Legendary Rock Hit Crowned 'Biggest Song Of All Time'

[watcher1]

A small town girl living in a lonely world met a city boy born and raised in South Detroit in October 1981, and the rest was history.

The Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) officially named Journey's "Don't Stop Believin'" the "biggest song of all time." What started as the "biggest-selling digital song of the '80s" (per Billboard) is now certified 18x Platinum in the United States alone, standing out as the most-sold hit in music history over 40 years after its initial release.

According to Forbes, "Don't Stop Believin'" peaked at No. 9 on the Billboard Hot 100 Chart the year that it was released, and went on to propel the success of Journey's first No. 1 album, Escape, released a few months prior in July 1981. The single cultivated an unrivaled legacy built on sheer creativity, unmatched vocals, and a melody that, unbeknownst to Journey bandmates Steve Perry, Neal Schon, and Jonathan Cain, would stand the tests of time for decades to come.

As a side note:  Johnathan Cain, who wrote the song, was born and raised on the near west side of Chicago and attended Our Lady of Angels school. The school caught fire on December 1, 1958, while classes were still in session, and tragically 95 children and Nuns perished. Cain, a student there at the time of the fire, wrote and played a tribute song to those who perished.

[msslave]

Great story Rick. Enjoyed reading until I got to the part about the fire. That was very sad. But I appreciated the additional information even so. It's history.

As I write this I had my Alexa play the song. 

[MintJulie]

A small town girl living in a lonely world met a city boy born and raised in South Detroit in October 1981, and the rest was history.

Love it.  Did you know there is no 'South Detroit".  People in Michigan know that, but not so much elsewhere. 

A snippet from an undated interview, with Steve Perry...

Journey's then-lead singer Steve Perry says he was inspired to write a good portion of the lyrics for 'Don't Stop Believin'' at 2 am during a hotel stay in Detroit, while the band was on tour in 1980.

"I was digging the idea of how the lights were facing down so that you couldn’t see anything," Perry told New York Magazine via Vulture. "All of a sudden I’d see people walking out of the dark, and into the light. And the term ‘streetlight people’ came to me. So Detroit was very much in my consciousness when we started writing."

Perry goes on to say that he took poetic license, creating the fictitious location 'South Detroit.'

"I ran the phonetics of east, west, and north, but nothing sounded as good or emotionally true to me as 'South Detroit,'" Perry said. "The syntax just sounded right. I fell in love with the line. It’s only been in the last few years that I’ve learned that there is no South Detroit. But it doesn’t matter."

[MissBarbara]

A small town girl living in a lonely world met a city boy born and raised in South Detroit in October 1981, and the rest was history.

Love it.  Did you know there is no 'South Detroit".  People in Michigan know that, but not so much elsewhere. 

A snippet from an undated interview, with Steve Perry...

Journey's then-lead singer Steve Perry says he was inspired to write a good portion of the lyrics for 'Don't Stop Believin'' at 2 am during a hotel stay in Detroit, while the band was on tour in 1980.

"I was digging the idea of how the lights were facing down so that you couldn’t see anything," Perry told New York Magazine via Vulture. "All of a sudden I’d see people walking out of the dark, and into the light. And the term ‘streetlight people’ came to me. So Detroit was very much in my consciousness when we started writing."

Perry goes on to say that he took poetic license, creating the fictitious location 'South Detroit.'

"I ran the phonetics of east, west, and north, but nothing sounded as good or emotionally true to me as 'South Detroit,'" Perry said. "The syntax just sounded right. I fell in love with the line. It’s only been in the last few years that I’ve learned that there is no South Detroit. But it doesn’t matter."

There's a cheesy 70s song called "The Night Chicago Died," and it was a runaway hit in 1974.

It begins with this line: "Daddy was a cop on the east side of Chicago."

Chicago has no "east side." As Rick can confirm, the "east side" of Chicago is Lake Michigan.

The song refers to the St. Valentine's Day Massacre, when a group of 7 members of Bugs Moran's gang were murdered in cold blood by members of Al Capone's gang. It took place on February 14, 1929 (hence the name) at a garage at 2122 North Clark Street. That's about a block from the Lincoln Park Zoo, on the near north side.

However, the guys who wrote the song were from the U.K. and, by their own admission, they'd never been to Chicago. They based in on old gangster movies they had watched on TV.

[watcher1]

There is a East Chicago, but it is located in Indiana. Pretty sure if one is to get technical, there is a fair amount of the southside of Chicago that is east of State Street, the street that divides the east side and west side. But most people will say they are either from the North side or South side. Sometimes the West side but not the East side.

Then there is Leroy Brown:

Well, the south side of Chicago
Is the baddest part of town
And if you go down there
You better just beware
Of a man name of Leroy Brown

[MintJulie]

Then there is Leroy Brown:

Well, the south side of Chicago
Is the baddest part of town
And if you go down there
You better just beware
Of a man name of Leroy Brown

And he's bad, bad, Leroy Brown


Dan LOVES this song.

[Pornhubby]

“Don’t Stop Believing” is the greatest rock song of all time. And as much as some Journey fans would like to deny it, Steve Perry is the primary reason Journey will never be forgotten.

Because we have all felt that emptiness involved in taking a “midnight train going anywhere.” So evocative.