Billy Joel: The Stranger (Japanese Pressing) CD Track Listing

A list by checkmate

Billy Joel The Stranger (Japanese Pressing) (1977)
The Stranger (Japanese Pressing)\n\nOriginally Released September 1977\nCD Edition Released 1986 ??\nRemastered CD Edition Released October 20, 1998\n2-CH SACD Edition Released September 2000\nMulti-CH SACD Edition Released July 31, 2001\n\nAMG EXPERT REVIEW: Billy Joel teamed with Phil Ramone, a famed engineer who had just scored his first producing hits with Art Garfunkel's Breakaway and Paul Simon's Still Crazy After All These Years for The Stranger, his follow-up to Turnstiles. Joel still favored big, sweeping melodies, but Ramone convinced him to streamline his arrangements and clean up the production. The results aren't necessarily revelatory, since he covered so much ground on Turnstiles, but the commercialism of The Stranger is a bit of a surprise. None of his ballads have been as sweet or slick as "Just the Way You Are"; he never had created a rocker as bouncy or infectious as "Only the Good Die Young"; and the glossy production of "She's Always a Woman" disguises its latent misogynist streak. Joel balanced such radio-ready material with a series of New York vignettes, seemingly inspired by Springsteen's working-class fables and clearly intended to be the artistic centerpieces of the album. They do provide The Stranger with the feel of a concept album, yet there is no true thematic connection between the pieces, and his lyrics are often vague or mean-spirited. His lyrical shortcomings are overshadowed by his musical strengths. Even if his melodies sound more Broadway than Beatles -- the epic suite "Scenes From an Italian Restaurant" feels like a show-stopping closer -- there's no denying that the melodies of each song on The Stranger are memorable, so much so that they strengthen the weaker portions of the album. Joel rarely wrote a set of songs better than those on The Stranger, nor did he often deliver an album as consistently listenable. -- Stephen Thomas Erlewine\n\nAmazon.com essential recording\nThis, pop superstar Joel's breakout LP, came years after he first hit the charts with the novelty-ish "Piano Man." In the meantime, the New York-based songwriter released two lackluster and stylistically confused platters that blunted interesting songs with a sound that was neither Elton mellow nor Elton attitude. Produced by Phil Ramone, The Stranger took those who had written Joel off as a one-hit wonder by surprise ("Just the Way You Are" was among the biggest hits of 1977) and it remains a solid introduction to Joel's restless muse at a crucial point in his career. It invited a few comparisons to Bruce Springsteen, with its prominent sax breaks, hard-edged rebel-rockers ("Only the Good Die Young"), and slice-of-life dramatics ("Scenes From an Italian Restaurant"), recounting life in a lower middle-class (Eastern Urban) setting; but Joel's chameleonic, formalist approach to pop wasn't to be so easily pigeonholed (Glass Houses, The Nylon Curtain, An Innocent Man...). --Don Harrison \n\n\nAMAZON.COM CUSTOMER REVIEW\nThe magnificent one, the beautiful one, the one and only one..., March 1, 2007\nReviewer: Chris Cormier "Wonderbar" (canada)\nThis album sizzles with energy, honesty, and "I'll MAKE you pay attention" entertainment spirit. This was his big breakthrough album and it's not hard to see why. Every single track is excellent, and each very different from what went before. From start to finish, the emphasis is on simple Beatleish rock arrangements, played with finesse by a great backing band, with the piano front and center. It starts off with plain rock and roll - Moving Out, with its thumpy rhythm and brilliant ending. The Stranger (apart from its stylish intro and outro) is a bit more funky, with a lovely bridge/chorus. The much maligned Just The Way You Are suffers from a bit of cheesiness in production (Billy Joel calls this "Phil Ramone's Bossa Nova version), but is still a good heartfelt song for his first wife (whatever happened to her anyways?). The centrepiece of the album is Scenes, this is Billy Joel's tour-de-force to show everyone what he can do on the ivories. Vienna is a beautiful ballad, and Only the Good Die Young is a hilarious dance tune, still racy 30 years later. Always a Woman is played a bit stiffly on piano, and borders on cheesy lyrics, but still a great tune. The next two tracks are a *bit* weaker, but have their moments and are still brilliant songs, just in comparison with what came before... He came close to topping this album on Glass Houses but this still stands as his finest album. If you're going to have just one of his albums, I would recommend this. \n\n\nAMAZON.COM CUSTOMER REVIEW\nAn enduring classic , September 9, 2006\nReviewer: Dr. Emil Shuffhausen (Central Gulf Coast)\nBilly Joel is many things: an expressive, virtuoso pianist; a soulful, versatile vocalist, an imaginative arranger; a tireless, exciting performer. But, above all, he is a songwriter of the highest order; an old-school tunesmith worthy of being mentioned in the same breath as Lennon-McCartney, Cole Porter, Rogers-Hart, and, yes, Bob Dylan. \n\nHe is a peerless storyteller who's knack for compelling, memorable melodies have made him one of the most successful singer-songwriters of the past 30 years. THE STRANGER remains, in many ways, his defining work...it was the album when he really broke out into multi-platinum success and into the public's permanent consciousness. \n\nMuch of the breakout is due to his timeless love ballad, "Just the Way You Are," which became (and remains) an absolute standard. But there's a lot more to THE STRANGER than that one brilliant song. Take for instance the fantastic title track, a noir-ish parable of betrayal and heartache; a pastiche of lonely atmospheric whistling and searing funk. It tells a lot of truth without being too preachy. Perhaps even better is the Italiano "Movin' Out (Anthony's Song)," a jaunty anti-materilistic tale told with Joel's trademark cynical wit and spot-on observations. It hit #17 on the BILLBOARD Pop charts, and it remains a much-beloved classic in the Joel canon. \n\n"Scenes from an Italian Restaurant" is the centerpiece of the album, the all-too-familiar story of Brenda and Eddie, the popular steadies, who were King and Queen of the Prom--destined for love, marriage, heartache, divorce, and a life of wistfully longing and wondering what could have been. Musically, it's expressed in a sprawling suite ranging from balladry to bombast, all done to great effect. \n\nThe lovely "Vienna" features a perfect accordian break and a nice metaphor. "She's Always a Woman" is another slightly cynical lovesong; a man who has been burned, but can't stop loving a cruel woman. The melody for this one is among Joel's finest ever, and the song was a minor pop hit. "Get it Right the First Time" is solid, if not as spectacular as some of its counterparts. "Everybody Has a Dream" is almost like a Gospel song, complete with soaring background vocals. \n\nOnly the very popular "Only the Good Die Young" misses the mark on this set. Musically, it's one of the best uptempo songs that Joel has ever done; but the lyrics are filled with mean-spirited, borderline bigoted religious put-downs. It charted on the pop singles chart and continues to receive airplay today. The best thing about it (and many other Billy Joel songs) is the wailing sax of Liberty DeVito. \n\nAll in-all, this is a brilliant pop album. The only thing that kept it from hitting #1 was the SATURDAY NIGHT FEVER phenomenon. But the music herein has, for the most part, aged better than many of the FEVER songs, remaining fresh and thought-provoking all these years later.\n\n\nAMAZON.COM CUSTOMER REVIEW\nJoel's Quintessential Masterwork, August 15, 2005\nReviewer: Alan Pounds "music obsessor" (Minneapolis, MN)\nYou will find that many reviewers have different favorites when considering Billy Joel's discography. The fact is, is that Joel has many great records that will stand the test of time. One that comes to mind would be his predecessor from 1976, "Turnstiles". Another would be his seminal hard rocker from 1980, "Glass Houses". But if you're a first time purchaser of Joel's, then I would suggest you pick up "The Stranger". Some may argue that other records are better, but this is without a doubt his biggest crowning achievement, and most popular effort to date. There is something about Joel that's unique. All the elements scream 70s rock radio. But Joel has a certain flair to him that separates his work from the bunch. And like many groundbreaking artists, his voice, delivery, and exceptional songwriting is one of a kind. Lyrics alone do not make up this album's success though. Musically, this album is a refinement of the lush Broadway overtones, and sweeping melodies of "Turnstiles". So it's kind of hard to call this material groundbreaking, considering it's predecessor. \n\nJoel teamed up with famed engineer Phil Ramone (who's worked with John Coltrane, Frank Sinatra, Elton John, Paul Simon and Bob Dylan, just to name a select few) for "The Stranger". The results were more streamlined and accessible than his past work, which really helped it gain popularity. But some facts remain. Joel has never written a ballad as infectious as "Just the Way You Are". He's never performed a glitzy rocker as contagious as "Only the Good Die Young". This is really Billy Joel at his complete best. "Movin' Out (Anthony's Song)" has always been one of my favorites because of it's clever lyrics, "And if he can't drive with a broken back / At least he can polish the fenders". I'm a big fan of Brenda and Eddie's adventures on "Scenes from an Italian Restaurant" too. \n\nThis is as close to perfect as you will get from Billy Joel. It's a rewarding listen through and through. If you keep tracking his career, you will find that he builds on the Broadway overtones of "The Stranger" with another classic "52nd Street". If you're not as much about the Broadway sound, I would suggest picking up his seminal hard rocker, "Glass Houses". Either way, Billy's got a ton a fantastic music for future generations to discover.\n\n\nAMAZON.COM CUSTOMER REVIEW\nHere's where it all took off, March 10, 2003\nReviewer: Ryan Richards "reb77" (Midland, MI United States)\nAlthough Billy Joel had several well-crafted albums behind him already (including the brilliant "Turnstiles") by the time "The Stranger" hit the shelves, this CD marked the point where he finally fused his melodic and prosewriting talents into one unified sound that was uniquely his. The album starts out with the heavily sardonic "Movin' Out," in which Joel decries the state of modern work, asking if the fame and money are really worth the sacrifices we have to make ("if that's movin' up, then I'm movin' out"). This is followed by the album's title track, which has my vote for the most lyrically brilliant song Joel ever wrote: an exploration of the secret self we all have, which we all hide from others... but eventually, Joel argues, this self will always reveal itself, and it will always have its way. "Just the Way You Are" and "She's Always a Woman" are pretty much victims of overplaying by now, but if you can overlook that, the melodies are light and gorgeous, and the lyrics reveal a deeper level to Joel's emotional ponderings. "Scenes from an Italian Restaurant" is, for me, the Billy Joel epic song: a slow introduction into some Dixieland riffs into a feel-good rocker--albeit one that still has a point about love and relationships. One of the other reviewers mentioned knowing people like Brenda and Eddie; I think we all do. "Only the Good Die Young" and "Get It Right the First Time" are more in the pop vein, presaging Joel's work on "An Innocent Man"; they both discard the profound meditation for some lighter, but no less lyrically brilliant, subject matter (the latter discusses the importance of first impressions with a potential love interest, while the former puts this philosophy into practice). "Vienna" and "Everybody Has a Dream," in contrast, are slower, mellower, more meditative songs about the need to find time and space in one's life for the important things ("Slow down, you crazy child... when will you realize Vienna waits for you?"). In short, every song on this album, both in terms of musical artistry and lyrical profundity, is an absolute winner (which is probably why most of Volume 1 of Joel's Greatest Hits comes straight from this album). This is the classic Billy Joel album, and if you want to understand what he was trying to achieve as a musician, you need look no further than this.\n\n\nAMAZON.COM CUSTOMER REVIEW\nMasterpiece, October 18, 2001\nReviewer: Sean Wheeler (Hubbard, OH)\nBilly Joel has been criticized over the years by rock critics who have pigeonholed him as a formalist hack. How they came to that conclusion after listening to such an accomplished body of work is dumbfounding. For all it takes is one spin of this pop-rock masterpiece to realize how gifted Joel is with concise melodies and subversive lyrics. In fact, the title track itself demonstrates his talent marvelously. Its prelude seduces the listener into what ultimately is revealed to be web of deceit between two lovers. "She's Always a Woman", arguably Joel's finest love song, showcases a gorgeous melody that masks lyrics detailing the darker facets of a relationship.\nCynicism permeates through most of the record. Joel's characters either are hopelessly naive ("Vienna"), favor lust over love ("Only the Good Die Young"), peaked too early ("Scenes From An Italian Restaurant") or face a desperate need to escape("Movin' Out"). And while there are displays of optimism and hope ("Just the Way You Are", "Everybody Has a Dream"), they are dampened by stories of lost opportunities ("Get it Right the First Time"). Joel's point is an existential one: for while we might aim high to try and change things, there are intangibles in both people and life that will ultimately prevent this. Which is why The Stranger remains both relevant today and holds a place among the finest albums ever recorded.\n\n\nAMAZON.COM CUSTOMER REVIEW\nFinally, a version of this album on CD that sounds good..., March 13, 1999\nReviewer: A music fan\nColumbia Records has had some of the most important and prolific artists of this generation on their label: Dylan, Springsteen, Simon and Garfunkel... and they have also released some of the most miserable-sounding versions of classic albums by these artists on CD. The original release of Billy Joel's "The Stranger" was certainly of this category. It was a wonderful album... (every track is a standout) but the CD version unfortunately sounded as though it had been mastered from a 10th generation memorex cassette that had been left in a hot car for a month. I owned it because I didn't want to be without the album, but I couldn't listen to it.\nNow, finally, I can listen to this album again, and enjoy it. The piano and acoustic guitars are crisp, the vocals are clean and up-front, and the sound is fuller... (though still not perfect.) It even looks nice. The disc has the "mask" picture screened on it, and the liner notes and photos are back. Apparently, ALL of Billy Joel's original albums have received this treatment. To whoever is responsible for this revolution of quality... thank you. To whoever hasn't got this remastered version of "The Stranger"... you won't be disappointed.\n\n\nHalf.com Details \nContributing artists: Hiram Bullock, Patti Austin, Phoebe Snow \nProducer: Phil Ramone \n\nAlbum Notes\nPersonnel: Billy Joel (vocals, harmonica, piano, organ, keyboards); Hiram Bullock, Steve Burgh, Steve Khan, Hugh McCracken, David Brown (guitar); Richie Cannatta (fiddle, flute, soprano & tenor saxophones, organ, keyboards); Phil Woods (alto saxophone); Richard Tee (organ); Doug Stegmeyer (bass); Liberty DeVito (drums, percussion); Ralph MacDonald (percussion); Phoebe Snow, Lani Groves, Patti Austin (background vocals).\n\nRecorded at A&R Recording, New York, New York.\n\nThis is an Enhanced CD, which contains both regular audio tracks and multimedia computer files.\n\nHe's known to many as an inoffensive pop balladeer, but at the arguable peak of his career in the late '70s, Billy Joel released his darkest, most emotionally charged album. THE STRANGER abandons the grandstanding and broad melodic sweep of Joel's earlier records for a more intimate, introspective sound, effectively communicating Joel's ruminations on the perils of life and love. "Movin' Out" is something of an existentialist anthem, chronicling the way people's dreams are often irreparably crushed. The ominous-sounding title tune examines the many guises with which lovers disguise themselves in their attempts to entrap and deceive each other. "Only the Good Die Young" is hedonism at it's most iconoclastic. Even "She's Always a Woman," ostensibly a romantic piano ballad, is full of thorny, less-than-complimentary observations about its subject. Joel's emotional honesty would never be this clear-eyed and unabashed again.\n\nIndustry Reviews\nRanked #67 in Rolling Stone's 500 Greatest Albums Of All Time - ...The real pleasure here is the specificity of the lyrics in the rock songs located in New York...\nRolling Stone (12/11/2003)\n\n\nROLLING STONE REVIEW\nThis is the first Billy Joel album in some time that has significantly expanded his repertoire. While Streetlife Serenade and Turnstiles had occasional moments, the bulk of Joel's most memorable material was on Cold Spring Harbor -- despite its severe technical flaws -- and Piano Man, which gave him his only major single success. This time, while such songs as "Movin' Out" and "Just the Way You Are" are forced and overly simplistic, the imagery and melodies of The Stranger more often than not work.\n\nTogether with producer Phil Ramone, Joel has achieved a fluid sound occasionally sparked by a light soul touch. It is a markedly different effect than his pound-it-out-to-the-back-rows concert flash, although the title song, "Only the Good Die Young" and "Get It Right the First Time" will adapt to that approach as readily as, say, such a Joel signature piece as "Captain Jack."\n\n"She's Always a Woman," which sounds misleadingly tender, is the key to the difference between The Stranger and Joel's other LPs. We don't expect subtlety or understatement from him and, indeed, his lyrics can be as smartassed as ever. But Ramone's emphasis on sound definitely lessens the impact of the sarcasm, which in the long run may help boost Joel's career immeasurably. In the meantime, old fans will have to listen more carefully than usual. (RS 254 -- Dec 15, 1977) -- IRA MAYER
This rock cd contains 9 tracks and runs 42min 38sec.
Freedb: 6109fc09
Buy: from Amazon.com

Categories

Latest lists

Billy Joel: The Stranger (Japanese Pressing) CD Track Listing

Category

Tags

cyList

Legal