Journey has unveiled full details of its forthcoming studio album, Freedom, a 15-track collection that will be released on July 8.
In advance of the album, Journey's first studio effort since 2011's Eclipse, the band has released a soaring new single titled "You Got the Best of Me."
Explaining what inspired the new track, guitarist Neal Schon says, "I wanted kind of a punky rendition of 'Any Way You Want It…I usually don't go in saying I'm going to look for something like that, but then it just came to me, like 'Wheel in the Sky' did years ago. It just kind of flew out of my mouth."
"You Got the Best of Me" is available now via digital formats. The song was co-written by Schon, longtime Journey keyboardist Jonathan Cain and drummer/producer Narada Michael Walden, who also co-produced the track with Schon. Randy Jackson plays bass on the song. Jackson -- who previously played with Journey during the mid-1980s -- and Walden were recruited as the band's new rhythm section after Ross Valory and Steve Smith were fired in 2020, although neither of the former have been taking part in the group's current tour.
Freedom came together while Journey was off the road because of the COVID-19 pandemic.
"During the pandemic, there wasn't much to do," Schon notes. "I spent a lot of time in my little studio at home, learning how to play keyboards and looping. Some of those ideas ended up being songs. So it kind of came out of nowhere."
Freedom also includes "The Way We Used to Be," which was released as a single last year. You can pre-order the album now.
Meanwhile, Journey's Freedom Tour 2022 with Toto continues Tuesday, April 27, in Nashville.
Here's Freedom's full track list:
"Together We Run"
"Don't Give Up on Us"
"Still Believe in Love"
"You Got the Best of Me"
"Live to Love Again"
"The Way We Used to Be"
"Come Away with Me"
"After Glow"
"Let It Rain"
"Holdin On"
"All Day and All Night"
"Don't Go"
"United We Stand"
"Life Rolls On"
"Beautiful as You Are"