‘Who's Crying Now’ is a song by the American rock band Journey. It was written by Jonathan Cain and Steve Perry. It was released in 1981 as the first single from Escape and reached No. 4 on both the Billboard Hot 100 and the Mainstream Rock Tracks charts. The song charted at No. 46 in the UK Singles Chart, and was the band's highest charting single in the UK until ‘Don't Stop Believin'’ (also released as a single from the Escape album in 1981) incurred a resurgence in UK popularity in 2009. The song is highlighted by Steve Perry's lyrics (with vocal riffs highly reminiscent of Sam Cooke) and piano playing by Jonathan Cain which segues into a bass riff by Ross Valory, and other guitars.
Singer Steve Perry said the chorus popped into his head while driving to Los Angeles, which he recorded on his personal mini cassette player. Once he arrived in LA, he went straight to keyboardist Jonathan Cain's house to show him the work in progress. This was one of the first Journey songs to feature keyboardist/guitarist Jonathan Cain. He had been a member of the Babys before replacing longtime keyboardist Gregg Rolie in Journey. Perry had come up with most of the melodies and rhythms, but was stumped on the lyrics. Cain helped write most of the verses.
At the end of the song, Neal Schon plays a repeating guitar solo that sounds similar to Santana. According to Schon on In the Studio with Redbeard (which devoted an entire episode to the making of Escape), originally, he recorded an aggressive, experimental guitar solo which he liked but Perry and Cain did not. He then recorded a second solo, the "simplest thing he could play off the top of his head" as recalled by Perry. That one was appreciated much more by the rest of the band. Steve Smith's drumming is only found in the choruses and towards the end of the song.
Billboard praised ‘Who's Crying Now’ as "one of Journey's strongest and classiest records," and "one of the most appealing love songs" of 1981. Record World said the song spotlights "haunting vocals" and "icy keyboards.
Label – Columbia
Songwriters – Jonathan Cain, Steve Perry
Producers – Kevin Elson, Mike Stone
SONG LYRICS
[Verse 1]It's been a mystery
And still they try to see
Why something good can hurt so bad
Caught on a one-way street
The taste of bittersweet
Love will survive somehow, some way
[Chorus]
One love feeds the fire
One heart burns desire
I wonder, who's crying now?
Two hearts born to run
Who'll be the lonely one?
I wonder who's crying now?
[Verse 2]
So many stormy nights
So many wrongs or rights
Neither could change
Their headstrong ways
And in a lover's rage
They tore another page
The fighting is worth
The love they save
[Chorus]
One love feeds the fire
One heart burns desire
I wonder who's crying now?
Two hearts born to run
Who'll be the lonely one?
I wonder who's crying now?
[Bridge]
Only so many tears you can cry
'Till the heartache is over
And now you can say your love
Will never die
Whoooooa-oh-whoa
Whoooa-oh
Ooooooh-whoa, ooh-whooa
[Chorus]
One love feeds the fire
One heart burns desire
Wonder who's crying now?
Two hearts born to run
Who will be the lonely one?
Wonder who's crying now?