November 22, 2021

1977 - August: Billy Joel “The Stranger”

41 minutes

By the time Billy Joel released The Stranger, his fifth studio album, he was at risk of being dropped by Columbia Records. His second album, Piano Man, had been a surprise success, but the follow-up third and fourth studio albums had met with disappointing commercial appeal.

Joel had a solid band that had toured with him for his previous album, Turnstiles, and he wanted to keep that band for the next album. He first considered Beatles producer George Martin to be his producer for this album, but decided against him when Martin wanted to use session players instead of Joel's band for the album. Instead, Joel turned to Phil Ramone (co-founder of A&R Recording) to produce The Stranger. The album would produce four singles, all hits, and would be a commercial and critical success. It would also be Columbia Records best selling album release, and Joel's best selling non-compilation album.

Bruce and Wayne are out, and for the first time ever, TWO friends of the show Bill Cook and Todd Hendricks join in for this podcast.

The Stranger

This title track examines the way we all hide aspects of ourselves, projecting one image to the public while a stranger lurks deep inside. Joel had originally intended the whistling to be a wind instrument, but when he demonstrated it to producer Phil Ramone, Ramone determined that his whistling was perfect.

Movin' Out (Anthony's Song)

The opening track to the album was also the first single, and is a commentary on those in working class ethnic communities around New York who put in long hours for the appearances of success. "Anthony works in a grocery store, saving his pennies for someday." A Broadway musical featuring the music of Billy Joel took the name of this song as well.

Only the Good Die Young

The third single from the album was quite controversial at the time, because it is about a boy encouraging a religious Catholic girl to have premarital sex with him, though she considers it sinful. The name Virginia comes from a high school crush of Joel's named Virginia Callahan. As is often the case, attempts to ban the song only made it more popular.

Scenes from an Italian Restaurant

Although not released as a single, this epic medley received significant airplay on AOR stations at the time, and is one of Billy Joel's favorites. This 7-plus medley is in three parts, the longest of which is "The Ballad of Brenda and Eddie," two high school sweethearts and their journey through life.

ENTERTAINMENT TRACK:

Main Theme from the television series “Soap”

This parody of the television soap operas premiered in September 1977. It would be highly controversial throughout its four year run, drawing criticism from the Moral Majority, the Roman Catholic Church, and a number of gay organizations.

STAFF PICKS:

Whatcha Gonna Do? by Pablo Cruise

Rob kicks off the staff picks with a band named after a non-existent person (think Pink Floyd or Jethro Tull). "Pablo" represents a down-to-earth individual and "Cruise" represents an easy-going approach to life. The song cautions against taking a good relationship for granted.

Handyman by James Taylor

Bill Cook's staff pick was actually a cover originally recorded by the Sparks of Rhythm in 1953. Jame's Taylor's version hit number 4 on the Billboard Hot 100 and earned him his second Grammy award.

Smoke from a Distant Fire by the Sanford Townsend Band

John WayneTownsend and Ed Sanford head up the band that takes their name, and Todd Hendricks brings us this one-hit wonder. Although the band recorded and worked out of Mussel Shoals, worked with a number of acts, and opened for bands like Fleetwood Mac and Foreigner, they never made the charts beyond this hit.

I'm In You by Peter Frampton

Brian brings us the title track from the follow-up studio album to his amazingly popular live album "Frampton Comes Alive." A&M Records put a lot of pressure on Frampton to have another hit after the live album, and this was his biggest-selling single, though the album was a let-down to the company. This acoustic version highlights his guitar talents.

TRIBUTE TRACK:

Memories by Elvis Presley

This is the month that Elvis died, and this song is our tribute to the King.

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By Rob Marbury, Wayne Rowan, Bruce Fricks, John Lynch

4.9

4747 ratings