Billy Joel
Piano Man

THE REVIEW

Even though Billy Joel's artistic life now seems anchored in the past (Joel has not released a pop album since the distant 1993, the year the successful "River Of Dreams" came out), his name, at least in the States, continues to circulate insistently thanks to sold-out tours either solo or in partnership with his friend, the "piano man" Sir Elton John. His move towards composing classical music, which led him to release the instrumental album "Fantasies & Delusions" in 2001, seems for now to be set aside by a timid return to pop-rock music, which we hope will lead him to create something new.

Prompted by the recent review by Cappio al Pollo, I would like to revisit this second work by the American composer. It is without a doubt one of his three masterpieces. Released in 1973 after two years of total demotivation towards the music business. For years, Billy Joel had tried to make it in the music industry, first as a member of groups like the Echoes, The Lost Souls, the Hassles, and Attila, then as a solo artist with the unfortunate debut "Cold Spring Harbour" released in 1971, which was only re-evaluated midway through his career when his name was at the top.

The disappointment from the lack of success led Joel to abandon the path of record labels to return to his old love, the piano bar. Thus, he began touring America under the pseudonym Bill Martin. Meanwhile, he continued to write, and from his piano emerged the long "Captain Jack," which earned him a new contract with Columbia and which would become the cornerstone of an upcoming album.

"Piano Man" saw the light in 1973 and can boast at least three compositions that would rightfully become staples of his concerts in the years to come. The title track is undoubtedly one of his best songs ever. Joel translates into music, with a wonderful crescendo, the life of that Bill Martin who just a few months earlier was making ends meet touring American cities with just his instrument, the piano.

In this album, Joel decides to enrich the sound with new instruments, moving closer to the American tradition, unlike the previous album, which was dominated almost exclusively by his beloved piano. Thus, traditional instruments such as harmonica, violins, and banjo appear. The musicians accompanying him are not yet the band that will start collaborating from the album "Turnstiles" (1976) onwards.

Joel's sound spectrum is enriched with new colors like the initial invocation to the Lord in "Travellin' Prayer," a fast country song led by a frenzied banjo with a violin tail from a country fair. "You're My Home" with a pedal steel in the background and the wonderful "Stop in Nevada," a song about how hard it is to say goodbye to something dear, are also country.

Then there are two songs with a strong gospel flavor that anticipate by ten years the Billy Joel of "An Innocent Man" (1983), like "Ain’t No Crime" and "Worse Comes To Worst," featuring The Creamers.

Completing it all, the western saga of "The Ballad of Billy The Kid" and the more classic songs "If I Only Had The Words (To Tell You)," which connects back to the debut, and "Somewhere Along The Line."

Unfortunately, "Piano Man," although a remarkable record, did not bring Joel immediate popularity, as he had to wait another two albums to achieve the worldwide success that "The Stranger" (1977) brought him, but that's another story...

I would also like to highlight for the completists the demo version of "Piano Man" (to discover how a small masterpiece was born) and two songs from the period never officially released: "Oyster Bay" and "The Siegfried Line," contained in the beautiful box set "My Lives" released in 2005 (4 CDs and a DVD that retrace Joel's career with precious unreleased tracks).