Reviews (page 12 of 16)
All killer no filler.
Hallelujah for an album I know and love! Love this one, too to bottom - great music writing, dynamic and relatable lyrics… Joel is a genius.
Movin’ out (Anthony’s song) Bra Just the way you are Klassiker Scenes from an italian restaurant Bra She’s always a woman Mycket bra
Nothing here interests me, not that it's that unpleasant that would make me skip a track but would not consider playing again. Quite surprised it has sold 10million copies!
Hasn't aged well and he definitely copied from the Beatles on at least one of the tracks, but some classic pop songs on this. All round a staple of 80s pop.
Not bad but not my thing
One of my first albums. Had it on repeat because this, to quote someone else, “fed my teenage angsty soul.” This was Billy Joel’s best, before he got pop-y.
Correcto No es demasiado de mi agrado
His most mature album, songwriting and singing are top notch.
A trip down memory lane. The lyrics are clever and the music is crafty. Each song stands on its own, and the album spins an overall story that works from start to finish. Fun to listen in its entirety after so many years. Those sweet, romantic teenage nights: album was great back then and still is. (3.75*s)
This album is great through and through, he has such a talent for painting stories for the working class. It's very New York (before the internet), it's like memorabilia from a more innocent time (all the feels). How is "Vienna" not a bigger song? I love everything here. In fact, if you don't like this, you're not American.
Was not a fan of Joel for a while but after hearing this album all the way through, I came around. I now prefer Joel over Elton. I like that Joel is not always on the piano here and almost all the songs can stand the tests of time.
A fantastic album through and through. Loaded with hits that stick with you. Even the deep cuts are songs that I remain fond of. As I grow and listen to this album I get more and more out of it. Completely deserving of all the praise it gets. Billy's strongest work and deserving of AOTY for 1977/1978. Really surprised to see Just The Way You Are is the what got record/song of the year. 4.55 stars
Movin' Out: 5/10 ehhh The Stranger: 6/10 cool Just the Way You Are: 8/10 one of the 2 good songs Scenes from an Italian Restaurant: 4/10 don't like it Vienna: 8/10 one of the 2 good songs Only the Good Die Young: 7/10 decent She's Always a Woman: 5/10 super recognizable but kinda mid Get it Right the First Time: 2/10 what Everybody Has a Dream: 3/10 ehhh Album Score: 4/10 2 stars couple songs are ok, couple songs are good, a lot of misses imo i understand critically this might be good but I didn't like it
Movin’ Out (Anthony’s Song) ✅ Stranger ✅ Just the way you are ❌ Scenes from an Italian ❌ Vienna ✅ Only The Good Die Young ❌ She’s Always A Woman ❌ Get it Right the First time ✅ Everybody has a dream ❌ Top 3: Movin Out Vienna Stranger
Exactly what I expected. Just dont like the style of singing 🤷♂️ 3/5 because I can appreciate that the songs arent bad from an objective stance
Billy Joel slaps. Did not realize I enjoyed him so much.
Alright
Great album, a couple really good songs
Love Billy Joel
Love Billy Joel.
super catchy and very beautiful melodies - unique and yet approachable chord structures and musical design
Had this on an 8 track tape in 1977, nuff said
Confirmed my general impression of Billy Joel, which is that when he’s writing really specific story songs, he’s great, when he’s writing more generic pop he writes the most vapid pablum.
Album 336 of 1001 Billy Joel - The Stranger Rating : 5 / 5 Favorite Track : Vienna I willed this one to come up on the generator this morning. One of my all time favorites from one of my all time favorite artists. I knew it would pop up one day. Reading some of the reviews, I see that there is a lot of Billy Joel hate out there that I just don't understand. I've never heard anybody profess him to be the king of rock or anything like that but I understand we all have our preferences. I had obtained this album and 52nd Street by the fall of '79. For my birthday, my mother gave me all of his previous released albums. I was in heaven for sure. Spend many, many hours over the next few years getting to know every word and note on every single song. I sang with Billy Joel until I couldn't sing any longer. This is the stuff I was listening to while others were listening to all of the classics that I'm now becoming more familiar with. Good times, for sure. Great memories. Wish I still had my Piano Man airbrushed shirt.
7/10
Muito clássico
It's crazy that so many hits are packed into this album. Some highlights for me are the whistling part featured in "The Stranger" (reprised in "Everybody has a Dream") and the extended narrative of the three-part "Scenes from an Italian Restaurant." But there are plenty more. I don't think this album could be improved.
Already knew it was awesome
Had a great time returning to this, even though I only listened to it a few weeks ago. Magical!
- Billy Joel might be the goat - Great sing along jams - The man can tell a story - 4.5
- well rounded music - every song makes you want to hum along - some all-time classics in here - a really enjoyable listen, one of the strongest albums ever made
Lots of classic Billy Joel on this album: Always a Woman, Only the Good Die Young etc. Good stuff.
really liking this one, very well produced and arranged. the vocals seem to be very well thought for each song style. that main theme on the beginning of the album with the piano and whistle is my favorite part of this, such a misterious and different sound. love the way the album ends like this too.
class
Of course I love this. Grew up listening to many of these songs on the classic rock radio station my dad played in the kitchen at his restaurant. Teared up a little on songs like Vienna and She’s Always a Woman. Loved it.
Higher than I anticipated
Somehow I didn’t know these were all on one release.
Some of the tracks are alright, but I just don’t get the Billy Joel hype. Meh.
I find it a bit Elton John-ish
Will need to give it a proper listen, but the mix is superb, the songs are unoffensive with a couple of classics thrown in
Lot of Elton John influence. Good composition.
Very good album from the piano man
I have never understood the quote-unquote hate for Billy Joel's music. (And yes, I used to work with a woman who vocally hated everything he's done and wasn't afraid to tell you when BJ came up in conversation.) The Stranger is one of Mr. Joel's strongest works, front to back, and just NAILS the piano-pop, lyrically genuine and sardonic, musically interesting sort of classic rock that has made this dude an institution of modern music. There's a good reason this was Billy's first number-one album. His label was prepared to drop him after the disappointing sales of the previous record, Turnstiles, and boy...did Billy deliver. Movin' Out - banger. The whistling intro/outro of "The Stranger" (and its slinky, ear-wormy guitar lick chorus): a musical chef's kiss. (I love the fact that Billy didn't know what instrument should do the intro, whistled to producer Phil Ramone what he wanted the music to sound like on said instrument, and the guy replied - do THAT. Just whistle it. It's THAT. Smart guy.) The organ's wobbly, underwater-ish (verb?) sound on Just the Way You Are, paired with that loving saxophone in the long outro. Boom. Musical chef's kiss. "Scenes From an Italian Restaurant" is probably one of (if not THE) best Billy Joel song that wasn't a single. I treasure every single one of its 7 minutes and 36 seconds. Yes: musical chef's kiss. I will be totally honest, I had no idea how good or popular "Vienna" was until seeing the stream count on Spotify at the time of this writing -- apparently it's a fan favorite at Billy's shows (of which I have yet to be in the audience for). Excellent song, even on a first-time-listen over here. Chef's smooch. The final two tracks on the album ("Get it Right the First Time" and "Everybody Has a Dream") are strong, even if they don't have the same emotional and/or musical wallop of the first seven. They're a nice quiet closer to The Stranger, and it does not take away from the fact that this album deserves to be listened to by everyone at least once, and gets a full five stars from yours truly. I hope Billy and his closest family and friends had an epic dinner at their favorite local Italian restaurant after learning this album would launch him into the stratosphere of pop stardom. Interesting factoids from Wikipedia: *The album won two awards at the 1978 Grammy Awards: Record of the Year and Song of the Year for "Just the Way You Are". It remains his best-selling non-compilation album to date and surpassed Simon & Garfunkel's Bridge over Troubled Water to become Columbia's best-selling album release, with more than 10 million units sold worldwide. *An amazing 24 people played various parts on the recording. *Despite the formation of Joel's band, the songs on The Stranger didn't feature any consistent guitarists, with different players instead featuring in each song, and according to Joel, the reason for the initial lack of a constant guitarist was because it was hard to find the right one. *According to Joel, he and (album producer Phil) Ramone met with each other at Fontana di Trevi, an Italian restaurant near Carnegie Hall, where Joel had been playing at the time. The restaurant would go on to inspire the setting of "Scenes from an Italian Restaurant", a song on The Stranger. *"Only the Good Die Young" was written by Joel while opening for the Beach Boys in Knoxville, Tennessee, at which point it sounded slower-pace and more akin to a reggae tune, with Joel even singing the song's lyrics in a Jamaican accent. The mood of the song was shifted at the insistence of drummer Liberty DeVitto, who reportedly said to Joel, 'Why are you singing like that? The closest you've been to Jamaica was the Long Island Rail Road!'" *"Vienna" has also become a popular part of his live set; when Joel lets the audience choose between it and "Just the Way You Are", "Vienna" is most often the winning contender. *[On "She's Always a Woman"]: "Joel has said that he was influenced by Gordon Lightfoot and his mellow acoustic guitar ballads. He stated in an interview that he was attempting to replicate the fingerpicking common in folk guitar music. He accomplishes this by playing arpeggiated triads in the right hand. He also notes that the production was purposely minimal to capture the purity of the tune as a folk song." *Joel has cited "Scenes from an Italian Restaurant" and "Vienna" as his favorite and 5th-favorite songs that he has written, respectively. Standouts (it's almost the entire damn 9-song record, dudes): Movin' Out (Anthony's Song), The Stranger, Just the Way You Are, Scenes From an Italian Restaurant, Vienna, Only the Good Die Young, She's Always a Woman
Nostalgic, sentimental and timeless, great tracks all the way through. Can feel like a bit of a time piece, but some of the best ballads out there
Great. Feeling 4 right now, maybe later could be a 5
Great album but slightly overrated high 7
There's a lot of good stuff on here but I think I might like this more for the nostalgia and a reminder of a certain period of my life than I do the album itself.
Billy Joel is a musical force to be reckoned with. "The Stranger" is a very strong album which is considered Billy Joel's critical and commercial breakthrough. Over half of the tracks on this album are stellar hits and the other half may as well be.
Very familiar with this album going in. Probably my favorite by Billy. Top to bottom, every song on here is great. I have this one on regular rotation.
10/10
some good tunes, but just felt too old fashioned for me
Just a amazing album
# Playlist track - Just the Way You Are # Notes - Such a cool and comforting album.
This for sure has some good songs, but I don't really feel like I'll ever want to listen to the whole thing front to back again. Feels like a solid 3, maybe leaning towards 3.5.
I prefer 52nd Street
Good at times, maybe too country-ish
Good album, not what I expected from Billy Joel.
A lot of classics from Billy Joel
Off the charts! One of the best.
So many good songs.
This is my first time listening to a Billy Joel album, but I already knew most of these songs just from radio/the culture. This was a strong collection of tunes, I liked the ones I hadn't heard before as well.
It was nice to revisit this album.
With five out of nine tracks being release as singles and seven out of the nine being recognizable Billy Joel songs, this monster of an album from a kid from Massapequa is one of the best albums in rock. 5/5
💖 movin out (anthony’s song) 🗣️ 8️⃣
Die Instrumentation und Produktion wirken teilweise veraltet. Und zwar nicht die großartigen Saxophon-Parts und das Akkordeon (!) in "Vienna", sondern eher Synths und Perkussion, die für ein Ohr im 21. Jahrhundert einfach etwas klischeehaft klingen. Was soll man sagen, der Lauf der Zeit ist unerbittlich und nicht alles altert gut (fragt mal ein Wurstbrot, das in der Brotdose vergessen wurde). Aber im Grund ein perfektes Album.
Arguably Billy Joel’s best album. Every song is either a hit or well known. Personal favorites Vienna and Scenes from an Italian restaurant feature on this album. Top 50 all time? Maybe
Fantastic album!
I have not listened to this album but I love Billy Joel’s music so I already knew I would love listening to this. I already knew some tracks off this album: Movin’ Out (Anthony’s song) and Vienna. I recognized She’s always a woman but I don’t know if I have heard it before. My favorites off the album were: The Stranger, and Scenes from an Italian restaurant. Will definitely listen again!
Hated this.
Great listen! I wonder if there ever was a Billy Joel VS Elton John rivalry. Stylistically, they're similar. You don't see many artists who sing while playing the piano at the same time; The piano is the driving force of the song. Which is a shame because it is a beautiful instrument. Lyrics are great in this album. Billy Joel is definitely a story teller, and a good one at that. Surprisingly, the popular song 'Only The Good Die Young' is my least favorite song... The rest of the songs on the album are far better written.
Every song in this album is great. One of those rare albums that still holds up nearly 50 years later. Movin' Out is always going to be one of my favorites by him but Just the Way You Are, Vienna, Only the Good Die Young, and She's Always a Woman were strong contenders for favorite song off the album.
Vienna
Had no idea these were on the same album. Good writing, thematically cohesive, but musically diverse.
Movin' Out - classic The Stranger - Just the Way You Are - a little saccharine but that's fine Scenes from an Italian Restaurant - Vienna - this is nice. I like this. I like the accordion or whatever. goes well with Scenes from an Italian Restaurant. Only the Good Die Young - A+ She's Always A Woman - fav Got It Right the First Time - Everybody Has a Dream - Not as piano-y., Seems like a lot of songs are multi-part or change tempo/time signatures. Lots of instruments. Solid songs.
Big fan. Lots of fin.
01) Movin' Out (Anthony's Song) - 9,0 02) The Stranger - 8,0 03) Just the Way You Are - 9,0 04) Scenes from an Italian Restaurant - 7,5 05) Vienna - 9,0 06) Only the Good Die Young - 8,0 07) She's Always a Woman - 9,0 08) Get It Right the First Time - 7,0 09) Everybody Has a Dream - 7,0 TOTAL: 8,17 (82/100) A nice sounding pop album with a few timeless classics like "She's Always A Woman", "Vienna" or "Just The Way You Are".
Can see why people like it, but not for me
Short, poppy without being too pandering, chock full of bangers. Not my favorite album, but this slaps.
Such a great musician
Meh.
great story telling, great listen.
3/5. While I knew the first song already, every other song I had not ever heard before. I wasn’t too much of a fun and didn’t think any of the songs really did anything for me, but at the same time, I can’t say they were necessarily bad.
The word simple always comes to mind with Billy Joel Simple, pretty melodies. Simple, earnest lyrics and delivery. No pretense, no showboating, no gimmicks. Simply good songs. The older I get the more I appreciate Billy Joel. 8/10
Wow, I absolutely loved this album. Obviously I know Vienna, but this was my first listen to all of those other songs. Love the vocal range and passion.
not my exact taste but so many classics on one album and Scenes from an Italian Restaurant is something else.
no bad songs, amazing
Loved this when it came out and I was young. Love it even more with age and experience. 5 starts always. Thank you, Billy Joel.
Another great one
In high school I’d print out lyrics for songs on this album and study so I could sing in the car with ben and Jake
Favorites: Travelin Band, Lookin Out My Back Door, Run Through the Jungle, Up Around the Bend, Who’ll Stop the Rain, I Heard it Through the Grapevine, Long As I Can See the Light. Awesome!
An old familiar one. He was always a bit too pop for my taste but the wife was dancing around the house and singing along while it was on. 4 stars for longevity and wide appeal.
So, so good. This album is filled with undeniable hits (it could almost be half of a Greatest Hits double album), but I'd probably have to rate it 5 stars just for Scenes from an Italian Restaurant.
BILLY!!! Þetta er svakalega þétt plata hjá Billy. Svo er hann líka bara svo kammó og næs gaur með fallega rödd. Gaurinn er alvöru icon sem á allt gott skilið, annað en margir aðrir celebs og tónlistarplebba egó. Platan byrjar hrikalega vel með Movin' Out og ástarlögin eru róleg og næs, svo er Vienna eitt flottasta lag allra tíma. Heildarverkið rosalegt.
Mjög fín plata hjá Billy, Yndisleg lög eins og Just the way you are og Vienna, en líka öðru vísi lög eins og Scenes from an Italian Restaurant.
They don’t make piano music you can groove to anymore :(
Billy Joel, I love you just the way you are.
One of Billy’s three best albums. Not a dud on the entire thing. Absolutely Excellent!!
A really good album. With the surprise that "Just the Way You Are" was written by him.
He’s the piano man. He played me a song tonight. Some of those songs were pretty good. I may ask him to play them again.
Billy Joel makes songs that are really easy to listen to. Lots of radio play classics on here like Movin' Out, Just the Way You Are, Only the Good Die Young, Vienna, and She's Always a Woman. 5 songs with staying power on a 9 track album is a good ratio, but not all of them move the needle for me. Then you have songs like Scenes from an Italian Restaurant, which is 7:36 long and I don't ever get that time back. I dunno, I'm never gonna sit and listen to this one but the good songs are good.
This album was a mixed bag of easy listening with a couple of not great tracks. Not usually my thing and not Billy Joel's strongest.
Wow the amount I enjoyed these songs varied wildly. Some tracks I was super into, and others I really, really did not like. Kinda corny overall.
Its strange that I think this abum starts out perfect, its tight and clear and then it gets to scenes from what are considered the masterpieces Scenes from an Italian Restaurant and Vienna... and I am not as impressed, while these maybe grander in scope I like the hits on this album. I think the slower think pieces are not as fun or moving.
Muy bueno, cuenta historias
I like Billy Joel's penchant for storytelling in his lyrics...fun album overall.
So many bops
Very good album no real filler and several stand out tracks. Only the good die young has always been a favourite of mine.
This album starts with Movin' out which is probably my favorite Billy Joel song. The whole album is really great from start to finish, it feels almost like a 'Best of'.
Never listened to much Billy Joel before, so i wasnt sure what to expect. I feel pretty neutral towards this album, definitely not bad, but not for me. My favourite song was Vienna.
Very very good. Never paid much attention to billy Joel but he had some amazing tracks on here. F.song: The Stranger
This may make me deeply uncool but that Billy Joel album is so “put it on and sing into a spatula while you cook” fun. Like let’s agree Billy has talent. And let’s also agree that in 1977, when there was a ton of glammy disco? Plus the EWF funk and certainly some acid/jam band whatever happening? Billy Joel stands out as kinda repping that there’s a still place for the idea of standards .. in a way. It sounded refreshing!
"she's always a woman" is gross "movin' out" is good
I remember Bill Joel performing some of the hit songs on the Today Show when everybody in New York and elsewhere was walking around with the tunes in their heads.
I wasn’t that excited when this one came up, but really loved listening to it. I underestimated you, Billy Joel! So many good songs, all the better for being familiar (some very) yet seeming new.
Was crazy about Billy back then, but in the following decades, he was so overplayed that he'd become elevator music.
Upbeat and well crafted piano pop. Listenable and likeable if you like to listen to that kind of thing, which I don't, particularly.
I didn’t know anything about Billy Joel other than that he is old. This surprised me by being a lot more enjoyable than expected.
The good songs are great, the others are just okay.
Man I though Glass Houses was my favourite BJ album until this came along this morning. What a cracker. The Stranger is a particularly outstanding track, would be an incredible addition to the Karaoke arsenal
Basically a greatest hits album.
I always thought BJ was kinda cheesy, but after listening to a proper full album, I have changed my tune. He’s a legit musical heavyweight. Vienna is one of the very best piano songs out there.
love this guy..one of the many greats as i was growing up
You got a nice white dress and a party on your confirmation You got a brand new soul Mmm and a cross of gold But Virginia they didn't give you quite enough information You didn't count on me When you were counting on your rosary And they say there's a heaven for those who will wait Some say it's better but I say it ain't I'd rather laugh with the sinners than cry with the saints The sinners are much more fun You know that only the good die young oh baby This is a fantastic album. 5/5
Almost 4.5, amazing
“We strictly do 80s Joel music, sir!” Man, there are no misses on this album… banger after banger after banger. I loved it which I’m sort of surprised about, but I’m not too cool to give Billy a perfect score.
legendary rock, fabulous music - I like it
The
When I was in junior high I had a dubbed cassette of his Greatest Hits record and a bunch of these tracks were on there. Always A Woman hit pretty hard for 13 yr old me haha. Also I’ve always wanted to be able to do an acoustic version of Only The Good Die Young - such a killer song and it seems like it would be a good campfire tune if one could work out how to pull it off. I always appreciated the varied instrumentation on Billy Joel recordings. It’s like NYC Beach Boys or something. It’s not always to my taste exactly but it does keep things interesting. Goddamn the acoustic + doubled electric guitar parts in Only The Good Die Young is really fantastic. Cool recording technique and it sounds great. I’ve only ever listened to this through FM radio/dubbed cassette and Spotify is giving me the good today quality-wise. This stuff is very well recorded. Doing the review the morning after I still have the chorus from Movin' Out rolling around in my head. So catchy and smooth. This is. great record with a couple of low points but overall just a great time.
Pretty good!
ACK-ACK-ACK-ACK! You can imagine this album popping up as the soundtrack to a Dudley Moore film from the 80s, but holy hell it makes me want to move my feet.
Well-known songs that are still a pleasure to listen to
i would give it five except…the handclaps. in only the good die young. handclaps always deduct a star. sorry Billy, you should’ve known better. other than that, this album is sublime! a proper album with proper songs.
Perfect album. Billy wrote a masterpiece. All great songs that display an artist at the peek of his talents in songwriting, musicianship and singing. He sings hard when he wants to rock (like Movin' Out, and Only The Good Die Young) and tender when the song needs it (like Always a Woman and Just The way You Are), and moves with ease between them both with subtle variances. The production is impeccable and the other musicians shine with every note and hit being a well considered perfect choice. Every song paints a picture and they all are perfect. I love this album.
Great album. Many classic songs, that I recognize. I listened to the lyrics this time, not just a radio play, where it was a distraction. I understand why his music helped define rock & roll.
7/10
Surprisingly good
Damn groovy
I was really into this album in high school, but then probably decided it was inadequately pretentious and set it aside. I returned to it a few years ago and the unabashed lameness of Billy Joel is pretty great.
Loved It, knew and liked most of them
I have a lot of feelings about Billy Joel and I am trying to leave them out of this. He's so aggressively uncool. I can appreciate that there are very catchy songs on this record, and that it is like, important to the history of music and probably did a lot for a lot of people, but it doesn't do a lot for me.
Its good dad rock.
This is an accomplished but of pop music. Joel has a way with melody and also for creating characters that feel like they are real.
No question, this was a monster of an album. The cat was everywhere during my college years. My then girlfriend/now wife knew every word to every song on this record, and the next several too. Me, he just didn’t float the boat. But I figured, this guy must have talent, he’ll keep it going. Nope, instead of continuing to make more hits, he sat on his hands and collected royalty stacks, marrying a new young princess every decade or so. And now here he is, scheduled to barf out the same tired tunes almost 50 years later to sold out, overpriced stadiums. No fucking thanks. Best thing he ever did was marry Christie Brinkley. Hands down. That earns 3 stars.
Great Album!!!
Play something from The Strangerrrr!
This album has some of my favorite songs from Billy Joel. I prefer 70s Joel to 80s. I’ve heard and loved most of the songs on here many times before. Get it Right the First Time - new to me. Ok song, not one of his best, but catchy. Everybody has a Dream - also new to me and not to my taste. Probably my least favorite on the album. The gospel hint to it makes it a vast departure from the sound on the rest of the album. Aside from the two above, this is a fantastic album. Anthony’s song is my favorite with The Stranger in close second. This is a 5 for me.
Straight bangers all around -10/10
All pretty good songs, no real skips
Ugh I fucking love this album it just makes me feel so warm and happy inside when I hear it. Billy Joel is amazing and idk this just exudes positivity 9.5/10
This is by far the one I knew the most songs on. Bangers one and all. 9/10
9.5/10 - I have heard the first 7 songs before and they are all absolute bangers. The last two I had not heard before but I thought they were pretty good. It was debating rating it a 10 but I want to save that for one where I love every song.
Best thing to ever come from New York 9.5/10
7.5/10
Ok but not for me
Good to hear some of the lesser known, yet awesome songs.
hmm... IDK. not so much
probably the last time i review an albumfrom this site, all of these things outdate me by 40-50 years. 3/5 it's good, kinda, i could see how someone might really love this album, it's just far from my taste, especially in it's lyricism.
Un clásico me encanta!!!!
This album surprised me. Enjoyed it
Almost 50 years on, and this piano-rock album still offers a solid listening experience. Kind of an old-fashioned sound by today's production standards and effects, it was slick for its time and you can hear the slickness in Joel's songs. Compelling tunes and relatable lyrics contribute to this album's overall timelessness.
Haven’t heard him before! I like it! But a bit monotonous
All around great album with a good mix of up tempo songs and amazing ballads. Vienna is a perfect song.
Every single song slaps
One of his best. Composition, lyrics, vocals are all excellent. Great songs and story telling.
I never realised that so many of my favourite Billy Joel songs all came from this album! My absolute favourite is "Scenes from an Italian Restaurant", especially the piano riff at the beginning of the ballad of Brender & Eddie. The titular track, "The Stranger", is a new one for me but I find I can't stop listening over and over. Big fan!
enjoyed the listen, but aside from the few standouts, it didn't leave a lasting impression/relisten value for me. maybe i just prefer the other albums with those iconic billy joel tracks that really stick for me, the ones that are more poppy like 'an innocent man' and 'storm front'.
This album has some great songs on it: - Movin Out - Vienna - Only the Good Die Young - She's Always a Woman That said, I don't think this album was necessarily "ground-breaking" or adding anything extraordinarily new to my repertoire. It was between a 3 and a 4 but ultimately leaned towards a three.
I am not american and as for Billy Joel he seems to be a staple of US pop culture and on US films and TV he is reveredand always a source of comfort to distressed characters. Tha being said, I get it. I wish i'd lived that era because the album is very nice to hear, comforting and relaxing. Great music to focus while running or working
A couple of high moments… rest not impressed.
Songs I liked the most -moving out -only the good die young -everybody has a dream (especially the end was a good way to go out) -Also like how Vienna has the French solo in the middle it reminded me of ratatooi
I had a (clearly unearned) hesitation about this album because the 70's British/American Piano Ballad stuff is a little out of my wheelhouse, but that hesitation vanished after the first song. I think it was really smart of Billy to open with 'Moving Out', as he seems to have done so for people like me that held preconceptions about his music. When he shouts he sounds surprisingly similar to Paul McCartney doing his shouting voice, I would have guessed he was a scouser by the way he pronounces some words. I'd be curious if anyone can think of any contemporary artists who perform in this style, as it was very popular in the 70's but seems to have fallen off after the 80s, perhaps wavering in a similar way, or due to, the general transition from acoustic to electronic production. He originally sought Beatles producer George Martin but couldn't secure the bag. It is Billy's best selling non-compilation album. Even though I didn't really recognise any songs by name, many sounded familiar once I heard them and are probably classic and/or sampled. I only checked for a a couple of songs and there are many samples, including Snoop Dogg, Ol' Dirty Bastard of Wu Tan Clan, Xhibit, and Daft Punk (who sampled seperate songs from this album for one song, 'High Fidelity'. Three stars for now for me personally, though I'm sure this is the type of album where time spent and and enjoyability are highly correlational
Classic
Perfect in every way
First half is really great; first 2-4 songs are especially good. Second half starts to lose me. Could be a grower though.
I expected billy Joel to be worse than that was
Favourite song - Always a women
Bill Joel has really nailed the piano and songwriter combo here. In a similar way to other singer/ songwriters, Barry Manilow, Neil Diamond, and of course Elton John. Here's a hint, I despise all of the above. It's pretty dismal listening, like a whole album of songs Elton John rejected for being too generic. I'm not a big fan of Elton John, but I can appreciate he sometimes has a memorable hook or two. There's no such relief here, just nine incredibly cheesy songs that are instantly forgettable. Once I hear Billy singing, "la la la la la la la la la" it's like he's not even trying any more. I can see a lot of people who split Mr Joel's career into "talented" (which this album falls into) and "for the money" (when he was forced to come out of retirement and sing about uptown girls). To me, there's far more continuity and his entire career is based around cheese. This is the sort of safe but dull music that I would expect to hear being performed by cover bands on cruises for the over 60s. This is maybe not quite bad enough for only 1 star, but it's so close I'm going to mark it down, mainly for the awful "la la la la la la" crap and the whistling, got to hate that whistling.
Goated. Absolutely love The Stranger and Vienna is an all time favorite followed by OTGDY is an amazing 1-2 punch. Starts off strong with movin out and carries the momentum. The outro to the album is hauntingly beautiful. 8.5/10
Nice Piano and melodic songs.
Iconic and full of hits
Some absolute classics - whole album is stellar!
Not fan of Billy Joel - better than remember.
Billy Joel is great. The diversity of the songs throughout the years is impressive. I'm more used to his 80s stuff except Piano Man of course, everyone knows that song. This is s more softer type of rock than his more upbeat songs from the 80s. Do I like it? Yes.
Loved it.
From the moment the needle drops on Billy Joel's "The Stranger," it's like stepping into a world where every song is a mirror, reflecting back fragments of our lives. Having spun this album countless times, its familiarity breeds not contempt, but deeper appreciation, especially for its first seven tracks, each a standout in its own right. The title track, "The Stranger," resonates deeply with me, echoing the multitude of 'masks' that we all wear. In my profession, at home, with my kids - there's a different face for every occasion. The real me, much like the real anyone, remains an enigma, a sentiment Joel captures with a haunting poignancy. Then there's "Vienna," a track that feels like a life lesson set to music. The line, "You can get what you want or you can just get old," is a stark reminder of life's fleeting nature, urging a slower pace, something that's often lost in the hustle of our daily routines. A fascinating aspect of "The Stranger" is the contrasting portrayal of relationships in "Just The Way You Are" and "She's Always a Woman." The former, often seen as a sweet serenade, subtly reveals a man’s desire for an uncomplicated relationship, averse to change or challenge. The latter, mistakenly swooned over as a love song at concerts, actually paints a picture of a rather difficult woman. This misinterpretation by listeners adds a layer of irony to the album's exploration of relationships. However, perfection is a tricky business. If "The Stranger" had concluded with "She's Always a Woman," it would have been a 10/10 masterpiece. The addition of "Get It Right the First Time" and "Everybody Has a Dream" feels like an unnecessary epilogue to an otherwise flawless narrative. These tracks, while not inherently bad, don't match the emotional intensity and introspective nature of the preceding songs. They disrupt the album's flow, transforming what could have been a perfect score into a slightly flawed classic. In summary, "The Stranger" remains a profound and deeply personal listening experience. It's an album that speaks to the multifaceted nature of our identities, relationships, and the passage of time. While it might fall just short of perfection, its impact and resonance are undeniable, securing its place as a timeless piece in Billy Joel's discography and in my music collection.
sooo passionate, it's a great pop rock record, really fun if we consider the year it was released. it's that 70s love story album, and i don't careit still sound cute. it's one of those cases where the peak of an artist is also it's mainstream peak. someone told me it found the album kitschy, but why do we care? is it really that bad of a critic?
Absolutely wonderful. Don't know that I'm much of a Billy Joel fan, but he's certainly got a way with words. A few particular tracks stood out and the rest were generally fine.
I feel like this one is unfair too. I am biased. This was one of the albums that my parents had in their collection when I was growing up. I listened to this album a lot and loved it. 42 street I would say is still my favorite but this one is still a 5 star album.
Never bought a BJ album - never put one on a turntable or in a player. Yet, I know every single song on this album which speaks to the power, origiality and listenable nature of these songs. Great voice, great songwriting, but as evidenced by my lack of ownership, not really my listening wheelhouse.
One of the absolute great albums in tone, musically, lyrically, it is just Billy at his best. The first 7 tracks should each be in the HOF for their own reasons.
catchy, fine
Movin' Out (Anthony's Song) - 8/10 The Stranger - 9/10 Just The Way You Are - 8/10 Scenes From An Italian Restaurant - 8/10 Vienna - 10/10 Only The Good Die Young - 8/10 She's Always a Woman - 10/10 Get It Right The First Time - 8/10 Everybody Has A Dream - 8/10 TOTAL - 78/90
didn’t know I knew so many songs by him not my favorite but I understand the appeal
One of the BEST
One of his best!
Never listened to a BJ album and kinda loved this. Storytelling through engaging songs. It just works. 3.75.
Some of the songs are pop classics, and for good reason. Some probably shouldn't have ended up on this (or any) album. On the whole, it is a seminal album which foreshadows the great works to come by him.
Whistler at beginning and end, nice lyrics
The only thing that would boost this rating is if this was the album with Billy Joel's Good Song: "You May Be Right"
ak ak ak ak, It was okay. Not my style.
Average Billy Joel album. Enjoyable.
more of a 3.5/5, consistently solid
No one doesn’t like only the good die young
Classic. Some of his best, most popular work.
Great album, mutiple classics on it. More jazzy than I thought it would be.
I absolutely love this album. Billy takes a lot of heat from folks, but his music has a HUGE following, and for good reason. Scenes from an Italian Restaurant is always a great listen. The title track is a keeper as well. Love this one.
Loved every song 🤩
Really enjoyed this
Solid basic sound.
This album starts with Movin' out which is probably my favorite Billy Joel song. The whole album is really great from start to finish, it feels almost like a 'Best of' with all of the recognizable songs.
I was only familiar with the greatest hits from this album, but the rest was pretty good to you. I’ll probably wouldn’t put this on independently, but I wouldn’t object if somebody else suggested it.
Easy to listen to. Good, not great.
Knew all the words to the songs.
I liked two songs. “Thank god it’s over” - me when the last song ended
I was really disappointed to have to listen to this goofball, it didn’t help that it was really boring for a while after the first track, scenes from an Italian restaurant made me cringe, Vienna is a banger of course, only the good die young is great because the lyrics are depressing but the music is like :D, annnnnd she’s always a woman is kinda creepy, over all 2 outta 5 for me lol
Highs are so high but also sounds dated and a little corny. Still a couple of my all time favorite songs. Hate to do it but as a whole album it’s probably a 3
More enjoyable than I expected. Song writing chops. The Stranger / outro’s whistle theme is an ear worm. Anthony’s song hits you in the feels. She’s Always a Woman, however corny, is a great song.
Better than I thought. Recognize handful of songs. Good listen
Loaded with bangers. Better than expected.
Wow! What a great album. 9 tracks and the the first 7 are essential Classic rock hits to this day. I forgot how great Billy Joel was and how fun his music is. I really loved this album.
👍
Bien, agradable. Just the Way You Are.
Own this album.
I liked the vibe. Scenes from an Italian restaurant had all kinds of cool instruments. 8/10
I've not listened to a Billy Joel album before, and wow this guy can write a hell of a song, what a great Album!
mikið af bangers, get ekki annað en gefið þessu fjórar
It’s cheesy and not my style, but it’s also endearingly earnest and well-crafted. I also give it credit for not overstaying its welcome. 3.5 rounded up, though not something I’m likely to seek out and listen to again in its entirety.
Movin' Out Just the Way You Are Vienna Only the Good Die Young She's Always a Woman
God damn, I don’t think I could have predicted just how much I would enjoy this. I don’t think I’ve heard a Billy Joel ever in my life before. But this immediately made itself clear and I was immediately attached to it. By all means, this album lays all of its cards out from the start, but it’s like a really good hand in poker. And that hand carries Billy through the entire album. The sound you hear on Movin’ Out is the sound you get for the rest of the album. But it’s amazing, so why does it matter? The only way I know how to describe the feeling I get from this, and this is probably very stupid, but like theater kid music. I get the same appeal from this as I do from Ben Folds or Elton John. I just can’t help that my brain is simple and I like the way Billy’s voice sounds and the way he plays the piano. Good shit. That’s all this is. Rating: 8/10
My hand is forced here. This album is just too good. Truly a "no-skip" affair. Even as I try and grow weary of the closing ballad, it becomes somehow catchy, and then reprises the masterful title track.
Gutes, anhörenseertes Album. Faboriten: „Moving Out“, „Just The Way You Are“, „Only The Good Die Young“, „She‘s Always A Woman“.
One of my favorite albums ever! Banger after banger.
Best Billy Joel album by far
You almost know every song on this album.
Schönes Album, kann man sich auch mal komplett reinziehen, jeder Song hat was. Best Song: Only the Good Die Young
I'd like this one, it had a good theme. I detected several bands i listen to that are definitely influenced by this album. Ben Folds and definitely Weezer especially with the opening track. Didn't dislike any song, and the continual theme throughout was very well presented.
Pretty good, Billy Joel definitely has his own style
While I’ve liked some Billy Joel songs here and there, I now understand why Anthony Bourdain banned Billy from his restaurants. Some of the songs have done catchiness, but I really couldn’t listen to this more than once. It’s like elevator music, but annoying. Honestly, the elevator version of this album is probably better.
Holy moly
Fine. Didn't get me, but I can hear how it blew minds in 1977. More slick than super tramp, less dramatic than Elton john. Nice songs.
Favorite tracks: Movin’ Out (Anthony’s Song) Rating: 3/5
You sort of go into this expecting to be unimpressed and you are at first but then you listen again and there's a lot of sincerity in Joel's work and even when he is schmaltzy and a little hacky ('A bottle of white, a bottle of red / Perhaps a bottle of rose instead') you end up won over by the end because he is giving his all and you're humming the tunes throughout the day...
These are some real Stellar songs on here: just the way you are is a standout.
They made the "The Boys" singer into a real thing?? 😂😂😂 I have not received enough Billy Joel hype during my life. I loved his uplifting energy, every song is a reason to smile. There is nothing to comment on the unity of the project. Great listen! Expected Marc rating: 4
Quina meravella d'àlbum. Mai he sigut súper fan de Billy Joel però és que totes les cançons són genials. A més és com que el flow de l'àlbum és perfecte, manté una consistència súper bona i no fa canvis bruscos, et porta pel camí que vol súper bé Lorenzo expected note: 4
Old School/ Vintage Whole Album sounds good
Remarkable musician singing about unremarkable lives. Love how full of life he makes everyday life feel in his tracks; makes me feel like I’m listening to the highs and lows of a slice-of-life movie. Already knew I loved ‘She’s always a woman’ and still remains my top track. Don’t know whether it was the rare Salford sun while walking around seeing quotidian life that was making me feel warm about this album, but bloody loved every bit of it.
Movin' Out - 5 The Stranger - 4 Just the Way You Are - 3 Scenes - 4 Vienna - 4 Only the Good - 4 She'll Always be a Woman - 3 Get it Right - 3 Everybody Has a Dream - 3
1. Moving out - 5 2. Stranger - 4 3. Just the way - 4 4. Scenes from ir - 3 5. Vienna - 3 6. Only good Die- 3 7. She's always a woman - 4 8. Get it right - 3 9. Dream - 2 10. Miami - 2 11. Prelude - 3 3.27
05/06/24 S Tier—————————5 Movin’ Out Only the Good Die Young The Stranger Just the Way You Are Scenes From an Italian Restaurant A Tier—————————4 She’s Always a Woman Vienna Get it Right the First Time B Tier—————————3 Everybody has a Dream C Tier—————————2 D Tier—————————1
The Stranger by Billie Joel Monday 5/6/2024, 2:24, office S Tier————————— The Stranger Movin Out’ (Anthony’s Song) A Tier————————— Only The Good Die Young Scenes From An Italian Restaurant Just The Way You Are Vienna B Tier————————— Get It Right The First Time She’s Always a Woman Everybody Has A Dream
Enjoyable album, my first real exposure to Billy Joel and was pretty much in line with what I expected from him having only heard his bigger singles before. Highlight for me was “only the good die young” and the rest were good if fairly forgettable.
Ack ack ack
Billy can do no wrong
Polished, accomplished pop. A nice listen.
One I wouldn’t have listened to otherwise
The yin to Bruce Springsteen's yang. I like a lot of Billy Joel Songs so this is pretty enjoyable already. This is full of certifiable bangers (for white people) In my mind's eye I can see a lot of these songs in commercials in the '80s and '90s; Only the Good Die Young being the biggest offender.
Before reviewing this album in its entirety, I thought Billy Joel nothing but schmaltz. Tasty for a nibble, but not something I would make a whole meal out of. I was wrong. It is a great album. With the exception of "Just the Way You Are", I loved each song. "Scenes from an Italian Restaurant" great lyrics, the first section manages to not become saccharine and in the second section uses pace and new instruments to build upon the early theme. Likewise "Vienna" mimics the same structure. This structure of slower, more deliberate, more sparse performing followed up in the second part as something more complete, more whole, more energized seems to be his "hit song" formula. It works well, like the best Broadway songs do. He is less strong when he keeps emotions vapid and strangles the rhythm of a song. Overall, a very fine album (really a 4.5)
This album is perfect in every way. Long live, Billy Joel.
Cool.
the sound and the vibe is really good
Love it. Reminds me of my childhood.
Clearly his best album.
An oft-derided storyteller who leads with a strong voice and his piano. Whether modern dismissals of Joel's career (I'd call this rock snobbery) are driven by his own success and the lazy programming of North American radio (the "overplayed" school) or the fact that he's a piano player first (a professor of mine argued that Jerry Lee Lewis marrying his child cousin ruined the piano for rock music for decades; exceptions prove the rule), he deserves another listen. Melodically interesting, lyrically smart and relatable, vocally strong and rangy, Joel fills The Stranger with concise tunes influenced as much by the early 40s and 50s roots of rock & roll (jazz, Tin Pan Alley, the blues, Broadway) and largely avoids getting too bogged down by the oncoming reverb-pocalypse of the production conceits of the 80s (this is 1977, but the tremors have begun you can hear them on Just The Way You Are, which is why it's so schmaltzy). He's kind of like a more-sentimental, less-angry Bruce Springsteen. Give it a shot. Movin' Out is great, you can skip Just The Way You Are it it's too saccharine for you and Only The Good Die Young is an absolute all-time jam.
"The Stranger" by Billy Joel, released in 1977, is a masterpiece that transcends the boundaries of pop and rock. From the iconic piano riff of "Just the Way You Are" to the anthemic storytelling of "Scenes from an Italian Restaurant," the album is a journey through Joel's musical prowess and lyrical brilliance. Each track is a gem, contributing to the album's timeless appeal. Joel's songwriting is at its peak, exploring themes of love, life, and self-discovery. The production, coupled with Joel's versatile voice, creates a cohesive and immersive experience. "The Stranger" is not just an album; it's a cultural touchstone, earning a well-deserved 5/5 for its enduring impact, musical excellence, and Joel's unmatched storytelling.
“Vienna” is fantastic. Everything else? Meh. I like a lot of the melodies and musical ideas, but Billy’s voice and personality just rub me the wrong way. “Just the Way You Are” is one of the most offensively cheesy songs I’ve ever heard. 2.5/5
Good, I enjoyed this more than I thought I would. I've listened to this before and was not too impressed, but this listen changed my mind.
Not super memorable. Fun storytelling though
Välproducerat! Svårt att inte le när jag lyssnar på detta.
Trent Reznor said that as a kid he belonged to one of those cassette subscription clubs, like BMI or something, where you got what they sent you. And he was so broke and hungry that he listened the shit out of everything, even the Billy Joel albums. “It probably made me a better songwriter,” he said, as begrudgingly as one could say anything. I’m very glad to not be a songwriter and never have to listen to this album again. I skipped Only the Good Die Young and it’s been in my head all fucking day. What fucking producer thought “Italian Restaurant” was a winner? I didn’t know The Stranger and thought the conceit and some of the lines were pretty good but why oh why did Billy have to fuck yo some perfectly good lyrics with his… how do I say, nauseating? wretched? approach to melody making? I want to be mad at the record company but honestly it’s the people that bought and kept buying and STILL BUY the records that I’m most mad at. Disappointed in, really.
It’s tough to beat a Billy Joel song when it comes on the jukebox, but a whole album of them at once is too much strained drama for me to really get behind it. I respect the commitment though, and was happy to hear some new ones for me that are fun - especially Get It Right the First Time.
Billy Joel sucks and there's likely not a single song of his that you can't say "Oh, it turns out this is just a second-rate version of ____." This album is his bid for respectability - look at that idiot cover, for fuck's sake, wow so deep - but it is also his bid for mainstream success in a commercial landscape where singer-songwriter stuff, like on his previous albums, was slowly metamorphosing into pure cheese which would culminate with yacht rock a couple years from now. So this kinda sums up Billy Joel to me - someone who wants to be deeply respected as a songwriter, but someone who also wants to make a fuck-ton of money. Those are conflicting desires, and they give us a mixed-bag of shit here, like the "working-class anthem" of "Anthony's Song" (ack-ack-ack-ack-ack) which is less entertaining than Springsteen farting into a microphone, or the retro bullshit of "Only the Good Die Young," or the attempt at observational songwriting in "Scenes from an Italian Restaurant." Stuff like "She's Always a Woman" and "Just the Way You Are" are showing that Joel is plenty good at aping cheese and processing it even further. Terrible stuff. His next two albums are even worse mainstream garbage than this - Huey Lewis both mimicked this stuff and topped it, so that should tell you something - and then Joel remembered he wanted to be a respected songwriter, so he made "The Nylon Curtain," which is one of the most embarrassing albums of all time in its overly-serious shlockiness. Joel's ambition really exceeding his reach there, and then he went right back to aping the style of others with his album of "homages," "An Innocent Man." Good God, that album sucks, but it hit right at a peak boomer midlife crisis moment and kept Joel around. He wanted to say something serious with "The Nylon Curtain" but his idiot boomer audience just wanted their bellies rubbed, so that's what he did with "An Innocent Man," and then he just leaned into midlife-crisis music with his next three albums and retired ("A Matter of Trust," "We Didn't Start the Fire," "River of Dreams" - in these three songs you will find everything you need to know about toxic boomer pathology, but that's an entirely different review!), because he could coast for the rest of his life. He has written TWO songs since 1993, as far as we can tell. He has now been a NON-songwriter for as long as he was a songwriter. He doesn't need to write songs, he can just sell out stadiums playing old crap. So this album is him trying to work out whether or not to sell out. Mostly, he decided to sell out, and frankly, his songwriting chops were only ever good enough to do that. He never would've made it as a serious songwriter with important, interesting things to say. Bob Dylan and Leonard Cohen he is not. Huey Lewis he is.
微妙にダサい
One of the earliest musicians of my early childhood that set me on the path to being drawn to music. All the songs are just embedded in me, and bring up good memories. I have a love-hate relationship with Just the Way You Are, as it's a lovely tune, but the easy listening schmaltz of it all is not something I can listen to in isolation. Within the context of the album flow, it's fine, but not outside of that. Only the Good Die Young is such a happy song - but the lyrics are all about temptation - As a much older adult now I have a different view of the song. Movin' Out and The Stranger are still very precious to me. I'd come around to Scenes From An Italian Restaurant and Vienna later in life. She's Always a Woman remains my favorite song on the album. Such a solid album when listened in it's entirety.
I grew up listening to this album. One my moms favorites. 4/5
A bit too slow for my taste but I do love Billy Joel and enjoyed some of his classics.
Nostalgic sound Happy to rediscover
Compelling storytelling. Fantastic vocals from Billy Joel. The composition let's all instruments shine. From piano, to drums, to guitar. From whistling to singing. I think my favorite song is The Stranger (I'm assuming the derivative of the album art). Joel tells a story about himself and his lover both keeping a secret identity or part of themselves from each other. Then one day he comes home and doesn't recognize his lover as she has let The Stranger out. But he can't be mad because he has The Stranger inside him as well. The Stranger has kicked him right between his eyes. Joel just has such a poetic way of telling real relatable stories behind metaphors. So yeah this album is fire.
Fun piano ballads, Elton John ish? Although I've never really listened to him so couldn't say for certain. Enjoyed it. Five star rating system is too primitive as I keep rating them all 3 star
Bangers on bangers. Movin' Out, The Stranger, Scenes from Italian restaurant, and Vienna
Had this album growing up; it was a favorite then too!
A wonderful journey through a soundscape of contemplation.
Some of Joel's best work! Fantastic album.
I know all of these songs really well, by osmosis I guess. I suppose there was a time in my youth that I would have put on a Billy Joel album willingly, but that time is not now. I’m giving this a 3 because I can sing along to almost all of the songs, but it is a begrudging 3.
When will you realize, vienna waits for you.
I’ve heard track 1 enough times to know I’m all set on not listening to this. That track makes me feel like I’ve lived in this one small town in New Jersey in the '70s for much longer than I wanted. Mama, I’m leaving.
Straight banger
what a beautiful album!
I thought it would be 3 stars. Then I conceded to 4. Then I admitted it was 5 stars. He's a GOAT in his genre. I may not mainline the music but mad respect is given.
Billy Joel is an icon. There’s so many hits on this album that are all frequently played on the radio, on television, radio, etc. It’s almost like a “Greatest Hits” album except he has other albums with a ton more hits!
It was alright. Started strong, grew a bit boring around half-way through, ended with a bang.
This is the most tolerable Billy Joel record. Some good songs, but the bad ones are really bad. Case in point “Get it right the first time” yuck. He didn’t get it right the first time
Listened to this while playing Calico solo against scenario 4. I lost. This album was sooooo much better than i was expecting it to be! I had never given him much attention before. As a pianist, I owned the sheet music to his "classical" album, which I just was not a fan of. I hated it when people would perform "Piano Man" and I'd have to accompany. The sheet music is an absolute nightmare in the way that it is layer out, and for being a song called "Piano Man" it was really boring to play. Soooo...I had this preconceived negative bias against Billy Joel's music. This album was pretty darn fantastic though. So many recognizable songs...such great song writing and lyricism. This may be the best of Billy Joel's music that I've heard.
Very good album. Knew most of them already, but learned a few as well.
Slow but really fun and classic
I’m not a fan of Billy Joel, but this album is wonderful. It has all the hits.
Didn’t resonate at all with me this. Very MOR pop music. The sort of thing an Aunty or Uncle would stick on on a Sunday afternoon in the 90s (I can attest to that). Quite enjoyed the first track but that was it, the rest reminded me of Elton John. 1.5
I got Billy Joel and Billy Idol mixed up, so I was very disappointed rebel yell wasn't on this. Lots of songs on this I'd put in the 'American Pie' bucket of hugely famous, overplayed songs that are painfully bland and get on my nerves. Otherwise it was very much American 80s standards, bit too much saxophone than is necessary, just not my thing.