starting at early age is usually a way to success. His first career steps started at the age of 15 with the band Santana, in preference to joining Eric Clapton in the band Derek and the Dominos, and debuting with some vocals on Santana’s album Santana III. Being such a great musician at such young age with the possibility to choose between two iconic bands, he went on and started making his money. He also played for Azteca but very briefly.
In 1973 Neal Schon formed his now legendary band Journey. He subsequently released five solo albums, and fourteen studio albums with the band. This must be the main flow into his net worth. Importantly, he is the only band member who has not changed through the years. He has taken part in every tour of the band, and sang on all their albums, so no doubt this longevity with Journey has increased the overall amount of Neal Schon’s net worth as well. Apart from this, he has also collaborated with famous musicians such as keyboardist Jan Hammer, Sammy Hagar and Paul Rodgers on short-term projects.
Neal Schon is as great a vocalist, as he is a guitar virtuoso. Two talents double the money earned, does it not? Let’s talk about his musical influences, of whom there were plenty. He has said that he was highly influenced by the 1960’s, musicians from that era such as Gladys Knight and Aretha Franklin. Then he put some blues to the mix, namely B.B. King and added some guitar-based influences, including of course Carlos Santana and Eric Clapton as well as Wes Montgomery. This is probably Neal Schon’s key to fame – adding the best ingredients from different musical eras.
Schon was always proud of his guitars. He started with acoustic Stella guitar followed by Gibson ES-335. At present he became interested in Xotic guitars. Schon was inducted into the Oklahoma Music Hall of Fame in August 2013, which made him, if possible, even more famous. This is considered to be an accomplishment of a lifetime for any musician.
In his not-so-private personal life, Neal Schon has married five times, first to Tena Austin(1976-86), then Beth Buckley(1987-92), Dina Gioeli(1993-99), and Amber Kozan(2001-08). In 2013 he married Michaele Salahi. He has five children.
