Journey fans tend to play the expected hits. In most cases, the album’s biggest single is also the song that’s streamed the most on Spotify.
From “Lovin’, Touchin’, Squeezin'” and “Any Way You Want It” to “Seperate Ways (Worlds Apart)” and “When You Love a Woman,” there aren’t many surprises. “Lovin’, Touchin’, Squeezin'” was Journey’s first Top 20 single. “When You Love a Woman” was their most recent. They represent undeniable high points.
But which songs are skipped the most? Sometimes, fans get it right. Not every song can be “Don’t Stop Believin,'” an 18-times platinum zeitgeist-shifting juggernaut. Other times, however, they’re missing out on some of the more intriguing moments in a shooting-star career that shifted from an early jam-band vibe to stadium-filling melodic rock.
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Gregg Rolie and Neal Schon formed the group’s initial mid-’70s nucleus, along with long-time bassist Ross Valory. Steve Perry joined after their embryonic first three albums, launching Journey toward the top of the pop charts. Jonathan Cain took over for Rolie at the turn of the ’80s and Journey became one of the biggest bands on the planet.
Which Journey Songs Do Fans Love the Most?
Perry would be replaced, most memorably by Arnel Pineda, then Valory departed. Schon was left as the lone founding member, with Cain as his musical (and sometimes legal) foil. Even into this modern era, however, Journey fans still gravitated toward their singles.
The most-streamed track from 2008’s Revelation rose to No. 9 on Billboard’s adult contemporary chart during a 23-week run. The top song from 2001’s Arrival spent 13 weeks on the adult contemporary charts, where it peaked at No. 22.
Beyond those familiar favorites, things get significantly more interesting. We surveyed Journey’s Spotify numbers on Sept. 18, 2025, to determine the most skipped song on every Journey album. Here’s a look:
‘Freedom‘ (2022)
Most Popular Track: “You Got the Best of Me” – 4,618,178 streams
Most Skipped Track: “Life Rolls On” – 201,806 streams
“You Got the Best of Me” methodically ticks the boxes. Soaring chorus? Gnarly riff? Lovesick lyric? Compact, fleet-fingered solo? Welcome one and all, but not quite unexpected. “You Got the Best of Me” stands apart from less-interesting fare like “Life Rolls On” because of its soaringly emotional finale – oh, and Jonathan Cain’s cool little keyboard squiggle.
‘Eclipse‘ (2011)
Most Popular Track: “City of Hope” – 4,358,705 streams
Most Skipped Track: “Venus” – 720,199 streams
You could say Neal Schon was an unstoppable force on “City of Hope,” except that Arnel Pineda – in one of his most impressive vocal performances – is initially every bit the equal of his molten riffs. Eventually, the others step forward for a floorboard-rattling, song-closing jam that edges all the way into fusion. Schon was consolidating his latter-day power on this very guitar-focused Journey album. That led to some decidedly indulgent moments – including “Venus,” which was just three-and-a-half minutes of noodling.
‘Revelation‘ (2008)
Most Popular Track: “After All These Years” – 18,331,691 streams
Most Skipped Track: “The Journey (Revelation)” – 584,057 streams
Despite millions and millions (and millions) of streams, “After All These Years” is simply another of Journey’s undeniably well-crafted, but often un-involving later-period ballads. Unfortunately, “The Journey (Revelation)” is worse: This is what Journey would sound like as a boring fusion-jazz band.
‘Generations‘ (2005)
A band that was constantly dealing with questions about Steve Perry’s absence didn’t do themselves any favors by releasing an album in which every band member — even co-founding bassist Ross Valory — was handed the mic. Why didn’t they just stick with Perry successor Steve Augeri (who led them on the minor hit “Faith in the Heartland”) and drummer Deen Castronovo (who did a very credible job on vocals for “A Better Life” and “Never Too Late”)? We’ll never know. Perhaps unsurprisingly, Generations became Journey’s worst-charting U.S. album ever. The LP is now out of print and doesn’t appear on any streaming services.
‘Arrival‘ (2001)
Most Popular Track: “All the Way” – 5,243,304 streams
Most Skipped Track: “Nothin’ Comes Close” – 435,795 streams
In their first album without Perry, Journey clearly had an eye on recapturing the successes they found when Cain joined the band in the ’80s. Cain was game, co-writing the instantly familiar “All the Way” with Schon, Michael Rhodes and the recently installed Augeri. “All the Way” may not have been a big hit, but it showed Journey could still be Journey even without their famous former frontman. Then they took it too far, relying too much on ballads to complete Arrival. Basically any rocker was a relief, even one as generally unimaginative as “Nothin’ Comes Close.”
‘Trial by Fire‘ (1996)
Most Popular Track: “When You Love a Woman” – 52,730,450 streams
Most Skipped Track: “I Can See It in Your Eyes” – 459,174 streams
Featuring a saccharine sentiment with a too-sweet string section to match, “When You Love a Woman” is Journey balladry at its limpest. Still, “When You Love a Woman” became a gold-selling, Grammy-nominated No. 12 smash. Because, Steve Perry. They’d gotten the early-’80s lineup back together for Trial by Fire, but not everything from that era soared to the heights of “Don’t Stop Believin.'” “I Can See It in Your Eyes” instead aptly recreated the sound of their throwaway stuff on Side Two of Frontiers.
‘Raised on Radio‘ (1986)
Most Popular Track: “Girl Can’t Help It” – 26,438,304 streams
Most Skipped Track: “Once You Love Somebody” – 2,120,329 streams
Perry essentially took control of Journey in the run-up to this album, switching out band members for sidemen with whom he’d worked before then serving as the project’s de facto producer. That led them to an R&B-inflected smoothness that moved well away from anything Journey had done before, or since. “Girl Can’t Help It,” one of three Top 40 singles from Raised on Radio, was the exception. This was classic Journey, spit-shined up for a new era. They then tried for a bluesy feel on “Once You Love Somebody,” which explored Perry and Cain’s relationship troubles, but there simply was enough grit.
‘Frontiers‘ (1983)
Most Popular Track: “Separate Ways (Worlds Apart)” – 400,910,305 streams
Most Skipped Track: “Back Talk” – 1,437,862 streams
This time, Cain and Perry looked on as Valory and Schon endured painful divorces. They poured those emotions into the Top 10 opening single from Frontiers. “Separate Ways (Worlds Apart)” so energized Journey that they began performing it onstage before Perry had completely learned the words. On the other hand, the throwaway “Back Talk” almost single-handedly kept this from becoming Journey’s best ’80s album. “Only the Young” was somehow left on the cutting-room floor.
‘Escape‘ (1981)
Most Popular Track: “Don’t Stop Believin'” – 2,572,066,631 streams
Most Skipped Track: “Dead or Alive” – 2,351,698 streams
It’s difficult to believe, considering how rightfully ubiquitous this anthem has become, but “Don’t Stop Believin'” originally only barely cracked the Top 10. What’s up with that, 1981? Journey must’ve wanted to balance the new Cain-infused aesthetic with “Dead or Alive,” the second of two throwback-style songs on Escape that harkened back to Journey’s more rugged, fusion-leaning ’70s era. Already the lesser of the pair, “Dead or Alive” wasn’t done any favors by arriving directly after the too-similar “Lay It Down.”
‘Departure‘ (1980)
Most Popular Track: “Any Way You Want It” – 541,499,308 streams
Most Skipped Track: “Homemade Love” – 581,472 streams
Perry said the vocal and guitar interplay on “Any Way You Want It” was inspired by the performances of Phil Lynott, after Thin Lizzy opened for Journey. He and Rolie brought a tight focus to the bursts of shared vocals that close things out, fashioning Journey’s second-ever Top 40 hit. Despite discovering this newfound chart prowess, Journey was still prone to longing looks back to their earliest musical excesses. The sludgy, clumsily salacious “Homemade Love” now felt out of place. Positioning it as the album-closing song made even less sense.
‘Evolution‘ (1979)
Most Popular Track: “Lovin’, Touchin’, Squeezin'” – 94,878,993 streams
Most Skipped Track: “Lady Luck” – 551,516 streams
A song with a real-life storyline, “Lovin’, Touchin’, Squeezin'” came to life in a Journey jam session, then went on to become their very first Top 20 hit. Rolie’s Nicky Hopkins-esque honky tonk piano rides atop a stuttering, 12/8 rhythm, building inexorably toward its cloud-bursting nah-nah-nah conclusion. The results opened the pop-chart floodgates. Journey then joined a number of acts who have released tracks called “Lady Luck,” including Deep Purple, Rod Stewart and David Lee Roth. None of those are really any good either.
‘Infinity‘ (1978)
Most Popular Track: “Wheel in the Sky” – 164,805,564 streams
Most Skipped Track: “Can Do” – 908,526 streams
He never got much credit, but Perry’s very-brief predecessor Robert Fleischman played an important role in Journey. “Wheel in the Sky,” the band’s initial Billboard chart entry, was originally a poem written by Ross Valory’s wife – until Fleischman rounded it into song form. Schon added a guitar melody, and they handed it to Perry after Fleischman’s ouster. The rest is, as they say, history. As for “Can Do,” the penultimate song on Infinity? Actually, can’t.
‘Next‘ (1977)
Most Popular Track: “Spaceman” – 424,628 streams
Most Skipped Track: “Here We Are” – 164,198 streams
Co-written by Aynsley Dunbar and Gregg Rolie, “Spaceman” offered Journey fans some of the most obvious initial flowerings of a pop sensibility. They placed it first on the album, and released it as a single, but to no avail. “Spaceman” failed to chart as a single, and Journey was ordered to rework their lineup. Still, Next had its share of cool little moments. “Here We Are” became perhaps Journey’s heaviest-ever pop song. Rolie had a knack for Beatles-esque touches (see their earlier cover of George Harrison‘s “It’s All Too Much”), even if it was buried in a cacophony of sound from Schon and Dunbar (see their earlier cover, etc. etc.).
‘Look Into the Future‘ (1976)
Most Popular Track: “Look Into the Future” – 455,385 streams
Most Skipped Track: “Midnight Dreamer” – 195,379 streams
The book on Journey was always that Steve Perry arrived and they suddenly shook themselves awake to commercial considerations. One listen to “Midnight Dreamer,” and a good portion of the album it originated from, makes a powerful counter-argument. They still stretch out – dig that crazy keyboard solo! – but “Midnight Dreamer” wasn’t that far from what album-oriented radio was playing at the time. Of course, everybody was into Led Zeppelin at this point, including Journey. “Look Into the Future” makes that clear.
‘Journey‘ (1975)
Most Popular Track: “Of a Lifetime” – 4,118,639 streams
Most Skipped Track: “Topaz” – 449,052
Journey’s recorded output begins with “Of a Lifetime,” a seven-minute jazz fusion-influenced, at times Pink Floyd-ish excursion that boldly stepped away from Rolie and Schon’s previous work in Santana. (There was nary a conga drum to found!) But Journey was already struggling with consistency across an entire album project. There’s no denying the level of musicianship on “Topaz.” It just wasn’t very interesting music.
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Gallery Credit: Nick DeRiso
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