So I am going to play every 45 in my collection.......(Part 3!!)

I remember Raised On Radio did not go down well with a lot of fans and critics, but I always liked "Suzanne."

 

Strange. I remember it being praised by critics and fans. It's the first Journey album I ever bought.

 

Suzanne is a winner for sure. The music had lost any of the rock I fluency that was left in the band during this era. And Steve Smith and Ross were never the coolest looking guys on stage but Randy and that replacement drummer managed to look worse!

 

It has some very good stuff on it but it seemed more pop oriented to me although I can really only remember the singles from it.

 

It was slick as an oil lick but still quite tasty!

 

I guess it was who I was hanging around with at the time and what reviews I read. I remember one friend of mine (who wrote record reviews for the school paper) really hated it, while I caught a "meh" reaction from everybody else. Plus, none of the singles really stuck in my head apart from "Suzanne."

 

Yep, nothing wrong with well executed pop songs!

 

The record buying public certainly didn't go crazy for the singles even though by normal standards they did moderately well,

 

The single "Girl Can't Help It" sticks out in my mind the most.

 

Although I have that single, I remember that one mostly from it being on the Greatest Hits album...which I played a lot! The song is just ok to me but I do like the ending bit.

 

I also like "I'll Be Alright".

 

I remember receiving that Greatest Hits CD for Christmas '88. Journey had been long overdue for a "Best Of" by that point...

 

Steve has some really nice vocal parts on that one.

 

I played the cassette to death, got the CD and then got the vinyl version a few years back. I remember being bummed that Stone in Love and The Party's over weren't on it.

 

Wow, you did the hat-trick with that one getting all three formats! I think the only album I ever did that with was Regatta DeBlanc by The Police.

 

Hey, Juggs, while reading back over some older posts, I noticed it's been just over a year since my first message on your thread (Nov. 8th, 2018). It's been great fun going through all these songs with everyone here (and you're still on the J's, LOL!).

 

I don't even want to discuss how many albums I've done that with! My current 9bsession is tracking down obscure 80's hard rock that I had on cassette, might have on CD, but 100 percent want on vinyl. Who knew 80's metal was worth a small fortune??

 

It has been a blast! Still on "J" but only a few left until "K"!! My plan is to be on"K" by Wednesday.

 

I had a feeling "K" was coming up soon!

 

For some reason, the cassette format is a natural home for 80s hard rock!

The other Police albums I had on at least two formats, while various 60s-80s classic albums I had in some combination of tape/CD, LP/CD, etc. It was rare I hit all three, LOL!

 

Journey- Who's Cryin' Now/Mother Father
That Escape artwork is still eye catching and awesome! This track written by Perry and Cain reached #4 USA and#46 UK in 1981. This is a song I like more than I realize. It takes hearing it to remind me how well done it is. The solo Schon plays towards the end of the song is so good. Simple and perfect.

Ross Valory also shines here with his simplicity. I love his bass tone on Escape too...very trebly which helps his parts stand out in the mix.

 

Journey- Open Arms/Little Girl
This was their highest charting hit, reaching #2 USA in 1982. Funny thing about not hitting #1....I can vividly recall my Mom surprising me at the bus stop on the last day of school in order to take me to see ET. Our bus driver was playing the radio since we were celebrating the end of the year and we all were singing along to Joan Jett and J. Geils...the 2 songs that held Open Arms from being #1. I don't remember hearing Journey that day!

I really enjoy this one and it was a song an ex-girlfriend and I used to call our own years ago. It fitted the lyrics of a relationship being torn apart while trying badly to still hold it together. Journey had a knack for such songs.

Perry is in his usual amazing form and Steve Smith, who is so great at playing the perfect fills on these ballads, is aces here. That little rolling fill he plays right into and during each chorus is perfect. Cain's piano part is fantastic too. Just a great song.

 

Journey- Still They Ride/La Raza Del Sol (Non-LP)
The final single from Escape, this reached #19 USA in 1982. This tune showcases Perry's voice to great effect. Best moment for me is Schon playing the vocal line of the chorus right before Perry sings it. It highlights the melody nicely. He turns in a great solo too.

 

Journey- Separate Ways/Frontiers
The lead single from Frontiets, this reached #8 in 1983. I'm surprised Schon didn't have a hand I'm writing this guitar heavy track. As bad as the video was, I loved hearing Journey rock out a bit. The synth part Cain came up with grabs your attention right from the first note. Steve Smith really grooves and moves this song along. Some really tasty fills throughout. I also left the extended Perry vocal note that comes out of the solo. "Aaaaahhhhhhh"!

 

Journey- Only the Young
This track, taken from the Vision Quest soundtrack, hit #9 USA in 1985. I can't listen to this song without thinking of the Make a Wish Foundation story featured in the band's Behind the Music episode.

This song was originally recorded by Scandal, with Journey's own version being released later on. I dig how Schon's guiar lick sounds like you are starting out on a journey and constantly moving on down the road. A great song for driving.