November 24, 2025

UNREST’S MARK ROBINSON TACKLES BILLY JOEL’S DISCOGRAPHY (PART 2: PIANO MAN & STREETLIFE SERENADE) (Ep. 234B)

7 minutes

Discograffiti is the deep-dive podcast for music obsessives. In this episode, host Dave Gebroe talks with the epitome of DIY punk spirit (who can also write a pop hook like the best of ‘em), the great Mark Robinson (of Unrest, Grenadine, Air Miami, Flint Flon, Uncomfortable Police, et al), and together they discuss Billy Joel’s entire recorded output with commentary, stories, and star ratings for every release. If you’re a long-time listener, then you know that Dave has harbored a long-time hatred of Billy Joel…so why the sudden turnaround in taste? Discograffiti’s Mark Robinson Tackles Billy Joel (But Only Metaphorically) Series dissects every last release Billy Joel’s ever had a hand in creating. Part 2 tackles his two early-1970s, California-based albums after signing with Columbia Records: Piano Man & Streetlife Serenade.

Here are just a few of the many things that Mark discusses with Discograffiti in this podcast:

The multitude of genres that Billy tries out while in California during the early 1970s, before settling into his known style;

The violent altercation that host Dave Gebroe may have had with the real-life Captain Jack’s son;

The connective threads that bind Billy and Mark as artists that must create no matter what;

The not-very-well-known gang of Billy Joel instrumentals that ended in this era;

Billy’s “saving a hooker” song that’s somehow actually taken from his own personal life;

The amount of money that Billy made off the Piano Man LP;

And an in-depth deep dive on every song off Piano Man and Streetlife Serenade.

There’ll be a short sneak peak running publicly for free, but the entirety of this podcast will only be accessible on the Major Tier of Discograffiti’s Patreon. Don’t miss it, or you’ll only be getting part of the story. Get it as a one-off, or better yet just subscribe…and then we’ll all have world peace.

Full Episode: Patreon.com/Discograffiti (available on the Major Tier & up)

Free Sneak Peek: linktr.ee/discograffiti

Subscribe to Discograffiti's Patreon and receive a ceaseless barrage (4 shows a week!) of must-hear binge-listening. It’s completely free to be a basic member, $1 to get your backstage pass, $5/month for the weekly Sunday show by & for our community, $10 for weekly early release, ad-free, super-extended Director's Cuts of the main show plus access to half our Patreon episode archive, & $20 for Discograffiti’s weekly bonus episodes and access to our entire Patreon episode archive. There are now over 400 Patreon episodes.

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