Steve Perry was the lead singer of pop rock band Journey from 1977 to 1986. He is known for having a wide vocal range, which can be heard on such popular hits as “Don’t Stop Believin'” and “Oh Sherrie.”

Born in 1949, Steve Perry played in several bands before joining Journey in 1977. The band achieved tremendous pop rock success with its 1980 album Escape, which featured the now-classic “Don’t Stop Believin’.” As the group’s lead singer, Perry became one of the era’s most famous singers. Perry left Journey in 1986, and except for a brief reunion, he remains a solo artist.

While attending high school in Lemoore, California, Perry played drums in the marching band. He tried college for a while, performing in the choir, but eventually abandoned school for his musical dreams. Hoping to break into the business, he moved to Los Angeles for a time. There, he worked a number of jobs, including singing on commercials and serving as an engineer in a recording studio. All the while, Perry played with a number of different groups as a vocalist and drummer. He seemed to be on the edge of a breakthrough with the group Alien Project, when it suddenly disbanded—tragically, one of its members was killed in a car crash.

In 1977, Perry caught his big break, landing a gig as the vocalist for Journey, which began performing as a jazz rock group in the early 1970s, in San Francisco. With Perry on board, the band moved more toward mainstream rock, and began to see some chart success with the first album with Perry, 1978’s Infinity. Journey broken into the Top 20 with “Lovin’, Touchin’, Squeezin'” on their next album, Evolution. Buoyed by such hits as “Open Arms,” “Who’s Crying Now” and “Don’t Stop Believin’,” Escape became the band’s first No. 1 album, selling more than 7 million copies. Journey continued to be one of the era’s top-selling acts, with 1983’s Frontiers. The album featured such songs as “Separate Ways (Worlds Apart)” and “Faithfully.”

With 1986’s Raised on Radio, Journey enjoyed another wave of success. However, Perry was ready to part ways with his band mates. Perry left the band, unofficially, around 1986, after pursuing solo projects for a short time. Perry reunited with Journey in 1996, for the reunion album Trial By Fire, which reached as high as the No. 3 on the album charts. While still with Journey, Perry released his first solo album Street Talk. Nearly a decade later, Perry re-emerged on the pop-rock scene with 1994’s For the Love of Strange Medicine.

While he has largely stayed out of the spotlight, Perry continues to be heard in movies and on television. His songs are often chosen for soundtracks, and Journey’s “Don’t Stop Believin'” even played during the closing moments of the hit crime-drama series “The Sopranos” in 2007. In 2009, a cover version of the song was done for the hit high school musical show “Glee,” which introduced a new generation to Perry’s work.

Regardless of what the future holds, Perry has already earned a place in rock history. Rolling Stone magazine named him one of music’s top 100 singers. According to American Idol judge and former Journey bassist, Randy Jackson, Perry’s voice is one of kind.