Music Monday
Another free choice Monday, so I'm back to Billy Joel.
I’ve been lucky enough to have seen Billy twice during his Madison Square Garden residency, and will likely go again.
Today's playlist includes songs that mention New York City.
Let's start with a hit from his 1976 album, Turnstiles. "Miami 2017 (Seen the Lights Go Out on Broadway)". The song was inspired by NYC's fiscal troubles and the famed NY Daily News headline: Ford to City:Drop Dead. Joel described the song as "science fiction".
But after 9/11, when he performed the song at Madison Square Garden during a benefit concert on 10/20/01, he said "I wrote that song 25 years ago. I thought it was going to be a science fiction song; I never thought it would really happen. But unlike the end of that song, we ain't going anywhere!".
He sang it again at the 12-12-12 concert after the city was decimated by Superstorm Sandy. It has become an anthem to the city's resilience.
This version is from a concert at Yankee Stadium.
Next up, from 1980's Glass Houses, "You May Be Right". One of the reasons he's crazy is because he "walked through Bedford-Stuy alone". No one had to explain that lyric to anyone from the NYC metropolitan area...Bedford-Stuyvesant a/k/a Bed-Stuy is a Brooklyn neighborhood, predominantly African-American. In the 21st Century the neighborhood has undergone gentrification, but in the 1970's and 1980's it was an impoverished, gang-dominated community, considered dangerous.
From the 1986 album The Bridge, it's "Big Man On Mulberry Street". Mulberry Street is located in the Manhattan neighborhood of Little Italy. the lyrics reference Houston St. (New Yorkers know it's pronounced "Howston") and Canal Street.
And to close it out, also from Turnstiles, is "New York State of Mind". The album is all about Joel coming home to New York after a brief time living in Los Angeles, and the lyrics are a love letter to the city.
I went to college in Albany, NY, and every time I returned home to Long Island, this song would be playing in my head.
Oh, wait....I have to do a bonus hit. When the powers that be decided to tear down Shea Stadium, Billy Joel did several concerts dubbed "the Last Play at Shea." At the very last concert, he invited Sir Paul McCartney to close out the show. Later, when McCartney did the very first concert at Citi Field, Billy was his guest. I cried when I could not get tickets to the Shea Stadium concerts, and I cried even more when I was lucky enough to see the McCartney concert.
Billy Joel playing "Piano Man" to the Shea Stadium crowd is a quintessential New York moment:
I’ve been lucky enough to have seen Billy twice during his Madison Square Garden residency, and will likely go again.
Today's playlist includes songs that mention New York City.
Let's start with a hit from his 1976 album, Turnstiles. "Miami 2017 (Seen the Lights Go Out on Broadway)". The song was inspired by NYC's fiscal troubles and the famed NY Daily News headline: Ford to City:Drop Dead. Joel described the song as "science fiction".
But after 9/11, when he performed the song at Madison Square Garden during a benefit concert on 10/20/01, he said "I wrote that song 25 years ago. I thought it was going to be a science fiction song; I never thought it would really happen. But unlike the end of that song, we ain't going anywhere!".
He sang it again at the 12-12-12 concert after the city was decimated by Superstorm Sandy. It has become an anthem to the city's resilience.
This version is from a concert at Yankee Stadium.
Next up, from 1980's Glass Houses, "You May Be Right". One of the reasons he's crazy is because he "walked through Bedford-Stuy alone". No one had to explain that lyric to anyone from the NYC metropolitan area...Bedford-Stuyvesant a/k/a Bed-Stuy is a Brooklyn neighborhood, predominantly African-American. In the 21st Century the neighborhood has undergone gentrification, but in the 1970's and 1980's it was an impoverished, gang-dominated community, considered dangerous.
From the 1986 album The Bridge, it's "Big Man On Mulberry Street". Mulberry Street is located in the Manhattan neighborhood of Little Italy. the lyrics reference Houston St. (New Yorkers know it's pronounced "Howston") and Canal Street.
And to close it out, also from Turnstiles, is "New York State of Mind". The album is all about Joel coming home to New York after a brief time living in Los Angeles, and the lyrics are a love letter to the city.
I went to college in Albany, NY, and every time I returned home to Long Island, this song would be playing in my head.
Oh, wait....I have to do a bonus hit. When the powers that be decided to tear down Shea Stadium, Billy Joel did several concerts dubbed "the Last Play at Shea." At the very last concert, he invited Sir Paul McCartney to close out the show. Later, when McCartney did the very first concert at Citi Field, Billy was his guest. I cried when I could not get tickets to the Shea Stadium concerts, and I cried even more when I was lucky enough to see the McCartney concert.
Billy Joel playing "Piano Man" to the Shea Stadium crowd is a quintessential New York moment:
I think, a year or so ago, I devoted a Music Moves Me "free week" post to Billy Joel, including at least one live video. I would so love to see him in concert at The Last Play at Shea. Having said that, this is the first time I've ever heard "Seen the Lights Go Out on Broadway" and it is an awesome song. So is New York State of Mind. Although I moved from New York City almost 45 years ago (and have never regretted it), I am a New Yorker from the Bronx forever. Alana ramblinwitham.blogspot.com
ReplyDeleteRobin,
ReplyDeleteBilly Joel was so big in the 80s and 90s. I loved his sound. It was strange to see him in the 'You May Be Right' not in front of the piano. I like him better when he performs behind the keys. Fabulous Joel collection to share with the 4M crew. Thanks for hitting the dance floor and have a boogietastic week, my dear!
Such great and classic songs. Thanks for sharing.
ReplyDeleteI did a Billy Joel post several months back. He was one of the best in the business in his prime. His music and musicianship were unsurpassed. I kind of think of him as the American Elton John. Thanks for sharing some of his best work. Have a blessed week.
ReplyDeleteI'm not much of a Billy Joel fan, but "You May Be Right" is a great song.
ReplyDeleteNot much of a fan and never saw him live but he seems to be a better performer than on record. Thanks for sharing.
ReplyDelete