My Personal Top 10 Journey Songs: No. 8 “Feeling That Way” – A Vocal Miracle

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No. 8 is “Feeling That Way”

Unraveling the glorious history of Journey, here is my “Selfish Best 10.” The song chosen for the 8th place is “Feeling That Way”, included in their monumental 4th studio album, “Infinity”, released in 1978, which determined the band’s destiny.

When talking about the band Journey, this album “Infinity” is an extremely important milestone that can never be bypassed. This is because Steve Perry, a rare vocalist, joined from this work, and the band’s sound underwent a dramatic evolution. It can be called a monumental work that steered from their previous progressive rock-tinged instrumental-oriented sound to a more melodious and sophisticated arena rock.

Among them, “Feeling That Way” is a miraculous song where the bluesy atmosphere of early Journey and the new frontier of pop and catchy melodies are fused in an unimaginably beautiful balance. For fans, it is familiar to be played continuously like a medley with the next track “Anytime”, and it has become an essential and important repertoire in their live performances.

Free Translation / Interpretation

Meeting you changed the way I see the world.
The memories and feelings of that summer still shake my heart.
Wondering if you feel the same way, or if it's just me being a fool.
Still, I keep thinking of the one I love, searching for an answer.

First, please listen to the official audio

Credits
Feeling That Way
Artist: Journey
Music & Lyrics: Steve Perry / Neal Schon / Gregg Rolie
Album: Infinity (1978)
Label: Columbia Records
Brief Commentary
A rock number from the 1978 album "Infinity" that symbolizes the new Journey after Steve Perry joined.
Characterized by twin vocals and dramatic developments, it is a representative song often listened to continuously with the subsequent track "Anytime".

Credits
Feeling That Way
Artist: Journey
Music & Lyrics: Steve Perry / Neal Schon / Gregg Rolie
Album: Infinity (1978)
Label: Columbia Records
Brief Commentary
A representative rock song from 1978 in the early days after Steve Perry joined Journey.
Characterized by powerful twin vocals and a live-feeling performance, this masterpiece is also known for its continuous structure with the next song "Anytime".

Gregg and Steve: A Miraculous Twin Lead Vocal

Wait!! Is this a Boston song??? That’s what the intro might make you think, but… ( ;∀;)

The greatest appeal of this song is, without a doubt, the beauty of the “twin lead vocals” by Gregg Rolie and Steve Perry.

At the beginning of the song, guided by a quiet piano intro, it is keyboardist and original lead vocalist Gregg Rolie who starts singing. His slightly shadowy, bluesy, and deep voice is perfect for expressing nostalgia for past times and the slight hesitation at the bottom of his heart. The unique sorrow of an adult man, cultivated since his Santana days, drifts in his vocals.

And the moment the song develops and heads toward the chorus. As if dazzling sunlight shines through a gap in thick clouds, Steve Perry’s clear and overwhelmingly powerful high-tone voice jumps in. The goosebump-inducing euphoria of this moment never fades, no matter how many times you listen to it.

Gregg’s “shadow” and Steve’s “light”. The way these two contrasting voices not only take turns singing but also intertwine intricately and are sublimated into a stunning chorus work is truly like magic. The miraculous vocal chemistry that could only be born during the band’s transition period is etched right here.

Dusk and Memories of Cassette Tapes

The slightly bewildered melody sung by Gregg Rolie gently nestled close to my unstable feelings at the time. And the piercing voice of Steve Perry that followed sounded like a powerful encouragement to blow away my doubts, saying, “It’s okay, a new road is waiting.” With the sound of the Keio Inokashira Line railroad crossing echoing in the distance, wrapped in the majestic harmony of this song, I feel like I was gradually storing up vitality for tomorrow. (I’m exaggerating quite a bit!)

The Premonition of “Passing Summer” and a “New Road” Hidden in the Lyrics

The worldview of the lyrics in “Feeling That Way” is extremely poetic, yet it delicately captures the emotional fluctuations that everyone experiences.

What is sung in this song is a scene of the “end of summer” and the accompanying changes in relationships, or perhaps changes in one’s own inner self. Lingering attachment to the beautiful season that has passed, and the expectations and anxieties for the new road spreading out before one’s eyes. It is a complex emotion that is both a little cold and refreshing at the same time, much like the wind blowing at the change of seasons.

The protagonist repeatedly asks someone important, “Are you feeling that way too?” This also sounds like a confirmation of whether this new feeling or vague anxiety he holds is not just his own self-satisfaction. While confirming his deep affection for the other person, he simultaneously realizes that “a new road” is waiting. The subtleties of the heart wavering in that space are beautifully expressed.

Instead of telling everything with direct words, through scene descriptions such as “she’ll be there standing by the light” or “soft and warm on a summer’s night”, it awakens the atmosphere of “those days” at the bottom of the listener’s memory. That is why I think this song continues to deeply touch our heartstrings even today, nearly half a century after its release.

The Aesthetics of a Perfect Medley Leading into “Anytime”

There is another element that absolutely cannot be missed to deeply appreciate “Feeling That Way”. That is the breathtaking, seamless transition that continues without a break into the next song, “Anytime”, in the album “Infinity” (and also in their legendary live performances). (It’s not exactly a spoiler, but I plan to introduce it in the 7th place.)

In the outro of “Feeling That Way”, as the magnificent chorus work and instrumental reverberations quietly fade out as if melting into the dusk, the impressive acoustic guitar and glittering chorus of “Anytime” seamlessly flow in, as if the next chapter of a long story is opening. These two songs have a special relationship like a “suite” that can no longer be thought of separately.

Neal Schon’s Scene-Painting Guitar Work

And what supports this wonderful twin vocal at its root and makes the scenery of the song even more vivid is Neal Schon’s guitar play.

Slightly different from his early hard and technical playing style, Neal in this song plays a very restrained yet emotionally rich guitar that seems to snuggle up to the vocal melody line. He sings as if every single phrase has words, expressing the lingering attachment to the passing summer and the throbbing of the heart at the moment of taking a step into a new world with a series of musical notes.

In particular, the beauty of the obbligato (counter-melody) echoing behind the intersecting voices of Gregg and Steve is worth mentioning. Never stepping too far forward, yet serving as an important driving force that creates the dramatic ups and downs of the song, his guitar beautifully proves that this song is not just a pop song, but a masterpiece with profound depth.

Facing a “New Road” Again After a Long “Active Era”

For my younger self in my college days, the premonition of a “new road” sung in this song was a pure expectation for the future spreading before my eyes, and at the same time, a fanfare to dispel vague anxiety.

“When the summer’s gone, will she be there?” “Is it okay to just move forward on my emotions without even knowing the difference between right and wrong?” I feel like my student self, who held such immature hesitations, overlapped with the protagonist of this song.

However, now that I have accumulated various experiences and tasted both the sweet and sour parts of life, when I am enveloped in the melody and harmony of this song once again, an entirely different landscape rises in my heart.

Now, the words “new road” echoing in my ears are by no means a privilege reserved only for the youth.
They resonate as a profound message that quietly affirms the trajectory of my life so far and gently pushes my back once more when I am about to stop. Gregg Rolie’s grounded singing voice feels as if it is comforting the weight of my life so far, and Steve Perry’s piercing high tone that follows creates the illusion that he is sending cheers from beyond the sky, saying, “The next stage of life isn’t so bad either.”

Reason for Choosing No. 8 and Conclusion

The reason why I chose “Feeling That Way” for the 8th place in my “Selfish Best 10 [Journey Edition]”. It’s not only because of its historical importance in music as the “perfect bridge between the old and new eras” in Journey’s history, but more than anything, because it’s a song that embodies the “magic of overlapping voices” more beautifully and heart-rendingly than anything else.

The loneliness of passing seasons and the expectation for an unknown tomorrow. This song, in which the two contradictory emotions are brilliantly sung by the rare vocalists Gregg and Steve, will continue to shine eternally, not only as a soundtrack coloring a page of youth but also as a hymn to life that deeply permeates the hearts of adults.