41. Billy Joel--Turnstiles

 41: Billy Joel--Turnstiles (1976)

Top-Notch Tracks: "Prelude/Angry Young Man," (HJ200 #50), "Summer, Highland Falls," (HJ200 #19), "Miami 2017 (Seen the Lights Go Out On Broadway)," "Say Goodbye To Hollywood," "James"

Album Depth: "All You Wanna Do Is Dance," "New York State of Mind," "I've Loved These Days"

Weak Links: Nope

Stand-Out Lyrics: "They say that these are not the best of times, but they're the only times I've ever known."--"Summer, Highland Falls"

"And as we stand upon the ledges of our lives with our respective similarities, it's either sadness or euphoria."--"Summer, Highland Falls"

"He's been stabbed in the back, he's been misunderstood. It's a comfort to know his intentions are good."--"Prelude/Angry Young Man"

"But that was so many years ago--before we all lived here in Florida. Before the mafia took over Mexico."--"Miami 2017 (Seen the Lights Go Out On Broadway)"

"Are you still in school, living up to expectations?"--"James"

"Well, you wish you were back in the good old days when tomatoes were cheaper."--"All You Wanna Do Is Dance"

"Why don't the Beatles get back together?"--"All You Wanna Do Is Dance"

"We're going long, we're gaining weight. We're sleeping long, and far too late."--"I've Loved These Days"

"He's fair and he's true and he's boring as hell."--"Prelude/Angry Young Man"

"Do what's good for you, or you're not good for anybody."--"James"

"So many faces in and out of my life, some will last, some will just be now and then. Life is a series of hellos and goodbyes, I'm afraid it's time for goodbye again."--"Say Goodbye to Hollywood"

"For all our mutual experience, our separate conclusions are the same."--"Summer, Highland Falls"

Billy Joel--Turnstiles

Album cover: 7 out of 10. I used to think this was just a cheesy album cover featuring Billy and a bunch of random catalog models. Then I learned that the other people on the cover are supposed to represent certain songs on the album. (The rich couple is "I've Loved These Days." The guy with the books is "James." The gal in the headphones is "All You Wanna Do Is Dance." The black guy is "Angry Young Man." The guy in the sunglasses is "Say Goodbye to Hollywood." The old lady and the kid are "Miss Umbridge and the Hogwarts Student.") Knowing that, I still think it's a cheesy album cover with a bunch of catalog models, but at least it's trying to be more than just a "close-up of my face" album cover, so I'll give it some points for efforting.

Comments: Much like "Piano Man," (#52) I didn't initially have this album on my Top 60 list because several of the songs (in this case, half of the entire album) is also featured on a different album that will be much higher on this list. And those four songs are all even better on the other album than they are here. But, the four songs that are exclusive to this album ("Prelude/Angry Young Man," "James," "New York State of Mind," and "All You Wanna Do Is Dance") make the album worthy of a spot all on their own. And if I gave "Summer, Highland Falls," "Miami 2017," "Say Goodbye to Hollywood," and "I've Loved These Days" full credit, this album would be higher on the list than it is.

I'll always remember those first few moments of my first Billy Joel concert, as we sat just a few feet behind him while he pounded out those opening notes of "Prelude/Angry Young Man." Damn, that was amazing!

This album may not have made much of a splash when it was released, but it certainly was Billy Joel's first great album from beginning to end, and it set the stage for the next several albums to come. My only question is: since when has anyone really been all that concerned about the rising cost of tomatoes?


Up next: Who ya gonna call?  

Comments

  1. darenolsonJune 15, 2021 at 6:50 AM

    Now it's my turn to question your memories, which like mine are probably driven more by what you wish had happened in the past than what really did happen. During the first Billy Joel concert, we were not seated just a few feet behind him when he began to play "Prelude/Angry Young Man." We were, in fact, backstage talking with Christie Brinkley. I remember it clearly because when the song "Take Me Out to the Ballgame" began to play over the loudspeakers, Christie said, "Billy always plays this first song so fast that he'll maybe get a blister on his little finger, maybe get a blister on his thumb." Then you said, "Christie, is it okay for us to put our shirts back on now?" And then she said, "Is Daren done eating all the cheddar off that cheese tray?" And I said, "Mmph!" Then we all put our shirts on and stood backstage where we could get the best view of Billy's hands moving up and down the keyboard.

    At least, that's how I remember that first concert.

    ReplyDelete

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