By 1977 Journey had won a loyal following for their post-Mahavishnu Orchestra fusioneering, but world domination would not come within their grasp until they found the perfect lead singer to turn their improvisations into anthems. Enter one Steve Perry, who, In 2014, gave us a track-by-track guide to the album that turned Journey into giants, 1978's Infinity.
Lights
“I was standing in Griffith Park Observatory as the sun was coming up, and I could see the lights going down. It came to me like that. When I got together with Neal to write the bridge, it dawned on me that it was really about San Francisco, a city by the bay. I always wanted to live there but I couldn’t afford it.
Feeling That Way
“Written by myself and Gregg [Rolie] as a song we could both share vocals on. Back then, they would do 25 minutes of their fusion stuff and then I would walk out on to the stage and sing the second verse after Gregg’s intro.
Anytime
"They had that intro/bridge when I joined them. Gregg and I did the layered vocals and it became a beautiful segue from the ending of the Feeling That Way a cappella line. Those two songs were played back to back on radio and became sort of hit records.”
La Do Da
“I do have a bit of a knack for the obvious, and maybe that was just a little too obvious. It’s not a save the world track. I guess it worked in the scope of the whole record.”
Patiently
"The first song I ever wrote with the band. Herbie [Herbert, band manager] had flown me out to see the band in Denver, Colorado. After the show, Neal [Schon] and I went back to the hotel room and we sketched out that idea. The lyrics explain that I was waiting for their [Journey’s] light to shine on me. It’s about me waiting and ready to walk out there and become part of the band.”
Wheel In The Sky
“The way they did that song with Robert [Fleischman] was different from how I was going to interpret it. In the studio in LA with Roy [Thomas Baker, producer] I sang real high falsetto notes with echo in the background while Neal was playing a beautiful solo. Roy spent hours with Neal doing what we called ‘violin guitars’ – root notes, harmonies, doubling, sustaining and providing a thick texture to it all.”
Something To Hide
“One of my favourites. When I first heard Coldplay, they had that same unique feeling and emotional promise that I felt on Something To Hide. Some people felt it didn’t belong on that record. But I loved what it was doing and the vocal/ guitar stuff, singing higher harmonies than Neal. After you’ve been on tour for a while that high falsetto can wreak hell, though. That’s why that song really never made it live much.”
Winds Of March
“We were in the south and I had never experienced massive thunderstorms before – it was amazing. I had just gotten a cassette tape recorder; I opened the window and taped the rain and the incredible thunder and we used that recording at our live shows to start the song."
Can Do
“It’s funny, but I don’t really remember that song apart from the title. It’s not one that has stuck in my mind.”
Opened The Door
“I always thought that there was something very Cream about it. The China Cymbal that Aynsley [Dunbar, drummer] was playing gave it that feel and Neal did a bunch of violin guitar over it. It had a Middle Eastern edge to it, and a spiritual lyric.”
This feature originally appeared in Classic Rock Presents AOR 11, published in March 2014.
