The Police “Every Little Thing She Does Is Magic” charted

Every Little Thing She Does Is Magic The Police

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The Rolling Stones’ Tattoo You hit #1 in US for 1st of 9 weeks

Tattoo You The Rolling Stones

Released: August 30, 1981 Peak: 19 US, 2 UK, 17 CN, 111 AU Sales (in millions): 4.0 US, 0.1 UK, 8.0 world (includes US and UK) Genre: classic rock

Tracks: Song Title (Writers) [time] (date of single release, chart peaks) Click for codes to singles charts. Start Me Up [3:31] (8/14/81, 2 US, 4 CB, 5 HR, 9 RR, 1 AR, 7 UK, 2 CN, 1 AU) Hang Fire [2:30] (9/26/81, 20 US, 32 CB, 56 HR, 21 RR, 2 AR, 99 AU) Slave [6:34] (23 CL) Little T & A [3:23] (10/10/81, 5 AR) Black Limousine (Jagger/Richards/Wood) [3:31] Neighbours [3:30] (4/30/82, 47 CL) Worried about You [5:16] Tops [3:45] Heaven [4:21] No Use in Crying [3:24] Waiting on a Friend [4:34] (11/27/81, 13 US, 14 CB, 16 HR, 6 RR, 8 AR, 50 UK, 10 CN, 44 AU) Songs written by Jagger/ Richards unless indicated otherwise. Total Running Time: 44:19 The Players: Mick Jagger (vocals, guitar, percussion) Keith Richards (guitar, vocals, bass) Ronnie Wood (guitar, backing vocals) Bill Wyman (bass, guitar, synthesizer, percussion) Charlie Watts (drums) Mick Taylor (guitar) Spotify Podcast: Check out Dave’s Music Database podcast: The Rolling Stones’ Tattoo You: Celebrating the 40th Anniversary. It premieres October 26, 2021 at 7pm CST. Tune in every Tuesday at 7pm for a new episode based on the lists at Dave’s Music Database.

Rating: 3.921 out of 5.00 (average of 23 ratings) Quotable: “The band’s last great album.” – Amazon.com review by Steve Knopper

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Awards: (Click on award to learn more).

About the Album: For a band who’d been around nearly two decades, this shouldn’t have ranked amongst the most celebrated albums of their career. This was their 16th British studio album and 18th in the United States. The Rolling Stones had topped the album chart in the U.S. eight times previously, but this one – their ninth trip to the top – proved the most successful with nine weeks at the pinnacle. It was second only to 1978’s Some Girls in terms of worldwide sales for their studio albums. Return to Glory Tattoo You “captures the Stones at their best as a professional stadium-rock band.” AMG It is “an essential latter-day Stones album, ranking just a few notches below Some Girls.” AMG It is “often viewed as the band’s last great album.” AZ It is “a potent slab of swagger and sass” CD made up of songs that are “confident and consistent.” BN The “album delivers its share of thrills on the tight, dynamic first side” AMG which was devoted to rock & roll, while the other side, focused on ballads, “suffers in comparison.” AMG “Much of the last decade consisted of…camouflage for an essential loss of nerve, an unwillingness to be seen unguarded for the length of an LP, or even a tune…Just when we might finally have lost patience, the new record dances (not prances), rocks (not jives) onto the scene, and the Rolling Stones are back again.” RS In The New York Times, Robert Palmer wrote that “remarkably, Tattoo You is something special...None of [the tracks] are Chuck Berry retreads, none of them are disco, and none of them are reggae – they are all rock-and-roll, with more than a hint of the soul and blues influences that were so important in the band's early work...The new album’s lyrics are also a surprise. The Stones seem to have dropped the studied decadence that was their most characteristic pose throughout the ‘70s. The songs on Tattoo You seem to be by and about real people rather than larger-than-life caricatures.” WK Raiding the Vaults What’s surprising is that the Stones achieved their revival with a collection of mostly studio outtakes. Between touring obligations and their feuding, the band found little opportunity at the close of the ‘70s to come together in the studio. Because of that, Tattoo You and its predecessor, Emotional Rescue, relied on “unused recordings from prior sessions,” WK some dating back as far as 1972. The material came together because Chris Kimsey, the album’s associate producer, spent three months sifting through the vaults. He told the band, “Hey, look guys, you’ve got all this great stuff sitting in the can…do something with it.” WK Most of the songs were instrumental backing tracks without vocals. The members came into the studio when they were available to polish up the tracks. WK While the album is comprised primarily of leftovers “it never sounds that way.” AMG “This unity is partly the work of Bob Clearmountain, who mixed the finished tracks and gave them his characteristic vacuum-packed clarity (you could bounce a quarter off each of Watts’ rim shots). Mostly, though, it sounds like the Stones simply decided it was time to challenge themselves again.” RS “Start Me Up” “Tattoo You contributed one true classic, ‘Start Me Up,’ to the Stones’ canon.” AZ It “became the record’s definitive Stonesy rocker,” AMG and “the catchiest Stones single in ages.” RS It became a stadium-rattling anthem that proved they were “still capable of rousing the blood.” BN The song, “still used as a concert finale,” AZ is “replete with Jagger’s sexual braggadocio and Keith’s patented ‘Honky Tonk Women’-style riffs.” CD It “ends with a leering Mick Jagger murmuring about a woman who could ‘make a dead man come.’” AZ The song began life “under the working title ‘Never Stop’…as a reggae-influenced number in 1978 during the Some Girls sessions.” WK it was recorded during sessions in Paris at Pathé Marconi, as was “Black Limousine.” WK “Hang Fire” “The frenzied doo wop” AMG of “the fast-paced ‘Hang Fire’” AZ “is a tight two-minute and twenty second redefinition of surf music.” CD The song grew out of sessions from 1978’s Some Girls and 1980’s Emotional Rescue. WK “Slave” “The reggae jam of ‘Slave’” AMG features jazz great Sonny Rollins. He turns “a standard Stones blues jam, into something searing and passionate by establishing a level for the rest of the musicians to match.” RS The backing tracks for this song and “Worried About You” dated back to sessions for the 1976 Black and Blue album. Both songs featurd Billy Preston on keyboards and Ollie E. Brown on percussion. WK “Little T&A” and “Neighbours” There are two “sleazy Chuck Berry rockers,” AMG the “cocky ‘Little T&A” CD and “the trashcan rockabilly of ‘Neighbours.’” BN Both songs came out of the sessions for Emotional Rescue. WK The former is “sung by an endearingly raspy Keith Richards” CD and is “full of wonderful chordal soloing.” RS The latter features Rollins again on a solo that “has the full-bodied sound of classic R&B–always about to go over the edge.” RS “Black Limousine” “The barrelhouse blues of ‘Black Limousine’ is…goosebump-inducing.” BN It “is as much a lament for the halcyon days of a relationship as it is a memory of glittering innocence.” RS “Worried About You” and “No Use in Crying” “The vocal blend in ‘No Use in Crying’ and the way that Mick Jagger drops from falsetto to full voice in ‘Worried about You’ have the instant impact of a lover’s touch–a strength that means far more than a mere return to form.” RS “No Use in Crying” and “Heaven” came out of the sessions for Emotional Rescue. WK “Tops” “The Philly-soul falsetto of ‘Tops’ acknowledges that ‘every man has the same come-on’ without faulting the man for trying (a trace of sadness here, maybe) or the woman for believing him.” RS This song, and “Waiting on a Friend,” are “effortless, excellent ballads” AMG which were built on backing tracks from the 1972 sessions for the Goats Head Soup album. WK “Heaven” “Heaven” is ” a paean to physical love that glorifies tenderness, not sweat and excess. It’s an odd, hymnlike number, more reminiscent of Television than of anything by the Stones. In part, ‘Heaven’ is a lover's talisman, a promise of protection: ‘Nothing will harm you/Nothing will stand in your way.’ Like all of Tattoo You, it begs the listener's trust. And, for the first time in years, the Rolling Stones deserve it. Deserve it in spades.” RS “Waiting on a Friend” The album wraps up with “the wistful” CD “Waiting on a Friend” which features a sax solo from Rollins and “a moving lyric that captures Jagger in a shockingly reflective and affecting state of mind.” AMG The song is “a celebration of maturity…melodic and transcendent.” RS It is “an absolute masterpiece” AMG rating “as one of the band’s best ever.” BN Notes: A 2021 40th anniversary deluxe edition included a disc of nine songs entitled Lost & Found – Rarities and a 1982 concert from Wembley Stadium.

Resources and Related Links: DMDB encyclopedia entry for The Rolling Stones AMG All Music Guide review by Stephen Thomas Erlewine AZ Amazon.com review by Steve Knopper BN Barnes & Noble review by Steve Simels CD CdUniverse.com RS Rolling Stone (8/24/1981) review by Debra Rae Cohen WK Wikipedia Other Related DMDB Pages: First posted 3/23/2008; last updated 10/23/2021.

Genesis Abacab released

Abacab Genesis

Released: September 14, 1981 Peak: 7 US, 12 UK, 3 CN, 18 AU, 13 DF Click for codes to charts. Sales (in millions): 2.0 US, 0.3 UK, 6.5 world (includes US + UK), 7.6 EAS Genre: classic rock

Tracks: Abacab [6:58] (8/14/81, 26 BB, 40 CB, 17 G, 31 HR, 22 RR, 4 AR, 9 UK, 11 CN, 35 AU, 7 DF) No Reply at All [4:33] (9/9/81, 29 BB, 28 CB, 16 GR, 28 HR, 13 RR, 2 AR, 7 CN, 74 AU, 7 DF) Me and Sarah Jane [6:02] (25 DF) Keep It Dark [4:33] (10/23/81, 40 CL, 33 UK, 30 DF) Dodo/Lurker [7:28] Who Dunnit? [3:22] (37 DF) Man on the Corner [4:28] (3/5/82, 40 BB, 45 CB, 30 GR, 64 HR, 14 AR, 41 UK, 28 CN, 3 DF) Like It or Not [4:58] (36 DF) Another Record [4:38] (31 DF) Total Running Time: 47:03 Other Songs from This Era: Paperlate * (5/21/82, 32 BB, 31 CB, 33 GR, 2 AR, 10 UK, 25 CN, 73 AU, 8 DF) You Might Recall * (5/21/82, 40 AR) Me and Virgil * (5/21/82, --) Evidence of Autumn Open Door * Recorded during sessions for Abacab and released 5/10/1982 on 3 x 3 EP. All five of the above songs were on the Three Sides Live album, released 6/4/1982. The Players: Phil Collins (vocals, drums, percussion) Mike Rutherford (guitar, bass, backing vocals) Tony Banks (keyboards, backing vocals)

Rating: 3.795 out of 5.00 (average of 19 ratings) Awards: (Click on award to learn more).

About the Album Phil Collins released his first solo album, Face Value, in the early part of the year and Genesis came back with Abacab at the end of the year. It was a “stripped-down pop/rock album that even had the three core members interacting musically with the Earth, Wind & Fire horn section. Like its predecessor, it topped the charts in England and easily made the Top Ten in the United States.” BE Phil Collins also released his first solo album, Face Value, that year. Another concert album, Three Sides Live, followed. Previous album “Duke showcased a new Genesis – a sleek, hard, stylish trio that truly sounded like a different band from its first incarnation – but Abacab was where this new incarnation of the band came into its own.” AM “Straining to feel like virtuosos while staying terse, Genesis piled up staccato, minimalist keyboard patterns behind some of their bleakest lyrics.” JP “Working once again with producer Hugh Padgham, the group escalated the innovations of Duke, increasing the pop hooks, working them seamlessly into the artiest rock here.” AM The one exception, is “the brash, glorious pop of No Reply at All,” AM which is “powered by the percolating horns of Earth, Wind & Fire, yet polished into a precise piece of nearly new wave pop by Padgham.” AM The song “echoes the funk…Collins was savoring on his smash solo debut, Face Value.” JP Otherwise, “this is still art rock at its core, or at least album-oriented rock, as the band works serious syncopations and instrumental forays into a sound that’s as bright, bold, and jagged as the modernist artwork on the cover.” AM “They dabble in other genres, lacing Me and Sarah Jane with a reggae beat, for instance, which often adds dimension to their sound, as when Dodo rides a hard funk beat and greasy organ synths yet doesn't become obvious; it turns inward, requiring active listening. Truly, only ‘No Reply at All,’ the rampaging title track (possibly their hardest-rocking song to date), and the sleek and spooky Man on the Corner (which hides a real melancholy heart underneath its glistening surface) are immediate and accessible – although the Mockney jokes of Who Dunnit? could count, it’s too much of a geeky novelty to be pop. The rest of Abacab is truly modern art rock, their last album that could bear that tag comfortably.” AM Resources/References: AM AllMusic.com review by Stephen Thomas Erlewine JP Jon Pareles, Blender magazine (10/07). Pages 118-9. Related DMDB Pages: First posted 3/3/2010; last updated 9/14/2025.

 

Journey’s Escape hit #1

Escape Journey

Released: July 17, 1981 Peak: 11 US, 32 UK, 6 CN, -- AU, 110 DF Click for codes to charts. Sales (in millions): 9.0 US, -- UK, 12.10 world (includes US and UK), 34.93 EAS Genre: classic rock

Tracks: Click on a song titled for more details. Don’t Stop Believin’ [4:11] Stone in Love [4:26] Who’s Crying Now [5:01] Keep on Runnin’ [3:40] Still They Ride [3:50] Escape [5:17] Lay It Down [4:13] Dead or Alive [3:21] Mother, Father [5:29] Open Arms [3:23] Total Running Time: 42:46 Also from This Era: Little Girl [5:47] Natural Thing [3:43] La Raza del Sol [3:26] Only Solutions [3:39] The Players: Steve Perry (vocals) Neal Schon (guitar, backing vocals) Jonathan Cain (keyboards, rhythm guitar, backing vocals) Ross Valory (bass, backing vocals) Steve Smith (drums)

Rating: 4.365 out of 5.00 (average of 22 ratings) Quotable: Journey’s “definitive statement” – Classic Rock Magazine Awards: (Click on award to learn more).

Journey to the Top Journey formed in San Francisco in 1973. They released “three modestly successful jazz-rock albums” TB before singer Steve Perry joined the band. “His smooth vocal delivery and the group’s arrival at a more concise, hard-rock sound immediately reaped dividends, with Infinity (1978) selling a million copies in the U.S.A. alone.” TB Escape, the group’s fourth album with Perry, “was a groundbreaking album” AM flinging the band “steadfastly into the AOR arena” AM and making “them stadium-filling superstars.” CR The album is marked by songs that “are more rock-flavored, with more hooks and a harder cadence compared to their former sound.” AM A More Polished Sound The album was produced by Kevin Elson and Mike “Clay” Stone and recorded in Berkeley, California, at Fantasy Studios. It had “a more polished commercial sound than its predecessors.” TB Part of the group’s new direction could be attributed to Jonathan Cain, who came on board as the keyboardist after the departure of founding member Gregg Rolie. He co-wrote every song on the album and his “blatant keyboards” AM combined with “Neal Schon’s grand yet palatable guitar playing” AM and “the passionate, wide-ranged vocals of Steve Perry, who is the true lifeblood of this album, and this band.” AM Why It Succeeded “There is a certain electricity that circulates through…the album.” AM The “heartfelt songwriting and sturdy musicianship” AM has “a way of rekindling the innocence of youthful romance and the rebelliousness of growing up.” AM The accessibility of the songs led to three top-10 singles as well as a top 20 hit with “Still They Ride” and an album rock favorite in “Stone in Love.” The album soared to the top of the charts and sold more than 12 million in sales worldwide. “Escape became Journey’s “definitive statement.” CR A Pinnacle of Arena Rock The year of its release could be marked as the pinnacle of arena rock. REO Speedwagon, Styx, Foreigner, and Journey had all been around since at least the mid-‘70s and amassed huge followings, but peaked that year with the only #1 albums of their careers. All four groups were savaged by critics. Their power ballads were mocked and their proclivity toward radio-friendly rock wasn’t taken seriously. The Revival of “Don’t Stop Believin’” Journey may have had the last laugh, though. More than two decades after Don’t Stop Believin’ first hit the charts, it had a surprising resurgence when it was used in the finale of television’s The Sopranos. Then it also served as the springboard for Glee, giving that television franchise a #4 hit. The song, an evocative tale of “‘streetlight people, living just to find emotion’, became an American classic.” CR “The whisper of Perry’s ardor is crept up to with Schon’s searing electric guitar work, making for a perfect rock song.” AM Thanks to its revival, it has become the biggest hit in Journey’s catalog. Columbia House Escape played an important role in my burgeoning obsession with music when I acquired that album and five others after signing up for the Columbia House Record and Tape Club with my friend Nic. Read more here. I’d just started my own weekly chart in September 1982 and this influx of “new” music (all the releases were actually from 1981) stormed onto the chart and into my own personal music history. The Songs Here’s a breakdown of each of the individual songs.

Don’t Stop Believin’ Journey

Writer(s): Steve Perry, Jonathan Cain, Neal Schon (see lyrics here) Released: single (10/19/1981), Escape (1981), Greatest Hits Live (live, recoded 1981-83, released 1998), Greatest Hits (compilation, 1988), Time3 (box set, 1992), The Essential (compilation, 2001) B-side: “Natural Thing” First Charted: 8/15/1981 Peak: 9 BB, 8 CB, 8 GR, 9 HR, 9 RR, 8 AR, 6 UK, 9 CN, 83 AU, 1 DF Click for codes to charts. Sales (in millions): 18.0 US, 1.40 UK, 19.40 world (includes US + UK) Airplay/Streaming (in millions): 1.0 radio, 613.67 video, 2590.87 streaming

Awards: (Click on award to learn more).

About the Song: Journey was at their peak with 1981’s Escape, their sole #1 album. The lead-off single, “Who’s Crying Now,” went to #4 on the Billboard Hot 100 and the power ballad “Open Arms” was a #2 hit. It was “Don’t Stop Believin’,” however, which became the biggest hit of Journey’s career. Chartwise, it only peaked at #9, but it demonstrated a longevity no one could have imagined. In 2003, the song was used – and even discussed – in a scene from the movie Monster, for which Charlize Theron won an Oscar. That sparked requests for the song in other movies and TV shows. In 2007, the song was used in the memorable final scene of the last episode of The Sopranos. It showed up again in the musical Rock of Ages, which ran on Broadway from 2009-2015. Perhaps most significant, however, was the song’s use in the TV show Glee in 2009. The Glee Cast landed an overwhelming 200+ chart hits on the Billboard Hot 100, but “Don’t Stop Believin’” was the first and the most successful, reaching #4 and selling a million copies. Journey’s version was propelled to millions more in sales, making it the best-selling digital track of the 20th century. WK The song is marked by Steve “Perry’s stern yet romantic vocals” A2 and “cutting guitar work from Neil Schon.” A2 It was “more than just an escalating guitar rock song;” A2 it became “an anthem for the young who wanted to feel free and unrestricted.” A2 One of the song’s unique features is that it doesn’t have a repeated chorus. The title isn’t sung until almost three and a half minutes into the song after verses. SF The inspiration for the title came from keyboardist Jonathan Cain’s father. When Cain was struggling to make it, he asked his father if he should give up on his dream. Dad told him, “Don’t stop believin’.” SF

Stone in Love Journey

Writer(s): Steve Perry, Neal Schon, Jonathan Cain Released: single (UK, 10/29/1982), Escape (1981), Greatest Hits Live (live, recoded 1981-83, released 1998), Time3 (box set, 1992), The Essential (compilation, 2001), Greatest Hits 2 (compilation, 2011) B-side: “Only Solutions” First Charted: 8/1/1981 Peak: 6 CL, 13 AR, 16 DF Click for codes to charts. Sales (in millions): 1.0 US Airplay/Streaming (in millions): -- radio, -- video, 89.30 streaming About the Song: This was released in Europe as the fifth single from Escape. It failed to reach the UK charts, but did find success more than a year earlier on the album rock chart in the United States.

Who’s Crying Now Journey

Writer(s): Jonathan Cain, Steve Perry (see lyrics here) Released: 7/9/1981 (single), Escape (1981), Greatest Hits Live (live, recoded 1981-83, released 1998), Greatest Hits (compilation, 1988), Time3 (box set, 1992), The Essential (compilation, 2001) B-side: “Mother, Father” Peak: 4 BB, 3 CB, 14 GR, 3 HR, 11 RR, 14 AC, 4 AR, 46 UK, 3 CN, 65 AU, 1 DF Click for codes to charts. Sales (in millions): 2.0 US Airplay/Streaming (in millions): 2.0 radio, 43.00 video, 120.44 streaming

Awards: (Click on award to learn more).

About the Song: Journey began in 1973 as an offshoot of Santana. In just five years they evolved from a more progressive-rock-leaning band to a staple at album rock, thanks to hits such as “Lights,” “Wheel in the Sky,” “Lovin’, Touchin’, Squeezin’,” and “Any Way You Want It.” The latter two gave the band their first sniffs at the top 40 of the Billboard Hot 100 and the latter propelled Journey to the top 10 of the album chart with Departure. Even though their star was clearly on the rise, the success of their 1981 album Escape pushed the group into unexpected blockbuster category. “Who’s Crying Now,” the lead single from the album, gave Journey a #4 hit and it was followed by two more top-10 hits with “Don’t Stop Believin’” and “Open Arms.” Billboard magazine called “Who’s Crying Now” “one of Journey’s strongest and classiest records” and “one of the most appealing love songs” of 1981. WK The song showcases Steve Perry’s “passionate, wide-ranged vocals” AM and “vocal riffs highly reminiscent of Sam Cooke.” WK The song explores “the ups and downs of a relationship.” AM Steve Perry wrote the chorus while driving from Bakersfield to San Francisco. He headed to keyboardist Jonathan Cain’s house and hummed the song to him. Cain then helped with the piano part SF and verses. WK Cain, who was previously a member of the Babys, had just become a member of Journey in 1980, replacing Gregg Rolie on keyboards.

Keep on Runnin’ Journey

Writer(s): Steve Perry, Neal Schon, Jonathan Cain Released: Escape (1981), Time3 (box set, 1992) Peak: 34 DF Click for codes to charts. Sales (in millions): -- Airplay/Streaming (in millions): -- radio, -- video, 4.53 streaming

Still They Ride Journey

Writer(s): Steve Perry, Neal Schon, Jonathan Cain Released: single (May 1982), Escape (1981), Greatest Hits Live (live, recoded 1981-83, released 1998), Time3 (box set, 1992), The Essential (compilation, 2001), Greatest Hits 2 (compilation, 2011) B-side: “La Raza del Sol” Peak: 19 BB, 25 CB, 18 GR, 18 RR, 37 AC, 20 CL, 47 AR, 5 DF Click for codes to charts. Sales (in millions): -- Airplay/Streaming (in millions): -- radio, -- video, 14.52 streaming About the Song: “Still They Ride” was the fourth single released from Journey’s multi-platinum, #1 album Escape. While the first three singles reached the top 10, “Ride” stalled just inside the top 20.

Escape Journey

Writer(s): Steve Perry, Neal Schon, Jonathan Cain Released: Escape (1981), Greatest Hits Live (live, recoded 1981-83, released 1998), The Essential (compilation, 2001), Greatest Hits 2 (compilation, 2011) Peak: 25 CL, 33 DF Click for codes to charts. Sales (in millions): -- Airplay/Streaming (in millions): -- radio, -- video, 7.33 streaming

Lay It Down Journey

Writer(s): Steve Perry, Neal Schon, Jonathan Cain Released: Escape (1981) Peak: 39 DF Click for codes to charts. Sales (in millions): -- Airplay/Streaming (in millions): -- radio, -- video, 2.62 streaming

Dead or Alive Journey

Writer(s): Steve Perry, Neal Schon, Jonathan Cain Released: Escape (1981) Peak: 39 DF Click for codes to charts. Sales (in millions): -- Airplay/Streaming (in millions): -- radio, -- video, 2.36 streaming

Mother, Father Journey

Writer(s): Steve Perry, Neal Schon, Jonathan Cain, Matt Schon Released: B-side of “Who’s Crying Now” (7/9/1981), Escape (1981), Time3 (box set, 1992), The Essential (compilation, 2001) Peak: 15 DF Click for codes to charts. Sales (in millions): -- Airplay/Streaming (in millions): -- radio, -- video, 6.02 streaming

Open Arms Journey

Writer(s): Steve Perry, Jonathan Cain (see lyrics here) Released: single (1/8/1982), Escape (1981), Greatest Hits Live (live, recoded 1981-83, released 1998), Greatest Hits (compilation, 1988), Time3 (box set, 1992), The Essential (compilation, 2001) B-side: “Little Girl” Peak: 2 BB, 11 CB, 16 GR, 11 HR, 17 RR, 7 AC, 35 AR, 2 CN, 43 AU, 1 DF Click for codes to charts. Sales (in millions): 4.0 US Airplay/Streaming (in millions): 3.0 radio, 71.60 video, 307.16 streaming

Awards: (Click on award to learn more).

About the Song: Journey’s keyboardist, Jonathan Cain, wrote the melody for “Open Arms” when he was with The Babys. John Waite, that group’s lead singer, considered the song “too syrupy” and passed on it. SF Cain tried again when he was in Journey, showing it to singer Steve Perry. He was sold, but the rest of the band wasn’t so sure about a ballad. Perry and Cain ended up writing a song about a couple drifting apart and finding each other again when they realize how much they love each other. “Open Arms” was the third single from Journey’s chart-topping Escape album following “Don’t Stop Believin’” (#9) and “Who’s Crying Now” (#4). It not only bested them both but became the band’s biggest hit ever. It held on to the runner-up spot for six weeks, held out from the top by two huge #1 songs – J. Geils Band’s “Centerfold” (6 weeks) and Joan Jett & the Blackheart’s “I Love Rock and Roll” (7 weeks). Songfacts.com said the song “pioneered the entire concept of the power ballad” while Perry said, “Now everybody’s got to have one.” SF All Music.com’s Mike DeGagne’s echoed that idea saying the song “broke down the flood gates and paved the way for…the power ballad.” A2 However, “Open Arms” was definitely not the first power ballad. In the late ‘70s and early ‘80s, a genre known as “arena rock” emerged, led by groups like Journey, Styx, REO Speedwagon, and Foreigner. Each garnered wide rock and pop audiences and landed #1 albums. All four had their biggest hits with power ballads – but the other three groups did so before Journey. Styx topped the charts with “Babe” in 1979 and REO Speedwagon pulled of the same feat with 1980’s “Keep on Loving You.” Foreigner arguably pulled off the biggest hit of the four groups with 1981’s “Waiting for a Girl Like You.” While it didn’t hit #1, it held the #2 spot for 10 weeks. In 1984, they hit the top with “I Want to Know What Love Is.” While “Open Arms” wasn’t the first power ballad as claimed, it is “one of rock’s most beautiful ballads,” AM according to DeGagne. He said the song “gleams with an honesty and feel only Steve Perry could muster” AM as it puts his “voice on a pedestal for all to hear.” A1 “The accompanying piano riffs that floated and then wisped away the song’s delicate lyrics had a lot to do with the song’s prosperity as well.” A1 The song has been covered by Boyz II Men, Celine Dion, Barry Manilow, and Mariah Carey, who reached #4 with the song in the UK in 1996.

Little Girl Journey

Writer(s): Neal Schon, Steve Perry, Gregg Rolie Released: Dream After Dream (soundtrack, 1980), B-side of “Open Arms” (1/8/1982), Time3 (box set, 1992), Departure (2006 reissue), Greatest Hits 2 (compilation, 2011) Peak: 24 DF Click for codes to charts. Sales (in millions): -- Airplay/Streaming (in millions): -- radio, -- video, 0.90 streaming About the Song: In late 1980, Journey released a mostly instrumental soundtrack for Dream After Dream, a Japanese romantic fantasy film directed by Kenzo Takada. It was an odd move for a group coming off the multi-platinum success of a top-ten album (Depature) released earlier that year. One of the vocal tracks on the album, “Little Girl,” feels like an overlooked single that might have been a top-40 ballad for the group. During Journey’s successful run with 1981’s Escape, the song was released as the B-side of “Open Arms,” the group’s highest charting single.

Natural Thing Journey

Writer(s): Steve Perry, Ross Valory Released: B-side of “Don’t Stop Believin’” (10/19/1981), Time3 (box set, 1992), Departure (2006 reissue) First Charted: 1/2/1993 Peak: 32 AR, 17 DF Click for codes to charts. Sales (in millions): -- Airplay/Streaming (in millions): -- radio, -- video, 0.62 streaming About the Song: This song was recorded in 1979 but wasn’t released until 1981 when it was slated as the B-side of “Don’t Stop Believin’.” In 1992, it was issued to radio to promote Journey’s box set Time 3.

La Raza del Sol Journey

Writer(s): Steve Perry, Jonathan Cain Released: B-side of “Still They Ride” (May 1982), Time3 (box set, 1992), Escape (2006 reissue) Peak: -- Click for codes to charts. Sales (in millions): -- Airplay/Streaming (in millions): -- radio, -- video, 1.26 streaming About the Song: The title translates to “The Race of the Sun.” Originally released as the B-side of “Still They Ride” in May 1982, the song was later added to the 2006 reissue of Escape as a bonus track.

Only Solutions Journey

Writer(s): Steve Perry, Neal Schon, Jonathan Cain Released: Tron (soundtrack, 1982), B-side of “Stone in Love” (10/29/1982), Time3 (box set, 1992), Frontiers (2006 reissue) First Charted: 8/14/1982 Peak: 22 AR, 18 DF Click for codes to charts. Sales (in millions): -- Airplay/Streaming (in millions): -- radio, -- video, 2.043 streaming About the Song: The 1982 soundtrack for Tron was written almost entirely by Wndy Carlos, a pioneering electronic musician best known for her album Switched-On Bach and previous soundtracks for A Clockwork Orange and The Shining. Perhaps in an attempt to generate a hit from the soundtrack, Journey were tapped to perform “Only Solutions.” The song did make a minor dent on the album rock chart and was released as the B-side of “Stone in Love,” a single released only in Europe. The song was later included as a bonus track on the 2006 reissue of Journey’s Frontiers album.

Resources/References: AM AllMusic.com review by Mike DeGagne A1 AllMusic.com review of “Open Arms” by Mike DeGagne A2 AllMusic.com review of “Don’t Stop Believin’” CRM ClassicRockMagazine.com JM JourneyMusic.com SF Songfacts page for “Open Arms” SF Songfacts page for “Don’t Stop Believin’” SF Songfacts page for “Who’s Crying Now” TB Thunder Bay (2005). Albums: The Stories Behind 50 Years of Great Recordings. Thunder Bay Press; San Diego, CA. Page 206. WK Wikipedia page for “Open Arms” WK Wikipedia page for “Don’t Stop Believin’” WK Wikipedia page for “Who’s Crying Now” Related DMDB Pages: First posted 3/24/2008; last updated 10/1/2025.