Neal Schon Says He Reunited With Steve Perry In April Fool's Post

April Fool's jokes rarely revel in self-deprecation as much as the one Journey's Neal Schon played early Monday morning, when he jokingly Tweeted that he and Steve Perry had reconnected after 30 years and already planned to record together again.

"Ok! It happened!" Schon wrote in his post, which appeared at around midnight April 1 Pacific time and also included an old photo of himself and Perry. "We had that coffee and are heading in the studio this coming week!"

This joke feels almost too personal, but it's unclear for which party the sentiment stings most. Journey fans have long pined for Perry to return to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame band. Some did not appreciate Schon's sense of humor about the whole thing.

Perhaps in deference to the sensitivity of the issues, Schon tipped his hand at the joke when he suggested he and his longtime partner were recording 'this coming' week. Even the thirstiest Perry/Schon fans weren't going to get fooled by that for more than a moment.

"I'd almost believe you, if it wasn't for the date," wrote one Twitter user in the comments.

"That was just rude..." wrote another.

"Okay, for 25 seconds, you had me..." said another.

Schon has publicly urged Perry to work with him again for years. His calls for a reunion only seemed more plausible after Perry's warm reconnection with his former band mates at Journey's Rock and Roll Hall of Fame induction in 2017. But Perry has rebuffed the overtures every time.

Even after returning to music last year with his first solo album in decades, Traces, Perry has been clear that he has no interest in working with Schon or Journey again.

The reason for Perry stiff-arming Schon so hard for so long is complicated and remains up for debate. It likely stems from a number of factors, including total and complete burnout from touring, longstanding frustration at how Journey continued without him in the '90s while he recovered from hip replacement surgery and the fact that he doesn't have much motivation to resume performing live, especially with Journey — one of the hardest touring bands in the world.

Perry once explained that doing anything at all with Schon would lead to a deluge of expectations of a reunion with Journey, and thus more disappointment than ever.

Schon has already invited Perry to collaborate with him once this year. Hopefully he eventually gets the closure he needs.

For now, all we can do is laugh along with him.

Photo: Getty Images