BILLY JOEL 100. Today: #20-16. 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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20

JAMES

Whether “James” is written about James Bosse (a friend who played in a band with Billy in his younger years), James Zampino (in his management) or no-one in particular, the song delivers sage advice. Its lyrics find Billy asking if James is still “living up to expectations” and “will you always stay someone else’s dream of who you are?”. Billy speaks from the position of someone who pursued his ambitions. He wisely states: “do what’s good for you, or you’re no good for anybody”. The ballad is one of the best tracks on ‘Turnstiles’.

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19

YOU’RE MY HOME {Live}

The original version of “You’re My Home” was on Billy’s 1973 ‘Piano Man’ album. He revisited the song for the 1981 live album ‘Songs In The Attic’ where he re-recorded deep cuts from his catalogue thus far.

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18

THE STRANGER

The title track from ‘The Stranger’ begins with Billy whistling and playing the piano. In the recording studio, he added the whistling as a temporary fill in. The plan was to add in a saxophone or another instrument. Billy asked Phil Ramone for suggestions. The producer encouraged him to keep it as it is with the whistling. The soft prelude then gives way to a harder sound. Much of this was the result of Billy experimenting with a drum machine. The switch in mood reflects the song’s lyrics. Billy’s vocal range is at its strongest here.

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17

AN INNOCENT MAN

The title track on Billy’s eighth studio album is a tribute to Ben E. King and The Drifters. Billy hits some high notes on “An Innocent Man”. As he approached the album sessions, Billy was recently divorced from his first wife Elizabeth. He was single again and dating supermodels. This period reminded him of his teenage years and so, he reflected on the sounds he grew up with: soul, Motown and The Four Seasons in particular. The song also evokes memories of Roy Orbison’s “Blue Bayou”. ‘An Innocent Man’ was produced by Phil Ramone and released in mid-1983. The single made the Top 10 on both sides of the Atlantic.

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16

ONLY THE GOOD DIE YOUNG

“Only The Good Die Young” originally had a reggae feel. That initial approach can be heard on the version included on the ‘My Lives’ compilation album. The song was then cut in the form we became familiar with on ‘The Stranger’. Its lyrics humorously poke fun at the girl in the song’s chastity and religious purity: “I’d rather laugh with the sinners than cry with the saints, the sinners are much more fun”.

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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