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Thread: Ranking Billy Joel's albums

  1. #51
    Member chalkpie's Avatar
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    My wife and I spun The Stranger LP last night, it was good. I didn't realize that was his first album...not a bad first album by any means.

  2. #52
    Quote Originally Posted by chalkpie View Post
    My wife and I spun The Stranger LP last night, it was good. I didn't realize that was his first album...not a bad first album by any means.
    That was his fifth album
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  3. #53
    Quote Originally Posted by The_Lurker View Post
    That wasn't Billy singing the theme, although it was his song. It was re-recorded and sung by Gary Bennett.
    I think early seasons of Bosom Buddies had Billy's original version of "My Life" and later to cut licensing costs they replaced it with a cover version.

  4. #54
    As I mentioned earlier, Cold Spring Harbor is a good album, but it's been lost since Billy disowned the album due to the speed mixup with the original version. The version currently in print is a poor 80's remix. The original mix speed corrected is available here and there online. Here is a sample: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wXAKedxxVe4

  5. #55
    Here is the second song from Cold Spring Harbor with the hilarious extended ending (understandably left off the remix): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QkNdRLwRLGE

  6. #56
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    Quote Originally Posted by ronmac View Post
    That was his fifth album
    Wow I wasn't even close. I typed in BJ albums last night and The Stranger was the first listed.

  7. #57
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    Quote Originally Posted by pb2015 View Post
    As I mentioned earlier, Cold Spring Harbor is a good album, but it's been lost since Billy disowned the album due to the speed mixup with the original version. The version currently in print is a poor 80's remix. The original mix speed corrected is available here and there online. Here is a sample: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wXAKedxxVe4
    That's a beautiful song, probably the only one I know from this album from live versions I've heard. But that recording just sounds awful. I'm not sure if that is an artifact of the speed correction or if that is the way the original sounded, but it is very warbly and tinny. If this got a proper re-release with full versions of the songs at the proper speed with good sound, I might bite. But at this point, that is unlikely to happen.

    I am thinking I might need to get Songs in the Attic, though. A friend of mine used to spin that album to death, and I remember it as being a particularly good take on a lot of those pre-Stranger tracks.

    Bill

  8. #58
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    Quote Originally Posted by pb2015 View Post
    As I mentioned earlier, Cold Spring Harbor is a good album, but it's been lost since Billy disowned the album due to the speed mixup with the original version. The version currently in print is a poor 80's remix. The original mix speed corrected is available here and there online. Here is a sample: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wXAKedxxVe4
    There's an enhanced version available on cd from 2008 which I think is a remastered version of the orginal but with the corrected speed. I could be wrong but I don't think it's the same as the 1983 version.

  9. #59
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    Quote Originally Posted by Sputnik View Post
    That's a beautiful song, probably the only one I know from this album from live versions I've heard. But that recording just sounds awful. I'm not sure if that is an artifact of the speed correction or if that is the way the original sounded, but it is very warbly and tinny. If this got a proper re-release with full versions of the songs at the proper speed with good sound, I might bite. But at this point, that is unlikely to happen.

    I am thinking I might need to get Songs in the Attic, though. A friend of mine used to spin that album to death, and I remember it as being a particularly good take on a lot of those pre-Stranger tracks.

    Bill
    I have songs from the attic. Maybe I'll play that today.

    That version you heard of "she's got a way" according to what the guy posted on youtube is recorded from a turntable with the pitch adjusted. Not sure that's the way it's meant to sound but it's still probably better than the first version which BJ said made him sound like one of the chipmunks.

  10. #60
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    [QUOTE=Sputnik;1037696]
    I am thinking I might need to get Songs in the Attic, though. A friend of mine used to spin that album to death, and I remember it as being a particularly good take on a lot of those pre-Stranger tracks.


    I was just going to mention "Songs From The Attic" but you beat me too it. I think the live versions of all of those tracks are better than the studio versions.

  11. #61
    Quote Originally Posted by Digital_Man View Post
    That version you heard of "she's got a way" according to what the guy posted on youtube is recorded from a turntable with the pitch adjusted. Not sure that's the way it's meant to sound but it's still probably better than the first version which BJ said made him sound like one of the chipmunks.
    A wise guy on YouTube said that Billy sounded like Davy Jones (Monkees) in the wrong-speed version which I think is a more accurate comparison than the Chipmunks.

  12. #62
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    Quote Originally Posted by pb2015 View Post
    A wise guy on YouTube said that Billy sounded like Davy Jones (Monkees) in the wrong-speed version which I think is a more accurate comparison than the Chipmunks.
    Yeah probably. I don't think he sounds much like the Chipmunks either.

  13. #63
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    Quote Originally Posted by Sputnik View Post
    I am thinking I might need to get Songs in the Attic, though. A friend of mine used to spin that album to death, and I remember it as being a particularly good take on a lot of those pre-Stranger tracks.

    Bill
    I could not recommend this more; as I noted earlier. This actually gets more spins in Casa Mudshark nowadays.

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  14. #64
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    Quote Originally Posted by MudShark22 View Post
    I could not recommend this more; as I noted earlier. This actually gets more spins in Casa Mudshark nowadays.
    Yeah, all the comments here have basically sold me. It shall be done! Thanks!


  15. #65
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    I just listened to songs in the attic earlier today(like I said I would). It's very, very good. It was a lot better than I expected. I like how he deliberately focused on the earlier part of his career for this set. A big thumbs up from me as well.
    Last edited by Digital_Man; 04-10-2021 at 06:29 PM.

  16. #66
    One of my favorite recordings of his:

    "The White Zone is for loading and unloading only. If you got to load or unload go to the White Zone!"

  17. #67
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    Quote Originally Posted by Sputnik View Post
    Yeah, all the comments here have basically sold me. It shall be done! Thanks!

    I have it and was never crazy over it

  18. #68
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    Quote Originally Posted by Fracktured View Post
    I have it and was never crazy over it
    LOL, well, we'll see how it goes. Its a cheap date. I may try Nylon Curtain too.

    Bill

  19. #69
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    Quote Originally Posted by ronmac View Post
    One of my favorite recordings of his:

    Really good show

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  20. #70
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    Quote Originally Posted by Sputnik View Post
    So I got my CDs and listened to Piano Man. It definitely sounds like an artist still finding his voice, he wears a lot of his influences in his sleeve here. The title track, Captain Jack and to a lesser extent Billy the Kid are all worth the price of admission, the latter marred somewhat by the cliche production. I know that song form a live version he did on Don Kirshner, which was much rawer and more personal. It's a good song, they just didn't need all that hokey orchestration, imo.

    Travelin' Player is good, as is Ain't No Crime, but the rest of the other tracks are at best serviceable and largely forgettable, If I Only Had the Words being the worst of the lot. This album would definitely not touch my top five, but I'm not sorry I have it.

    Streetlife Serenade is spinning now. So far I'm liking it. It sounds much more mature.

    Bill
    I always find it interesting to hear someone’s take on albums when they are listening to an artists back catalogue that they aren’t familiar with. I knew billy Joel’s albums from when they came out, they were played to death on philly radio stations. He was very big in the philly area long before he became a huge success. So I still have a certain perspective on his career and songwriting. Someone else’s views can feel more like looking at the songs from the outside while I view them from the inside.

  21. #71
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    Quote Originally Posted by Fracktured View Post
    I always find it interesting to hear someone’s take on albums when they are listening to an artists back catalogue that they aren’t familiar with. I knew billy Joel’s albums from when they came out, they were played to death on philly radio stations. He was very big in the philly area long before he became a huge success. So I still have a certain perspective on his career and songwriting. Someone else’s views can feel more like looking at the songs from the outside while I view them from the inside.
    The late Philadelphia dj Ed Sciaky was at least partially responsible for getting Billy Joel noticed. He also helped with the careers of Yes and Bruce Springsteen. Possibly a few others also.

  22. #72
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    Quote Originally Posted by Digital_Man View Post
    The late Philadelphia dj Ed Sciaky was at least partially responsible for getting Billy Joel noticed. He also helped with the careers of Yes and Bruce Springsteen. Possibly a few others also.
    He was also a big fan of Annie Haslam and Renaissance. He went with Billy to Russia when Billy recorded his famous Koncert album or whatever it was.

  23. #73
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    Quote Originally Posted by Fracktured View Post
    He was also a big fan of Annie Haslam and Renaissance. He went with Billy to Russia when Billy recorded his famous Koncert album or whatever it was.
    Yeah, I was going to mention Renaissance also but wasn't entirely sure about that. I did think I heard that mentioned somewhere though.

  24. #74
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    Back to Billy. I believe the Stranger deluxe edition has that Nassau Coliseum show as disc two. If so that is a great concert and the best reason to buy that version of the Stranger on cd.

  25. #75
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    oh! gonna go look now...

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