If you are a Journey and Steve Perry fan, you probably know the song “Oh Sherrie.” While the hit was technically Perry’s debut solo single from his first solo album, Street Talk, the song is still associated with the band he fronted for many years. “Oh Sherrie” became Perry’s biggest solo hit, reaching No. 3 on the Billboard Hot 100 and No. 1 on Billboard’s Mainstream Rock chart, and was written about his real-life girlfriend at the time.
So who was Sherrie? Her full name is Sherrie Swafford, and she was Perry’s girlfriend during one of the biggest chapters of his career. Swafford also appeared in the music video for “Oh Sherrie.” The song was written by Perry, Randy Goodrum, Craig Krampf, and Bill Cuomo, and, according to accounts of the song’s creation, they began working on it around midnight, starting with the simple “Oh Sherrie” chorus and the “hold on, hold on” refrain. Swafford had reportedly been in the room earlier but had fallen asleep because it was so late.