Right now DIRECT TV is showing a concert from earlier in the year, taped in Las Vegas and it is fantastic. They have the same great energy and great sound as they always have. Anyone that thinks the Journey ended @ "Frontiers" is sadly mistaken and shoud NOT consider themself a "Journey Fan." "Rasied on Radio" had a lot of good songs as did "Trial by Fire" (admittedly not their best album). Can every album be better then the last? They're musicians, not gods! "Arrival", as a whole, is as good (if not better) than "Rasied on Radio." If you are a true Journey fan then you will love this record. If you are a Steve Perry fan, you will be bitter about it. I love Steve Perry but I was pleasantly surprised to see the bad did not miss a step when the replaced him with the "new Steve."

Still, I hope one day Steve Perry will reunite with the band but that looks to be a school boy's dream @ this point! Enjoy the album!


What are you doing? Buy this CD NOW.   July 10, 2004
S. Basile (Staten Island, NY USA)
8 out of 9 found this review helpful

This is a great album, hands down. This might be the only album that I can sit down and listen through the whole thing without skipping a song.

When I heard Perry was replaced with some no name singer by the name of Steve Augeri, I was shocked. But one day I stumbled about the internet and found journeyconinues.com. I decided to give them a shot and checked out the live video of "Higher Place". I was blown away and went out the next day and bought the DVD, Arrival, and Red 13. It took a while to make my Dad accept that Perry was gone and I finally got him to listen to all the new Journey material. He loved it. In fact, I just made my Dad buy tickets to one of their live shows this month.

My favorites I would have to say are "Higher Place", "Signs of Life", "World Gone Wild", "Nothin' Comes Close", and "To Be Alive Again". Also the openning drum solo on "We Will Meet Again" is awesome and Steve's vocals on "Kiss Me Softly" are amazing.

So, I ask you. What are you waiting for? Buy this CD, Red 13, and the live DVD right now. And if you still have some money left check out journeymusic.com and see if they're playing anywhere near you so you can buy some tickets to one of their shows.


Better than I thought it would be   April 17, 2001
Peter (Santa Rosa, Ca)
7 out of 8 found this review helpful

First off let me state that I have been a huge fan of Journey since the late 1970's early 1980's. I have to say that Steve Perry has got to be the best male vocalist in rock music and the thought of a Journey album without him almost seems unnatural. When I had first heard that Steve Perry had been replaced as the singer for Journey, I vowed never to buy another new Journey CD again. But after hearing several people compare the new singer to that of Steve Perry, I just had to hear what they could come up with. Now while I have to say that the classic Journey sound is back (Escape and before), the truth is that something is missing. The bands new Steve, while yes he does sound like Steve Perry at times, is not the dead ringer that I had heard about. In fact, he sounds more like Steve Perry mixed with Dave Meniketti (of Y&T), and Johnny Gioeli of Neal Schons Journey hiatus band Hardline. While that combo isn't bad, it isn't what you've come to expect from Journey. Where as Perry's voice always seemed smooth and natural no matter how he sang, Augeri's voice on the otherhand seems to range from smooth to screaming. After listening to Arrival my only thoughts on Augeri's voical work are 1) what these songs would sound like if sung by Perry and 2)why is it that Augeri's vocals seemed to be drowned out by everything else.

As for the songwriting, Steve Perry's other major talent, the songs on Arrival again seem to be missing something. While the music is fluid, the lyrics however are not. A few of the songs seem like they could have used a little more time and a few more drafts. As for standout songs, Arrival has a few, and I'd have to say that they are 'Higher Place,' 'Signs of Life,' 'Lifetime of Dreams,' and 'To be Alive Again.' Of the 15 tracks on Arrival, those 4 seem to sound the most Journey. Am I saying that you shouldn't buy Arrival, no, what I'm saying is that if you are a true Journey fan you'll like it however if you only liked Journey because of Steve Perry, than Arrival will disappoint.


Might As Well Call It "Greatest Hits, Volume II"   August 17, 2006
Barry Thomas Craig (Seattle, Washington USA)
4 out of 4 found this review helpful

I know, it sounds blasphemous, but "Arrival" has so many strong melodies and hooks on it, that it gives "Escape", "Frontiers", and even their "Greatest Hits" a run for the money.

For reference: I'm a music fan who likes all sorts of classic and contemporary music. I own or have owned every Journey album with Steve Perry. I love & miss Steve Perry, too, just like many people here. But I've had this CD for over 2 years now, and it continues to impress me. I won't waste your time and tell you everything the band puts out is great. I agree with the reviewers who say "Trial By Fire" and "Generations" are both pretty bad in comparison to this. And I would take that a step further, because this album holds its own against anything the band has done in the past.

The musicanship flourishes here, and some of the songs are more quirky and heavy than I'd expected. It is like the band was set free or something. But what will win you over is that Arrival has so many memorable, strong melodies that stay with you, for years, apparently. Just which songs those are depends on your taste, but I am most impressed by "We Will Meet Again", "Higher Place", "Livin to Do" and "All the Things". These songs rank right up there with the greats like "Don't Stop Believin'" and "Girl Can't Help It".

The Amazon reviewer hits upon something important when he compares Arrival to their Greatest Hits. It seems the majority of the songs on Arrival would be right at home on a "Greatest Hits" collection, and not in a random "they were lucky and in the zone" kind of way. I think it was very purposeful: each song on Arrival is very reminiscent in tempo, structure, feel, etc. to one of their big hits from the past. "Livin' To Do" has shades of "Lovin' Touchin' Squeezin'". "Higher Place" is the lovechild of "Be Good to Yourself" and "Seperate Ways". And don't get me wrong, these similarities---and the obvious care that the band has given Arrival---are a very good thing. I think they were crafting some kind of masterwork opus to help propel their new singer.

And it works, at least for me.

So, if you are at all curious about what the band has been up to since the 80's, Arrival is the album to pick up.