Journey keyboardist Jonathan Cain has admitted he didn’t want a certain version of “Don’t Stop Believin’” to win a Grammy Award.
The band’s iconic 1981 song was performed by the cast of Glee – including late Canadian actor Cory Monteith – in the 2009 pilot episode of the series. The recording was nominated for a Grammy in the Best Pop Performance category.
“The Glee producers did a great job, but it would have been strange to have the Glee version win a Grammy, when Journey doesn’t have any,” Cain told the New York Post. “So I was in the weird position of hoping Train would win, even though they were up against our song!
“I remember texting their singer Pat Monahan and saying, ‘I’m praying for you, man!’”
Train’s “Hey, Soul Sister” won the Grammy.
Cain, 68, is promoting his memoir, which takes its title from the song he co-wrote with bandmate Steve Perry and Neal Schon.
“Don’t Stop Believin’” has earned over $10 million U.S. since 1991, Cain said. “And that’s not counting the 10 years before that.”
He added that, so far this year, the song has made four times as much as any other Journey song.
“It’s a song that gives permission to dream, and to a large extent, people always want that as a possibility,” said Cain. “There’s always a midnight train going somewhere for everyone.”