The Stranger

by Billy Joel

Overview

Billy Joel teamed with Phil Ramone, a famed engineer who had just scored his first producing hits with Art Garfunkel's Breakaway and Paul Simon's Still Crazy After All These Years for The Stranger, his follow-up to Turnstiles. Joel still favored big, sweeping melodies, but Ramone convinced him to streamline his arrangements and clean up the production. The results aren't necessarily revelatory, since he covered so much ground on Turnstiles, but the commercialism of The Stranger is a bit of a surprise. None of his ballads have been as sweet or slick as "Just the Way You Are"; he never had created a rocker as bouncy or infectious as "Only the Good Die Young"; and the glossy production of "She's Always a Woman" disguises its latent misogynist streak. Joel balanced such radio-ready material with a series of New York vignettes, seemingly inspired by Springsteen's working-class fables and clearly intended to be the artistic centerpieces of the album. They do provide The Stranger with the feel of a concept album, yet there is no true thematic connection between the pieces, and his lyrics are often vague or mean-spirited. His lyrical shortcomings are overshadowed by his musical strengths. Even if his melodies sound more Broadway than Beatles -- the epic suite "Scenes From an Italian Restaurant" feels like a show-stopping closer -- there's no denying that the melodies of each song on The Stranger are memorable, so much so that they strengthen the weaker portions of the album. Joel rarely wrote a set of songs better than those on The Stranger, nor did he often deliver an album as consistently listenable. ~ Stephen Thomas Erlewine

Product Details

Release Date:	10/20/1998
Label:	Sony Bmg
UPC:	0888430769625

Tracks

1. Movin' Out (Anthony's Song)
2. The Stranger
3. Just the Way You Are
4. Scenes From an Italian Restaurant
5. Vienna
6. Only the Good Die Young
7. She's Always a Woman
8. Get It Right the First Time
9. Everybody Has a Dream; Everybody Has a Dream: The Stranger

Album Credits

Performance Credits

Billy Joel   Primary Artist,Piano,Vocals,Harmonica,Keyboards,Synthesizer
Hugh Macdonald   Guitar (Acoustic)
Patti Austin   Vocals,Vocals (Background)
Steve Khan   Guitar,Guitar (Rhythm),Guitar (Acoustic),Guitar (Electric),Guitar (12 String)
Lani Groves   Vocals,Vocals (Background)
Hugh McCracken   Guitar,Guitar (Acoustic)
Doug Stegmeyer   Bass
Richie Cannata   Wind,Flute,Organ,Fiddle,Clarinet,Keyboards,Saxophone,Sax (Tenor),Sax (Soprano)
Richard Tee   Organ
Gwen Guthrie   Vocals,Vocals (Background)
Hiram Bullock   Guitar,Guitar (Electric)
Phoebe Snow   Vocals,Vocals (Background)
Steve Burgh   Guitar,Guitar (Acoustic),Guitar (Electric)
Liberty DeVitto   Drums,Percussion
Phil Woods   Saxophone,Sax (Alto)
Ralph MacDonald   Percussion
Dominic Cortese   Accordion
Dave Brown   Guitar
Steve Kahn   Guitar,Guitar (Acoustic),Guitar (Electric),Guitar (12 String)

Technical Credits

Ted Jensen   Mastering,Remastering,Digital Remastering
Billy Joel   Composer,Producer
Phil Ramone   Engineer,Producer
Jim Boyer   Engineer
Jim Houghton   Photography
John Naatjes   Tape Research
Kathy Kurs   Associate Producer
Patrick Williams   Orchestration,Orchestral Arrangements