Don't Stop Believing

So, let me just say that I absolutely LOVE Journey, and this is one of my favorite songs.  I think my favorite Journey song is actually "Anyway You Want It," just because it is so up-tempo and fun, and I love when Steve Perry sings about "the lovin' things."  But, alas, "Don't Stop Believing" is probably their most popular song of all time.  I've avoided writing about it at the risk of making folks tired of the tune, because I would not want that to happen.  It has gotten tons of airplay over the years, and I just read that it has been downloaded 2 million times - the most of any song that was recorded in the "pre-digital age."  It's an excellent song, as we know.  It has been in movies, on television, in political campaigns and rallies, and the list goes on.  Why is it such an awesome song?  Well, there are many reasons.  I can think of a few: Steve Perry's voice, the amazing guitar lines, the beautiful and very cool piano part, and...the lyrics!

The lyrics are ultra positive and inspiring, especially the chorus - "Don't stop believing, hold on to that feeling...."  However, the chorus only comes at the very end, after three verses and a repeated section that is similar to a chorus in principle, and come to find out, this particular "semi-chorus" section has caused quite a debate.  Is it "streetlight people" or "streetlights, people?"  To me, it sounds like he is singing "streetlights, people," but if you read some history and discourse on the song, you'l find that Steve Perry was interviewed for a magazine and talked about seeing people on the street under streetlights when he was in Detroit.  He said he liked the line "streetlight people" to describe them.  I guess you'll have to decide for yourselves.  The other part of the lyrics that has caused a HUGE debate is "South Detroit."  Yeah, uh, there is no such place.  I think we all know that, but come on folks, he just wrote it because it sounded good with the line.  Really.  No big deal.  Just like Billy Joel and the title/lyrics to"Allentown," which we discussed in my earlier post, "Into the Night."  Wow, people get really animated about this whole South Detroit thing.   It just makes a good line, that's all.  So, hopefully, we can all settle our differences, whether we are from Detroit or not, and enjoy the song--because it is awesome!