Journey Albums Ranked From Worst to Best (including Freedom) 

‘Infinity’ will always be Journey’s finest moment for me if for no other reason than the vocal interplay of Rollie and Perry and the ‘Feeling that Way’/’Anytime’ segment of the album. Also Aynsley Dunbar is an old favorite and one of the most underrated drummers of all time. Nearly every record he’s ever played on was elevated by his playing.

Great episode . Im so relieved the early albums are getting their due. In a recent pod w/ Schonn he said Perry did his vocals in one take which made me weep !

I would be calling in sick for Journey week too lol

Debut Infinity Escape Evolution Dream after Dream Next Departure Look into the Future Frontiers Raised on Radio Trial by Fire Eclipse Arrival Revelation Generations Freedom *I love Journey too, Joe-Thanks for highlighting this great band, guys!

At your recommendation, I listened to Infinity for the first time (even though I was a teenager in 1978). It was fun. Songs that get a lot radio airplay are always more interesting when you hear them as part of the studio albums that included them. I'd forgotten how much that album contributed to the great sounds of 1978 that also included Some Girls, Double Vision, Stranger in Town, Van Halen's first album, Who Are You, the Cars' first album, Darkness on the Edge of Town, Baker Street, Hermit of Mink Hollow, London Town, lots of others. It also reminded me of that great winning streak of Roy Thomas Baker in the mid and late 1970s, with Queen, Journey, the Cars, Foreigner, and Ian Hunter. I never bought any of Journey's albums I guess because I heard them on the radio so much. And nothing on the radio really jumped out at me to make me want to be able to play something over and over at home. But listening to Infinity, and looking back, I can see what a unique sound they created.

"Message of Love" (Trial by Fire) is one of my all time favorite Journey songs. So underrated.

Sorry Raised on radio is by far my favorite. The album is tight and melodic

For me "Infinity" is top for all the reasons stated by comments and your insights on the video. You two did a great job with this, seriously considering all albums and actually listening. I was the super fan coming on board for Infinity, but loved the original albums, and bought the Dream After Dream soundtrack when it came out. Everyone has opinions and different Timelines, you explained yours well. A tip of the hat.

Frontiers is my number one because it was the first journey album I owned and also I discovered the amazing guitar playing of Neal Schon on this album to edge of the blade is fantastic

My Top 10 Favorite Journey Albums: 10: Raised on Radio 9: Trial by Fire 8: Frontiers 7: Evolution 6: Next 5: Departure 4: Look into the Future 3: Escape 2: Journey (Bought this by complete accident) 1: Infinity Journey was the First Rock Band I've ever loved.

Is it just me, or do Journey and Aerosmith have a see-saw dynamic with their popularity? Early/mid 70s: Aerosmith are massive while Journey has a cult following. Late 70s/early 80s: Aerosmith takes a personal and professional nosedive while Journey becomes massive. Late 80s/entire 90s: Aerosmith has huge comeback while Journey pretty much gets forgotten. 21st century: Aerosmith goes out of style again with even their earlier stuff not getting the respect it once did from critics while Journey’s classic hits get a surprising amount of love from millennials and Gen Z.

Love this band, have most of their albums. Thanks for doing these rankings, my favorite album is Departure. Maybe Kramzer can do a solo ranking in the future. Neil Schon is one of my favorite guitarists, of course Steve Perry can't be beat on vocals.

Journey WAS high school, so much so that our senior prom song was "Separate Ways." ... Journey is all nostalgia for me, not much more.

Journey reminds me of my mom. Love em. Would be DOPE to see a Grateful Dead, New Order, Funkadelic/Parliament, The Cure, Red Hot Chili Peppers, 311, Incubus or Spoon ranking 🤘 as always keep up the great content, much love ✌️

It's cool that you both show some love for the eary pre-Steve Perry albums and the lesser known soundtrack. My feeling is that most fans only care about Steve Perry albums and nothing else. Which is unfair. The other stuff is different but still worth checking out. Maybe not to the most casual rock listener who mostly into pop but for most fans. Good video this one!

Yea that soundtrack one is a good one, enjoyed it, wouldn't have guessed it's a soundtrack, thanks Taavi for suggesting it

1. Raised On Radio 2. Escape 3. Infinity 4. Frontiers 5. Departure

I love the dual vocalist attack.

Hi, i've never been into Journey, i just watched the video because i'm hooked to your channel, i'll give it a try to your top 3 though

The First Three Albums With Steve Perry all have some awesome moments .. Infinity , Departure & Evolution. First Ansyley Dunbar & then Greg Rolie left & that guy from The Babys joined ( Jonathan Cain ) & they became very bland. Pre Steve Perry stuff has excellent musicianship but is sorely lacking in songs.

For me Infinity, Look Into the Future, Next, Escape and self titled. Thats it for me. Another great listography. Great content👍

Wow, cool to see you do these guys. I was surprised to see the love for the first three pre-Perry albums. I've always viewed them as kinda 2nd tier prog, but still always liked those albums. Jason, you're crazy having 'Frontiers' so low. My favorite Journey album. Joe was right on, it's awesome because it's so big and over the top. "Only the Young" and "Only Solutions" (a kick ass song with a great arpeggio guitar riff from Schon that ended up on the 'Tron' soundtrack) should have both been on it, though.

They aren't my favorite band but Don't Stop Believin' is really the song that got me into music.

Journey's 1975 debut, "Look into the Future", & "Next" are my favorite Journey albums because as much as I love the Steve Perry era, the Gregg Rollie era did have some nice tracks although "Raised on Radio" is my all time favorite Perry era Journey album

Journey was at the heights of its power during my middle school years and I loved them. However, they were played to death and I discovered bands like R.E.M. and U2 in 1983 and dismissed Journey as bland corporate rock. However, thanks in part to the Sopranos, I developed a new appreciation for the band. Now in my 50s, I recognize the sweetness of a great pop song and Journey has a load of them. I needed a long break from them, but now I'm in again. Joe nailed it!!!

I love Journey…. Great choice this week

Great to see the love for the first three albums. I played them all constantly through my high school years. I will check out the soundtrack and Infinity is a 3.5 star for me. 5 - 15. All 2.5 stars or less 4. Infinity 3. Next 2. Look into the future 1. Journey

For me: 1. Frontiers 2. Escape 3.infinity 4. Raised on Radio 5. Departure 6. Journey 7.Evolution 8. Eclipse 9. Look Into The Future 10. Freedom 11. Next 12.Arrival 13. Revelation 14. Generations 15. Dream a Little Dream soundtrack 16. Trial by Fire

15. Arrival (2001) 1.5/5 14. Revelation (2008) 2/5 13. Trial By Fire (1996) 2/5 12. Freedom (2022) 2/5 11. Generations (2005) 2/5 10. Eclipse (2011) 2.5/5 9. Raised On Radio (1986) 2.5/5 8. Departure (1980) 3/5 7. Evolution (1979) 3/5 6. Escape (1981) 3/5 5. Look Into The Future (1976) 3.5/5 4. Next (1977) 3.5/5 3. Frontiers (1983) 3.5/5 2. Journey (1975) 4/5 1. Infinity (1978) 4/5

You guys should do Neko Case’s discography down the line. Also, keep up the great work. Love the channel.

I used to dislike Positive Touch and Suzanne (Raised on Radio) when I heard then in the 90s because I felt they sounded like generic 80s songs. But now I'm more obsessed with the 80s, so in the last few months I've been listening to the whole album and I just can't get enough of it, specially those 2 songs. Love the sax on Positive Touch and the incredible voice of Steve on Suzanne.

Echo and the Bunnymen? NICE

I think the adult contemporary first raised its head on Raised on Radio. It's quite evident in a song like "I'll Be Alright Without You."

Journey became superstars when I was going into my teenage years. Remember the videos (including the cheesy one in this morning's tweet) and even the video game. My older brother was into their 70s albums. So they were a part of my life. Stopped following after Raised on the Radio but still listen to those albums up to Frontiers. Infinity is my favorite.

Escape, Frontiers, and Infinity will always be the big three for me, but Evolution, Raised on Radio, and Departure are great too

I don’t understand the hate for Raised on Radio. Maybe I’m a bit biased though because it was the first CD I ever bought. I played it a ton! 1. Escape 2. Frontiers 3. Raised on Radio 4. Infinity 5. Evolution 6. Departure 7. Trial by Fire

Definitely the most contrarian list that I’ve seen from Jason and that is REALLY saying something! Escape, Infinity and Frontiers will always be my top 3.

Eclipse is a heavy album (for Journey) and a good album. People rank it low for obvious reasons but check it out, its not bad.

I have turned a lot of people on to the self titled debut. I play it for them and don’t tell them who it is. Inevitably, they’re floored when I tell them who it is. they don’t know there was a journey before Perry. Or that they really cooked as a fusion / Latin / space rock / prog band. I mean, it’s not Caravanserei but I like it quite a lot.

Kramzer Dodged a Bullet

A fine band with Steve as lead singer. Don't know their albums but mainstream bands don't get much better. Infinity is their best. Jason's pick I like too and it's mystical and it's sort of like an attempt to see how Perry would sing on a pre-Perry Journey record. Steve also did a couple of nice songs in other bands before he was asked to join them.

Trial By Fire has some amazing tunes. "Still she Cries", is a top 10 Journey tune.

Dream, After Dream is my favourite even though I typically don't like when bands do soundtrack albums. I love how its progressive like their early stuff but also features the great vocals of Perry.

I didn't know that you were ranking Dream after Dream and so I didn't try to score it. 1) Frontiers[1983]- 5 Stars 2) Escape[1981] - 5 Stars 3) Raised On Radio[1986] - 5 Stars 4) Infinity[1978] - 4.5 Stars 5) Trial By Fire[1996] - 4.5 Stars 6) Departure[1980] - 4.5 Stars 7) Evolution[1979] - 4.5 Stars 8) Journey[1975] - 4 Stars 9) Arrival[2000] - 3.5 Stars (Augeri's voice is fine but it sounds too formulaic at times. The songwriting failed them) 10) Look Into the Future[1976] - 3.5 Stars (Rolie is too limited to carry a non progressive album) 11) Next[1977] - 3 Stars (Nickel and Dime is great, the rest is expendable. Cookie Duster shouldn't have been cut from the album.) 12) Eclipse[2011] - 3 Stars 13) Generations[2005] - 2.5 Stars 14) Revelation[2008](Disc 1 only) - 2.5 Stars (Arnel is a very strong mimic but not as strong with new material. I prefer Augieri and Castronovo) 15) Freedom[2022] - 2 Stars (Arnel got raspy)

Journey has never really been a band I explored further than listening to the hits. It was interesting to hear their albums and hear some of the different things they did over the years. I did throw in the towel after Trial By Fire. I just could not bring myself to listen to those long long later albums (especially having just finished Def Leppard which I am still not sure how I managed to finish). Sounds like I made a good choice, I am at peace with having skipped those because I think I would have become resentful of everything if I had listened to those. Still overall, I enjoyed what I heard but not really something I am going to put on all the time. My ranking of what I heard: 11 - Next - 2.5 stars (5.4) 10 - Trial By Fire - 3 stars (6.0) 9 - Raised on Radio - 3 stars (6.4) 8 - Look Into the Future - 3 stars (6.4) 7 - Evolution - 3 stars (6.4) 6 - Journey - 3.5 stars (6.8) 5 - Infinity - 3.5 stars (7.3) 4 - Departure - 3.5 stars (7.3) 3 - Dream, After Dream - 3.5 stars (7.4) 2 - Frontiers - 4 stars (7.6) 1 - Escape - 4 stars (8.2)

Journey, a band that never really broke Europe. I own two albums and a compilation. Not really my cup of tea but I like some of the hits.

Finally the first 3 albums get some love. They're my top 3 Journey albums without hesitation. Just can't put those into an order cause they're just amazing albums.

1. Evolution 2. Escape 3. Frontiers 4. Infinity 5. Departure 6. Raised on the Radio 7. Look to the Future 8. Journey 9. Next 10. Trial by Fire

1. Infinity 2. Evolution 3. Journey 4. Departure 5. Next 6. Look into the Future

🔥 E V O L U T I O N 🔥

I'd never even heard of Dream after Dream till this video. But I know what I'm looking for now. Sounds really interesting.

1: Evolution 2: Departure 3: Infinity 4: Escape 5: Journey debut 6: Frontiers 7: Trial by Fire 8: Next 9: Look into the Future 10: Raised on Radio The rest I don't know!

16) Freedom (2022) 1.75/5 14 & 15 - tie) Generations (2005), Revelation (2008) 2/5 13) Eclipse (2011) 2.25/5 12) Trial by Fire (1996) 2.5/5 11) Arrival (2001) 2.5/5 10) Departure (1980) 2.5/5 09) Frontiers (1983) 2.5/5 07 & 08 - tie) Next (1977), Raised on Radio (1986) 3.25/5 06) Dream, After Dream (1980) 3.5/5 05) Infinity (1978) 3.5/5 04) Evolution (1979) 3.5/5 03) Look into the Future (1976) 4/5 02) Journey (1975) 4.5/5 01) Escape (1981) 4.5/5 Ratings Scale: 0 stars - irredeemably terrible/insultingly bad/the worst .5 stars - terrible 1 star - bad 1.5 stars - pretty bad 2 stars - fair 2.5 stars - meh 2.75 stars - "It's OK, but quit playing it." 3 stars - OK/decent 3.25 stars - pretty good 3.5 stars - good 4 stars - very good 4.5 stars - excellent 5 stars - the smell of wine Chronological Order: 1975 - 4.50 - Journey 1976 - 4.00 - Look into the Future 1977 - 3.25 - Next 1978 - 3.50 - Infinity 1979 - 3.50 - Evolution 1980 - 2.50 - Departure 1980 - 3.50 - Dream, After Dream 1981 - 4.50 - Escape 1983 - 2.50 - Frontiers 1986 - 3.25 - Raised on Radio 1996 - 2.50 - Trial by Fire 2001 - 2.50 - Arrival 2005 - 2.00 - Generations 2008 - 2.00 - Revelation 2011 - 2.25 - Eclipse 2022 - 1.75 - Freedom Notes: * I grew up hearing Journey on the radio and always liked most of their hits. I had the Escape tape when I was a pre-teen kid and I loved the Journey arcade game, but I soon moved on to other musical interests and never got another Journey album. * Their early albums before Steve Perry came along are considered by some to be prog, but it just sounds to me more like songs that serve as launching pads for Neal Schon's guitar shredding, especially on the debut. Some might call it wankery, but I dig that weedly weedly stuff. Schon could almost always be counted on to elevate even mediocre songs with his killer soloing. * On Look into the Future, they cover the Beatles' "It's All Too Much," which is clearly inferior to the original but rather excellent nonetheless with a new arrangement and added instrumental prowess. "You're on Your Own" sounds a bit too much like the Beatles' "I Want You (She's so Heavy)" with the same chords. The first half is a bit more grounded in regular rock n roll while the second has more in the way of soloing. * Next (what a terrible title) sounds a bit like they're just spinning their wheels. * Infinity is the first album with Steve Perry and dude can really sing. Schon's solos are more pop oriented here. * They were on top of the world when Escape came out which to me is clearly their best album, unless you prefer the shred-fest on the debut. * I remember when Frontiers came out and my buddy had a copy. I heard it but wasn't interested in buying it. * They move towards adult contemporary starting with '86's Raised on Radio which sounds a lot like Steve Perry's previous solo album from 1984, Street Talk - lighter and limper. There's a little bit of funk here, particularly on "It Could Have Been You" which reminds me of Bowie's "Cat People (Putting Out Fire)." * Trial by Fire from '96 has a cheesy commercial sound and it's even more bland and loaded with power ballads. The cover is garish and tacky as well. * Arrival, featuring new singer Steve Augeri continues with the same bland commercial sound, generic and occasionally cheesy. There's a handful of good songs though, and one great one. Augeri is a good counterfeit Perry, but not quite as good. * Generations is more of the same. On the cover is what looks like an unintentional Planet of the Apes face right in the middle which I find amusing. "Knowing that You Love Me" has really weird lyrics with the singer wanting to go back in time to when his lover was a baby so he could cradle her. * We get another new singer on Revelation. This time it's Arnel Peneda from the Philippines who Schon found on RU-vid. He's another Perry clone, again not quite as good. A lot of the singing here is just too overemotive, overdone, over the top. Very generic and commercial music. Sometimes too precious and sappy. The bonus disk of re-recorded Perry-era hits is competent enough but winds up being tedious as I'd rather just hear the originals. It showcases Peneda's talents but feels more like a cash grab. * I appreciate the more rocking direction they took with Eclipse, but most of the songs are just weak. * 2022's Freedom is sadly their weakest album yet. "Together We Run" is an inferior rewrite of "Don't Stop Believin'," "Don't Give Up on Us" is a limp rewrite of "Separate Ways (Worlds Apart)," and "You Got the Best of Me" is a limp, commercial rewrite of "Any Way You Want It." They sound about out of gas on this one. The vocals are the weakest element. Peneda is a good singer; I just don't care much for what he is singing. They have nothing to offer but endless relationship songs (which is pretty much true of their whole catalogue). Most of the album is really lame, but the one exception is "All Day, All Night," a surprisingly excellent song that seems to have slipped under the radar and bafflingly wasn't chosen as a single. * I rated this music based on how good I thought it was, not so much on how much I personally like it. I wouldn't seek out any of this music on my own (except maybe the debut), although if Journey comes on the radio, I'll probably listen to it. * Cheers mates!!!!!!!!!!!!

I will finish the final two. Won’t be checking out Generations Infinity(1978) - 5 stars (9.6) Dream, After Dream (1980)- 4.5 stars (9.2) Frontiers(1983) - 4.5 stars (8.8) Evolution (1979)-4.5 stars (8.6) Escape(1981) - 4 stars (8.4) Journey (1975)- 4 stars (8.2) Raised on Radio (1986) - 4 stars (8) Look Into the Future (1976)- 3.5 stars (7.8) Next(1977) - 3.5 stars (7.2) Trial By Fire (1996) 3 stars (6) Departure(1980) - 2.5 stars (5.6) Arrival (2001) - 2 stars (4) Revelation (2008) -1.5 stars (2.6)

Well, after listenign to you guys do your thing, I decided it was time to really sit down with Journey and give their albums (in order) a really good listen. I made it as far as Departures. Man I really like prog Journey so much more than the other stuff. jeez. Still have to listen to Dream after Dream though, and am looking forward to that. Also Infinity and Evolution still had their moments for me, especially the former, though I think they got the production a little better on Evolution. I will say that Infinity sounds pretty ahead of its time. if you just gave a song like "Wheel in the Sky" some heavier guitars, i could picture it being played by some band like Crimson Glory ten years later. I don't want to be too hard on Steve because I don't think it was necessarily he's doing, but it's like he pulled all the attention toward himself and that's not really what I like. He had a good voice but he's not, you know, THE BAND. At least, not for me. That debut really blew my mind. I actually thought Look into the Future was the first one before.

We saw them in 2017 (before Valory and Smith were booted out) and had a blast. Don't think I personally need more than the Greatest Hits, though.

Journey is a great band especially the clsssic era. In order to appreciate it you had to be there at the time. Its like when i was in my 20's I didn't get Beatlemania because I didn't live thtough it.

Steve Smith is also the drummer on Jean Luc Ponty's Enigmatic Ocean. If you thought his drumming was incredible on "Sandcastles," his drumming on Enigmatic Ocean will blow you away! Promise!

Topaz is top of the pile for me. Such an amazing track. Of A Lifetime is wonderful too. I'm siding with Jason this time. His top two were daring. Any chance you guys will rate the Kansas catalog?

Glad you guys did Journey, love most of their stuff, but after Frontiers there is definitely a significant dip in quality, but those albums are still enjoyable, but pretty much all of them could use a good trimming. ALBUM RANKING: 1. Infinity (1978) - 5/5 2. Journey (1975) - 5/5 3. Frontiers (1983) - 5/5 4. Escape (1981) - 5/5 5. Look Into the Future (1976) - 4.5/5 6. Next (1977) - 4.5/5 7. Evolution (1979) - 4.5/5 8. Departure (1980) - 4.5/5 9. Eclipse (2011) - 4/5 10. Revelation (2008) - 4/5 11. Dream After Dream (1980) - 4/5 12. Raised on Radio (1986) - 3.5/5 13. Arrival (2001) - 3.5/5 14. Freedom (2022) - 3.5/5 15. Generations (2005) - 3/5 16. Trial by Fire (1996) - 3/5 RATING SCALE: 5.0: Excellent (Really Love It) 4.5: Great (Love It) 4.0: Very Good (Really Like It) 3.5: Good (Like It) 3.0: Decent (Slightly Like It) 2.5: Mediocre (Indifferent) 2.0: Subpar (Slightly Dislike It) 1.5: Bad (Dislike It) 1.0: Awful (Really Dislike It) 0.5: Terrible (Hate It) 0.0: Garbage (Really Hate It)

A fate worse than death

Journey, a band that the critics and media hated as evident by them having to wait many many years to get into the Rock n Roll of Fame after they were the first eligible. For the record, Im not a huge fan of them but I call it like I see it. I think they couldnt keep them out anymore because they were too popular and were sick of hearing about it. They had the hits, the album sales, and the influence. You may not like what they influenced (hair metal?) but you cant deny it.

Not sure about your pronounciation of Greg Rolie's surname... but other than that, great deep dive into a catalogue I knew next to nothing about!

1981 and 1982 i burnt through my Escape LP by playing it so much. Then Frontiers came out. So much better. Buy the re-mastered CD where Only the Young and Ask The Lonely were added. So good.

I usually love high tenor male vocals, but for some reason Steve Perry is the exception for me. I can't even say why, really. There's just something I don't like about his voice.

Walks Like a Lady feels like jazz.

Escape is so effin' good.

Putting Trial By Fire outside of the top 10 on both these guys lists is all I need to know "NOT" to subscribe to their channel

Wow, I wasn't blown away by Dream, After Dream like the way Jason was. Need to hear that again.

One of the best vocals in rock, combined with some of the finest musicianship, yet I can't relate to it much. Journey to me feels a bit like Toto. Also a band with some of the best instrumentalists, yet I don't feel they have anything to say. Underneath the shine and the ornaments it feels hollow to me.

Next will ALWAYS be my favorite. So much diversity in there

Greg Rolie would front s band called The Storm in the 80's. Its interesting material.

1 - Escape 2 - Evolution 3 - Infinity 4 - Departure 5 - Frontiers 6 - Raised on Radio 7 - Look Into the Future 8 - Next 9 - Journey I only really care about Infinity through Frontiers, all of which were very good. The outro solo in Stone in Love might be my favorite guitar solo ever. Raised on Radio was meh but did have a couple of songs I really liked. I've heard the pre-Steve Perry albums. They weren't bad, but I really don't need to ever hear them again. I've heard bits and pieces of their stuff that came out after Raised on Radio, but didn't like any of them enough to try to listen to any of those full albums. I heard most of the Revelation bonus tracks where they rerecorded the older stuff with Pineda. It was good, but the original versions were all better. After watching this video and a few others, I doubt I'll ever waste the time trying to listen to any of those post 1986 albums. I also haven't heard anything from the soundtrack and I'm ok with that.

16. Trial By Fire 15. Freedom (sounds better on a phone then on headphones and better on headphones then through speakers. Weird Mix.) 14. Arrival 13. Raised on Radio 12. Generations 11. Revelation 10. Eclipse 9. Next 8. Dream After Dream 7. Journey 6. Departure 5. Look Into the Future 4. Evolution 3. Frontiers 2. Infinity 1. Escape

Love Journey

Agree with Joe's comment at 1:04: journey's top 10 songs would be dominated by Schon's scorching outros. A great, underappreciated example is Can't Tame the Lion.

i gotta disagree with Jason about Ross Valory's bass tone on Escape. i really don't like Journey at all, although i can't argue with their talent. But i have a real soft spot for that Jaco-inspired Fender Jazz bass bridge-pickup honky mid tone. And he plays the heck out of it. i can do without that chorus-pedal sound all over it, but it's the 80s and you can't get away from chorus pedal abuse. but those vowel-sound mids. i haven't tried to use that as part of my sound for years and it just doesn't fit the stuff i do, but i really like it. Just about the only thing i enjoy about Journey.

Have to give this one to Jason. A lot of Journey's early 80s music has dated poorly. I do stick up for Frontiers, probably my favorite of their big hit albums.

Great video. For me. no. 1. Frontiers. 2. Trial By Fire. Steve Perry is great on that album.

Until you made this video I was convinced Journey was a one-hit wonder band after hearing Don't Stop Believin' approximately one million times and nothing more, so I was pretty surprised to see that have a load of hits and platinum albums. 16. Generations (2005) ★ 15. Eclipse (2011) ★½ 14. Freedom (2022) ★½ 13. Revelation (2008) ★★ 12. Raised on Radio (1986) ★★½ 11. Trial by Fire (1996) ★★½ 10. Arrival (2001) ★★½ 9. Departure (1980) ★★½ 8. Evolution (1979) ★★½ 7. Next (1977) ★★★ 6. Look Into the Future (1976) ★★★ 5. Journey (1975) ★★★ 4. Frontiers (1983) ★★★ 3. Infinity (1978) ★★★ 2. Escape (1981) ★★★★ 1. Dream After Dream (1980) ★★★★ ★★★★★ - Masterpiece ★★★★½ - Really great ★★★★ - Great ★★★½ - Really good ★★★ - Good ★★½ - OK ★★ - Bad ★½ - Really bad ★ - Awful ½ - The worst

While this video was overly long (like latter day Journey albums) it was an interesting discussion. I love Journey, would probably give Escape 5 stars. I get the album plays it safe, but it's perfect for what they were striving for. Eighty minutes though? I guess I just find the irony in an 80 minute video on music where one of the criticisms of the albums is that they're too long...LOL..I hope Kram feels better, but I really didn't miss him. 1. Escape 2. Infinity 3. Frontiers 4. Evolution 5. Departure (People and Places grew on me, as did most of this record...but it took me some time)...Still not a fave.

I've heard one Journey track (they really don't play it much over here) and that song was of course, Don't Stop Believin' I'm familiar with it only because of my obsession with The Sopranos and it being the track played at the final scene. A track that Steve Perry held out giving them for as long as possible as he didn't want his music associated with violence. I try and give each band you choose a listen if I'm unfamiliar with them, but along with Boston, Kansas, REO Speedwagon etc, I'm out on this one Get well Kramzer Long live the King 👑

I only like the first three albums and the Rollie/Perry tunes, really. Oh, and the Red13 EP, Charge of the Light Brigade and Dream After Dream.

The next four make up solidly for this week and last week. (I don't hate Journey)

Escape at eight is a crime!

To summarise really the early stuff is killer the later stuff sucks. The 80s when at their peak is just so so.... I would have liked a little bit more enthusiasm about the good albums and to me Trial by fire is undrated. I am going to see them on the UK tour later this year and suggest they do a track off each album maybe , but on a personal note since SP left a lot of tracks sound like Pepsi commercials. The last album having started well with the single "the way we used to be " is a bit of a mess apart from maybe Neals guitar work on Afterglow.

Schon goes OFF on Back Talk.

I'm not a Journey fan but I have to defend Raised on Radio. Some Journey fans crap on it for no good reason I can think of. I mostly hear it's a Steve Perry solo album. So?! He's the lead singer so what's the problem? He's what makes Journey, in my opinion, special. Take him out of the equation and you have a generic arena rock band, which is what they are now. If I want generic arena rock, I'll listen to Foreigner or Bad Company. Anyway, I think Jason is way off base w/his assessment of Raised on Radio and Joe is a little closer to my opinion, but I'd give it a higher ranking. I've only listened to Raised on Radio and Escape in their entirety and pieces of the other albums during the Steve Perry era. I'll also say Steve Perry, being a Sam Cooke, fan is why he might lean toward R&B. I grew-up w/parents, who were R&B fans, and they had 45s of many famous 70s R&B songs. I think that's why I might appreciate Raised on Radio more than some Journey fans.

After listening to the 1st three albums, then hearing Departure, you can almost hear Rolie walking toward the exit.

Disappoitned that karm was not a part of the Journey journey. Still, good work guys. I only recently got a bit into Journey -- and it was because of the really early stuff. Never cared for the hits, never thought I would like the band. But I can sort of get into some of the early 80s stuff now. Still, it's the 70s records taht opened the door for me, including Look into the Future. Part of me wishes they'd stayed like that. But then they wouldn't be vaunted stadium rockers, would they?

Joe hits on a deep truth when he says Journey might sound different to people who were alive when they were big. I was. I hate Journey.

I actually really like the first 3 journey album's

are you including the stars, the oceans & the moon?

you should make sparks

Judging from what Joe said, I would think he would put Departure at 3, not 3.5. I guess his love for Perry's voice pushes it into "good" territory.

Not a knock on Journey (not much of a fan), but Sly & Family Stone was coming up soon, right guys..? 😇

Why isn't Generations on Spotify?

What is it with Journey and the preponderance for one-word album titles?

Is it Rah-lee or Row-lee?

1. Escape (1981) 3.5/5 2. Frontiers (1983) 3/5 3. Departure (1980) 3/5 4. Evolution (1979) 3/5 5. Journey (1975) 2.5/5 6. Infinity (1978) 2.5/5 7. Dream, After Dream (1980) 2.5/5 8. Raised on Radio (1986) 2.5/5 9. Generations (2005) 2.5/5 10. Look Into the Future (1976) 2/5 11. Next (1977) 2/5 12. Arrival (2001) 2/5 13. Eclipse (2011) 2/5 14. Freedom (2022) 2/5 15. Trial By Fire (1996) 1.5/5 CHRONOLOGICAL ORDER: 2.5 Journey (1975) 2.0 Look Into the Future (1976) 2.0 Next (1977) 2.5 Infinity (1978) 3.0 Evolution (1979) 3.0 Departure (1980) 2.5 Dream, After Dream (1980) 3.5 Escape (1981) 3.0 Frontiers (1983) 2.5 Raised on Radio (1986) 1.5 Trial By Fire (1996) 2.0 Arrival (2001) 2.5 Generations (2005) 2.0 Revelation (2008) 2.0 Eclipse (2011) 2.0 Freedom (2022) In light of the AOR (and MOR) juggernaut this band became, it's hard to believe they were founded by former members of Santana (Neil Schon, Greg Rolie.) Journey started out life as a jazz-tinged progressive rock outfit and went pop when Steve Perry joined the band on 1978's Infinity. I happen to think Perry is a great singer but I get where people are coming from who say his voice is cartoonish. However, without him, Journey probably would've forever remained in obscurity. They're definitely more of a singles band than an albums band. Like last week's artist, Def Leppard, even their best LP is half filler. If it wasn't for the fact that I'd already heard many of these albums, I probably would've given up on this band's discography (especially once I got past 1986's Raised on Radio.) I can't do Journey's cheesy ballads but they do have songs like (see tomorrow.) They're not a personal favorite though I do have respect for them. MY RATING SYSTEM: 5.0 = major classic (consistently great *and* stratospheric highs) 4.5 = minor classic (consistently great *or* stratospheric highs, but not both) 4.0 = great (a clear majority is worth revisiting and it's an essential record for this artist/style - passes my "it'll make a fan out of someone who's new to this artist" test) 3.5 = seriously good (at least half is worth revisiting) 3.0 = nominally good (less than half is worth revisiting) 2.5 = decent (competent but uninspired - not worth revisiting) 2.0 = poor (difficult listen) 1.5 = awful (can't finish it) 1.0 = historically awful (musical apocalypse) * "Consistently" does not mean "flawlessly." I allow for a few duds if the rest of the songs are good enough. "Stratospheric highs" refer to albums that either feature iconic songs or have a very influential sound. (Note: Albums that I consider to be "perfect" can also reach 5 stars, even without containing iconic songs or being highly influential.) * I don't go below 1 star because once I'm in the realm of the truly terrible I don't care to differentiate anymore. * Anything I rate 3.5 stars or higher is an album I'm enthusiastic about and would likely revisit at some point.