About Journey

Journey is an American rock band formed in 1973 in San Francisco, California, by former members of Santana. The band has gone through several phases; its strongest commercial success was in the late 1970s until 1987, when it temporarily disbanded. During that period, they released a series of hit songs, mostly power ballads. Among these were 1981's "Don't Stop Believin'", and their highest-charting U.S. hit, "Open Arms".

The band enjoyed a successful reunion in the mid 1990s with a Grammy-nominated hit, "When You Love a Woman". Sales have resulted in two gold albums, eight multi-platinum albums, and one Diamond album (including seven consecutive multi-platinum albums between 1978 and 1987). They had 19 Top 40 singles, six of which reached the Top 10 of the US Billboard Hot 100 chart. Allmusic has described Journey as "one of America's most beloved (and sometimes hated) commercial rock/pop bands."

According to the Recording Industry Association of America, Journey has sold 47 million albums in the United States, making them the 28th best selling band. Their worldwide sales have reached over 75 million albums. A 2005 USA Today opinion poll named Journey the fifth best American rock band in history.

Formation

The original members of Journey came together in San Francisco in 1973 under the auspices of former Santana manager Herbie Herbert. Originally called the Golden Gate Rhythm Section and intended to serve as a backup group for established Bay Area artists, the band included recent Santana alumni Neal Schon on lead guitar and Gregg Rolie on keyboards and lead vocals. Bassist Ross Valory and rhythm guitarist George Tickner, both of Frumious Bandersnatch, and drummer Prairie Prince of The Tubes rounded out the group. The band quickly abandoned the original "backup group" concept and developed a distinctive jazz fusion style. After an unsuccessful radio contest to name the group, roadie John Villaneuva suggested the name " Journey." The band's first public appearance came at the Winterland Ballroom on New Years Eve, 1973. Prairie Prince rejoined The Tubes shortly thereafter, and the band hired British drummer Aynsley Dunbar, who had recently worked with John Lennon and Frank Zappa. On February 5, 1974, the new line-up made their debut at the Great American Music Hall and secured a recording contract with Columbia Records.

Journey released their eponymous first album in 1975, and rhythm guitarist Tickner left the band before they cut their second album, Look into the Future (1976). Neither album achieved significant sales, so Schon, Valory, and Dunbar took singing lessons in an attempt to add vocal harmonies to Rolie's lead. The following year's Next contained shorter tracks with more vocals, and featured Schon as lead singer on two of the songs.