I like the song, it's catchy - but it's not quite right.
This (and the whole album in fact) are perfect example of the fact that while Steve Perry's tremendous voice molded Journey into the great band there were and still are, it takes more than just that! The heart of any rock band or blues band is the rhythm section - the bass and drums. On this album, they for some inexplicable reason fired Ross Valory and Steve Smith - and the underlying feeling that makes it Journey just isn't quite there. Larry Londin is certainly a capable studio drummer, but he isn't Journey's drummer. The same for Randy Jackson on bass.
Though Steve Smith remains my favorite, the latest albums featuring Deen Castronovo (and again Ross Valory) are a vast improvement improvement, and have much more of the real Journey feel to them.
This same feel (or lack thereof) is why I think the albums with Steve Augeri and now Arnel Pineda are more "Journey" than Raised On Radio was - yes the vocals aren't quite the same, but they're darn close and the groove is there.
I like the song, it's catchy - but it's not quite right.
This (and the whole album in fact) are perfect example of the fact that while Steve Perry's tremendous voice molded Journey into the great band there were and still are, it takes more than just that! The heart of any rock band or blues band is the rhythm section - the bass and drums. On this album, they for some inexplicable reason fired Ross Valory and Steve Smith - and the underlying feeling that makes it Journey just isn't quite there. Larry Londin is certainly a capable studio drummer, but he isn't Journey's drummer. The same for Randy Jackson on bass.
Though Steve Smith remains my favorite, the latest albums featuring Deen Castronovo (and again Ross Valory) are a vast improvement improvement, and have much more of the real Journey feel to them.
This same feel (or lack thereof) is why I think the albums with Steve Augeri and now Arnel Pineda are more "Journey" than Raised On Radio was - yes the vocals aren't quite the same, but they're darn close and the groove is there.