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Trollheart · 06-27-2011, 11:08 AM

Arrival --- Journey --- 2000 (Columbia)

So, what's my favourite Journey album? “Escape”? Nah. “Raised on radio”? Do me a favour! “Frontiers”, maybe? Not even close. Although these albums are seen as being the best in Journey's large catalogue, particularly because of the hit singles that came from them, that's not how I see it. I often think a “classic” album like “Escape” for instance can rely far too heavily on its hit singles, and this then allows the acceptance of lower-grade, often filler tracks. It's like Manchester United without Wayne Rooney, or Liverpool without Steven Gerrard: without these lynchpins what is left is often shown up to be far below the grade, and this I find definitely to be the case with the three albums listed above. To my mind, a band's best album should be one which you can listen to all the way through, without having to skip one track. Now, few bands release albums of such calibre: there's usually one or more tracks that need to be fast-forwarded through, but on this album I really believe Journey got it almost perfect, despite the prevailing wisdom among the band's fans.

Even though it was less a commercial success than the aforementioned albums, my personal favourite album is 2000's “Arrival”, and here's why. From the opener “Higher places” to the closer “We will meet again”, the boys hardly put a foot wrong, and it's as close to a perfect Journey album as I've seen them come. Admittedly, I have yet to sample the delights of the new “Eclipse”, so I'll stick a caveat on that statement --- of what I've heard of their output to date, I consider “Arrival” to be far and away the best.

The first test for new singer Steve Augeri, who had the almost impossible task of replacing talismanic singer and longtime member Steve Perry, it's actually scary how similar the guy sounds to his predecessor! In fact, if you were handed this album, and a Perry-era disc like “Escape” or “Frontiers”, I really believe you'd be hard-pressed to notice the difference. The guy's voice is clear and distinct, powerful and able to reach the high notes with Perryesque ease. “Higher place”, as mentioned, kicks the album off in superb style, rocking along at a great pace, Schon and Cain as ever on top form, and new drummer Deen Castronovo making his presence felt in no uncertain fashion. It's the ballads that really make this album though, and people can say what they want, sneer as they like at the “soft-rock”, “slush-rock” or whatever that Journey produce, but man, they know how to pen a great ballad! There are no less than seven distinct ballads on this album, almost half the song count, and each one is a classic. Nearly.

First on the scene is “All the way”, a lovely piano-led tune on which new guy Augeri helps out with the writing, and he seems to know what he's doing: ”Speak your heart and I will listen/ Don't hold back, we'll find what's missin'/ I'll take you all the way/ Close your eyes and think forever/ If you believe we go together/ I'll take you all the way.” Okay, it's not “Who's crying now?” but it's a damn fine ballad. Moving things up a gear then for the next track, “Signs of life” is a refusal to lie down after bad things have happened. It's a mid-paced rocker, with great drums and piano, and a lyric that just makes you want to say YEAH! ”Try to not think about you/ I'm not a dead man walkin' without you/ You know I'll be alright/ I'm showin' signs of life/ You left me barely breathing/ But I've had time for the healing/ Now I've opened my eyes/ I'm showin' signs of life.” Castronovo's drums punch a triumphant military beat throughout the track, and as usual Neal Schon lets his guitar do the talking, even throwing in a cheeky riff from “Who's crying now” near the end!

Things stay fast for “All the things”, then slow down again for the second ballad, “Loved by you”. It's a gorgeous little song, with Jonathan Cain again taking control of proceedings as his fingers fly like whispering breaths across the keyboard. Sung with power and passion by Augeri, particularly the chorus, this sends a shiver down my spine whenever I hear it: ”If I should die before I wake/ I'd go into the night whispering your name/ If lying in your arms is the last thing that I do/ At least I'll know that I've been loved by you.” The following track is also a ballad, but a little heavier and more urgent, evoking a sense of urgency and things which have to be done before it's too late. Introduced in a lovely little piece of pick guitar, “Livin' to do” is a real bluesy ballad, and again Augeri's voice shines through on this, as on most if not all tracks.

“World gone wild” and “I got a reason” recall memories of tracks like “Be good to yourself” from “Raised on radio” and “Faith in the heartland” from later “Generations”, but for me they're a little unremarkable, and it's not till we get to “With your love” (yes, another ballad) that things again click into place for me. It's not that the previous two tracks are poor: they're not, but the overall quality of the ballads on this album forces most of the faster tracks into second place for me, and while I realise it's few albums that would consist only of ballads (step forward, Air Supply!), and you need a few uptempo tracks on any recording, these two just don't cut it as well for me as those which have gone before, or indeed some of the ones to follow. I have to admit though, “World gone wild” features a, well, wild guitar solo from Schon to take it to its conclusion. Great to see the man can still rock out with the best of them!

Once you hear those crystal clear piano notes you know another ballad is on the way, and “With your love” does not disappoint. With its lyric it surely was and will be played at many a wedding of Journey fans: what girl wouldn't be impressed to hear lines like”On this day, to be standing here with you/ There's no doubt: I know this love is true/ See my tears; only you can understand/ A state of grace; I feel blessed to hold your hand.” Another great solo from Neal completes a great, great ballad, and before there's time to draw breath and let that sink in, we're into another. With a powerful punchy drum intro and then the ubiquitous piano, “Lifetime of dreams” is another of those songs you just know people will be holding lighters up at concerts for, and swaying side to side. It's not quite as deep as the previous song, but a nice ballad nevertheless. In ways it's sort of reminscent of Bryan Adams' megahit “Everything I do”...

“Live and breathe” is a heavier ballad, somewhat in the mould of “Livin' to do”, and the penultimate slow song on the album. There's real passion in the singing here, and for once it's less piano-driven, riding along on a nice guitar and bass line, with keyboards taking more of a background role. Castronovo's drums punctuate the track perfectly, giving it that slightly heavier feel, as Schon's guitar breaks out the power chords as if he's just realised what you can do with an electric guitar!

“Nothin' comes close” is a good standard rock song, but nothing about it stays with me the way some of the other tracks on this album do. I wouldn't go so far as to call it filler, but I could certainly listen to “Arrival” without it. “To be alive again”, on the other hand, is an instant classic. There's a great exuberance about the song, with the band clearly enjoying themselves. Great hooks, great chorus, nimble fingerwork on the piano keyboard, Augeri's powerful voice and solos from Schon --- what more could you ask for?

There's one more ballad to finish up with, and it's a good one, though not in fairness a great one. Given the admitted oversaturation of ballads on this album, it's possible we could have gotten away without “Kiss me softly”, but it's not a bad track, certainly a better closer than “We will meet again”, which actually closes the album. To be honest, my choice for closer would have been “To be alive again”, but that's how the disc spins, I guess. Sort of takes away from the general brilliance of the album that it ends relatively weakly, although it must be said that it's only due to the superior quality of the tracks which have preceded these last two that they are seen as substandard: on another Journey album they would probably be hailed as triumphs. Shows you how high the bar was raised on this album.

I would suppose that anyone who was worried that Journey would fold, or be less than they were, after the departure of Steve Perry, had their answer with this album. Although it suffered low sales and chart position, I believe that was more down to fans not giving Steve Augeri a chance, and assuming that he would ruin the album. Perry purists, I'm looking at you! Hey, it's your loss!

TRACKLISTING

1. Higher place
2. All the way
3. Signs of life
4. All the things
5. Loved by you
6. Livin' to do
7. World gone wild
8. I got a reason
9. With your love
10. Lifetime of dreams
11. Live and breathe
12. Nothin' comes close
13. To be alive again
14. Kiss me softly
15. We will meet again

Suggested further listening: "Escape", "Frontiers", "Raised on radio", "Generations", "Trial by fire"

06-27-2011, 11:08 AM	#45 (permalink)
Trollheart Born to be mild Join Date: Oct 2008 Location: 404 Not Found Posts: 26,996	Arrival --- Journey --- 2000 (Columbia) So, what's my favourite Journey album? “Escape”? Nah. “Raised on radio”? Do me a favour! “Frontiers”, maybe? Not even close. Although these albums are seen as being the best in Journey's large catalogue, particularly because of the hit singles that came from them, that's not how I see it. I often think a “classic” album like “Escape” for instance can rely far too heavily on its hit singles, and this then allows the acceptance of lower-grade, often filler tracks. It's like Manchester United without Wayne Rooney, or Liverpool without Steven Gerrard: without these lynchpins what is left is often shown up to be far below the grade, and this I find definitely to be the case with the three albums listed above. To my mind, a band's best album should be one which you can listen to all the way through, without having to skip one track. Now, few bands release albums of such calibre: there's usually one or more tracks that need to be fast-forwarded through, but on this album I really believe Journey got it almost perfect, despite the prevailing wisdom among the band's fans. Even though it was less a commercial success than the aforementioned albums, my personal favourite album is 2000's “Arrival”, and here's why. From the opener “Higher places” to the closer “We will meet again”, the boys hardly put a foot wrong, and it's as close to a perfect Journey album as I've seen them come. Admittedly, I have yet to sample the delights of the new “Eclipse”, so I'll stick a caveat on that statement --- of what I've heard of their output to date, I consider “Arrival” to be far and away the best. The first test for new singer Steve Augeri, who had the almost impossible task of replacing talismanic singer and longtime member Steve Perry, it's actually scary how similar the guy sounds to his predecessor! In fact, if you were handed this album, and a Perry-era disc like “Escape” or “Frontiers”, I really believe you'd be hard-pressed to notice the difference. The guy's voice is clear and distinct, powerful and able to reach the high notes with Perryesque ease. “Higher place”, as mentioned, kicks the album off in superb style, rocking along at a great pace, Schon and Cain as ever on top form, and new drummer Deen Castronovo making his presence felt in no uncertain fashion. It's the ballads that really make this album though, and people can say what they want, sneer as they like at the “soft-rock”, “slush-rock” or whatever that Journey produce, but man, they know how to pen a great ballad! There are no less than seven distinct ballads on this album, almost half the song count, and each one is a classic. Nearly. First on the scene is “All the way”, a lovely piano-led tune on which new guy Augeri helps out with the writing, and he seems to know what he's doing: ”Speak your heart and I will listen/ Don't hold back, we'll find what's missin'/ I'll take you all the way/ Close your eyes and think forever/ If you believe we go together/ I'll take you all the way.” Okay, it's not “Who's crying now?” but it's a damn fine ballad. Moving things up a gear then for the next track, “Signs of life” is a refusal to lie down after bad things have happened. It's a mid-paced rocker, with great drums and piano, and a lyric that just makes you want to say YEAH! ”Try to not think about you/ I'm not a dead man walkin' without you/ You know I'll be alright/ I'm showin' signs of life/ You left me barely breathing/ But I've had time for the healing/ Now I've opened my eyes/ I'm showin' signs of life.” Castronovo's drums punch a triumphant military beat throughout the track, and as usual Neal Schon lets his guitar do the talking, even throwing in a cheeky riff from “Who's crying now” near the end! Things stay fast for “All the things”, then slow down again for the second ballad, “Loved by you”. It's a gorgeous little song, with Jonathan Cain again taking control of proceedings as his fingers fly like whispering breaths across the keyboard. Sung with power and passion by Augeri, particularly the chorus, this sends a shiver down my spine whenever I hear it: ”If I should die before I wake/ I'd go into the night whispering your name/ If lying in your arms is the last thing that I do/ At least I'll know that I've been loved by you.” The following track is also a ballad, but a little heavier and more urgent, evoking a sense of urgency and things which have to be done before it's too late. Introduced in a lovely little piece of pick guitar, “Livin' to do” is a real bluesy ballad, and again Augeri's voice shines through on this, as on most if not all tracks. “World gone wild” and “I got a reason” recall memories of tracks like “Be good to yourself” from “Raised on radio” and “Faith in the heartland” from later “Generations”, but for me they're a little unremarkable, and it's not till we get to “With your love” (yes, another ballad) that things again click into place for me. It's not that the previous two tracks are poor: they're not, but the overall quality of the ballads on this album forces most of the faster tracks into second place for me, and while I realise it's few albums that would consist only of ballads (step forward, Air Supply!), and you need a few uptempo tracks on any recording, these two just don't cut it as well for me as those which have gone before, or indeed some of the ones to follow. I have to admit though, “World gone wild” features a, well, wild guitar solo from Schon to take it to its conclusion. Great to see the man can still rock out with the best of them! Once you hear those crystal clear piano notes you know another ballad is on the way, and “With your love” does not disappoint. With its lyric it surely was and will be played at many a wedding of Journey fans: what girl wouldn't be impressed to hear lines like”On this day, to be standing here with you/ There's no doubt: I know this love is true/ See my tears; only you can understand/ A state of grace; I feel blessed to hold your hand.” Another great solo from Neal completes a great, great ballad, and before there's time to draw breath and let that sink in, we're into another. With a powerful punchy drum intro and then the ubiquitous piano, “Lifetime of dreams” is another of those songs you just know people will be holding lighters up at concerts for, and swaying side to side. It's not quite as deep as the previous song, but a nice ballad nevertheless. In ways it's sort of reminscent of Bryan Adams' megahit “Everything I do”... “Live and breathe” is a heavier ballad, somewhat in the mould of “Livin' to do”, and the penultimate slow song on the album. There's real passion in the singing here, and for once it's less piano-driven, riding along on a nice guitar and bass line, with keyboards taking more of a background role. Castronovo's drums punctuate the track perfectly, giving it that slightly heavier feel, as Schon's guitar breaks out the power chords as if he's just realised what you can do with an electric guitar! “Nothin' comes close” is a good standard rock song, but nothing about it stays with me the way some of the other tracks on this album do. I wouldn't go so far as to call it filler, but I could certainly listen to “Arrival” without it. “To be alive again”, on the other hand, is an instant classic. There's a great exuberance about the song, with the band clearly enjoying themselves. Great hooks, great chorus, nimble fingerwork on the piano keyboard, Augeri's powerful voice and solos from Schon --- what more could you ask for? There's one more ballad to finish up with, and it's a good one, though not in fairness a great one. Given the admitted oversaturation of ballads on this album, it's possible we could have gotten away without “Kiss me softly”, but it's not a bad track, certainly a better closer than “We will meet again”, which actually closes the album. To be honest, my choice for closer would have been “To be alive again”, but that's how the disc spins, I guess. Sort of takes away from the general brilliance of the album that it ends relatively weakly, although it must be said that it's only due to the superior quality of the tracks which have preceded these last two that they are seen as substandard: on another Journey album they would probably be hailed as triumphs. Shows you how high the bar was raised on this album. I would suppose that anyone who was worried that Journey would fold, or be less than they were, after the departure of Steve Perry, had their answer with this album. Although it suffered low sales and chart position, I believe that was more down to fans not giving Steve Augeri a chance, and assuming that he would ruin the album. Perry purists, I'm looking at you! Hey, it's your loss! TRACKLISTING 1. Higher place 2. All the way 3. Signs of life 4. All the things 5. Loved by you 6. Livin' to do 7. World gone wild 8. I got a reason 9. With your love 10. Lifetime of dreams 11. Live and breathe 12. Nothin' comes close 13. To be alive again 14. Kiss me softly 15. We will meet again Suggested further listening: "Escape", "Frontiers", "Raised on radio", "Generations", "Trial by fire" __________________ Trollheart: Signature-free since April 2018 Last edited by Trollheart; 10-24-2019 at 07:43 PM.