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 A Great Introduction To Billy's Pre-"Stranger" Recordings. Aug 17, 2008
With three consecutive smash albums ("The Stranger," "52nd Street," and "Glass Houses," Billy Joel had cemented himself as rock superstar. Capitalizing on this success, Billy spent most of 1980 on the road, where he played to packed stadiums and small clubs around the United States. With the tour a success, Billy decided to conjure up a live album from the tour. Howeve,r Billy took a decidedly different approach from the tour.
Instead of overloading the album with stuff like "My Life," "Piano Man," and "It's Still Rock And Roll To Me," Billy used this live album as a means of introducing his fans to his lesser known pre-"Stranger" material from albums such as "Cold Spring Harbor," "Piano Man," "Streetlife Serenader," and "Turnstiles."
Not one of the songs present here was a Top 40 hit, and most weren't even singles. However, despite their relative unpopularity, they are very much welcomed by the crowds and hold the same energy and excitement as one of the megahits.
The overwhelming majorty of the songs here are generally superior to the recorded versions, mainly due to the fact that Billy's band plays with a more intense and energetic fervor than the studio band used on the album. "Miami 2017," "Los Angelenos," and "Captain Jack" (the latter a tour de force for drummer Liberty De Vito) all have an extra bite not present on the studio version. Slower numbers like "Summer, Highland Falls," "She's Got A Way" and "I've Lovedd These Days" are more passionate and introspective, while "Everybody Loves You Now" is more vitriolic and in your face.
Billy's liner notes are incredible - humerous, honest and sincere. He recounts each song vivdly, and recollects memories of the tour in the same manner. I highly recommend this great album by a truly great artist.
This album ROCKS!! Jan 29, 2008
i bought this alubum when it first came out. i was a Billy Joel fan since the stranger, but had never really heard his older stuff! from the fist track Miami 2017, the music and the power of these live performances really sound great, and some Rock the house! Great songwriting, great production, and great performance, make this a must have for anybody that likes good music! i had forgotten what a wonderful song that :Billy the kid: is! it destroys me every time i hear it! Buy this c-d!! sit back and enjoy the piano man at his live best! Highly recommended!
0 of 1 found the following review helpful:
 Some of the songs should have stayed in the Attic Dec 01, 2007
If you do get this album, get it for the fantastic rendition of Miami 2017, a freewheeling, rollicking rock suite with some of Joel's most aggressive lyrics ever. There are good versions of Captain Jack and Billy the Kid- fun stuff, really, and a pretty though simple tune in "She's got a way".
Most else is well below the quality of songwriting that is Billy Joel's reputation. Some of his worst stuff is on here, such as the mediocre melody "Streetlife Serenade," though it is enhanced by some gutsy guitar work, as well as the faux-latin "Los Angelenos" done on a chintzy electronic piano at Toads Place in New Haven. Even the hit "Say Goodbye to Hollywood" is OK and fine, it's just well below his reputation for good song writing and melody making.
1 of 2 found the following review helpful:
Best Live Album of all time, Trust Me! Aug 10, 2007
This what playing Live is all about. Anyone who owns this album will agree that Songs In The Attic is the most complete collection of Live tracks. This one has withstood hundreds of repeated listens without losing even a tinge of energy.
Songwriting genius Joel should have been a Superstar long before The Stranger was out.
3 of 3 found the following review helpful:
 Billy Joel shines a light into his past Jun 06, 2007
After the huge success of "Glass Houses," "52nd Street" and "The Stranger," many of Billy Joel's early fans were crying 'sell-out.' From the popular success of "Just The Way You Are" to the modern rock of "It's Still Rock and Roll to Me," fans that had come up through those early piano-troubadour albums felt Joel had forgotten his roots. Joel even somewhat conceded the point when he released "Songs From The Attic."
"Our intention here is to provide a selective sampling of the earlier stuff, played the right way - with honest road muscle," Joel writes in "Songs From The Attic's" liner notes. He gets that point across right off the top as "Miami 2017 (Seen the Lights Go Out On Broadway)" roars forth like the stadium rocker it was always meant to be, with far more punch than its studio version. This is one of the rare live CD's that improves on its originals. The songs from the first four albums are also Joel's picks (hence no "Piano Man," but two songs from "Cold Spring Harbor"), and this way they come off as fresh for those who had only discovered Joel around the time of "52'nd Street."
Even so, there are fan favorites here. "Captain Jack" and "The Ballad Of Billy The Kid" both appear, and the hit single of "She's Got A Way" came from this album. Joel was at a crossroads here. After the mega-success of "Glass Houses," he began a string of experiments that - while yielding hits - became more experimental and off the beaten path. (His next album would be the Beatlesque song-cycle "The Nylon Curtain.") Closing "Songs From The Attic" with the prematurely nostalgic "I've Loved These Days" is more than a touch ironic. This wonderful touchstone was Billy Joel both celebrating the youth of his musical career and closing the door before maturing in his pursuits. That the songs hold their vitality some 35 years later ("Cold Spring Harbor" first appeared in 1971) is testimony to the quality of Joel's songs.
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