1978 Rock Hit Became Iconic Band's First Song to Crack the Billboard Hot 100-48 Years Later, It Remains a Timeless Classic
In 1978, Journey found radio success for the first time with "Wheel in the Sky."
The iconic track, written by Robert Fleischman, Neal Schon, and Diane Valory, appeared on the band's fourth studio album, Infinity, and became the San Francisco-based band's first song to ever chart on Billboard's Hot 100.
Known for its churning guitar riff and arena-rock chorus, "Wheel in the Sky" peaked at No. 57 on the Billboard Hot 100 in May 1978. It was also the first single featuring new vocalist Steve Perry, who would become a vital part of Journey's most successful period in the late 1970s and early 80s.
Not only did "Wheel in the Sky" give Journey much-needed radio airtime, but it served as a launching pad for two more Hot 100 hits from the Infinity album: "Anytime" and "Lights." The album itself soared to No 21 on the Billboard 200.
"Wheel in the Sky" had already been written by the time Perry joined Journey. In a 2022 interview with Vulture, Schon recalled the writing process. "'Wheel in the Sky'… It's an early song that I wrote with Robert Fleischman," he revealed. "The lyrical content came from a poem that [former Journey bassist] Ross Valory's ex-wife wrote and handed me on a napkin years ago."
When Perry joined the band, the powerhouse vocalist envisioned the song differently from the way Fleishman had.
"They already had ‘Wheel In The Sky' in the bag, but the way they had done it with Robert was different from how I was going to interpret it," Perry told Classic Rock in 2014. "When it came time for me to do that track we had moved studio from San Francisco to Los Angeles. So I said to [producer] Roy [Thomas Baker], 'What do you think, shall I try something else?'"
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Perry shared a memory of the day he knew the Journey song had made it.
"I remember clearly ‘Wheel In The Sky' being the first single," the singer recalled. "Neal and I went to this pizza place, and I went over to the jukebox and saw a ‘Wheel In the Sky' vinyl 45 in the machine – an ecstatic feeling. I didn't tell Neal, I just put two quarters in, pushed the button and sat down, and the song started. Neal looked at me and started laughing. It was a monumental moment. Back then, if you started to show up in jukeboxes, it was a sign that you might be finally starting to happen."
Schon also recalled the "Wheel in the Sky" jukebox sighting at the pizza parlor and the ecstatic moment when he realized he had his first hit.
"We were on tour and hadn't had a song on the radio yet," the legendary Journey guitarist told Vulture. "I remember Steve went back and looked through the jukebox, and I'm sitting at the table waiting for a Coke and pizza. He went back and dropped a couple quarters in there and played a couple tunes, and on came ‘Wheel in the Sky.' We looked at each other and laughed like hell. I remember saying, ‘I can't believe this.' We were both jumping up and down."
Related: 1988 Hit Classic Rock Album Refuses to Leave the Charts 28 Years After Singer Left the Band
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This story was originally published June 7, 2026 at 3:01 AM.