Journey was always going to win the war. It was just that each battle with the critics and MTV veejays was bound to be a bloody affair. With newfound goodwill over recent years and the undeniable fact that Journey had some mighty memorable songs in its discography, the group is often judged as one of the best bands in rock history.

Finding the very best Journey songs is a slow job of digging through numerous radio hits containing virtuoso displays. I found it, though, entertaining.

These are, in my opinion, Journey’s 10 best songs.

Top 10 Greatest Songs by Journey

10. “Of a Lifetime”

Chances are that you’ll encounter Journey fans ready to swear that the band was over the moment that it gave up its jazzy, prog-rock roots. Those were, in fact, the intentions with which Neal Schon and Gregg Rolie, former members of Santana, started the group.

“Of a Lifetime” best captures Journey’s early space-rock formula. And although the 1975 version of the band prioritized instrumentals, “Of a Lifetime” delivers the hook that, I am sure, you’re dying to hear.

9. “Who’s Crying Now”

The great Steve Perry was, at heart, a soul singer. That also meant that he was an entertainer, someone who liked to put the audience’s enjoyment first.

Perry was not a rocker or a hippie, like some of the musicians that Schon previously associated himself with in Santana.

“Who’s Crying Now” is built from a lovely Sam Cooke-like melody produced by Perry. It meant that Journey was the rock band most likely to be accepted by fans of soft-rock and R&B.

8. “Stone in Love”

The “Escape” album was a gigantic success. It finally put Journey, as Schon had intended, in the same league as the likes of Foreigner and Boston. And, for a while, it eclipsed those groups.

Still, “Escape” wasn’t all power ballads, as some might incorrectly recall. “Stone in love” is supposed to make you feel warm and fuzzy. But it’s got a faster tempo and you can hear Schon’s power chords on this one. As studio musicians go, I think that he was one of the best of his age.

7. “Lights”

When Steve Perry joined the group, Neal Schon and his bandmates hid nothing of what they wanted Journey to become. “Lights” is one of the first slow, pleasant, singalong tracks that the group tried to turn into a hit.

It didn’t at first, but it was a sleeper hit instead. The story of San Francisco and people’s love of reminiscing has made 1978’s “Lights” one of Journey’s most famous tunes.

6. “Faithfully”

“Why veer away from a formula that you’ve mastered?” This is what Journey must’ve been thinking in 1983. “Frontiers” was another hit, albeit one with a bit more filler.

But the grandiose rock exercises were the group’s bread and butter. Keyboardist Jonathan Cain plays his heart out. And while Journey might have better piano ballads, it’s only a few that could receive such plaudits.

5. “Open Arms”

The moment Journey came up with “Open Arms, ” it must have felt like breaking a secret formula. It was everything the group had worked towards since Steve Perry’s arrival.

But it was no fluke. You first needed the ingredients for the recipe. And the moment Perry starts singing the rousing chorus, you know the group made the best choice they could’ve made to hire him.

4. “Any Way You Want It”

Journey could rock. Make no mistake about it! I have proof. While some singers attempted to add, sometimes, intolerable amounts of grit and distortion to their vocals, Steve Perry’s tenor was as pure and clean as the Mediterranean Sea.

“Any Way You Want It” is one of Journey’s repertoire’s more famous rock songs. Thin Lizzy influenced it, and if you listen closely enough, you may hear it.

And, with the group begrudgingly adapting to the video format to promote “Any Way You Want It,” the musicians received a lesson in what it took to be colossally successful.

3. “Wheel in the Sky”

Frankly, this is my favourite Journey song. But, of their hits, it’s also the tune that sounds least like Journey. It’s got a bite to it, a pretty fast pace, and Perry sings with gusto, almost like a blues-rock vocalist.

All of this happened, of course, because this was also one of the first singles with Perry. Journey was still considering being more of a hard-rock group at this stage.

Things would turn out differently, but “Wheel in the Sky” Is a mighty impressive addition to the band’s discography. It’s also, in my estimation. one of the best rock songs of the late 1970s.

2. “Separate Ways (Worlds Apart)”

“Separate Ways (Worlds Apart)” is a beautiful anomaly. This also doesn’t quite sound like vintage Journey. Instead, like fellow corporate rockers Styx, Journey embraced synths and the tense mood of the early 1980s.

But the group used this basis to create something grandiose. In a way, it’s 1980s Journey returning to its prog-rock roots. And it’s such a striking, memorable song that it’s been featured in media countless times, perhaps most memorably in “Stranger Things.”

1. “Don’t Stop Believin'”

Surrender your cynicism for a moment. “Don’t Stop Believin'” is a lovely, hopeful piece of pop-rock. And because so many people still resonate with the sentiment, like Toto’s “Africa,” it has had a life far surpassing its original 1981 chart run.

When “The Sopranos” needed an ending, the producers preferred to play “Don’t Stop Believin'” rather than show their main character get shot. Years later, I think I have finally accepted it.

It’s a song made by top pro musicians who happened to crack the code to the safe and had many hits. “Don’t Stop Believin'” is Journey’s greatest song.