Thursday, January 22, 2015

Mix Tape of the Day: January 22, 2015 - Taking a Journey

It's Steve Perry's birthday!  And I've already used "Don't Stop Believing" on a previous mix...  Fortunately, Journey has some other great hits.


I fear this one may have been a bit too overplayed on the radio recently, thanks to it's use in the latest Tron film.  But that doesn't mean we should overlook it.

(Thanks to Tom Servo's riffing, this song always reminds me of another sci-fi "classic," Space Mutiny.)

While Journey existed throughout the 1970s, they didn't become "Journey" until Steve Perry joined the group in 1977, taking over as lead singer.  He is such a powerful driving force behind the band, that his voice be forever linked with the sound and feel of Journey.  Although this isn't one of their most familiar standards, this is clearly a great early entry for the band.

Na na na na na na na na na na na.  Sheer poetry.

More classic Journey, before we break into the big guns.

I was introduced to this song by a great friend who I once loved, so of course this song has held a special place in my heart (as I'm sure it has many people over the years).

Escape was the Journey album to own.  "Don't Stop Believin'" and "Open Arms"?  Pretty great one-two punch.  But don't forget the rest of the album.  "Stone in Love" fits right alongside those two greats.

Like "Stone in Love," this one may be overshadowed by the two big hits from the Frontiers album, but it delivers.

If you're going to pick a Journey love ballad, might as well go with this personal cut, which any musician in a popular rock'n'roll band can identify with.

For a few years, Steve Perry took a break from Journey to work on a solo career.  While it wasn't as successful as Journey, it did produce some songs that later became adopted by Journey because they were just as good.  "Oh Sherrie" is the best known of these efforts.

Perry returned to the band and wrote this song, based on his mantra of enjoying life and making it amazing.  While Journey would continue to produce music well into the 21st century, this was probably the last of those classic numbers.  It's like every Journey hit rolled into one.

Perry took another break in the '90s and I just really liked this song and his great '90s hairstyle.

Okay, I had to get this song on here.  And I have no qualms about using the Glee version.  This was not only the song that kicked off the show (which was legitimately entertaining during its first season), but it was part of the big Journey resurgence of the latter '00s.

And this cover is awesome, despite what your instincts may want you to believe.

(And I love how the band's library became a recurring motif of the show, leading to the joke, "We aren't thinking hard enough! There has to be a Journey song we haven't covered yet!")

Thanks to Caddyshack (and the Caddyshack-themed Simpsons episode), I will forever associate this song with random parties and endings that don't have to make sense.

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