BILLY JOEL 100. Today: #15-11. More-  tomorrow.

Caffè Lattè presents:

THE 100 MOST ESSENTIAL SONGS BY

BILLY JOEL

William Martin Joel was born in The Bronx, New York in 1949. He grew up on Long Island and began studying the piano in 1953. Billy joined his first band 10 years later. In 1971, he signed a recording contract as a soloist. That year, he released his solo debut album. Since then, his music has been the soundtrack for countless fans.

 

Here are 100 of his best works…

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15

ALLENTOWN

Much of ‘The Nylon Curtain’ album reflected Billy’s thoughts on the erosion of the American Dream in the wake of the Reagan presidency. This is best demonstrated on “Allentown”. The song opens the 1982 album. Its lyrics recount the decline of industry in the Pennsylvanian steel town. The track kicks off with a factory whistle. Its lyrics declare: “we’re living here in Allentown, and they’re closing all the factories down. Out in Bethlehem, they’re killing time, filling out forms, standing in line”. The single reached #17 in the U.S.A.

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14

VIENNA

Billy’s father left America and migrated back to Europe. Billy visited him in his new residence in Austria. The song “Vienna” was inspired by his visit to the city. It remains a popular favourite on ‘The Stranger’.

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13

MY LIFE

Until the release of “My Life”, Billy had only enjoyed one Top 10 single: “Just The Way You Are”. Both singles peaked at #3 in America. The former was the biggest hit on ‘52^nd Street’. It features Peter Cetera and Donnie Dacus from the group Chicago on background vocals. The single also made the Top 10 in Canada, Australia, parts of Europe, New Zealand and South Africa. In Britain, the disc reached #12.

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12

THE RIVER OF DREAMS

The title track from Billy’s last studio album was his final major hit single. With its infectious hook and gospel mood, the disc topped charts in Australia and New Zealand. It peaked at #3 in the UK and America and reached #2 in Canada and #7 in Europe.  

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11

SAY GOODBYE TO HOLLYWOOD

As Billy bid farewell to Los Angeles and returned to the East Coast, he delivered “Say Goodbye To Hollywood”. The song opens the ‘Turnstiles’ album. It was inspired by The Ronettes’ sublime Wall of Sound classic “Be My Baby”. You can hear the influence of Phil Spector throughout it. The song also evokes memories of Bruce Springsteen and is perhaps Billy’s “Born To Run”.

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Hear the songs as updated on this blog via the new Spotify playlist:

https://open.spotify.com/playlist/2rYz7gZBJy1zHNoITZ8HwV?si=7ba2b1960f404546