The Stranger

God damn this is awful! Something about Billy Joel's music makes me want to commit violent crimes.

Billy Joel still annoys the piss outta me

I'm bored out of my mind.

Miserable, trite and why is nothing EVER his fault? Meh, Meh, Meh

Billy Joel you say? Well he’s a pretty big name and I know some of his work so must have some decent songs right? Well if he does then none of them are on this album. Utter dross. So depressed right now I’m considering trying some Pere Ubu to lift my spirits as that can’t be any worse than this surely?

PLAY SOMETHING FROM THE STRANGER! 1980s doo wop Billy Joel sucks! Moving’ Out (Anthony’s Song) is one of the better Billy Joel songs, has an Abbey Road vibe to it. Good lyrics, catchy tune, stupid motorcycle sounds. I have a feeling every song after this is going to pale in comparison to the first one. Whistling very rarely adds anything positive to a song, Patience by Guns N’ Roses, Ennio Morricone scores and that song Darryl Hannah whistles in Kill Bill is pretty much it. Just the Way You Are, another hit. This sounds like the defining song of adult contemporary radio. This is Wonderful Tonight for people that got old in the 70s. Damn, this album has a lot of his hits. Scenes from an Italian Restaurant is so corny. What is with the use of all the smooth jazz saxophone? 1977 must have been a truly dismal year for music or Grammy voters must have felt like proving once and for all that they are truly the biggest morons alive. Only the Good Die Young sucks. This song is way overrated. This is one of his biggest hits and it is truly awful. The idea of Billy Joel running with a dangerous crowd is hilarious. Him and Fred Durst are equally fake hardos. She’s Always a Woman to Me is awful too. This album has a lot of his career defining hits and almost all of them are terrible. Everybody Has a Dream is an improvement over most of the rest of the album, good to close on a high note.

So overrated

Oh hell no.

Nope

Just horrible, cheesy and over rated. Better than Elton John, but only just. And a whistling solo is a crime by the way.

During the course of *The Sopranos*, one episode mentions that Tony Soprano and his wife Carmela have booked tickets for a Billy Joel concert. Although we never see them go to the gig (this happens between episodes), I remember telling myself that I should listen to a Billy Joel album one day, just to see if there were hidden references or cultural tidbits there that this favourite TV series of mine could have sprinkled elsewhere. And sure enough, the New Jersey setting of *The Stranger*'s opener "Movin' Out" (a well-put rock track with memorable vocal and instrumental hooks) sounded familiar to me. The mere fact that the secondary title of this cut is called "*Anthony*'s Song" even suggests that David Chase could have found inspiration in that tune to name his lead character. Tony Soprano's tastes for the most commercially viable strands of boomer rock indeed align with Billy Joel's offerings on this record. And I have a sneaking suspicion Chase and his writers were being ironic when they made Tony a fan of Joel. Even though it's sometimes difficult to distinguish irony form earnestness in the show, including for its soundtrack or musical references... That said, the lyrics of second track "The Stranger" seem to suggest a different picture. Here are expressed concerns about the power of the unconscious and subconscious, and also about the hypocrisy of social mores, which are all very present in David Chase's show. This might just be a coincidence. But if that's the case, the latter allowed me to have a personal interest in Joel's music for the duration of a second track, at least. Which is not a given. The whistling part of the intro and outro sections of this song (also played again at the very end of the album bearing its name) is nice enough in its Ennio Morricone undertones. But the dad-rock, somewhat "funky" shenanigans of the song itself are a bit of a letdown compared to the opener, and also to Joel's obvious models Steely Dan, Paul McCartney or Randy Newman. Which says a lot about the amount of cheese used here. Because one thing's for sure, album *The Stranger* is such a downright *cheesy* record that it's hard not to feel ironic about it today. That some reviewers in here point out that Joel only became a purveyor of hackneyed and grating music a few albums after this one is mind-boggling to me. And so is the incredibly *high* global score for this album on this app. How many misguided boomers à la Tony Soprano are roaming in this group? Is it because this record garnered Grammies in 1977? Winning Grammies has never been a sure sign of artistic success. Look at some of the albums garnering Grammy Awards *today* and weep, you old fools. Sure, this record has its share of famous hits, with the slow-paced, sax-enhanced number "Just The Way You Are" leading the aural assault--a cut whose sickening fake sentimentality makes you wish it should never have become a hit in the first place. Never noticed the subtle synth layers in the song's background before, which sound nice enough, but also come off as if they had been directly nicked from 10cc's "I'm Not In Love". The song is a sacharine cheesefest anyway, so loaded with sugar I'm starting to worry about my insulin level. "Scenes From An Italian Restaurant" is a little more interesting, maybe. I already knew its introductory section, but I had never realized it was a "2-in-1" song, with a lengthy and livelier middle sequence telling about the marriage and divorce of former teenage friends of the song's protagonist, who is himself hesitating to commit adultery--with a old flame of his that he's meeting after all these years in that titular "Italian restaurant". Sorry for the novel here, but at least, that's what I've gathered from the subtext of this one. The thing is, in the course of his disjointed narrative, it's never clear if Joel is leaving things ambiguous on purpose, or if he's just an awkward storyteller. And fittingly, the musical structure of this one conveys the same sort of ambiguity. After two different lively and driven sections at the center of this 7-minute track, featuring an inspiring vocal performance, said structure syddenly aims for a quick Las Vegas-style build-up, before returning to the "bottle of red, bottle of white" routine of the intro section (iconic lines, I'm gonna give them that). But truth be told, the whole composition neither rhymes nor reasons, and so feels as unconclusive as the lyrics are. Following that partial misfire, "Vienna" is a more "existential" version of the synth-enhanced ballad "Just The Way You Are". Unfortunately, its undeniable truths about the shortness of life are ruined by an accordion player, just like when you're bothered by the latter at a terrace when you just want to have a conversation with your partner. After that, "Only The Good Die Young" is a blue-eyed soul and reggae-inspired cut whose horn section is as on-the-nose as its lyrics about how Joel tries to seduce a "Catholic girl" (and naming her "Virginia" is such a ridiculous and laughable choice that the whole conceit crumbles on itself quick). "Just Like A Woman" is a borderline misogynistic 3/4 piano ballad conveying the some sort of artificial sentimentality used in "Just The Way You Are". "Get It Right The First Time" harnesses Brazilian flavours to hide its mundane nature as a boomer rock cut--rather effectively, I would add in a somewhat benevolent mood. And "Everybody Has A Dream" is a return to the quaint, oversentimental tones explored before, this time supported by a massive background choir that, willingly or not, underlines all too well the delusions of grandeurs dreams are all too often made of. And that's it. This is the "album of the year" according to many pundits and commentators in 1977, the year punk broke out. What a blast. At least, Fleetwood Mac's *Rumours* aged with grace. I could still have given Billy Joel's *The Stranger* two stars. But then, listening to it once again, I've just realized one thing: apart from a couple of songs here and there, a lot of the man's vocal inflexions are actually just annoying as hell, going from "overkill" moments to others betraying a somewhat flimsy control of pitch. Which takes the cake when you're having those sorts of mainstream ambitions. One star then, equalling a 6/10 grade (5+1 for "cultural impact), here following purposes others than the ones used for a list of "essential albums". I always try to be kind to "strangers". But it looks like I've reached my limit here. Please don't send Tony Soprano to my house. I don't think I deserve having my kneecaps destroyed just because I don't like this record. Number of albums left to review: 166 Number of albums from the list I find relevant enough to be mandatory listens: 361 Albums from the list I *might* include in mine later on: 211 Albums from the list I won't include in mine: 267 (including this one)

I remember "Just The Way You Are" being played almost constantly on Radio 2 in the UK in the 80s. I was only about five years old, but I hated how boring and bland it was. And I still do!

Mindless background music you'd hear on FM radio while mixing paint. Billy Joel's a bitch, and always has been. I seriously hate him. He make boring showtunes.

the musical equivalent of clapping when a plane lands

Awful awful awful. Some Billy Joel songs are ok, this album is like 90 percent trash. I think if I have to hear Scenes from an Italian Restaurant one more time in my life I won't be able restrain myself, just a terrible song

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

Hated this.

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.

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.

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.

Not for me. Was never that keen on the singles when they charted, and those were the highlights of this album.

I’ve never liked Billy Joel much. That hasn’t changed.

On kyllä tylsää. Ei herätä minkäänlaista kiinnostusta. Loppuispa jo...

Listening was painful. Music was okay but the lyrics sucked. She’s a Woman to Me is misogyny covered up by a sweet melody. Yuck

Not for me

Why do I have to listen to this? I've moved on from this schematic, hit, cheap style about 40 years ago.

I think the Blues Brothers dealt with Bill fairly early on. For those of about to drop don't bother listening to this, just watch the scene in BB where Murph (of the Murftones) says "we'll be right back, don't you go changing"...adult oriented rock is a blight on humanity, lest we forget that the man who made the Stranger was building up to It's Still Rock and Roll to Me This something a tad stagey, structured, Off Broadway about Bill's adult oriented pop songs. Take the big smasheroo Piano Man. In a fantastic podcast with Alec Baldwin he explains how the song is a limerick (You ready, just sing it like an 8 year old "John at the bar is a friend of mine/He gets me my drinks for free/He's quick with a joke/And a light up your smoke/But there's some place he'd rather be", now tell me that wasn't fun?) A bottle of red, a bottle of white, you are instantly transported to one of those Stephen Sondheim things, I fucking hate that song. I want you Just the Way You Are...yeah bullshit you do until you catch a glimpse of Christie Brinkley's arse. She's More Than Woman to Me, no she's not, she was good for that first difficult part of your career and then... Now here's the kicker cyberspace death freaks: I saw Billy Joel in 1978 at the Hordern Pavilion. The support act was Jon English, who was absolutely brilliant. And Bill you ask? When he started up Big Shot, Eggy said "good time to have a joint" and we never made it back... For those about to pop off, look this will certainly hasten your demise, but really do you want to go listening to this schlocky schlockmeister.

Just not my thing

Boy I disliked this. Saccharine and unpleasant.

Hajuton ja mauton. Tai on tässä sellainen lievä paskan käry. 1/5

“And it seems such a waste of time Mama, if that’s what it’s all about, Then Billy Joel is whack-ack-ack-ack”

Kielletty hedelmä. Ei edes houkuta.

Some albums surprise you. Some are just the way you expect. The big singles blighted my early years of listening to pop via the endless airplay on wunderful Radio One (UK only here). if Tina Turner's 80s input is music for people who don't like music, Joel is right up there too. The album tracks reveal nothing to change the situation.

Nope, can't do it. I friggen hate Billy Joel, always have, always will. I really tried though!

I might get hate for this but it sounds very generic and uninspiring.

fuck this nonce music. the 70s has a lot to answer for.

Fucking dreadful

Challenging on many levels, and none of them good.

Man hört Billy den Anspruch an, einen großen Wurf à la Elton John hinzulegen, aber das Ergebnis verfängt nicht, langweilt und ein wenig enttäuscht es mich, hätte ich es doch gern besser gemocht. Entfremdete 1.2

Not for me. Didn't enjoy it, was excited for it to end.

NEIN!! Not good, nope, nada, bleck

Not my cup of tea.

Yo qué se ya

I’m homeless

Not bad