Billy Joel: “A bottle of white, a bottle of red… Perhaps a bottle of Rosé instead? We’ll get a table near the street, in our old familiar place—you and I, face to face –â€Â
Former supermodel Christie Brinkley: “– Uh huh. Funny, but I don’t recall you holding ‘face to face’ in such tender regard during those sequin-splashed ‘blow and go’ swinger parties you used to drag me to in Aspen. You sawed-off little doggy fetishist.”
Hmmm.
And at 52 years old she’s still frigging hot!
Billy Joel is the new Elvis.
You love and remember the skinny, young version. The engergy and culture identification of the music he made are just great stuff.
You hate the river of dreams old, fat version that’s working so hard to ruin the memories of what once was great.
Is there ANY doubt that Billy Joel will be found in a gutter with Krispy Cream in one hand and an empty bottle of Everclear in the other? His freeking Blonde rap impersonation of “We didn’t start the fire” made me die a little inside.
His first four albums are outstanding. Then they got progressively worse as white guys bit their lower lips in the car as they rocked out to their cassette copies of Glass Houses. Songs In The Attic is essential listening, then stop after that. The only thing he does well today is marry college kids and park his sports cars in the neighbors living room.
Billy Joel was my favorite recording artist growing up. Bar none.
Cold Spring Harbor, Piano Man, Street Life Seranade, Turnstiles, The Stranger, 52nd Street, and yes—even Glass Houses (“Through the Long Night,” “All for Lena,” “Closer to the Borderline,” etc)—are superb albums. The Nylon Curtain had its moments (the Beatlesesque “Laura”), and I admit to enjoying several of the songs off of Innocent Man (esp, “For the Longest Time,” and “Uptown Girl”—homage to a fifties do-op style that was refreshing coming as it did in the midst of the angst ridden British new wave revival).
For my money, the Stranger is—top to bottom—the greatest album ever. But then, I’m crazy that way.
I miss Billy.
Same here. Close to the Borderline is one of the all time best missed deep tracks. And I’m almost ashamed to admit that I can hang in word for word with C’etait Toi without ever having taken a French lesson. Sheer repetition.
From the Angry Young Man, to the sissy ass begging of “Shameless”, which the world doesn’t know isn’t really a Garth Brooks tune, Billy has given us a wealth of incredibly good music, numerous piles of crap and a doughy old pervert to laugh at.
Thanks for the memories, Billy. Hey, you wouldn’t mind if I gave Alexa a call, would you?
I miss the old Billy too.
Jeff, I confess, I loved his stuff when I was younger too – that double CD of his greatest hits is still around here somewhere.
Now? I like Fountains of Wayne.
Billy Joel is alive.
And Johnny Cash is dead.
I just can’t seem to get things to go my way.
If I had to choose between Billy Joel and Elton John, I’d choose Joe Jackson.
Always appreciated Liberty DeVitto’s drumming.
Agreed on the early Joel vs. the later. Although, for a guy who dives and boats the area, “Downeaster Alexa” is a special tune.
Agreed. Meant to mention that one.
Honestly, as a peruser of your rag for the last couple of years, this is the wussiest post I have read.
Billy Joel?
Can we atleast agree that Christy is still hot?
She broke Billy’s heart.
Lucky she has Chuck Norris hangin’ around, is all I have to say.
Otherwise Billy would show you who’s a wussy, bitch.
Okay, I deserved that – peeing in your kitchen sink and all.
Early Mr. Joel sang about of all the cool stuff I did at the time, even though I know for a fact that I never did any of that sh*t.
Johnny Cash. Yeah.
Still have his autograph.
Ray Davies is another one.
Funny, but I got into Cash thanks to the remake of Dawn of the Dead.
Kristofferson is another one I started digging on after hearing the opening tune in Cisco Pike.
Kristofferson was one of those writers who were best sung by others.
And can never be forgiven for that stupid sailor movie.
But Tom, we’re here to celebrate the flaming metrosexual opus of Billy.
Billy Joel sang Billy Joel best.
Take every song written, reinterperated, or resurrected for tribute to 9-11. They paled in comparison with any of the Joel/NY odes.
jeff, i came across the idiot’s guide to Billy Joel last week, thought you might like it.
growing up glass houses and 52nd street were the albums my dad had that we were allowed to listen to. fun, fun.
Cool, thanks. Billy was the music of my early early youth (I remember “Only the Good Die Young” being banned from certain radio stations in Baltimore – a fact I learned from my babysitter – for the line, “I’d rather laugh with the sinners than cry with the saints; the sinners are much more fun”).
I make him into a joke sometimes to take away the pain of his fading from the public scene. But he had a fantastic run. And is, to those who are willing to travel back 35 years or so, a songwriting genius. Besides “Scenes from an Italian Restaurant” (which I listed in my Norm Geras profile as my favorite tune ever), I include on that list so many deep cuts that I can’t even remember them all. “All for Lena” and “Until the Night” spring to mind; “Roberta,” “Summer, HIghland Falls,” “Vienna”…
Trust me: for $60 you can got Cold Spring Harbor thru Glass Houses. Great musical investment. Brilliant stuff from one of the few American songwriters that can rival McCartney for being so melodically gifted.
Hmmm.
Sorry folks but the best part of Billy Joel was Christine Brinkley. IMHO nobody is better than Patsy Cline.
Unless you’re talking William Hung, which of *course* is obvious to anyone with ears.
i’m about half way there. have a “best of” four cd set (i think my dad gave it to me too) love “vienna”
did you ever see the “inside the actor’s studio” with him? it was really entertaining. particularly when he’s talking about what a crappy song, musically speaking, that “piano man” is.
Didn’t, no. But he’s too hard on himself, which is why he drinks and drives into heavy foliage.
The song itself is simple. But some of the lyrics are great, if merely observational, because it speaks to dream deferred and, ultimately, quashed. It reminds me a bit of a musical version of Alice Doesn’t Live here Anymore:
“And the waitress is practicing politics, as the businessmen slowly get stoned, and they’re sharing a drink the call loneliness, but it’s better than drinking alone…”
Come on, Jeff. If you’re looking for piano playing singer/songwriters you can’t do better than Tom Waits.
Focus on the early stuff – everything up to Rain Dogs. After that he stopped thinking of himself as a character from William Kennedy’s “Albany Trilogy” and started thinking he was from Faust instead.
And I’ll go toe-to-toe with anyone who claims that “Ruby’s Arms” isn’t the saddest song in the world.
TW: If you’re not moved by that song, you’re not fully alive.
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It reminds me a bit of a musical version of Alice Doesn’t Live here Anymore:
“And the waitress is practicing politics, as the businessmen slowly get stoned, and they’re sharing a drink the call loneliness, but it’s better than drinking alone…”
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Well, to that I’d say, “I’d rather laugh with the sinners than cry with the saints, the sinners are much more fun…”
“Alice” the TV series was much more fun than “Alice Doesn’t Live here Anymore,” and obviously intended to be a lot funnier, too.
So there! :-)