Reviews (page 13 of 14)
Ok
Highlights: "Movin' Out," "Get It Right the First Time," "Always a Woman," "Vienna" As a musical voice, he has trouble getting out from under McCartney and Wonder. The ideas that elevate him from schmaltz are very much in their style. Sure, he is a great performer. The songs have a lot of movement, and he knows how to grab the rhythm in phrases and pull a catchy melody out of them left and right. In that sense, using music to make thoughts felt, his lyrics are very good. But as a vaunted capital-s Songwriter he falls flat. Every song has absolutely zero subtext -- the nuance of a Wiki page about the title, and more than a little narrative confusion. Between the absence of a distinct personal style and any interesting non-musical ideas, it's just a good torchbearing.
Själfull, eftertänksamt
Day 117 The fact that I always thought that Billy Joel was Lionel Ritchie should sound anecdotal nowadays but it did happen. I heard The Stranger for the first time in maybe 2017; I was checking a list of supposedly good records that you could find for just one dollar; they also had Boston, Styx, and Blue by Joni Mitchell, among others I can't remember right now; I listened to it (and all the other albums on that list) once and kind of liked it. In the next couple of weeks I found it in a one dollar bin and bought it. I guess they don't have those bins anymore, or at least not with somehow listenable music in them. Anyhow, I took The Stranger home and played it. Only once. I was deceived, I didn't dislike it but I didn't enjoy it either. It sounded just meh, just like some generic AOR from the 70s. Listening to it now I can understand why this album sold so much at the time: it's all very pretty, easy on the ears, warm. Maybe he's a great songwriter, maybe these songs are all very well written and executed, but it's nothing more than just that, a pleasant listen. Rating: 2 bucks, because of the inflation.
Good work here by the singing pugilist
Billy Joel innit.
Decent elevator music or nostalgia-filled music for 40+ yo boomers. Either way this album is just in the middle of the pack, not great not terrible. Just not very memorable
esse álbum é tão chique, me senti um rico com seu vinho falando coisas fúteis. muito bom, mas não é algo que eu repetiria ultimamente.
I enjoyed. A classic album with some well known hits. All very listenable but wouldn’t want to hear all of them on the radio.
Somehow I'm not convinced of the sincerity, but most of the songs are good. Favorite song: She's always a woman
Leppoisaa piano rockia, mitäpä muuta. Tutunkuuloista viheltelyä vikassa kappaleessa ja Vienna oli ehkä paras
Pretty good
C'est réducteur comme comparaison, mais j'avais un peu l'impression d'écouter une version moins bonne d'Elton John. Je ne trouve pas ça mauvais, mais il manque un petit quelque chose pour vraiment m'accrocher. Clairement Joel est super talentueux, mais je pense tout simplement que son style est moins dans mes cordes. Objectivement, c'est un bon album et je comprends son inclusion. 6/10
WSFMs entire playlist. Still fun
weird sexy saxophone
Better than I was expecting! Of course I'm familiar with Billy Joel, but gun to my head I don't think I could name too many of his songs. Reading the tracklist, I saw "Only the Good Die Young" and was looking forward to that, but there were others on here that I liked too, and "Vienna" was for sure one other that I know pretty well (but never knew the name). A good cinematic quality to this album and the music, the guy knows how to put good music together. I also really like the notion of a piano man, a pianist who's a classic pop/rock staple is rare among all the guitarists. Wouldn't mind another album from Billy. Favorite tracks: Only the Good Die Young, Vienna, Just the Way You Are. Album art: Black and white, but I really like the creepy mask on the pillow. Billy kind of looks like a mix between Paul McCartney and Sylvester Stallone in this shot, not sure if that holds up. 3.5/5
Some really nice tunes here, will listen to more
Good morning, you're listening to Smooth Radio and I'm (insert name of inoffensive DJ). What your mum was listening to in the 80s. and 90s. And probably still now. Well crafted and interesting enough for one listen I guess, but I won't be back. Ack ack ack etc.
Best Song: Only the Good Die Young. Nostalgic (for me), with the catchiest chorus in an album of catchy choruses. Worst Song: She's Always a Woman. An absolute Iowa field's worth of corny. Overall: Great little storytelling songs sung by a voice that's very easy to listen to. Music that feels safe in a good way. Like Ol' Billy's just having a good time playing music, and he wants you to have fun too. And I did. I did have fun.
Great original songwriting here. I like the songwriting more than the songs, though, if you understand. Definitely always alright, just sometimes feels below his level.
I knew more of it than I expected. Great stuff.
There are great songs on this, but there's something that stops a lot of them from feeling great that I can't put my finger on. Still, a very good collection
Solid classic
Starts off very groovy, then he discovers sad piano keys which I also liked but not as much
it was alright moviing out is really good though
Hmm ihan kivaa musiikkia, mutta lyriikat oli hämmentäviä välillä. Onneksi pysyi menevänä, muuten sakottaisin enemmän.
Didnt finish it all the way but billy has got some good jams on this one dawg
Was alright, recognised one or two songs. Good easy listening music that's easy to enjoy.
Not to my tastes but can appreciate some of the craft. Like an American Elton John.
It was fine. Just wasn’t my cup of tea really. I know this album was impactful and extremely well done, it’s just that the genre wasn’t my thing.
Expecting better really. Some good songs, some just filler.
Its pretty decent TBF, but still carries that aged Radio 4 production type.
Some hits here, for sure, but late 70's pop not my thing. I've tried.
The piano is pretty, but so few of these songs hook me in. It's hard to avoid comparing one piano-based rocker to another, but somehow Elton John takes way cheesier material and makes it awesome, where Billy Joel's lyrics are way better yet his songs lack the same wow-factor. Talent all over the place but barely ever amounts to more than sounding like elevator muzak.
I appreciate his talent for songwriting, he is really good at what he is doing. However this album was too sugary pop-rock for my taste. It's not one of those albums I would relisten again soon.
Lots of hits. I can’t do as good a job as Klosterman discussing the merits of Billy Joel.
Doesn't do much for me, but nevertheless a half decent attempt at being a singer- songwriter. It lacks much in the way of edge and grit which you get with others you may want to compare against.
3.5
Honestly, based off the two first songs I thought this would be a 5/5 but there's a few really bland omes in there. Vienna is nice though.
eh, i mean it’s legend…but not my fave.
I knew a few songs. Not bad. Good background music. Don't love it, don't have it. 6-7/10
I liked this one somewhat. Not really my type, but nice enough and better than the average song on the radio. No real dislikes. Knew several songs coming in, none on my list and none added. Overall an enjoyable listen. 6/10
First off this is a great sounding record. Mixed real well. The acoustic guitar textures are almost materializing in front of me on tracks like "Just the Way You Are" and "Scenes from An Italian Restaurant". There are some great grooves on this album with "Movin' Out (Anthony's Song)" "Get It Right the First Time" (had me bobbing my damn head all over the place), and the aforementioned Italian restaurant song. But I think this one won't make it past a 3/5 rating for me as I just felt like I couldn't relate to it. I can't pinpoint a singular reason why that is but it's the case. Maybe because it feels like musical music? A theme I've used as a crutch to describe why I don't like an album a lot. Maybe it's *too* 80s? I just feel like if I'm stack ranking piano based classic pop music I'd put Elton at the top and Randy (I just love Randy) in second then Billy in third, possibly even further down. Burt Bacharach and Elvis Costello just put out a record that I can vibe with way more than The Stranger. Anyway, there's certainly good stuff in here. "Only the Good Die Young" is objectively a classic fun track to dance around to. "Movin' Out" even more so (at least in my opinion). But these are the more upbeat tracks that harken other artists and not Mr. Joel himself which kind of signals to me that I'd rather listen to other artists. Another one that I totally get why it's someone's dad's favorite album of all time but unfortunately I'm not somebody's dad.
I am someone’s dad, but this isn’t my favorite album either. Still, how can you argue with so many huge hits? Here’s how: I am familiar with almost every song, and I like most of them, but none of them are a favorite song. None of them really move me. If Piano Man had been on here it’d be totally different. The closest one for me is actually Scenes from and Italian Restaurant. It reminds me of some great restaurants in NYC (and I’m actually sitting in my favorite restaurant in NYC as I written this). Good but not great.
Nice album with some delitious songs. "Just the way you are" is wanderful.
Enjoyed it. 3 stars.
I enjoyed this one. Every song was sound I’d say. ‘Vienna’ and ‘Always a Woman’ are my stand outs. Strong 3
The title song is great, along with a couple other ones like moving out and vienna. The others are a little bland
3.5/5
3+
Much piano. Much familiar actually, didn't realise
Better than expected. Few great songs, few that just kind of meandered on. 3 stars
Broadwaypop för radion att spela när du är tio och sitter och väntar på att maten ska bli klar. Och just i den genren är det ok.
I don't like Billy Joel as a rule but there's clearly some well written songs on here. There's also some awful cheesy shite that even in the 70s he should have known better
Never listened to this album. Probably heard the songs from it but post 2006 I've only listened to Billy Joel 7 times. Artist #1459 pre listening to this A bit "musical theatre" for my taste tbh
A masterclass in 70s pop/songwriting. Inoffensive tunes with great lyrics. Solid record.
A few good Joel songs. Just hard to listen to a straight album of Joel
Very much a late 70s easy listening classic
Decent in places
The generator refuses to let me out of the 1970s. 6 out of the 7 albums from the past week have been from this decade. Please, move to a different decade. This album was fine. Favorite song: “Movin’ Out (Anthony’s Song)”.
Started strong but by the end felt a bit tired.
"Movin' Out" and "Vienna" are huge, but I kind of lost interest half way through. I have nothing else to say about this album, so I'll just casually mention that I've never heard the song "Piano Man" before.
Upbeat, pop friendly, just a Billy Joel album. Didn’t know “Just the way you are” is a Billy Joel original though
I’m not a Billy Joel fan, but I enjoy a few of the songs on this album.
Kinda bland inoffensive old pop rock
I feel like Billy Joel has never quite "clicked" for me. I think, listening to this, it's because I don't feel like his voice matches his songs: to song songs that are a little cheesy, you need to have a voice that just overpowers the feeling of cheesiness. If he could sing like Freddie Mercury, I'd love his stuff. But it comes off a little too earnest, and so it doesn't quite do it for me.
Haven't really listened to much Billy Joel, and this was kinda meh. Not great, not bad.
Movin' Out and Only the Good Die Young are good but Just the Way You Are is oof.
This LP gets off to a hella strong start with 'Movin' Out' and co., a snappy number that my dad loved to parody in my younger years. Nostalgia aside, that streak does continue throughout most of the album even as it wanders through more contemplative tracks such as 'Scenes.' Does get a little cheesy near the end with sappier ballads, but overall the album is still impressive for how much variation in melodic ideas and tempo Joel gets to flex on.
Italian Restaurant och Vienna va kiva
Bill
Billy Boel
i have heard this too many times and im not going to listen to it again
7/10 Uph lag: She’s always a woman Góð background-læra tónlist, svoldið löng lög og þekki þau ekki
It's ok.
Enjoyable album, competently produced, classic tunes. Very of its era. Great songwriting but lacks edge for me.
Billy Joel is an artist I always enjoy listening to and will never choose to listen to. Not sure why, his music is fine, but just never really tickles my fancy enough to want to come back I guess.
Not a huge billy Joel fan. Not bad. Moving out. Some good songs, scenes from an Italian restaurant, the stranger.
is ok
Eh. Not my favorite.
It was fine... Lyrically I can see that there's a lot of skill there, but unfortunately I found some of the songs to be a bit boring so I often zoned out of listening to the lyrics anyway. Maybe I'm just not American enough to really "get" the hype around Billy Joel. Favourite: Get It Right the First Time
Sì, ok… ma dopo un po’ che palle
Enjoyed: yes Listens: 2 Wasn't two bad, just sounds like it was made for musical theatre
It's OK. The title track gives me Steely Dan vibes. I also get some McCartney-esque pastiche vibes. Nothing here is as offensive as Springsteen but I'm not really inspired by the characters Joel creates.
am happy with this album. methinks it sounds a bit like iggy pop? i wonder if he was inspired by him or not.
Not bad
Demasiado pop, pero con algunas inoxidables.
Not a huge Billy Joel fan, but heard much of his songs.
Enpä ollut aikaisemmin kuunnellut Bilin soolomatskua enkä tiennyt moisen olevan edes olemassa. Viihdyttävä ja helposti kuunneltava, mutta jotain jäi puuttumaan noustakseen meikäläisen kirjoissa mestariteoksien (tai edes vähän alusta) joukkoon.
pour aucune raison valable je confonds billy joel et bon jovi et la terre continue de tourner
I don't really know how to rate this. Obviously it's good and earns its spot on this list. But I also don't care.
Enjoyed this more than I anticipated. Wish I could give half stars cause I would rate this one a three and a half, half, half, half, half. You oughta know by now.
a lot of Billy Joel classics on this one
Great sounding record, not my type of music but a lot of recognizable songs.
Bien, agradable. Just the Way You Are.
Pretty good fare from Billy boy
I actually paid attention to the lyrics, they’re really fun here
Mon premier Billy Joel. Les deux premières pièces sont excellentes. Je ne suis pas un fan des chansons Just The Way You Are ou She’s Always A Woman, mais elles fonctionnent bien et restent en tête, donc c’est une réussite en terme de mélodies. Le saxophone et la clarinette sont un peu too much dans l’album (la flûte est pas mal limite). Donc inégal comme album, mais pas totalement déçu. Pièces préférées: Movin’ Out, The Stranger, Get It Right The First Time
Some beautiful songs that I hadn’t even realised were Billy Joel.
26th May 2022 Listened during the day while working from home and back and forth from the supermarket. Chilled in the evening. Love a bit of Billy Joel! Piano and voice are great and his lyrics are fun.
Decent album, have heard a number of the songs before.
I liked this WAY more than I thought I would!
Very popular in the junior high school days. Just The Way You Are brings back all the memories. It is a very good song. I always had a problem with the lyrics to Only The Good Die Young. It reminded me of my Catholic school going friend. I thought it was unkind to her. Then he cheated on his beautiful, seemingly kind wife- ah, but we are here to discuss the music. The songwriting is good, very catchy tunes, creative lyrics. Produces an overall nice, sentimental feeling. Gotta like it then.
I’ve always preferred Elton to Billy but this album is sort of undeniable. I love when goes ack ack ack ack like Cathy.
Movin' Out is one of my favorite Billy Joel songs. I learned about the song in college when I had a roommate who used to play it on his piano. In many ways, it feels like Billy Joel took Paul McCartney's 1965-1975 piano-focused songs and continued to refine into the late-70s and 80s better than Sir Paul ever could have. Good for him. I also know that - also taking McCartney's tactics a step further - Joel was a total jerk to his studio and live bands. Which sucks. For me, Billy Joel is more of a Greatest Hits artist. The album tracks sound just as good but the songs aren't quite there. His talent and worth are never in question, but based on the criteria of competence not artistry - if that makes sense. So, I sorta get 3-4 songs into a record and then I'm bored. As a result, 3/5 ain't bad for BJ.
This is Billy Joel's fifth album and it's considered to be his critical and commercial breakthrough album. The Stranger won Record of the Year at the 1978 Grammy's and has been certified diamond in the US for sales. This pop rock album contains some of Billy Joel's most popular songs, including "Vienna" and "Scenes from an Italian Restaurant". I liked the atmosphere that this album created while listening to it, but only a few of the songs stuck out to me as great. I think I may be a little too young to fully enjoy the genius work of Billy Joel, because there's a lot of praise for this album, that I think is somewhat forgettable.
Meh
Started off well. Then many songs that sounded like intros to a soap TV series. Some songs were decent. Didn't like the last 2 really. Overall not an amazing album.
Okay.
Not bad, there was some nice songwriting here, but I doubt I'll ever return to it. Still better than Springsteen.
A nice pop album, with a very punchy, strong and catchy A-side. Unfortunately, along the next part of the ride, there are songs that are rather average and a bit annoying like Only The Good Die Young. Maybe "The Stranger" is an overrated album or I'm just not a fan of Billy Joel? I don't know.
I can't really complain about this album it's a fine album. Am I a fan? No. But that doesn't change the fact that the guy makes some fun adult contemporary pop albums. For me he's a poor man's Randy Newman. Anyway a pleasant uneventful listen...3.5 🌟
Enjoyed, not bad
Never thought I'd rate a Billy Joel album higher than a Jimi Hendrix album, but here we are.
Fin un peu molle, mais pas mal Prefs: Movin' Out (Anthony's Song), The Stranger, Just The Way You Are, Scenes from an Italian Restaurant, Vienna Moins pref: Only the Good Die Young
I don't understand what Billy Joel is I don't think
Some great songs, yet spectacularly unfashionable. I liked the storytelling narrative that runs throughout. It reminded me of Meat Loaf without all the ridiculous posturing. Quite uplifting and cheery - not my usual thing. A very odd album cover art.
The Stranger is seen as a concept album of sorts but I don't see it as such, what I see is a an album filled with immediately familiar, pop, radio ready, songs which Billy Joel has become known for. The album has a something for everyone, formula perfect pop songs that are waiting to be sung at weddings, songs that make you want to get up and move, and songs that would fit perfectly on Broadway. While all the songs are not my taste there is no denying these songs were written for the masses. While I may not be a fan of Just the Way You Are it was the song of the year and it remains hugely popular. Regardless of what your musical taste at some point while listening through this album you will be singing along. Favorite songs: Only the Good Die Young, Movin' Out. 3 stars
If Billy Joel is one thing, it's earnest, which can be a double-edged sword. He's obviously a talented piano player, and songs like Movin' Out, Vienna and Only the Good Die Young have an undeniable charm. But the album is all over the map. I love a third of it, I could take or leave another third of the tracks and then want to skip the other third. Thankfully I'm no longer in the walkman era where I have to manually skip Just the Way You Are every time, but the playlist era where I can put Movin' Out on my "Songs that say Ack ack ack ack" on them. Fav tracks: Movin' Out, Vienna, and Only the Good Die Young
Ah, Billy Joel. Our love-hate relationship continues with a mighty fury! He certainly knows his way around a melody, and when everything clicks into place, it makes for a moving and memorable experience (Only the Good Die Young, Movin' Out). But the schmaltz factor is real (Just the Way You Are, Scenes from an Italian Restaurant). Curiously, She's Always A Woman feels like it occupies the exact middle ground between his best and worst impulses. Favourite tracks: Movin' Out, Only the Good Die Young
Not my cup of Tea - Very middle of the road
Not my fave Billy Joel album
not something i would normally listen to, but not bad. piano music with dude singing
Easy listening—nothing stood out, except maybe the guitar on “She’s Always a Woman”.
Not really my thing - ok background music
The first cassette tape I bought was Billy Joel's "An Innocent Man". I'm sure that "Only the Good Die Young" from The Stranger had helped me decide that Joel was someone worth listening two. I've listened to 3 or 4 other studio albums, but never to the Stranger. There are only two tracks from The Stranger ("Get It Right the First Time", "Everybody Has a Dream") that I don't think I've heard before. 6 of the tracks I recognized just from their titles. I didn't think I had heard the title track before, but when I pulled up Joel's Greatest Hits vols. I & II (which I have listened to several times) I saw that "The Stranger" is on side 1. Joel has talent, and most of the music is likeable, but I've heard most of the tracks often enough to not see a need to re-visit this album.
Songs from this album last a long shadow over the pop landscape of the 1980s. The Stranger partly feels like a concept album, about that Italian restaurant, but then there are standalone pop moments. I can't abide "Just the Way You Are" - a now four-time divorced man telling women "don't go changing". But the title track is enjoyable, once its disco grooves get going.
Eh.
Sommige nummers mooi, ook aardig wat nummers die ik matig vind
Twee pianomannen achter elkaar is wel iets too much, maar ik kan Billy wel waarderen
Lush sounds, very smooth, not really my cup of tea but not awful
Only the Good Die Young and always a woman are the better tracks of this album, overall pretty good album. 7/10
The first track slaps. There's a sort of Paul McCartney vibe. Carries on with a sort of Clapton feel. Just the way you are is cheesy bullshit. Where it works, the album is solid easy listening rock, but where it fails its soulless cliche. Good - Movin' Out (Anthony's Song), Only the Good Die Young. Bad - Just the way you are, She's Always a Woman.
Typical rock pop English songs (Elton John style)
Ovo je dobar album, nije mi u potpunosti super, jednostavno je onak, okej za poslušati. Paše album. Yep, znao sam da sam negdje čuo The Stranger sample, i pogodio sam - ako ikog zanima to je kod Xzibitove - Foundation (super pjesma btw).
A great 'easy' soft rock album, but it's too cheesy and corny for me at times. My top pick is 'Only the Good Die Young', I like that it's bit more upbeat than some of the other tracks. This is more of a 3.5 really, but it's not quite for my tastes.
I can't really complain about this album it's a fine album. Am I a fan? No. But that doesn't change the fact that the guy makes some fun adult contemporary pop albums. For me he's a poor man's Randy Newman. Anyway a pleasant uneventful listen...3.5 stars
Billy Joel is a good singer and his songs are allright. In this album, the best is "Movin' out".
Can't deny the talent of the guy, but in general it's a bit too smooth for me. I have a few songs I like by Billy Joel but overall a bit too soft rock for me.
Kærlighedsballader, flygler og en slesk gut. Men jeg kan sgu godt lide viben! En stor 3'er.
glimrende softrock/poprock
I liked this more than I thought I would
Great ballads and a few rock tunes. A few songs were a bit indistinguishable, but others were peak-McCartney-level writing.
Was already on my favourite albums list. Pop album. Some interesting lyrics, but not that much inspiring when it comes to melodies.
I like Billy Joel generally and I find people who hate him tedious. A lot of it is worn out for me (I don't ever need to hear Piano Man again and the less said about who started the fire the better), and the only album I routinely listen to is Glass Houses. This is all right and has some classics on it but also some pretty typical filler.
No stranger to The Stranger
This works for unobtrusive background music for people of a certain age
3.5
Masterful pop melodies, and delightful slice of life songwriting. Sometimes gets a bit cloying. Also basically a Ray Davies / Paul McCartney rip-off.
decent
Gutes Album. Eher freudige Stimmung mit genug Abwechslung bei ähnlicher Stimmung in den Liedern
Pěkný piano. Nejlepší název písně Scenes from an Italian Restaurant. Hudebně nejzajímavější Only the Good Die Young. Jinak mi přijde, že nic, co by si člověk zapamatoval.
Good chill music, surprised how many songs I knew off the album
Singles are great! Rest of album a bit sameish
Some classic songs! She's Always a Woman was weird. I already knew I wasn't much of a Billy Joel fan but I wouldn't deny those who see the appeal.
Liked the more sentimental songs, didnt fancy the rock
Hmmm, some of these are catchy.... Probably a 3.
It was okay. Not my style but I didn't hate it.
Not loving this one. Anthony's Song and The Stranger bang but like...the back 3/4 of this album are ballads and are a bit boring imo without a lot to pull you through the end of the album, lots of energy lost quickly after the stranger. But still I love his voice and they're good arrangements.
Enjoyed this more than I thought I would
Didn't quite reach 4 stars as a collective for me but there were 2 or 3 individual songs that would hit 4 or maybe 5 stars easily
I really didn't expect to like this. But it was enjoyable. Good album.
On dirait je sais pas quoi dire. Elton John et Paul McCartney = BILLY JOEL. C’est bon, mais je tombe pas à terre. Encore un mauvais choix de CD quand y’a plein de chansons beaucoup plus connues.
Meh
Levy oli sellaista ihan ok tavaraa. Ei jäänyt hirveästi käteen tästä. Osa kappaleista oli ihan pirtsakkaakin menoa, helppoa kuunneltavaa. Oli tämä parempi kuin edellisen päivän Elvis Costellon Brutal youth. Tällä kontrastilla kolme tähteä.
Lots of Home Depot classics on here. I never realized it before but he really sounds like a knockoff Elton John with hints of Steely Dan. Lots of classic tunes and fairly fun to listen to but the songwriting is just. So cheesy.
Saying 'I don't want clever conversation, I want you just the way you are' is not the compliment he was intending. Generally didn't like the lyrics much but it was a bop. 3+ , it gets points for having Only The Good Die Young
I thought there were a few songs that were quite good, but the album as a whole, less so. I don't know that long, slow songs are really Billy Joel's strong suit. Strongly considered giving it a 4 anyway
Some of my favorite Billy Joel songs on this on. Still, it’s Billy Joel.
Bueno, para un día tonto...
Une découverte, de belles mélodies et une belle ambiance avec une belle voix. Je pensais ça serait pépère mais non. Je l’évite: she is a women to me Ouff pénible à écouter Je lévite Moovin out, scène from italien restaurant
A solid 3.5
He sings really really well. A bit of a David Bowie The beatles-wanna be, but still, I liked overall and enjoyed listening to it
Another just fine album. It's not great. It's not terrible. Would I miss it if I never heard it again? No. Only the Good Die Young and Moving Out I like but those are what gets this into the "fine" category.
Más o menos entretenido. Muy bonita "Just the way you are". Como música de fondo tranquilita y poco más.
Rock pop. Suave. Melódico.
Elton John vibes. Some nice classics
meh
boy, that guy sure can whistle. i really don't care for his music, though i'm sure he is also a very nice person. this MAY help me to learn the difference between him and elton john. the fact that i have never really been able to tell is something i am neither proud nor ashamed of.
Not a big billy joel fan
I hate Piano Man so I've had preconceived notions of Billy Joel. This was not a bad album and I'm surprised how many songs I knew.
I like that ackackackackack song and a couple of others on here are singalongs. I like the one where he tells his wife or girlfriend or something that he doesn’t want her to be smart and for her just to remain the same.
Heard it before, not for me
boring but got a couple bangers
Tänään tein havainnon että Billy Joel ja Billy Idol ovat kaksi eri henkilöä. Jotenkin olin onnistunut kuvittelemaan että sama superbilly on Piano Manin ja Rebel Yellin takana. Tämä ruotsinlaivabilly oli ihan mukavaa kuunneltavaa vaikkei elämysmittari punaisella värähdellytkään. Levyn avausbiisi oli paras ja Vienna etäisesti tuttu.
A bit too poppy for my taste, but the production and audio engineering is very pleasing to the ear. A few good tunes I enjoyed, but still too much pop for me.
7/10
3.5 stars. better than i expected, not life changing. storytelling. highlights movin out only the good die young.
I can't help but think of The Boys / Hughie and it kind of ruins this album and Billy Joel for me.
3.5
its alright not really that great imo
Really feeling Vienna right now
OOO OOAAH OAH OAAAAA
Bäst: Scenes from an Italian Restaurant.
Billy Joel songs all sound like they’re rejected musical numbers for an audience that thinks the Sopranos is an aspirational show
..
#389 Fuck you, Billy. Over the course of this album, you made me realise this wasn’t going to be a harmless listen, instead you made me realise that you wrote ‘Just the Way You Are’, which is bad enough but also lyrically suggests he has no interest in the subject intellectually; furthermore, he’s also responsible for ‘She’s Always a Woman’. Also that Italian restaurant song can get in the bin. Just be thankful I’m in a good mood and didn’t get the full one star treatment. Heard before? ❌ Would I revisit? ❌ Listen before you die? ❌ Fave track(s): n/a Rating: 3/10 ⭐️⭐️
Piano rock and singer-songwriter pop built from melodic piano, polished band arrangements, tasteful saxophone, and expressive vocals feels like listening to a charismatic storyteller who never notices you've stopped paying attention as the stories keep unfolding one after another—warm, accomplished, but for me ultimately too long-winded to stay engaging. The songwriting is undeniably skillful, yet I found it increasingly difficult to remain invested as the album went on.
I wanted to like this because everyone seems to love Billy Joel, but I thought it was kinda boring.
Some good songs, some okay songs, some awful songs
see al green review
I will never enjoy listening to Billy Joel; this confirms that. I recognize that these are well-performed songs. I just don't enjoy them. Maybe if I paid more attention to what he's singing about. But I enjoy the music so little that I can't locate any interest in making the effort to listen to what he's signing about.
Just not really a fan
Dentist waiting room music? Honestly something about Billy Joel has always rubbed me the wrong way. Some of the lyrics strike me as judgemental.
Tarzım değil
Para nada es un mal álbum, pero no es lo mío, un par de buenos tracks
Chill typ
a bit naff, he should stick to writing songs. He whistled on two tracks!! was there any need? ruined an otherwise mediocre album.
I thought that ack ack ack thing he did in the first song was cool, but the rest was just a bit too milquetoast for me.
3 highlights (singles?) in an ordinary pop album, nice but not great. 1. The Stranger 2. Just the Way You Are 3. She's Always A Woman
Fucking hell...just no! Heard before ❌️ Listened this time ✅️ Revisit ❌️ ★★☆☆☆ (4/10) Total reviewed : 307 Already owned : 69 Purchased : 15 To buy : 4 Nope : 219
I have just never been a fan. The album is good enough, but it doesn't click with me.
mr pianoman echt mid mn vaders quote: "dit is echt niks"
begint goed, eindigt beetje saai?? vooral het liedje the stranger is goed.. groovy boy maar de rest is saai
2 stars for the 2 standout songs the rest just made me want to tell at Billy Joel to shut the fuck up
Very middle of the road. The audio equivalent of shopping at M and S.
Meh it was nice at points but just a bit boring
I liked a few songs off this album but it is not really my favourite genre hence the low rating. The following songs, I liked and I would listen to them again. I know Billy Joel is very influential, talented and contributed a lot to music but it's not really my taste in music. Scenes from an Italian Restaurant Vienna Only the Good Die Young
It's fine, but has aged poorly. After the first few songs it just sounds corny
2,5
Album #76, Billy Joel, The Stranger, ⭐⭐ Ah look, this is not my bag at all. I’m sorry to any Billy Joel fans out there. This just is not my type of music, this easy listening soft rock stuff. Some of these songs I know, and some of them are actually pretty iconic, but the only one I can say I liked afterwards is maybe Vienna. Even then, I would have no desire to ever put this kind of music on. I was talking to my wife about it, saying that I do really like Elton John, so maybe I should like Billy Joel as well because it feels like the same kind of style, but she disagreed. She thinks they are totally different. I do not really know. Maybe Elton John just has better songs. Maybe it’s a bad comparison. It is technically very good. The musicianship is excellent, and the songs take interesting turns here and there. He is a great singer. But singing about Italian restaurants and what type of wine you want to drink, I am sure there is meaning behind it all, but I just could not be bothered with it. It is not for me. So this is a very subjective two stars. For others it might be a four or a five, but for me it is a two all day. I am just not that interested in it, so I am sorry.
Вполне сносный лёгкий рок, мелодию заглавной песни я точно раньше слышал
Bisschen zu langsam und sad. Gibt mir manchmal Cowboys vibes. Hat mir nicht geholfen beim Lernen.
Parts of this were killer. There are a few hits here that I've long been a fan of, Only the Good Die Young and Moving Out I really enjoyed the 'Brenda and Eddie' segment of Italian Restaurant, which was new to me. There's also some stuff here that's a slog for my tastes. Still, a solid damn album ultimately.
So many nistalgic songs that make you question your life. I did like it and enjoyed listening to it
Saxophone solos, so much maraca, and a bald 30 year old trying to do his best Paul McCartney impression while whinge-singing both cynically and insincerely about Italian-Americans.
Not my CUP of tea
His fifth album. Pop / Rock. Chandler Bing was such a middle of the road, boringly beige man. He was a number cruncher at some faceless corporation, he drank coffee at the same place every single day, could only get laid by his best mates sister and hid his fear of anything unknown or remotely edgy with lame attempts at humour. He is welcome to listen to this middle of the road album as he walks around in his beige outfit harassing women who can clearly see he barely has a wank in him.
eh. Mid.
Jeg er vanligvis svak for den myke vestkystrocken, men dette funka desverre ikke helt. Som regel når jeg gir et album 2, så sitter jeg igjen med enn følelse av irritasjon eller agg. Irritert over at plata er med på lista, eller rett og slett fordi det er et dårlig album. Etter at jeg har hørt dette albumet sitter jeg kun igjen med sympati og vennlighet ovenfor Billy. Man merker at han prøver så godt han kan, og han kan mye og får til mye, han er bare ikke flink nok. Men han skal ha for forsøket!
Nice, I offensive, middle of the road, song writing. Piano is fine - not pushing the boat out, music your nan would probably like.
It wasn’t AS offensive but still not an album I would choose to listen to before I die
A tad cringe. She's always a woman is a great song though
Abuuurrido
Number: 70 Date: 03/13/2026 Artist: Billy Joel Album: The Stranger Year:1977 Genre: Soft Rock Rating: 2 Notes: Before: OMG. I used to like this a little, back when it came out. I don't think I like it at all now but it's been a long time since I listened to any of these songs. My brother was a big fan so I heard it a lot back then. For sure, I don't have nay of these songs on my favorites of 1977. I mean comparing this to Never Mind The Bollocks..., my favorite album from 1977, it's like night and day. Of course I didn't know anything about the Sex Pistols back then and even if I did I probably would have been scared of them. Billy Joel is like the opposite of the Sex Pistols. I wonder what he thought about them back then? During: Well here goes nothing. I'm not looking forward to this but I guess I have to do it. Nothing much to say, I was doing other stuff while listening. After: It wasn't so bad. I did not skip through any of them. I liked the last 20 seconds of The Stranger and the last 1:20 of Everybody Has a Dream. I think that is what Discogs is calling "Untitled", which I gave a 4. 2 Movin' Out (Anthony's Song) 1 The Stranger 3 Just The Way You Are 1 Scenes From An Italian Restaurant 3 Vienna 3 Only The Good Die Young 4 She's Always A Woman 3 Get It Right The First Time 2 Everybody Has A Dream 4 Untitled 2.33 WEIGHTED AVERAGE (accounts for song length) 2 - my personal rating 3 - suitability for this list 2 - relevance ----------------------------- 2 - composite rating
I actually liked this more than I expected too…
Only the Good Die Young can live.
first song was a banger then it becomes a bit crap
This is some trite shit
revisit later 2
Snore. The gospel choirs at the end of the record were nice at least.
Some classics on here and an amazing opening track, but a number of songs are fluff at best. Decent.
Sounds a bit too much like what my parents - if they were still together - would at this point be listening to on a romantic night in, clothes coming off quite rapidly and the camera pans away towards the crackling fireplace. By all means, enjoy your evening, but leave me out of it.
Had a classic song but other than that very slow and boring
I didn’t know he wrote and performed so many songs I can’t stand. Save for one song this was painful.
I’ve only heard a couple of Billy Joel songs. I think that We Didn’t start the Fire song is great. Piano Man isn’t too bad. Movin out (Anthony’s song): 6.6/10 Not too bad. A bit too jolly sounding. The Stranger: 6/10 Just the Way you are: 6.3/10 Scenes from an Italian Restaurant: 6/10 Vienna: 6.1/10 Only the good die young: 6/10 She’s always a woman: 6/10 Get it right the first time: 6/10 Everybody has a dream: 6.4/10
i can appreciate the musicianship on this but i did not gaf about this, sounds like a musical and i hate (most) musicals. All i thought about while listening to the first track was kanye sampling it. I think this might work better if i was drunk. Fav Song: Movin' Out (Anthony's Song)
I was surprised that I actually knew a couple of tracks on this having really paid little to no attention to Billy Joel in my near 47 years on earth. But even those I found a bit drab. I won't maul your face off if you put him on, I just won't come round again.
MOR but not unpleasant.
It was fine, easy, calm listening. But didn't really do anything for me.
billy joel songs feel aggressively unrelatable to me. what the fuck are you talking about man? and why do you have so many versions of the song equivalent of "new york city is a character in the movie?" yuck. the music is mostly nice though.
Not good, not bad. Gave me nothing.
not bac
i didn't care for his voice
Songs on this album are good, I would probably like them if I hadn't grown up hearing them on restaurant Muzak systems and commercials. I'm just sick of most of these.
Hi dad!
I've avoided Billy Joel in the past, and after listening to this one I will continue to avoid him. Not for me, sounded cheesy and poppy and had gimmicky instruments.
Billy gets a lot of play in our house because the children love it. The children also love pouring sand down their pants and chewing on gravel so what do they know?
A few recognizable hits on here, I enjoyed the short term nostalgia. Still, the songwriting on here reminds me of Elton John and the overgratuitous piano banging is just not my thing.
2.5/ - 2 songs stuck out to me but the rest didnt reach deep, Musically soesking it was solid but it didnt speak to me.
Too dramatic for me
Too dramatic for me
A couple good classic jams. Overall a slow vibe.
Boring, not cohesive and uninteresting. Many songs I’d usually skip. I liked the stranger (song). 2/5
All my friends who listen to show tunes love this album. I do not like show tunes, although I will concede that The Stranger is a good song.
not interested
Was okay :/
deu pra entender que ele gosta de um pianinho né enfim, pra mim é bem chato/cansativo/toda música é igual pqp
This album was kinda eh for me. Not bad but nothing too exciting. Favourite song is Vienna but I did know that song prior. 2-3 stars for me Very meh, had to get through the bullshit (Italian Restaurant) to reach the good stuff (Vienna). He has a good voice though.
Has a truly tremendously good album cover. The man looks mournfully down on his delicate doll mask, clown-faced and meaningless; it'll hide the sadness, so he just has to put on the brawling boxing gloves behind him and put on his pretty face. It matches the surprisingly (enjoyably, half the time) bleak tone of these tunes - their plays into tragedy, their anticlimaxes and sadnesses matched to a silky smooth Billy Joel tone.... And fucking none of it is interesting. Each of these songs has 25% of the sauce. I've never seen a man give up in every single fucking song and repeat his 'killer line' in lieu of making a chorus, or finishing the song, or driving the story home (only Scenes From An Italian Restaurant defeats this defeatism, i.e surrendering writing the lyrics contained within defeatist music) and it just such an agonizing technical exhaustion atop exhausting content and I didn't find a lot of joy in this one. To make sure I'm not in danger of making a decent and level-headed review, here's some aggravations; DIRTY JOE and his SAD BOY MUSIC SLOP FAIL to ENERGIZE and FASCINATE Really good album cover though.
Thoroughly elevator music. Vienna is good, and I like the Glee version of Only the Good Die Young, but otherwise a very lackluster album.
Not a fan
Some good hits. Ok in general.
I started off pretty well but then rapidly settled in the mid territory. Not really seeing what the fuss is about even if it wasn't terrible...
It was strange that there were a few songs that I loved and sang along to and the rest I wanted to turn off. To have such highs and lows in one album is not something I have come across before.
Could not finish. In fairness, I tried to listen to this while working out. It mostly made me mad in the same way as Steely Dan does, but not the good kind of anger that propels you to work out like a beast.
Not my style.
ε(^o^)з¸¸♬·¯·♩¸¸♪·¯·♫ | (ಠ_ಠ)┌∩┐ -> ε(´סּ︵סּ`)з
I've only ever heard his singles, never wanted to dig into his albums. He's always come across as a cornball making phony tough guy music for dorks, but it's not the worst music I've ever heard. Listening to this album just strengthened my opinion on him.
Has not changed my pre-existing opinion that this album sucks.
#161/1001. Another musical gap in my life filled, this time in the shape and size of a full Billy Joel album, 9 songs, 42 minutes. How does this fixture protect me from the various atrocities laid upon us by mankind? Weakly. I can't really cling on the saxophone solos, or to the "this must be from a musical" feeling. There is no songs to play to the four horsemen of the apocalypse, or to play on repeat while stuck in limbo waiting for the final verdict: bottle of red, bottle of white - perhaps rose instead? There might be a place and time for this, so I'll give it a second spin when they invent space-time and alternative universe travel.
At a certain point a fella’s gotta pick whether he likes Paul McCartney, Paul Simon, or Billy Joel. One is acceptable, more than one is a problem. I picked Paul McCartney. Sorry Billy, I think this kinda stinks.
Album got off to a good start, and I thought I was about to have another pre conceived view ruined. But it all slowed down too much and got too sickly for me.
Inoffensive
I mean, I like to hate on Billy Joel as much as the next man... I have little to follow up on that. Ok, he writes a good pop song. I don't especially *like* any of them, but it's more tolerable as an entire album than I would have thought.
This man has had too much sax
2,3/5
A couple of good songs, a few bad ones
I've never understood the fascination with America's budget Elton John. At least Movin' Out proved to be excellent sample fodder for Das Racist.
Thought I would hate it then thought I would love it based on the strength of the first song but did not love it. Just felt very overproduced and shiny for no reason. I was actually surprised at how well written most of the songs were but I just really didnt enjoy the production Fav song: Movin Out
Too poppy for me? Ballad-y which I’m not into Always a woman Vienna
Not my favorite due to too much radio play growing up but its got over a billion plays on Spotify
There's some awesome bangers on there, but found some of the lyrics a bit odd ie. 'catholic girls' etc.
I've had a visceral dislike for Billy Joel since hearing Uptown Girl and Just The Way You Are. I have never listened to a whole album and was not looking forward to it, even more so when I saw The Stranger was from 1977, the year punk broke, where there was so much good music being released. It was better than I was fearing and I enjoyed Vienna and She's Always A Woman but some of the tracks were dreadful, particularly Only The Good Die Young and Get It Right The First Time. I'm relieved to see this is his only album on the list. It wasn't quite as bad as I expected, but I in no hurry to listen to it again. 1.7 stars rounded up to 2.
meh
En mycket skicklig melodisnickrare, definitivt. Men jag behöver också lite som skaver. Det blir rätt tråkigt.
This album is just Boomer suburbanism in its purest form. A few decent tracks, I guess.
Eher langweilig und auch gar nicht mein Geschmack.
Only the good die young is one of the only Billy Joel songs I like. However I know a majority of this album, but don't care for it.
This album was a relatively good surprise. I only knew Billy Joel through his cheesy 80s hits, so I expected something terrible. But The Stranger was something else. It’s a surprising mix of influences, with some very 70s music and a few interesting experimentations that probably helped define the sound of the 80s. The first couple of songs were really good, but the rest of the album was unfortunately less exciting, and some song were very forgettable. I had a reasonnably pleasant moment overall ; but ultimately, it’s really not my kind of music, nothing really struck a chord or made me excited. I’ll give it a 2* for effort and originality, but I can’t go higher, since I’m pretty sure I won’t listen again.