Songs in the Attic

Songs in the Attic
Live album by
Billy Joel
ReleasedSeptember 14, 1981
RecordedJune–July 1980 during Glass Houses tour
Genre
Length48:00
LabelFamily Productions/Columbia
ProducerPhil Ramone
Billy Joel chronology
Glass Houses
(1980) 		Songs in the Attic
(1981) 		The Nylon Curtain
(1982)
Billy Joel live chronology
Songs in the Attic
(1981) 		Концерт
(1987)
Singles from Songs in the Attic
  1. "Say Goodbye to Hollywood (Live)"
    Released: September 1981
  2. "You're My Home (Live)"
    Released: November 1981 (UK)
  3. "She's Got a Way (Live)"
    Released: November 1981[1]
Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic[2]
Rolling Stone[3]
Rolling Stone Album Guide, 3rd Edition[4]

Songs in the Attic is the first live album by Billy Joel, released in 1981.

At the time of its release, it was the first widely available appearance of music from his first album, Cold Spring Harbor, released in 1971.

History

[edit]

In the liner notes, Joel writes that Songs in the Attic introduced his earlier work to fans who had come to know his work after The Stranger. In that earlier work, most of the instruments were played by session musicians while Joel himself sang and played piano, keyboards, and harmonica. But by the late 1970s, Joel had a fairly consistent touring/recording band and wanted to showcase his songs as played by his band.

The single-releases included: "Say Goodbye to Hollywood", which peaked at #17 on the U. S. Billboard Hot 100; and "She's Got a Way", which reached #23 on the same chart; and "You're My Home". In Japan, "Los Angelenos" was also available in 1981.[5]

A series of promotional music videos were filmed. Though the concert filming may have been staged for the occasion, the audio versions are nonetheless different from the live recordings featuring on the live album. A total of five promo videos were filmed: four of them recorded at Sparks Saloon in Huntington, NY, and one in a recording studio. At least two of them were not released as worldwide official singles.[6] "Everybody Loves You Now" (not a single) directed by Steve Cohen (live at Sparks); "You're My Home" directed by Steve Cohen (live at Sparks); "Los Angelenos" (not a single, though a Japanese 7" vinyl was in existence) directed by Steve Cohen (live at Sparks); "Say Goodbye to Hollywood" directed by Steve Cohen (live at Sparks); "She's Got a Way" live in a studio, also a different version from the live album.[5]

Track listing

[edit]

All songs written by Billy Joel.

Side one
No.TitlePerformanceLength
1."Miami 2017 (Seen the Lights Go Out on Broadway)"June 24, 1980, at Madison Square Garden, New York, NY5:05
2."Summer, Highland Falls"July 23, 1980, at The Bayou, Washington, D.C.3:03
3."Streetlife Serenader"July 20, 1980, at St. Paul Civic Center, St. Paul, MN5:17
4."Los Angelenos"July 10, 1980, at Toad's Place, New Haven, CT3:48
5."She's Got a Way"June 1980 at Paradise Rock Club, Boston, MA3:00
6."Everybody Loves You Now"July 23, 1980, at The Bayou, Washington, D.C.3:08
Total length:23:21
Side two
No.TitlePerformanceLength
1."Say Goodbye to Hollywood"July 14, 1980, at Milwaukee Arena, Milwaukee, WI4:25
2."Captain Jack"July 5, 1980, at Spectrum, Philadelphia, PA7:16
3."You're My Home"July 23, 1980, at the Bayou, Washington, D.C.3:07
4."The Ballad of Billy the Kid"June 24, 1980, at Madison Square Garden, New York, NY5:28
5."I've Loved These Days"July 16, 1980, at The Horizon, Chicago, IL4:35
Total length:24:51

Personnel

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Technical

Charts

[edit]

References

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  1. ^ Strong, Martin Charles (1995). Great Rock Discography. Canongate Press. p. 436. ISBN 978-0-86241-541-9.
  2. ^ Songs in the Attic at AllMusic
  3. ^ White, Timothy (November 12, 1981). "Songs In The Attic". Rolling Stone. Retrieved 25 October 2020.
  4. ^ DeCurtis, Anthony; Henke, James; George-Warren, Holly, eds. (1992). The Rolling Stone Album Guide (3rd ed.). Random House. p. 370. ISBN 0679737294.
  5. ^ a b "Blogger".
  6. ^ Archived at Ghostarchive and the Wayback Machine: "Billy Joel - Everybody Loves You Now (Live at Sparks, 1981)". YouTube. 17 January 2013.
  7. ^ Kent, David (1993). Australian Chart Book 1970–1992. St Ives, NSW: Australian Chart Book. p. 156. ISBN 0-646-11917-6.
  8. ^ "Top Albums/CDs - Volume 35, No. 16". RPM. 1981-11-14. Retrieved 2013-11-10.
  9. ^ a b Oricon Album Chart Book: Complete Edition 1970-2005. Roppongi, Tokyo: Oricon Entertainment. 2006. ISBN 4-87131-077-9.
  10. ^ "charts.nz - Billy Joel - Songs in the Attic". charts.nz. Recording Industry Association of New Zea Land. Retrieved 2013-11-08.
  11. ^ "norwegiancharts.com Billy Joel - Songs in the Attic". Hung Medien, norwegiancharts.com. VG-lista. Retrieved 2013-11-08.
  12. ^ "swedishcharts.com Billy Joel - Songs in the Attic". Hung Medien, swedishcharts.com (in Swedish). Sverigetopplistan. Retrieved 2013-11-08.
  13. ^ "Billy Joel > Artist > Official Charts". UK Albums Chart. Retrieved 2013-11-08.
  14. ^ "allmusic ((( Songs in the Attic > Charts & Awards > Billboard Albums )))". AllMusic. Retrieved 2011-03-19.
  15. ^ "Album Search: Billy Joel - Songs in the Attic" (in German). Media Control. Retrieved 2013-11-08.[dead link]
  16. ^ "Top 100 Albums of 1981". RPM. 1981-12-26. Archived from the original on 2012-10-20. Retrieved 2013-11-11.
  17. ^ "Billboard.BIZ: Top Pop Albums of 1982". billboard.biz. Archived from the original on 2013-01-15. Retrieved 2014-04-25.
  18. ^ "American album certifications – Billy Joel – Songs in the Attic". Recording Industry Association of America. Retrieved 25 July 2012.
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