journey feeling that way who sings

Behind the Melody: Unraveling Journey’s Timeless Classic, “Feeling That Way”

A Journey Through Time: Rediscovering “Feeling That Way”

Journey, the iconic rock band formed in San Francisco in 1973, has stolen the hearts of fans worldwide for decades with their anthemic hits and powerful performances. Known for chart-topping tracks like “Don’t Stop Believin'” and “Open Arms,” the band consists of Neal Schon on guitar, Ross Valory on bass, Jonathan Cain on keyboards, Steve Smith on drums, and Arnel Pineda on vocals. Journey was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2017, solidifying their legacy as one of the greatest rock bands in history.

“Feeling That Way,” a track from their 1978 album “Infinity,” showcases the band’s versatility and penchant for crafting memorable tunes. Featuring the vocal talents of then-frontman Steve Perry and keyboardist Gregg Rolie, the song beautifully melds harmonies with a driving beat, highlighting the depth and range of Journey’s musical prowess. While Journey’s lineup has changed over the years, with Perry leaving in 1998 and Rolie departing in 1980, the essence of the band’s sound remains as powerful as ever. However, some critics argue that their newer material doesn’t quite capture the magic of their earlier work, which many fans consider to be the band’s creative peak. Nevertheless, “Feeling That Way” stands as a testament to Journey’s enduring impact on the world of rock music and serves as a nostalgic reminder of the band’s exceptional artistry.

A Visual Journey: The Music Video for “Feeling That Way”

Surprisingly, there isn’t an official music video for Journey’s classic hit “Feeling That Way.” However, the absence of an official video has led fans to create their own visual interpretations of the song over the years. These fan-made videos have given a platform for Journey’s followers to showcase their creativity and love for the band.

One notable fan-made video for “Feeling That Way” is a tribute to Journey’s lead vocalist, Steve Perry. The video masterfully compiles clips of Perry’s performances from various concerts and appearances, highlighting his powerful stage presence and signature vocal range. In addition to showcasing Perry’s talent, the video also includes footage of the band performing together, showcasing their dynamic chemistry and musicianship. The visual journey it provides serves as a worthy homage to the band and its iconic lead singer.

Another popular fan-made video takes a more conceptual approach, pairing the song with footage from classic films and television shows. This video taps into the nostalgic feel of “Feeling That Way” by using visuals from various eras to create a dreamy, time-traveling atmosphere. As the song plays, clips of iconic movie scenes enhance the emotions evoked by the lyrics, making for a compelling visual experience that complements the song perfectly.

Given that “Feeling That Way” was released in 1978, well before the rise of MTV and the golden era of music videos, it’s no surprise that Journey didn’t create an official video for the song. However, the imaginative and inventive fan-made videos have more than made up for this, allowing fans to engage with the song in a visual format and connecting with the timeless appeal of Journey’s music.

Overall, while there may not be an official music video for “Feeling That Way,” the fan-made tributes showcase the creativity and love that Journey’s fans have for the band and their music, delivering a visual experience that remains true to the spirit of the song. Diving Into the Musical Depths of “Feeling That Way”

“Feeling That Way,” a standout track from Journey’s 1978 album “Infinity,” is an exemplary showcase of the band’s musical prowess and creative versatility. Structurally, the song is written in the key of D major and follows a classic verse-chorus format. The verses predominantly feature a chord progression of Dmaj7 – Gmaj7 – Em7 – A7sus4 – A7, while the choruses shift to a more straightforward D – G – Bm – A progression. This contrast in chord structures between the verse and chorus adds a sense of dynamic tension and release, which is further emphasized by the song’s tempo of approximately 130 beats per minute (BPM), giving it a lively and energetic feel.

Delving deeper into the track’s musical intricacies, one cannot ignore the masterful interplay between the rhythm section and the melodic instruments. In particular, the bass guitar and drums work in tandem to provide a solid foundation for the soaring guitar riffs and catchy keyboard melodies that characterize the song. The use of syncopation and intricate fills by the drummer adds an extra layer of complexity to the track, while the guitarist’s tasteful solos and delicate arpeggios serve to highlight the song’s underlying harmonic structure. Furthermore, the vocal harmonies between lead singer Steve Perry and keyboardist Gregg Rolie add a rich, textured quality to the track, making “Feeling That Way” a prime example of Journey’s exceptional musicianship and collaborative spirit. Accolades and Timeless Influence

“Feeling That Way,” released in 1978, may not have racked up the awards directly, but it has undoubtedly contributed to Journey’s legacy as a classic rock powerhouse. The song, written by Gregg Rolie, Aynsley Dunbar, and Neal Schon, was part of Journey’s fourth studio album, “Infinity,” which was certified 3x Platinum in the United States. “Feeling That Way” has remained a fan favorite and a staple in the band’s live performances, often paired with “Anytime” in their setlist for that seamless transition between the two tracks. This testament to Journey’s timeless appeal proves that “Feeling That Way” is an integral part of the band’s successful catalog.

Over the years, “Feeling That Way” has been featured in various media, further solidifying its status as a classic rock anthem. This song has appeared in the hit TV show “The Sopranos” in Season 6, Episode 17, titled “Walk Like A Man,” and has had its fair share of cover versions by aspiring musicians and Journey enthusiasts. However, no official covers have been released by notable artists or bands in the industry. The track’s legacy lies in its long-lasting appreciation and resonance with fans and audiences alike, proving that “Feeling That Way” is an essential piece of rock history. Charting the Journey of “Feeling That Way”

“Feeling That Way” was released as a single by Journey on April 1978, featuring as the second track on the band’s fourth studio album, “Infinity.” While the song itself didn’t achieve significant chart success on its own, it’s important to note that it was often paired with “Anytime” in radio airplay, creating a medley that resonated with listeners.

When “Feeling That Way” and “Anytime” were combined as a double-sided single, it entered the Billboard Hot 100 chart on May 6, 1978. Although it started at position #81, the single gradually climbed the chart, reaching its peak position of #57 on June 10, 1978. It remained on the chart for a total of 10 weeks, showcasing the staying power of these two songs, even if they didn’t break into the top 50.

As one of the first songs to feature Steve Perry on lead vocals, “Feeling That Way” marks an important transition in Journey’s musical style, moving towards their more recognizable sound. While it may not have been a chart-topping hit, it did pave the way for future successes the band would achieve throughout the late 1970s and 1980s.

In terms of chart trivia, despite not reaching the top 50, the medley of “Feeling That Way” and “Anytime” managed to outperform the album’s lead single, “Wheel in the Sky,” which only reached #57 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart. This demonstrates the combined strength of these tracks when played together and how they resonated with the audience.

To sum up, while “Feeling That Way” may not have been a standalone chart sensation, its partnership with “Anytime” resulted in a memorable and widely-enjoyed medley that still managed to make its mark on the Billboard Hot 100 chart. Moreover, it signaled the beginning of a new era for Journey, setting the stage for the band’s future chart triumphs. The Mastermind Behind “Feeling That Way”: Gregg Rolie

A crucial architect in Journey’s sonic world, Gregg Rolie is the composer responsible for crafting the unforgettable song “Feeling That Way”. Besides his work with Journey, Rolie is known for his artistic contributions to the legendary rock band Santana. As the co-founder and original lead vocalist, Rolie was the driving force behind some of Santana’s most beloved classics, such as “Black Magic Woman,” “Evil Ways,” and “Oye Como Va.” This multi-talented musician’s passion and skill for blending rock, jazz, blues, and Latin elements into an electrifying fusion, undeniably made a significant impact on the music world, earning him a well-deserved place in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame as a member of both Santana and Journey. A Deeper Dive into the Lyrics of “Feeling That Way” by Journey

When the summer’s gone She’ll be there standing by the light Once she’s been to where she’s gone to She should know wrong from right

Is it all on my mind Or is this love at first sight? Please don’t make it wrong Just stay for the night

All I want to do is make love to you Say you will You want me too All I want to do is make love to you Say you will You want me too Now the feeling is beginning to grow And the meaning is something you only know If you believe it Take my hand And I’ll take your heart, come on

The lyrics of “Feeling That Way” by Journey delve into the complexities of love and desire, reflective of the late 1970s, when the song was released. In 1978, the year “Feeling That Way” came out, the world was experiencing a significant cultural shift. The sexual revolution was in full swing, and the feminist movement was progressing, leading to the widespread questioning of traditional gender roles and societal expectations around love and relationships.

Listening closely to the lyrics, we can see that Journey’s “Feeling That Way” captures the spirit of the time, with its focus on the pursuit of love and finding a true connection. The verses echo the uncertainty and vulnerability that comes with new relationships, asking questions like, “Is it all on my mind or is this love at first sight?” and “Where does true love begin?” The chorus reinforces the song’s overarching theme of love and desire, with the repeated plea, “All I want to do is make love to you.”

The lyrics also touch on the fleeting nature of love and happiness, with lines like “When the summer’s gone, she’ll be there standing by the light.” This sense of transience aligns with the 1970s’ broader societal shift towards valuing personal fulfillment and self-discovery, as well as the growing awareness that even seemingly perfect relationships can be temporary.

Overall, “Feeling That Way” captures the essence of love and relationships in the late 1970s, shedding light on the emotional landscape of that era. Journey’s lyrics resonate with the listener, transporting them back to a time when searching for love and grappling with desire were paramount concerns, and societal norms were shifting to forge a new path.

Related Articles

A Trip Down Memory Lane: Reliving the Magic of “The Sweetest Days” by Vanessa Williams

A Trip Down Memory Lane: Reliving the Magic of "The Sweetest Days" by Vanessa Williams Vanessa Williams: A Voice as Sweet as the Days "Vanessa…

Unearthing UB40’s Classic Gem: The Timeless Tale of “One in Ten”

Unearthing UB40's Classic Gem: The Timeless Tale of "One in Ten" UB40: Exploring the Impact of "One in Ten" Dive into UB40's revolutionary fusion of…

Dua Lipa’s ‘Levitating’: A Celestial Dance of Love and Nostalgia

Dua Lipa | Levitating Diving into the effervescent world of Dua Lipa’s “Levitating,” we’re about to embark on a musical journey that not only showcases…

Funky Flashback: Grooving Through the History of Wild Cherry’s “Play That Funky Music”

Funky Flashback: Grooving Through the History of Wild Cherry's "Play That Funky Music" Bringing Funk to the Mainstream: The Story of Wild Cherry Wild Cherry:…

Relight the Fire: A Deep Dive into the Classic “Afternoon Delight”

Relight the Fire: A Deep Dive into the Classic "Afternoon Delight" A Trip Down Memory Lane with Starland Vocal Band's "Afternoon Delight" Formed in the…

Spoonman: Digging Deep into Soundgarden’s Iconic Grunge Anthem

Spoonman: Digging Deep into Soundgarden's Iconic Grunge Anthem The Rhythm of Silverware: An Ode to the Unconventional Spoonman: A daring fusion of grunge and unconventional…

• Artists add

Feeling That Way

Lyrics submitted by raisedonradio1109 , edited by patsysmith

Feeling That Way Lyrics as written by Gregg Rolie Aynsley Dunbar

Lyrics © Hipgnosis Songs Group

Lyrics powered by LyricFind

• Highest Rated
• Most Recent
• Oldest First

it means ,steve perry and greg rollie together sound freakin amazing. perfectly complementing each other. this song and anytime are great examples of what can be done when ego isnt the dominating factor

• No Replies Log in to reply

he loves a girl.....and she'll remain to be the only one for him....

"Lovely One" describes the Virgin Mary. "When summer's gone (a season of life)---She will be there." Our Holy Mother is "standing with arms open a mile wide hoping and praying" for each of us to change our hearts. The Mother of God is Humility and Simplicity itself and "a spark" is all She needs from us"--our willingness. She is the Meditrix of All Graces directing each of us to Her Son Jesus--who wants to give Eternal Salvation. His Excellent Mother wants to show the path with a sincere motherly care. Amazing lyrics and musical talent given by the Almighty to inspire!

This sounds like Rolie is talking on the phone to a girl with whom he had a summer fling, while in the background Perry is giving friendly encouragement. The story is after the brief fling, Rolie is captivated but she goes off for a while, leaving him to consider the effect this thing had on him. He's starting to realise it would be nice to have a more lasting relationship, not just fling after fling, since this particular girl captivated his attention, and is asking whether she might be feeling the same. His friend is telling him she'll come to her senses, and will come back.

A summer fling. Journey's best. A Masterpiece.

This song is about feeling... uh, you know. That way.

I always thought that this song had a profoundly spiritual foundation to it. This wasn't just your run of the mill romantic ballad. I do not however think that it has anything to do with Christianity. There is more than one packing this world and reverence to the Divine Feminine suggests a more esoteric meaning behind the lyrics. Many spiritual paths in the path predating Abrahamic religions revere The Great Goddess variously in different cultures as Danu, Inanna, Ishtar, Shakti, etc. A new road is waiting, she touched my life soft and warm on a summer's night... Read into it what you will, I have found time and again that very few artists write lyrics of this depth to a flesh and blood woman. And I am a flesh and blood woman so take that anyway you like

Add your thoughts

Log in now to tell us what you think this song means.

Don’t have an account? Create an account with SongMeanings to post comments, submit lyrics, and more. It’s super easy, we promise!

• Artists - J
• Feeling That Way Lyrics
• Artists - S
• Speedy Ortiz

More Featured Meanings

Most popular lyric tags

• roll with the changes 2

More Journey Lyrics

• Don't Stop Believin' Lyrics
• Faithfully Lyrics
• Separate Ways (Worlds Apart) Lyrics
• Wheel in the Sky Lyrics
• Open Arms Lyrics

• Songwriter Interviews
• Song Writing
• Fact or Fiction
• They're Playing My Song
• Songfacts Pages
• Songwriting Legends
• Songfacts Podcast
• Amanda Flinner
• Bruce Pollock
• Corey O'Flanagan
• Dan MacIntosh
• Laura Antonelli
• Leslie Michele Derrough
• Maggie Grimason
• Nicole Roberge
• Roger Catlin
• Shawna Ortega
• Stephanie Myers
• Trevor Morelli

Anytime by Journey

Songfacts®:

• According to the liner notes of Journey's Time3 compilation, guitarist Neal Schon wrote the chorus lyrics. Said Schon: "(keyboard player) Gregg Rolie was doing Bing Crosby - you know, 'ooh, ooh.' And I'd listened to lots of Beatles records when I was a kid, so I just went 'Anytime that you want me.' It came out real easy in rehearsal." Rolie supplied the lead vocals, and the song was released as the second single from Infinity .
• The band wrote this song before Steve Perry joined; it's credited to Robert Fleischman, Gregg Rolie, Neal Schon, Roger Silver and Ross Valory. Fleischman was with the band just a short time, and did not perform on any of their albums. Roger Silver is a San Francisco-based poet who contributed lyrics to the song.
• This song reached just #83 in the US, but was proof of what Steve Perry could bring to the band. Journey released three albums before he arrived, none of which produced a chart hit. The first Infinity single, " Wheel In The Sky ," rose to #57. Perry didn't write that one either, but it was clear he could deliver a distinct vocal that popped on the airwaves. The next single after "Anytime" was " Lights ," which Perry co-wrote. That one went to #68 and became a Journey classic.
• More songs from Journey
• More songs from 1978
• Lyrics to Anytime
• Journey Artistfacts

Comments: 3

• Kaye from Alabama Most of the the lead singers for Journey since and including Steve Perry, have 'blown out' their voices. There's very few men, and women that can continue to sing with such a wide range for 300+ gigs a year, practice, warm ups, and recording. Freddie Mercury, if he were still with us ( but, his range had a lot to do with cultural, and religious exposure), and Micky Thomas best known for Jefferson Starship, now just Starship, and his first hit, Fooled Around and Fell in love, still has the range and power he had in the '70 when he was playing with my husband in local bands in N. Florida, S. Georgia. To name 2. Pat Benetar, classically trained, Ann Wilson, classically trained. Now, look up Tommy Shaw's version of 'Open Arms' That is on a copulation tribute album. You might just be impressed. Digging ditches is damn hard dirty work. Going on stage, whether you feel like it or not, cold, flu, stomach virus, migraine headache, strep throat, And performing like you feel absolutely wonderful and so very happy to be there, when you would rather be lying on the stage trying not to die, is the hardest job in the world. I work as a gardener, landscaping, basically ditch digging, and I am no where near exhausted, sick, and basically insane as I was when touring and singing with several well known bands and performers. I was a trained lyric soprano that learned to sing rock and some pop and country. Now my range is quite a bit lower than it was.
• Jim from Long Beach, Ca Gregg Rolie, The American Paul Carrack, he sings on hits for other bands(Journey/Santana) but remains faceless..Great voice and keyboard player..
• Dodge from Casper, Wy Gregg Rolie, though somehow not the most recognizable face of the two bands, founded and was the original singer for both supergroups Santana and Journey. He is the co-lead vocalist here, though he is the clear and recognizable singer on the timeless Santana smash Black Magic Woman.

More Songfacts:

Mr. Crowley Ozzy Osbourne

The Ozzy Osbourne song "Mr. Crowley" is about Aleister Crowley, a British practitioner of dark magic in the early 1900s.

Go Away Little Girl Donny Osmond

Originally a chart-topper for Steve Lawrence in 1962 chart-topper, "Go Away Little Girl," became the first song of the rock era to be taken to #1 by two different artists when Donny Osmond's cover version also reached the summit in 1971.

Ms. Jackson OutKast

The "Ms. Jackson" in the OutKast song is Erykah Badu's mother. Andre 3000 had a child with Badu, and felt she was portraying him as a lousy dad.

Last Nite The Strokes

The Strokes admitted to purloining Tom Petty & the Heartbreakers' "American Girl" for their hit "Last Nite."

Brian Wilson Barenaked Ladies

Brian Wilson played Barenaked Ladies "Brian Wilson" at some of his concerts. He was "honored" by the song.

Dance Hall Days Wang Chung

Wang Chung's '80s classic "Dance Hall Days" is about how things can start simple but end up complex. First you "take your baby by the hand," but by the end she has an amethyst in her mouth.

Editor's Picks

Michael Sweet of Stryper Songwriter Interviews

Find out how God and glam metal go together from the Stryper frontman.

Tony Joe White Songwriter Interviews

The writer of "Rainy Night in Georgia" and "Polk Salad Annie" explains how he cooks up his Louisiana swamp rock.

Tom Bailey of Thompson Twins Songwriter Interviews

Tom stopped performing Thompson Twins songs in 1987, in part because of their personal nature: "Hold Me Now" came after an argument with his bandmate/girlfriend Alannah Currie.

Glen Phillips of Toad the Wet Sprocket Songwriter Interviews

The "All I Want" singer went through a long depression, playing some shows when he didn't want to be alive.

Andy McClusky of OMD Songwriter Interviews

Known in America for the hit "If You Leave," OMD is a huge influence on modern electronic music.

What Musicians Are Related to Other Musicians? Song Writing

A big list of musical marriages and family relations ranging from the simple to the truly dysfunctional.

Songfacts® Newsletter

A monthly update on our latest interviews, stories and added songs

Information

• Terms of Service
• Our Privacy Policy
• Google Privacy Policy
• Songfacts API
• Music History Calendar
• Song Licensing
• Affiliate Disclosure
• Privacy Manager
• X (Twitter)

Contribution

• Message Boards
• Songfacts Writers

©2024 Songfacts, LLC

Journey's Midnight Special performance of Feeling That Way is a reminder of the brilliance of Steve Perry

Watch Steve Perry and Gregg Rolie's 1978 duet on Feeling That Way, another release from The Midnight Special's gold-filled archive

Another prime example of how good music TV used to be has emerged in the shape of a Midnight Special performance from Journey . The band's version of Feeling That Way – taken from Infinity , their first album with vocalist Steve Perry – was broadcast on April 28, 1978, three months after the album's release. And now it's been made available via the show's recently launched YouTube channel.

The performance of the song – a duet between Perry and keyboardist Gregg Rolie – comes from a show hosted by the band themselves, one that also showcased music from Rita Coolidge, Al Jarreau and Eddie Money, while former Turtles Flo & Eddie interviewed Lou Reed . 

Feeling That Way had its origins in a then-unreleased Journey recording called Velvet Curtain , written and sung by Perry's predecessor, Robert Fleishmann. Gregg Rolie subsequently reworked the song, calling it Let Me Stay , but it was pulled from 1977's Next album at the last minute. It was then rewritten by Perry and included on Infinity . Velvet Curtain finally saw the light of day on the 1992 compilation Time3.    

Other artists who performed on The Midnight Special – whose appearances will presumably become available over the coming months – include Led Zeppelin, Aerosmith, Kiss, Elton John, AC/DC, Badfinger, The Cars, Cheap Trick, Peter Frampton, Genesis, Heart, Little Feat, Prince, Roxy Music, Steely Dan, Thin Lizzy and ELO.

Highlights from the clips available at the launch of the Midnight Special channel included Fleetwood Mac playing  Rhiannon  in early 1976 and  Go Your Own Way  just two months after the release of  Rumours  in 1977, David Bowie performing  Space Oddity  in 1974, Rod Stewart hooking up with Keith Richards for a rumble through  Twistin' The Night Away  in 1975, and Tina Turner delivering a feisty  Nutbush City Limits  in 1973.

The Midnight Special Channel on YouTube .

Classic Rock Newsletter

Sign up below to get the latest from Classic Rock, plus exclusive special offers, direct to your inbox!

Online Editor at Louder/Classic Rock magazine since 2014. 38 years in music industry, online for 25. Also bylines for: Metal Hammer, Prog Magazine, The Word Magazine, The Guardian, The New Statesman, Saga, Music365. Former Head of Music at Xfm Radio, A&R at Fiction Records, early blogger, ex-roadie, published author. Once appeared in a Cure video dressed as a cowboy, and thinks any situation can be improved by the introduction of cats. Favourite Serbian trumpeter: Dejan Petrović.  

Dion may be 84, but that hasn't stopped him recording a duet that reminds him of *that* scene in When Harry Met Sally

"It was energetic, but so chaotic. I thought, 'Somebody's going to die'": Watch unhinged Alice Cooper footage from the infamous Toronto Rock N Roll Revival

Linkin Park considering 2025 reunion tour with female singer, according to new report

Most Popular

Spotify is currently not available in your country.

Follow us online to find out when we launch., spotify gives you instant access to millions of songs – from old favorites to the latest hits. just hit play to stream anything you like..

Listen everywhere

Spotify works on your computer, mobile, tablet and TV.

Unlimited, ad-free music

No ads. No interruptions. Just music.

Download music & listen offline

Keep playing, even when you don't have a connection.

Premium sounds better

Get ready for incredible sound quality.

Entertainment | San Jose tenor Pasquale Esposito: On Puccini,…

Share this:.

• Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window)
• Click to share on Twitter (Opens in new window)
• Click to print (Opens in new window)
• Click to email a link to a friend (Opens in new window)
• Click to share on Reddit (Opens in new window)

Today's e-Edition

Things To Do

• Food & Drink
• Celebrities
• Pets & Animals
• Event Calendar

Breaking News

Entertainment | ‘a very bad individual’: man shot, wounded two san jose police officers shot in hotel confrontation, entertainment, subscriber only, entertainment | san jose tenor pasquale esposito: on puccini, freddie mercury and singing the songs that make audiences melt, the man behind the voice: he’s from caruso’s naples neighborhood, but a chance meeting in budapest brought him to the bay area.

Although he could have chosen the grand opera as a career path, he opted instead to devote his talents to pop opera and to teaching and encouraging the next generation of artists. He’s recorded more than a dozen albums, sung with the San Francisco Opera and created four PBS specials, the first a journey through Caruso’s Italy, the second a celebration of Italian piazzas, then “In the Spirit of Christmas” and “Il Tempo (Time),” dedicated to the songs that have influenced him.

We chatted with him at his family’s San Jose home, where he maintains a recording studio and classroom for his nonprofit, the Notable Music and Arts Organization.

On his earliest operatic experience >>> Esposito says his grandfather heard him sing “O Sole Mio” at the age of 6 and whisked him off to the local church, San Giovanni e Paolo, where Caruso had sung in the choir a century earlier.

On what brought him to the Bay Area >>> “Destiny,” he says. “I am 19, 20 years and traveling. I find myself in Budapest with a friend who was playing guitar, and we are singing here and there. I met an American girl, and she invited me to visit Palo Alto that same summer. I fell in love with California.” He recalls spending $30 to use a computer at a University Avenue internet cafe to fill out a long immigration application, then heading back to Italy.

A couple of years later, he received a call telling him he’d won the U.S. green card lottery. He immigrated here in 1998 and earned a bachelor’s degree in music from San Jose State University — a program he continues to support. He says: “If I didn’t meet that girl in Budapest, I wouldn’t be here.”

On where you may have first heard him >>>   Esposito worked his way through college by singing in restaurants and cafes, including Aldo’s in Los Gatos, Cafe Fino in Palo Alto and Siciliano in Redwood City.

On how to pronounce his name like an Italian >>>   His engaging personality prompts most people to simply call him “Pasquale.” But the correct pronunciation of his last name is Es-PO-si-to. “Many people murder my last name. I never correct them.”

On the operas he loves >>>   “‘La Boheme’ is definitely one of my favorites. And ‘Tosca’ is what I like to listen to in order to relax. Puccini was a genius. What he did was revolutionary. He thinks like a singer and prepares you for the high notes,” which Esposito says explains the composer’s impact on many modern-day musicals.

On the joys of teaching >>> Esposito is passionate about spreading the joy of music. His nonprofit Notable Music and Arts Organization gives scholarships to students who cannot afford lessons. He’s currently teaching 20 students in person and virtually — including youngsters in San Jose, a girl who lives in Turin, Italy, and a priest who moved from Menlo Park to New Jersey — and 20 more are on the waiting list.

His goal is to make students feel comfortable no matter what the music genre. “It’s unbelievable what you can achieve,” Esposito says, citing the example of a student rapper who wanted to expand his repertoire. “Now he’s singing Schubert. I get goosebumps.”

On his Freddie Mercury idea >>> Esposito bemoans the loss of the type of music Freddie Mercury — and his big voice — gave the world. “After Queen and Freddie Mercury, there was no one singing rock opera,” he says, and so he aims to rectify that.

On why festival audiences love him >>> “When they see me, it’s very interesting what happens. They see their grandparents, their parents. You cannot believe the sacrifice it takes for an immigrant to build a good way of life. So when I sing ‘Volare,’ you melt. And why? Because I am bringing back the memories of (sitting) around the table with your nonna, your nonno, your papa, the smell of the Sunday when your mother was cooking.”

Where to hear Esposito this year >>>   He’s already booked to perform at the big Italian festas in Lodi (June 9), Salinas (July 6), Monterey (Sept.7-8) and San Jose’s Little Italy (Oct. 6). In Sonoma on June 28, a show called “Pasquale Sings Sinatra, Bennett and Martin” will be held at the Sebastiani Theatre. From Dec. 5-15, five Christmas concerts are scheduled from San Francisco to Sacramento to San Jose. For winery events, fundraisers and other concerts, check his website, https://pasqualeesposito.com .

• Report an error
• Policies and Standards

More in Entertainment

‘Hacks’ review: Jean Smart’s Deborah Vance sets her sights on a late-night talk show gig in Season 3

Tiffany Haddish admits to hiring investigator to ‘destroy’ online trolls

Real Estate | Photos: Rock stars’ former Marin beach house listed for $15 million

Restaurants, Food and Drink | See inside $25 million Paseo restaurant at Downtown Disney

John Green Was Dubious a ‘Turtles All the Way Down’ Movie Could Work, Then He Met Hannah Marks

The filmmaker’s pitch changed his mind — then the film’s long journey to the screen really began

Best-selling author John Green wasn’t sure that one of his most personal novels, “Turtles All the Way Down,” could be accurately transferred from page to screen — especially in a way that would represent anxiety and OCD well.

The book, released in 2017 after Green’s rocket to fame following books (and adaptations) “The Fault in Our Stars” and “Paper Towns,” follows a character named Aza (Isabella Merced) who struggles with OCD (Obsessive Compulsive Disorder), which manifests in spirals that take her out of the present.

“The experience is so internal. It’s so nonvisual,” Green told TheWrap. “It’s so much about abstractions that occur way down within the confines of the individual self. That’s hard enough to do in a book. It’s really, really difficult to do in a movie and to make that stuff visual. So I was a little dubious from the beginning.”

Director Hannah Marks eased his doubts.

“From my perspective, the next experience was being in a room with Hannah, who at the time I think was 23 and seeing this very young person make an extraordinarily compelling pitch about how, in fact, it could be visual and there are ways to communicate the truth of a mental health experience without relying upon stigma or romanticization,” he continued. “And from that moment, I was like, ‘Okay, I really want this movie to happen because I want Hannah to direct it.’”

The journey to the screen was complicated — the adaptation was originally set up at Fox before being released and nabbed by New Line, who is now releasing the film as a Max streaming original on May 2.

Green and Marks spoke to TheWrap about that journey, their cameos in the film and why Green’s personal struggle with OCD informed his hopeful approach to this particular story.

Can you talk me through the adaptation’s journey to the screen? I know there were a lot of twists and turns.

Green: The movie was at initially at Fox and then Fox was bought by Disney and then in that process, it was decided that they, I think generously, released the movie and allowed us to develop it at Warner Brothers with New Line. Hannah had a movie in the middle of all that that she that she got to make, and we didn’t want to make it with somebody other than Hannah so we had to wait for Hannah to be done with that movie.

Marks: I think it’s just a miracle that it survived all of that and that it survived, you know, multiple billion dollar corporate mergers. And I think that speaks to how important the story was that nobody wanted to give up on it.

Could you go into more specifics of the pitch, Hannah, and what stood out to you, John?

Marks: I was incredibly nervous. It was my first time ever interviewing for a director job. So I was really nervous. And the thing that kept me sane was remembering that Aza has a lot of those feelings too so maybe I’m just channeling the character and it’ll fuel my work. I wanted to over prepare and read the book over and over again, and my pitch included a presentation and a speech of why I connected to it, but also a fake trailer. I’m not an editor or anything, but I did my best to create my own trailer, which I thought would represent the tone of the story and the heart of it and also have easter eggs from the book, because I really was approaching it from a fan’s perspective. I was lucky enough that you know, that early in my career as a director, John was willing to advocate for me.

Green: And I think what what struck me was that it was so well done. I felt like I was seeing visually my experience of obsessive thoughts spirals for the first time. I’d never seen somebody capture the experience, not through metaphor, or through symbolism or through simile, but through finding some kind of direct form or expression for it, and that was extremely powerful to me. 

Marks: I actually recorded some of John’s beautiful lines from the book — I recorded my friend saying those lines and then I put it over Saoirse Ronan’s face. So that was a cool experience that trying to translate it to something that was a pitch by using the resources of my community.

You both have cameos in the film – how did those come about?

Green: I was not erribly enthusiastic. I had a cameo in “The Fault in Ourr Stars” movie, and it was so bad that they cut me out of the film. And so I wasn’t really looking to repeat that experience.

Marks: I promised you I would keep you in.

Green: I know but that was almost worse because then I was like “Well what if I’m terrible and Hannah feels like she can’t cut me?”

Marks: Well I did give you more takes than anybody.

Green: You did. You gave me a lot of space to inhabit that gym coach, plenty of time to get into character.

Marks: I also dedicated some time to trolling you.

Green: She made me do a bunch of like squats and fake volleyball moves, which were just humiliating. A great day for the rest of the cast. I think Bella really enjoyed seeing me act.

The crew was amazing. I was the 19th person on the call sheet so I was the 19th lead of the movie, and on the day that I filmed almost the entire crew were wearing shirts that said we’re rooting for you number 19. I got a necklace, I still have it, that says 19 on it. And Hannah, of course, was brilliant as the Applebee’s waitress. I think in the book, I described that waitress as being perpetually tired. And of course, when you’re directing a movie, you are perpetually tired.

Marks: I knew that was the one role I could portray in this movie.

Between the time your book was published and the movie coming out now, a global pandemic hit, did that change your perspective on the story at all?

Green: From my perspective, we don’t know exactly what are the root causes of the global mental health crisis that’s especially affecting young people. And I certainly am not nearly enough of an expert to speculate on it, but I think that we know that something’s happening, and we know that it’s really profound. And we know that the pandemic has made it worse. I think this is a really important time to be talking about how to tell honest stories about mental health, and that also means for me, I believe telling hopeful stories about mental health because I think that there is hope and that hope is the correct response to consciousness. So it’s really important for me to try to tell honest stories — and part of being honest, is being hopeful.

Marks: I do think the pandemic made us all feel really lonely, and a beautiful part of this movie that is so positive is Aza really isn’t alone. She has relationships that are meaningful and important and people that can help her and I hope this movie can show that it’s okay to share your feelings with people. 

Going off that theme of hope, tell me about that ending and Cree’s monologue – how did that montage come about?

Green: I’ve worked with OCD my whole life. And at times, it’s been completely disabling. Right before I wrote this book, I was so sick that not only could I not write, I couldn’t read a menu at a restaurant. I was really barely functioning even in the smallest ways. I was in so much pain, it hurt so badly. As I emerged from that, through new medication and new treatment strategies and everything, as I began to emerge from it, I realized that I had to write about this, and I couldn’t write about anything else, but then I wanted to write a story that was hopeful, because that’s the truth. I didn’t feel that that was the truth when I was at my sickest, but it still was true. 

Emily Dickinson has a great poem where she says that “Hope is the thing with feathers that perches in the soul and sings the tune without the words and never stops at all,” and there are certainly times in my life when I can’t hear that bird singing, but that doesn’t mean that it’s not singing. It means that I’m not hearing and I’m not well enough to hear, and that’s what I wanted to bring to the end of the book.

Marks: We talked about visualizing those moments that Daisy is talking about, and making sure to show both the good in Aza’s life and the bad and showing that your life can encompass all of those things and it’s a life worth living. Cree also had a terrific performance really landing that idea for us and making our jobs easier. She has great depth to her.

It feels like the Young Adult genre has shifted in Hollywood, but how do you both think we can bring back that era of stories like ‘The Fault in Our Stars,” “Paper Towns,” etc.?

Marks: That’s way above my paygrade I never understood why novels became popular, and I certainly don’t understand like the contemporary landscape of YA very well. But I do love these kinds of movies and I love these kinds of stories, and I don’t just love them as a teenager. I still love them because young people are asking these big questions about meaning and consciousness and suffering for the first time. 

Green; They’re also falling in love for the first time and grappling with grief for the first time in many cases, and that’s so exciting because the first time you go through something, you do it without any ironic distance, and you do it with such earnestness and openness, and that’s how I want to continue to approach those big questions even as I even as I get older. I don’t want to bring all of my adult irony to to questions of meaning. I want to be able to approach it with the same openness that I used to and for me, that’s what the best of YA fiction can do.

Marks: I think we both gravitate to how high the stakes feel when you’re young. I don’t want to become a jaded person. It is hard to resist but it’s really nice reading something as beautiful as [John’s] work where it is approaching everything earnestly because that’s the goal of how I want to behave as a human being. So I think this process hopefully made me a better director but also a better human being.

“Turtles All the Way Down” is now streaming exclusively on Max.

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed .

Find anything you save across the site in your account

Dua Lipa Devotes Herself to Pleasure with “Radical Optimism”

By Amanda Petrusich

Recently, some of the world’s biggest pop stars have been eschewing bangers in favor of a more postmodern, self-referential approach to the form. I don’t necessarily mind the idea of personal mythology being central to unpacking an album’s themes (it keeps me employed, after all), but the immediacy and the broad appeal of pop music have always felt crucial to its pleasure. The twenty-eight-year-old singer Dua Lipa, who was born in London to Kosovo Albanian parents, appears to instinctively understand the utility of pop as escapist fantasy. Lipa’s new album, “Radical Optimism,” does not require its listeners to know anything about Lipa, or her constellation of associates, or her cultural history, or her relationship to the past; it doesn’t require knowing anything about anything, really, except how cleansing and ecstatic it can feel to move your body with brainless abandon.

Lipa is not alone on this journey—Sabrina Carpenter, Tate McRae, and Troye Sivan are all working in similar modes—but she might be our most reliable performer of astute, frictionless pop. (Lipa, of course, owes a debt to her predecessors, including Kylie Minogue, Madonna, and Britney Spears.) She seems fully committed to pop as a genre with boundaries (short songs, big hooks, broadly adaptable lyrics). That could be why she was tasked with opening the Grammys telecast this year, performing a medley of tracks from “Radical Optimism.” This is not hard music to enjoy the first time you hear it.

During the past seven years, Lipa has grown as a dancer and a performer—in the video for her first big single, “New Rules,” from 2017, she moved in such a relaxed way that it was occasionally giving “Weekend at Bernie’s”—and, though she is more magnetic and practiced now, she still exudes a kind of detached coolness, as if she could take it or leave it. Lipa has legions of dedicated followers (particularly on Instagram, where she is often pictured looking hot and holding a book), but I have wondered, at times, if this is why she has not cultivated a frothing, hysterical fan community: there’s just something gloriously untouchable about her. Her apparent needlessness can seem aspirational to anyone in the throes of too much feeling. “I don’t wanna stay till the lights come on / I just can’t relate to the words of this love song,” she sings on “French Exit,” a new song. On “Anything for Love,” a piano ballad that transforms into a twitchy synth-pop tune, she sings about how prone she is to just getting over it already: “And I’m not interested in a love that gives up so easily / I want a love that’s set on keeping me.”

Lately, technology has made parsing the individual instrumental components of pop songs (especially pop songs intended for the dance floor, and augmented by various synthesizers, unnamed plug-ins, and effects) something of a farce. The tracks on “Radical Optimism” contain drums, bass, keyboards, guitars, and percussion; I know this mostly because I read the credits. The instrumentation on the album is a gleaming and impenetrable expanse, and the main attraction is Lipa, whose voice is strong and occasionally throaty. If poptimism—a critical philosophy that boils down to the idea that if something hits a wide target it’s inherently worthwhile—has taught us anything, it’s that doing this work well is incredibly difficult. Much of “Radical Optimism” was co-written by Lipa, Danny L Harle, Tobias Jesso, Jr., Caroline Ailin, and Kevin Parker, an Australian musician and producer who also makes dreamy, swirling psych-pop as Tame Impala. (Parker proved his mainstream bona fides in the twenty-tens. In 2016, Rihanna covered his song “New Person, Same Old Mistakes” on her album “Anti”; Parker also co-wrote and co-produced “Perfect Illusion,” the lead single from Lady Gaga’s “Joanne.”) He helps bring a warm and vaguely blitzed nineteen-seventies feel to Lipa’s record—a little bit “Saturday Night Fever,” a little bit Quincy Jones, somewhere between Chic’s “Le Freak” and Michael Jackson’s “Don’t Stop ’Til You Get Enough.”

I particularly hear the influence of Parker on the chorus of the single “Houdini,” right as the backing vocals pipe up. (I also hear him literally; he’s listed as a background singer.) It’s one of my favorite moments on the album. “Maybe you can get a girl to change,” Lipa sings, her voice sharp, clear, more than a little doubting. (“Her ways!” Lipa adds.) If “Radical Optimism” has a central theme, it’s independence, or, more specifically, an unwillingness to engage in the sort of romantic tomfoolery we have devised cutesy names for (love bombing, gaslighting, ghosting). The idea is to come correct or go away. Lipa does not have time for pining or equivocation (she once told Jimmy Kimmel that she regularly slots even the most rote or pleasurable tasks—showering, watching “Succession”—into her daily schedule), and, constitutionally, she’s the opposite of a maybe-I-can-fix-him type. Why bother? She’s fine rolling her eyes until a proper partner comes along. “Are you somebody who can go there? / ’Cause I don’t wanna have to show ya,” she sings on “Training Season,” a pulsing song about not having the patience to teach someone how to treat her. That idea is at the center of “Houdini,” too:

I come and I go Prove you got the right to please me Everybody knows Catch me or I go Houdini

It could be that my brain has simply been liquefied by modern life, but I hear a hint of the rapper and teen-age felon Bhad Bhabie in Lipa’s slurred articulation of “catch me.” (In 2016, on an episode of “Dr. Phil,” Bhad Bhabie—who was there to discuss her habit of stealing cars—reacted to the audience’s laughter by sneering “Cash me ousside, howbow dah?,” a catchphrase that quickly went viral and later got remixed into a single.) The evocation of Houdini in this particular context also makes me snicker. I can’t stop picturing a short, narrow-eyed Hungarian man wearing a turn-of-the-century bathing costume and chains, an image fundamentally at odds with Lipa, who is famously lithe and gorgeous. This, I think, is what ends up getting lost in more narratively ambitious pop music—a sense of playfulness, the idea that art can be important but also low stakes, sophisticated but easy to feel, artfully rendered but intent on delight.

In 2019, I interviewed Lipa for The New Yorker Festival. My father’s family is Balkan, and I had recently spent some time in the Accursed Mountains of northern Albania, not far from Pristina, the city where Lipa’s parents lived before they left Kosovo for the U.K. (By 1998, the Kosovo Liberation Army and the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia were at war; Lipa’s family returned home in 2008, after Kosovo declared independence.) I was curious how the conflict had shaped her. Lipa moved back to England on her own, at fifteen, to pursue a career in music. “I jump at the chance to tell people that I’m from Kosovo,” she told me. “I’m really, really proud of my roots.”

Lipa said that for “Radical Optimism” she was influenced by Britpop. She name-checked Oasis, Primal Scream, and Massive Attack, though the presence of those artists (and of Britpop more generally) is far more spiritual than musical; she told Variety that she was attracted to the sense of “real freedom” she felt in their work. For anyone who has witnessed or experienced grief on a large scale, freedom can sometimes be tangled up with the idea of asylum. Lipa has been clear about how a good pop song can help a person to get lost in a moment, to briefly but truly unburden herself. Pop music—the mesmeric choruses, the repetition, the propulsive beats—is mantra-like by design. Listen long enough and the contours of a difficult day start to blur. Problems seem smaller. Happiness feels closer, more possible. When pop is practiced well, the end result is something like transcendence. ♦

New Yorker Favorites

The day the dinosaurs died .

What if you started itching— and couldn’t stop ?

How a notorious gangster was exposed by his own sister .

Woodstock was overrated .

Diana Nyad’s hundred-and-eleven-mile swim .

Photo Booth: Deana Lawson’s hyper-staged portraits of Black love .

Fiction by Roald Dahl: “The Landlady”

Sign up for our daily newsletter to receive the best stories from The New Yorker .

By signing up, you agree to our User Agreement and Privacy Policy & Cookie Statement . This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply.

By Maggie Doherty

By Parul Sehgal

• Skip to main content
• Keyboard shortcuts for audio player

Music Reviews

On 'here in the pitch,' jessica pratt's pop seduces listeners into a los angeles noir.

Mystery manifests on Pratt's albums as the texture of dreams. But Here in the Pitch , her best album, feels completely lucid. Samuel Hess hide caption

Mystery manifests on Pratt's albums as the texture of dreams. But Here in the Pitch , her best album, feels completely lucid.

Jessica Pratt 's divine precision attunes the present to the past with an alchemy that feels outside time completely. You already know the echo and boom that open the folk mystic's fourth album, Here in the Pitch , that bump-de-bump drumbeat on "Life Is" that has traveled from The Ronettes through more than half a century of American music. Pratt's iridescent orchestral pop tune seems to specifically reference the first bars of 1965's "Guess I'm Dumb," a ballad co-written and produced by Brian Wilson when he was under the spell of Phil Spector and on the brink of a nervous breakdown. Wilson would soon step off the road with the Beach Boys, temporarily replaced at concerts by then-session guitarist Glen Campbell, to whom he gave "Guess I'm Dumb" as a token of gratitude.

Maybe it is a coincidence that Pratt's "Life Is" interpolates a beat connected to a genius of California dreaming — Pratt is among those disciples who consider Pet Sounds ' studio art " biblical " — and his impending breakdown. But it befits her stated immersion into LA's sinister cultural mythologies on this preternaturally lucid album: the Manson Family lore and helter-skelter violence, the underbelly of Kenneth Anger's Hollywood Babylon . Joan Didion's confirmed paranoias, the jasmine-scented void of her '60s Los Angeles, belong in the mix, too. In its own oblique way, Pratt's music refracts the mythography of LA — "Sunshine or Noir ?" as historian Mike Davis framed its duality — in that it dares you to wonder what lies below the perfection of its deceptively simple surface. "I want to be the sunlight of the century," Pratt intones on Here in the Pitch 's "World on a String," a sweeping admission with the faintest hint of unease. Who would desire such power?

Mystery manifests on Pratt's albums as the texture of dreams. But Here in the Pitch , her best album, often feels waking, transformed by pitch-black night. When Pratt first broke out with fingerpicked acoustic dream pop like a modern Sibylle Baier, or alternate-reality acid-folk Nico , her elegant music was "recorded to a cassette tape in a tiny bedroom," as she said of 2015's "Back, Baby," which was sampled last year by the pop star Troye Sivan , who noted how Pratt's voice "could have existed forever." On Here in the Pitch , Pratt writes herself out of time with sturdier architecture that gestures towards '60s baroque pop, with the pure tone of a jazz singer and melodies that seem to have existed forever, too. Her chords are crisper, her singing more concrete and commanding, occasionally imagining echoes of lost Bowie or Beatles ballads aside her twilight bossa nova grooves. Call those latter moments Astrud Gilberto in Hollywood — evoking the Brazilian jazz singer's intimate take on Burt Bacharach in 1969 — but even as this music adds touches of glockenspiel, flute, saxophone and organ, Pratt's voice seems to quiet those instruments, a psychedelic reconfiguration of space and scale.

Her minimal songs voice uncanny grandeur. Each one seems to absorb cosmic knowledge of the clock's hands ticking. "Time is time and time and time again," Pratt sings surreally on "Life Is"; "Out of luck, out of time," she announces on the closer. The imperative to self-manifest — and its attendant anxieties — are as timeless as the music's immaculate sound, these songs suggest. "Your smile'll be gone / In the end when you're yesterday's news," Pratt sings in the bossa-tinged "Better Hate," tempering her anxious truth with a tone so pure and harmonies so delightful they become a supreme balm. "I used to want for what your desolation hadn't come by," she sings on "World on a String," as a celestial melody carries this coolly rhythmic lyric that changes shape depending on your angle, like shadows on the wall.

Here in the Pitch unfolds into darker edges — or perhaps seduces us towards them — as its second half embraces the noir lineage of Angeleno culture. The haunting "Nowhere It Was" seems to leak water in its background, a brilliantly eerie, emptied soundscape in which Pratt's high register hovers over a sputtering drum machine and an organ drone, sounding closer to outsider folk than pop. Its quiet horror bleeds into the piano ballad "Empire Never Knows," in which Pratt appears to voice, in the darkest depths of her singing, the delusions of a corrupt leader: "Empires never know / Never fall, evergrown," she sings, alongside lyrics about God, antigens and a coming dawn, exposing a fraudulent logic (empires do fall.) These abstractions feel of a piece with the California cultdom that Pratt said she studied while writing Here in the Pitch , a possible broader indictment of pervasive cultdoms today.

Pratt wills herself towards hope in the end. The final song, "The Last Year," is the clearest and surest statement in her catalog — Pratt strums clipped major chords, her words flow like final credits, with the occasional drum roll and a piano that picks up the melody. It's almost painfully beautiful, an ode to wonder and resolve after some rupture in the fabric of life, narrating a new beginning while validating the pain of years passing unstoppably. "The past's no longer quite as near as you'd like, and it's gunna hurt you now," Pratt sings in the second verse. But she embodies wisdom and certainty that only time affords:

I think it's gunna be fine I think we're gunna be together And the storyline goes forever And the distances I can see It's you and me I'm gone with all the changes in my mind 

From Pratt's classic universe, the song will likely go forever, too — sung, sampled maybe, subconsciously recollected by musicians who don't know it yet — taking its journey through the collective march of time like a meditation in an emergency, the sound of a dream becoming reality.

• Jessica Pratt