By Jim Barber
A prolific and highly in-demand songwriter, Jim Peterik’s magical musical touch has contributed to hits by a veritable who’s who of popular rock music over the past four decades.
Starting with his own hometown band, Ides of March (which is still a going concern and one of Peterik’s ongoing musical passion projects) in the mid-1960s. He quickly discovered he had a knack for melody and song composition, hitting the charts with songs like ‘You Wouldn’t Listen’ and ‘Vehicle,’ in the late 1960s, before embarking on a solo career that eventually led to the formation of his signature band – Survivor in the late 1970s, alongside guitarist Frankie Sullivan and original vocalist Dave Bickler.
When Sylvester Stallone was looking to update the aural component of his Rocky movies, he approached Peterik, which led to the penning of ‘Eye of the Tiger,’ launching the band into the stratosphere of both popular recognition and record sales. That song earned Peterik and Survivor two Grammy nominations, winning for Best Rock Performance By A Duo Or Group With Vocal.
The band’s success continued throughout the 1980s even after Bickler was replaced, for health reasons, by Jimi Jamison as Survivor’s 1984 album Vital Signs dominated the charts for many weeks, thanks to songs such as ‘I Can’t Hold Back,’ ‘High on You’ and ‘The Search Is Over.’ A further big cinematic hit came along thanks to Stallone asking for another song for Rocky IV, leading to the creation of ‘Burning Heart.’
From penning songs for southern rock sensations 38 Special, Blackhawk and Lynyrd Skynyrd, through 1980s arena rockers Cheap Trick and REO Speedwagon to an ongoing musical partnership with longtime former Styx frontman Dennis De Young, Peterik has solidified himself as a bona fide hit maker, whose compositions for his own band, Survivor, have become etched into the firmament of pop culture, thanks to their timelessness and ubiquity on both the airwaves, streaming platforms, and placement in movies and TV shows.
More than two decades ago, after signing with noted Italian melodic rock record label Frontiers Music, Peterik formed a partnership with powerhouse vocalist Toby Hitchcock. Calling the project Pride of Lions, the duo, collaborating with producer Larry Millas, have released eight albums, including the critically acclaimed Unbridled, which was released over the summer, led by the soulfully heartfelt single, ‘I’ll Be Your Rock.’
Music Life Magazine’s Jim Barber spoke to Peterik recently about his legacy and his ongoing passion for creating new music. The interview has been edited slightly for purposes of clarity, flow and lack of repetition.
MLM – Before we dive into the new Pride of Lions music, you posted on social media a little earlier about ‘Eye of the Tiger,’ and how this is the first week it hit number one on the charts. Did you ever think that song would become so iconic? When you think of 1980s, that’s one of the first songs most people think of, you know. In a way it’s become almost like, well, even maybe even surpassed, Queen’s ‘We Will Rock You’ in terms of the way it’s still used as part of sporting events. It’s become culture, not just music.
JP – I never thought of that. You know, you don’t think that far off. We caught lightning in a bottle with that song. It started with the call from Stallone. I thought someone was putting me on, right? And the person on the call said ‘that’s a nice answering machine you got there. Give me a call. This is Stallone.’ I’m going, ‘yeah, right.’
I kept sorting mail or whatever I was doing, and my dear wife says, ‘who is that?’ I said, ’some idiot trying to pretend he’s Stallone.’ And she goes, ‘you idiot, you got to call him back. It might be Stallone’ And I call him up. It was LA area code, which was a good sign. And he answers, ‘yo,’ another good sign. So I said, ‘this is Jim Peterik, is this really Sylvester Stallone?’ He says, ‘hey, Jimbo, call me Sly.’ Me and the guys in the band, we’re already huge fans of Rocky I and II. Stallone told me they’re working on this new movie, Rocky III and they didn’t want to use the ‘Gonna Fly Now’ song [by Bill Conti]. He said, ‘it’s a nice song, but I want something for the kids, something with a pulse. Can you help me out?’ Hell yeah I can help him out.
He said, ‘we’re going to send you the movie and you’ve got to go out and rent the Betamax Pro . I found a Betamax Pro and put it on the table in the studio, and I called Frankie over to watch this movie. And the version we had opens up with [Queen’s] ‘Another One Bites the Dust.’ ‘Well,’ I said to Frankie, ‘’looks like they got a song.’ So we call Stallone and Sly says, ‘I couldn’t use it. Couldn’t get the publishing rights. You’ve got to write me a better one.’ I said, ‘no problem, Sly.’ And I called all the guys in the band. We cut the demo of ‘Eye of the Tiger’ and Stallone was blown away. And he said, ‘this is going to outlive you and me.’ I go, sure, whatever, Sly.’ Of course he’s right. It’s proven that resilient of a message in a song. I’m so honored to be a part of it.
MLM – There’s a line in the movie where the character of Apollo Creed says it to Rocky when he’s going to go fight Mr. T. He says, he has to find the eye of the tiger. So was that already in the movie and you picked up on it or did they like the song and add it to the script?
JP – We just picked it up from the dialogue. I said to Frankie, if we don’t call this thing ‘Eye of the Tiger,’ we’re a couple of idiots. The funny thing is we cut the demo very quickly and sent it to Stallone and he goes, ‘you got a little lazy on me. You didn’t write me a third verse.’ And I go, ‘oh, yeah, I guess you’re right.’ So the first verse is rising up back on the street. The last verse is rising up straight to the top. I change a couple of words and he’s very happy. Wow.
MLM – And here you are 44 years later. And here you also are with a new Pride of Lions album coming out. Is it you deciding it’s time for a new record or is the label or is it a bit of both?
JP – It’s a joint effort. You know, Serafino [Perugino, founder/owner/executive producer of Frontiers] will call me and tell me he thinks it’s time for a new Pride of Lions album. I’m like, no problem. I’ll get right to work, and I’ll call Toby and make sure he’s on board. This is our ninth album together. We all love Toby. Toby is kind of like my muse. I love to write for a great voice. It’s the same as when I was working with Jimi Jamison, the late, great Jimi Jamison. He inspired the best from me because I knew if I could deliver, he would create something special. It was the same with [original Survivor singer] Dave Bickler before that amazing singer.
MLM – When you decide to write, do you have any songs or partial songs that are kicking around, or do you start fresh for a new Pride of Lions record?
JP – I have all these cassettes in, what I guess you’d call a card drawer and some CDs, DVDs and stuff like that, with ideas and demos. Sometimes you have to live a little bit longer to finish a song. I might have a germ of an idea that I couldn’t quite finish. I didn’t have enough experience at that point in my life. It could have been 40 years ago, but I couldn’t finish it. I’ll find these scraps, and now that I’m almost 76 I got a lot of experience to finish these songs. So nothing is ever wasted. Right. Some record labels have asked if they can release these demos? No, those are my treasure troves of ideas.
MLM – For this record or for any record you do when you’re doing a full record, is there an overall sort of theme or connective tissue between the songs at the beginning? Or is that something that comes during the process when you realize, hey, I’m kind of locked into a bit of a vibe here?
JB – Wow. Good question. You know, I thrive on positivity. And I like to inspire and not bring people down. This album, Unbridled, it does have a couple of points when I actually break training, like the song ‘What the Whole World Needs to Know,’ which is about the state of the world and how we’re in trouble if we don’t get it together. But it’s not doom and gloom because at the end of the song, I say we still have hope. And I’ll always express the hope for a better world.
MLM – What I picked up on was that there seemed to be themes of perseverance and sticking together through thick and thin, both in terms of us as sort of citizens of the world, but also in the sense of like personal relationships. It was this sense of we got to stick together through the good and the bad and the ugly, both as fellow humans, but also in the context of friendships and romantic relationships. Am I off base with that observation?
JP – No, I wish I had said it myself. That’s exactly it. You’re right on target. It’s hard to plan an album though. You just start writing, and things flow. ‘Lose Like a Winner’ is one of my favorite songs on the record. Serafino really loves that song. I think it’s great to have constructive participation from the record company. They get involved with picking songs. And if they don’t like one, they’ll tell me, and I’ll toss it across the room. That’s how much I trust Serafino. He’s a music fan. And if he says, ‘Jimbo, you can do better,’ I listen and I know I have to raise the bar. I mean, he’s shit canned a bunch of songs in the past 10 years. And he was right every time. Yeah. I get a little lazy and think, well, it’s good. Sometimes the writer has to convince himself something’s good, even though it’s not his best. Serafino’s always one to make sure he gets top quality out of me and all his artists, actually.
MLM – Is Pride of Lions your primary creative vehicle? Or is it just one of a number of ways that you express yourself as a songwriter and an artist?
JP – Well, you know, that’s a great question. It’s definitely a great vehicle for what I do. But I also have the Ides of March. We’re going on 62 years together, and we’re planning a new album. We’re like family. The four of us have been together now for 62, 63 years.
MLM – How have you been able to keep both of those groups together for so long, particularly Pride of Lions? What’s the secret to being prolific and consistent and still loving it, working with Toby so much over all these years?
JP – Well, as I told you, you know, his voice inspires me. And when I created Survivor, it was my plan to, you know, co-sing with Dave Bickler. But another member of the band said we only need one singer, and that’s Dave Bickler. So I was relegated to doing the keyboards, which is fine because songwriting was my main thing anyway. But when I created Pride of Lions, I knew it was my chance to actually do the prototype of what I originally imagined for Survivor. Jimi Jamison was an amazing singer, and when we lost him [in August 2014], it was just a tragedy. He was my best friend and the greatest singer ever. But Toby has taken that place for me as a collaborator and does an amazing job.
MLM – Over more than 60 years of writing songs, what has stayed as part of your method and process and what has changed over that time in terms of your process of writing songs?
JP – Well, in general, I write the rockers on electric guitar. But it varies. I can sit down on the keyboards and write. I think the ballads really live on a keyboard. I wrote [Survivor megahit] ‘The Search Is Over,’ on a keyboard. But I break training sometimes and go the other way, writing them on guitar, or doing the rockers on a keyboard.
MLM – Was that lovely romantic ballad inspired by your lovely bride of 50 plus years or because it’s obviously that’s where the new song ‘I’ll Be Your Rock’ comes from. Has she been your real muse all these years?
JP – People ask me, ‘did you ever write a song for Karen?’ I said, ‘they’re all written for Karen.’ She’s inspired them all. It’s true. She’s definitely my muse. And I’m very fortunate. We’ve been married now for 54 years, and it’s a very resilient marriage.
MLM – So how did that song, ‘I’ll Be Your Rock’ come together? Were you just sort of plinking away on the keyboard looking wistfully across the room at her?
JP – I like it because when she’s hurting, I’ll be a rock. When I’m hurting, she’ll be my rock. And that’s our marriage, really.
MLM – How did the title track for the new record Unbridled come together?
JP – I wrote this song called ‘Unbridled.’ And then I go, ‘wait a minute, what it needs is an unbelievable guitar intro a la Eddie Van Halen, like ‘Eruption.’ I knew Mike Aquino, my guitar player, could pull that off. So my producer Larry Millas sent him the song. I told Mike to go crazy, just like ‘Eruption,’ but don’t rip it off – do it that style. And he did. He did the most amazing 50-second solo, and we put it at the start of that song.
MLM – What about the song ‘Edge of Forever? How did it come together?
JP – I think that’s the most negative song I’ve ever written lately, and the words just came to me. ‘I was standing at the edge forever. Is this world going to implode in wars and not working together.’ And, you know, I don’t necessarily trust our leader in America. So my morale was very down. I’m still worried about this country.
MLM – I’ve asked this question of every musician I’ve ever interviewed over 30 plus years; do you find the process of writing helps get that stuff out of you so that you can carry on? Is it cathartic? I’ve had songwriters tell me they’d be in a padded cell, or they’d be hooked on drugs if they didn’t have this outlet.
JP – Yep. It’s therapy to write a song and get those emotions out. And then you can kind of let them go. It is cathartic.
MLM – Another song that I really like is ‘A Mighty Noise.’ How did that come together? What are you trying to say there?
JP – You’ve got to be heard. You’ve got to make yourself heard. You know, it’s a call to action. It’s a call to action. Make a mighty noise. You know, you can’t be a mouse. You got to roar.
MLM – Is Pride of Lions ever been an act that you take on the road?
JP – Well, you know, we’re going to be going to Napoli first quarter next year, Toby and me, for Frontiers Fest. We do that almost every year. And they love us up there. You know, we’re a big deal, you know, and we have so many fans and so much support in Napoli. Larry usually comes with me, you know, and Toby, you know, they love Toby.
MLM – Thanks so much for taking the time to talk, Mr. Peterik. I wish you all the best with the new Pride of Lions album and all the other projects you’re working on.
JP – I want to leave you with something. (Grabs an acoustic guitar and begins to sing)
Risin’ up, back on the street
Did my time, took my chances
Went the distance now I’m back on my feet
Just a man and his will to survive
So many times it happens too fast
You trade your passion for glory
Don’t lose your grip on the dreams of the past
You must fight just to keep them alive
It’s the eye of the tiger
IT’S THE THRILL OF THE FIGHT
Rising up to the challenge of our rival
And the last known survivor
Stalks his prey in the night
And he’s watching us all
With the eye of the tiger
MLM – That’s awesome. Thank you very much, sir, for that. All the best.
JP – All right. Thanks for a great interview.
Visit: https://frontiers-us.shop/collections/pride-of-lions and https://jimpeterik.com.
