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Billy Joel - The Stranger .jpg) .gif) By Don Harrison
This, 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...).
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Tracks |
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| 1. Movin' Out (Anthony's Song) | 6. Only the Good Die Young | | 2. Stranger | 7. She's Always a Woman | | 3. Just the Way You Are | 8. Get It Right the First Time | | 4. Scenes from an Italian Restaurant | 9. Everybody Has a Dream | | 5. Vienna | |
Share Your Memories!Is The Stranger one of your favorite albums? What interesting or amusing stories can you tell? Wanna write a review? Share your stories (or your reviews) with the world! (We print the best stories right here!)
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Your Memories Shared! |
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"The album is without question the greatest of its genre. It set one of the many patterns in the 70's, and Joel himself created many others along the rest of the way in his career. Nonetheless, from beginning to end The Stranger is a masterpiece that set the artist on his way." --Michael |
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Looking for a rare import-only single, a gold record, world tour book, hard to find magazine, an autographed guitar, or simply this CD? You'll find them at eBay!
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MUSICAL NOTES |
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