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January 11, 2012
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Nocturne and Got To Begin Again

It only made sense to start this project with Billy Joel’s debut album even though I was warned that it wasn’t up to the high standards of the records that came later. Now that I’ve recapped eight of the ten songs on “Cold Spring Harbor” I’m dying to get to the hit records. “Cold Spring Harbor” has been better than I expected it to be, but the record is a grind to get through. I need to start getting into the good stuff.

So, by show of hands: Who objects to me combining the final two songs on “Cold Spring Harbor” into one update and then moving on to Piano Man? Think it over, I’ll wait.

Oh, nobody minds if I hurry up and get to the songs people actually know? Great.

Let’s get to the end of “Cold Spring Harbor.”

Song: Nocturne

Album: Cold Spring Harbor (1971)

Remastered Version (1983)

Nocturne is an instrumental piece, which on a debut record usually tells me: “We didn’t have quite enough material to fill this record.” A demo version of “Nocturne” from the “Cold Spring Harbor” sessions with lyrics exists but it sounds incomplete so it’s probably just as well that it’s an instrumental here. “Nocturne” is a perfectly nice way to spend a few minutes but there’s not much to it. In both the instrumental and the demo version with lyrics, the song feels like a promising but incomplete composition. For those who are interested, here is the demo version with lyrics.

Song: Got To Begin Again

Album: Cold Spring Harbor (1971)

Remastered Version (1983)

After hearing the closing song to “Cold Spring Harbor” the instrumental Nocturne makes a little more sense because it serves as a buffer between the “Tomorrow is Today” and “Got to Begin Again” two songs that compliment each other well. If “Tomorrow is Today” is a young Billy Joel’s dark night of the soul, “Got To Begin Again” is the sun coming up in the morning; a declaration that the singer believed that he was at the beginning of something rather than the end.

It’s a solid song that musically echos Neil Young’s “After The Gold Rush” and lyrically wraps up the record on a hopeful note. I’m a sucker for a good closing song and “Got to Begin Again” is solid one, on a record that had more solid tracks than I expected.

Thanks for bearing with me through this first record. “Cold Spring Harbor” is in the books and it’s time to move on to bigger and better things.

Coming up at the end of this week: We jump into the beginning of Piano Man, the first of the classic Billy Joel albums.


Tags: cold spring harbor

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January 10, 2012
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Song: Tomorrow is Today

Album: Cold Spring Harbor (1971)

Remastered Version (1983)

Oh boy, there is a lot going on here and it goes way beyond “Is this a good song?” so let me get the easy part out of the way. This is not a great song but it’s not terrible either. It’s got more going for it than it has against it and after “She’s Got A Way” it’s the most notable song on “Cold Spring Harbor” but it ultimately fails.

“Tomorrow is Today” is notable for three reasons:

  1. It is the first time as a listener that I feel like Billy Joel is revealing something about himself.
  2. It might be the last unguarded moment in Billy Joel’s career and possibly his life.
  3. The song is based on a suicide note that Billy is said to have left after attempting to take his own life in 1970.

According to Joel’s version of events, he was unhappy about a romantic relationship and he attempted to take his own life by drinking furniture polish. Over the years Joel has downplayed this suicide attempt but consuming poisonous chemicals, even if it was just for show, is a sign of someone in trouble and the lyrics to this song reflect the desperation and hurt he was feeling. In that sense, “Tomorrow is Today” is our introduction into the often bleak inner world of Billy Joel.

There are good things about this song: the lyrics are evocative and interesting, the melody is the best on the record. Billy’s piano and the rest of the arrangement (including orchestration*) is pretty good.

*Note: This orchestration was removed from the remastered version.

So why haven’t I told you that this is a great song? Because I’ve only described the first half of it. 

For the first two minutes and 30 seconds this song is a young Billy Joel’s “Yesterday” and then something goes wrong. Around the 2:30 mark, the orchestration stops and Billy breaks the song down to it barest elements. The piano, which had been soft and intimate becomes heavier and Billy’s voice gets noticeably deeper while the volume increases and he sings about the Lord and going down to the river. This part of the song can charitably be described as “Billy Soul” and less charitably as: It sounds like he’s channeling Adam Sandler’s singing voice or Axl Rose when he sang “Knockin’ on Heaven’s Door.”

15 seconds later the drums kick in, and then the are horns and the strings are back! 

Then Billy’s voice begins to SOAR and for a few seconds it seems like the kid has turned things around…but he hasn’t. The music heads back to where it began and Billy’s voice and piano get’s quiet again. We’re back at the sadly beautiful song we knew for the first two and a half minutes and then it’s over. Billy is still sad and I’m confused by the false happy ending.

As for happy endings this song did have one, sort of. The relationship problems that drove a young Billy Joel to attempt to take his life were overcome. Billy eventually married the girl he once drank furniture polish over and later wrote “I Love You Just The Way You Are” for her. In 1978 it won the Grammy for song of the year. They divorced in 1982. 

It seems that just when it looks like Billy is going to be okay, he surprises you.

*I don’t ever want to take suicide attempts lightly but since Billy Joel thankfully survived and went on to live another 42 years (and counting) I think it’s okay to ask this question:

How would we feel about Joy Division if Ian Curtis committed suicide by drinking furniture polish? Perhaps differently.

To take this a step further, how would we feel about other musicians who died young if they died from drinking furniture polish? I’m guessing we’d still think Jim Morrison was a total dick but we might feel a little more kindly towards GG Allin.

Tags: cold spring harbor

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January 09, 2012
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Song: You Look So Good To Me

Album: Cold Spring Harbor (1971)

Remastered Version (1983)


Seven songs in and we’re starting to see glimpses of what was to follow later in his career. On “You Look So Good To Me” Billy, blows into the harmonica and sings as generic a love song as it is possible to write without actually calling it “Generic Love Song #1”

Actually, calling this a song is overly generous: This is a fragment of a song stretched out to resemble an actual song. Here are the lyrics:

Ah, you look so good to me
With my eyes open wide, I can see
Ah, you feel so good to me
And it’s so good when you’re here ‘cause I’m free

Feelin’ the glory from that smile upon your face
It’s liftin’ me high above my ordinary place
And I am so happy when I’m in your warm embrace

Ah, you look so good to me
With my eyes open wide, I can see
Ah, you feel so good to me
And who knows what your next move will be?

Ah, you look so good to me
With my eyes open wide, I can see
Ah, you feel so good to me
And it’s so good when you’re here ‘cause I’m free

The first and fourth verse are identical, the third verse is nearly identical to the first and fourth and the second verse appears to be missing a line. The song is easy enough on the ears but doesn’t really stick with me in any way. This is practically the definition of an album filler track. It’s primary function seems to be keeping the number of songs or the running time of each side even. Had Joel released and singles from Cold Spring Harbor this would have been the ideal choice for the B-side.

A search of Billy Joel live set lists indicate that this song didn’t stick with audiences either. It does not appear that this song was a regular part of Joel’s live set after the early 70’s. This is not shocking as the songs that followed this were almost all better than this. What is shocking to me is that I spent a good amount of time researching set lists of Billy Joel’s live shows. It’s like I don’t even know myself anymore. 

Tags: cold spring harbor

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January 08, 2012
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Hey that’s not a picture of Billy Joel. Don’t worry. This will all make sense in a minute.  Song: Turn Around Album: Cold Spring Harbor (1971) Remastered Version (1983) Side two of Billy Joel’s “Cold Spring Harbor” starts off on a surprising country rock note. Before today I had never put the words Billy Joel and country rock in the same sentence but Turn Around is a straight up country rock song and a damn good one. Turn Around is probably the best song on the album to this point.  Since I’m not planning on appearing on the upcoming TV show Rock Hoarders I don’t have any FM station playlists from 1971 around my house but if I did, I’m guessing I’d find that this song got some airplay on the same stations who would later play The Eagles to death because this song is better than any of those early Eagles hits. As much as I like this song, one of the best things about it is not Billy Joel; it’s the contribution of pedal steel guitar player Pete Kleinow better known as Sneaky Pete. Sneaky Pete was a legendary musician and even if you have never heard his music, you’re probably familiar with his work. Over the course of his musical career Sneaky Pete Kleinow was a member of The Flying Burrito Brothers and he played with George Harrison, The Rolling Stones, The Eagles, Stevie Wonder, The Byrds and many more. Prior to his music career he worked in film and TV as a visual effects artist on shows like The Outer Limits but quit visual effects in 1968 to be a full time musician after connecting with Graham Parsons who invited him to join The Flying Burrito Brothers. For the next decade plus Pete worked exclusively in music, lending his distinct pedal steel sound to dozens of records including Billy Joel’s debut album. When I initially read the album credits for Cold Spring Harbor I was surprised to see Sneaky Pete listed among the backing musicians. As I mentioned above, I don’t think of Billy Joel when I think of country rock but I was eager to hear his contribution because I’ve had a soft spot for Sneaky Pete ever since I inherited a crate of LP’s from my mom’s second husband, which included a Byrds record that Pete appeared on. I was told that Sneaky Pete was the secret weapon of country rock, which may or may not be true but it sounded cool enough that I wanted it to believe it. Eventually, Pete returned to visual effects where he had a second, equally successful career. From 1980 onward the former Sneaky Pete, now credited as Peter Kleinow lent his visual effects expertise to a few things you may be familiar with including: Carl Sagan’s: Cosmos The Empire Strikes Back The Winds of War Terminator (and Terminator 2) Army of Darkness So, next time you’re asked to find the connection between Billy Joel and: Darth Vader, Carl Sagan, The Terminator and Ash, you can point to one man, Sneaky Pete Kleinow.

Hey that’s not a picture of Billy Joel. Don’t worry. This will all make sense in a minute. 

Song: Turn Around

Album: Cold Spring Harbor (1971)

Remastered Version (1983)

Side two of Billy Joel’s “Cold Spring Harbor” starts off on a surprising country rock note. Before today I had never put the words Billy Joel and country rock in the same sentence but Turn Around is a straight up country rock song and a damn good one. Turn Around is probably the best song on the album to this point. 

Since I’m not planning on appearing on the upcoming TV show Rock Hoarders I don’t have any FM station playlists from 1971 around my house but if I did, I’m guessing I’d find that this song got some airplay on the same stations who would later play The Eagles to death because this song is better than any of those early Eagles hits.

As much as I like this song, one of the best things about it is not Billy Joel; it’s the contribution of pedal steel guitar player Pete Kleinow better known as Sneaky Pete. Sneaky Pete was a legendary musician and even if you have never heard his music, you’re probably familiar with his work.

Over the course of his musical career Sneaky Pete Kleinow was a member of The Flying Burrito Brothers and he played with George Harrison, The Rolling Stones, The Eagles, Stevie Wonder, The Byrds and many more. Prior to his music career he worked in film and TV as a visual effects artist on shows like The Outer Limits but quit visual effects in 1968 to be a full time musician after connecting with Graham Parsons who invited him to join The Flying Burrito Brothers. For the next decade plus Pete worked exclusively in music, lending his distinct pedal steel sound to dozens of records including Billy Joel’s debut album.

When I initially read the album credits for Cold Spring Harbor I was surprised to see Sneaky Pete listed among the backing musicians. As I mentioned above, I don’t think of Billy Joel when I think of country rock but I was eager to hear his contribution because I’ve had a soft spot for Sneaky Pete ever since I inherited a crate of LP’s from my mom’s second husband, which included a Byrds record that Pete appeared on. I was told that Sneaky Pete was the secret weapon of country rock, which may or may not be true but it sounded cool enough that I wanted it to believe it.

Eventually, Pete returned to visual effects where he had a second, equally successful career. From 1980 onward the former Sneaky Pete, now credited as Peter Kleinow lent his visual effects expertise to a few things you may be familiar with including:

Carl Sagan’s: Cosmos

The Empire Strikes Back

The Winds of War

Terminator (and Terminator 2)

Army of Darkness

So, next time you’re asked to find the connection between Billy Joel and: Darth Vader, Carl Sagan, The Terminator and Ash, you can point to one man, Sneaky Pete Kleinow.

Tags: cold spring harbor sneaky pete

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January 06, 2012
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Song: Falling of the Rain

Album: Cold Spring Harbor (1971)

Remastered Version (1983)

Upon it’s release in 1971, Billy Joel’s debut album wasn’t a hit, but it sold moderately well for an album by an unknown artist without a hit single. Halfway through Cold Spring Harbor it’s easy to understand both of these outcomes. The record shows enough song craft to make it interesting but lacks the pop hooks that would make later records much more successful. The best way to describe Cold Spring Harbor to this point is “promising but uneven”. “Falling of the Rain”, the song that closes side one, is one of the things that makes it uneven.

Musically, “Falling of the Rain” fits in easily enough onto this record but it does not feel like a Billy Joel song. Mostly because it contains lyrics like “misty satin dreams” and “high upon a hill far away”. I know this kind of thing went over big in the early 70’s but even those listeners still hanging on to the ideas of peace and love would have thought this was bordering on parody. “Falling of the Rain” sounds like something the pre Electric Warrior Marc Bolan would have passed on and he never met a mystical creature or enchanted land he couldn’t sing about.*

*If you only know of the glam T-Rex Marc Bolan, try this.

Personally this song puts me off but not in the ways that later Billy Joel songs would. In addition to the folk troubadour bit this one does something I didn’t expect from Billy Joel when it says:

Will it always be the same as we recall?
Does it touch you when the rain begins to fall?
Ah, but I don’t want to know and I don’t want to see
Another rainy day without you lyin’ next to me

Here’s something you didn’t know about me. I do not like to hear about people being physically intimate in songs so the mention of “lyin’ next to me” makes my skin crawl and not just because it’s Billy Joel saying it. I’d been uncomfortable no matter who sang it.

I’m not a prude or anti-sex. I think physical intimacy between people is one of the best thing in the world I just don’t ever want to hear about it in songs at least not in specifics or even through strong implications.

Is this aversion completely my problem? Yes it is. Does it probably stem from seeing a sex tape involving family members? I’d be wiling to bet it does but I’m getting way off topic now.

“Fallin’ of the Rain” is the weakest song on the record so far and it would be bad even if it didn’t include Billy Joel’s hippie pillow talk. It unfortunately makes me wonder if I have too optimistic to this point. Is Billy Joel as bad as I initially suspected? I’m sure I will find out starting next week when I move on to side two of Cold Spring Harbor.

Tags: cold spring harbor

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January 06, 2012
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Why Judy Why

Song: Why Judy Why

Album: Cold Spring Harbor (1971)

Remastered Version (1983)

Most relationships start out great. You meet someone, you connect, you spend time together and for a while everything is wonderful. Your life has been changed forever and it will always be amazing.

Until it isn’t anymore.

At some point the people we care about will disappoint us and when this happens there are a few things we can do: We can run away before we get hurt again, or we can accept that no one is perfect and find a way to make it work. The choice you make depends on the level of disappointment and how hard you’re willing to work to salvage things. 

I mention this because “Why Judy Why” is the first disappointment in my new relationship with Billy Joel’s career; but it’s not a “You Cheated on Me” disappointment. This is more like a “You Ate The Last Cookie But Left The Box In The Cupboard” kind of disappointment. It feels lousy in the moment but most people aren’t going to split up over cookies.*

*To be fair, I’ve been cheated on and I have found an empty cookie box in the cupboard and I’m still mad about the cookies.  

“Why Judy Why” is the empty box of cookies. After three very promising songs to start off “Cold Spring Harbor” this song is the first disappointment of the record. My initial reaction to the song was that it sounded like a guitar being tuned while someone recited a teenager’s poetry but I didn’t want to dismiss it out of hand so I listened to it a dozen more times and the song simply doesn’t work. Neither the tune or the melody are particularly memorable and the lyrics are, to put it mildly not good.

Actually the lyrics are terrible. So bad that I began to wonder: Are lyrics one of the reasons that I haven’t been a fan of Billy Joel?

I gave this a lot of thought and while the lyrics to “Why Judy Why” are bad, they are a specific kind of bad. They are the kind of bad lyrics a young person writes because they don’t have the benefit of perspective. They are the kind of thing I would have written in my teens when something I would soon forget about felt like the end of the world.

The lyrics are all overwrought and maudlin but here are some standouts:

I never thought that she would say
Say goodbye; but she did
And now I wanna die. I wanna die

And:

A man my age is very young, so I’m told
Why do I feel so old?
Tell me why, Judy, why?

Let me make one thing clear, there is a difference between bad lyrics and dumb lyrics. Bad lyrics are the product of misplaced emotions or hurriedly thought out idea. Dumb lyrics make no sense because the writer is unable or unwilling to express themselves clearly

The lyrics to Why Judy Why are bad but they aren’t dumb. They are the kind of lyrics a mature writer probably looks back on and wants to take back. I know I’d like to take back a lot of things I wrote in my early 20’s so I’m going to give Mr. Joel a pass on this one. It’s a bad song and the lyrics are best forgotten but this adds up to a disappointment not a deal breaker. I’m just going to move past it and hope it gets better from here.  Billy Joel and I may still have a future together.

Tags: cold spring harbor

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January 04, 2012
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Song: Everybody Loves You Now Album: Cold Spring Harbor (1971) Remastered Version (1983) When I first had the idea to spend 2012 listening to Billy Joel I assumed that I knew what I was getting into. In my head I envisioned that I would listen to a bunch of songs I didn’t like and then talk about why they were bad or maybe why they weren’t as bad as I thought. Then I’d make jokes and we’d all move on with our lives. Almost immediately two things happened to change my plans: First I started to do some research and then I began to listen to the music. Over the last few days I have I’ve read thousands of words on the life and career of Billy Joe and I’ve repeatedly listened to the first three songs on “Cold Spring Harbor.” This has resulted in a change in my thinking. Right now I feel surprisingly empathetic towards the young man who wrote these songs. They may not be all time greats, but they are better than I expected. “Everybody Loves You Now”, with it’s cliched bitter lyrics about the dark side of fame, is weaker than the first two songs but it has a point of view that I recognize as more than just another kiss off song. Perhaps I’m just a sucker for a good story about a guy from Long Island but I can’t help but root for the 1971 version of Billy Joel who at 22 years old had already put out records with two bands that didn’t make it big, but still had a chance to make it on his own thanks to a solo deal with a local label.  *The first band was an unremarkable garage band that put out two albums in the late 60’s. The second was one of the more curious artifacts of the 70’s. We’ll get to both at a later date. I want to believe that a guy from Long Island who writes from his heart about love and what it’s like to feel left behind will achieve amazing things. Listening to these songs I don’t hear the bland singer and songwriter who I’ve disliked for three decades. Instead I hear a kid from my hometown who sees his chances slipping away and is trying to catch a break. I don’t want his debut album to be mastered incorrectly. I want him to make it big even though I know he will eventually find fame to be more than he bargained for. Jesus, just what is your game Billy Joel? Are you trying to make me love you just so you can break my heart later? I’m trusting you Billy.

Song: Everybody Loves You Now

Album: Cold Spring Harbor (1971)

Remastered Version (1983)

When I first had the idea to spend 2012 listening to Billy Joel I assumed that I knew what I was getting into. In my head I envisioned that I would listen to a bunch of songs I didn’t like and then talk about why they were bad or maybe why they weren’t as bad as I thought. Then I’d make jokes and we’d all move on with our lives.

Almost immediately two things happened to change my plans: First I started to do some research and then I began to listen to the music.

Over the last few days I have I’ve read thousands of words on the life and career of Billy Joe and I’ve repeatedly listened to the first three songs on “Cold Spring Harbor.” This has resulted in a change in my thinking. Right now I feel surprisingly empathetic towards the young man who wrote these songs. They may not be all time greats, but they are better than I expected. “Everybody Loves You Now”, with it’s cliched bitter lyrics about the dark side of fame, is weaker than the first two songs but it has a point of view that I recognize as more than just another kiss off song.

Perhaps I’m just a sucker for a good story about a guy from Long Island but I can’t help but root for the 1971 version of Billy Joel who at 22 years old had already put out records with two bands that didn’t make it big, but still had a chance to make it on his own thanks to a solo deal with a local label. 

*The first band was an unremarkable garage band that put out two albums in the late 60’s. The second was one of the more curious artifacts of the 70’s. We’ll get to both at a later date.

I want to believe that a guy from Long Island who writes from his heart about love and what it’s like to feel left behind will achieve amazing things.

Listening to these songs I don’t hear the bland singer and songwriter who I’ve disliked for three decades. Instead I hear a kid from my hometown who sees his chances slipping away and is trying to catch a break. I don’t want his debut album to be mastered incorrectly. I want him to make it big even though I know he will eventually find fame to be more than he bargained for.

Jesus, just what is your game Billy Joel? Are you trying to make me love you just so you can break my heart later? I’m trusting you Billy.

Tags: cold spring harbor

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January 03, 2012
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You Can Make Me Free

Song: You Can Make Me Free

Album: Cold Spring Harbor (1971)

Holy shit! This is not what I expected.

Before I get into this song allow me to explain something.

As with all of the songs from Cold Spring Harbor I’m listening to the original 1971 release here, which was apparently mastered at the wrong speed. Click the link above to hear the second song on side one, “You Can Make Me Free”. Like all of the songs on this record, the mastering error causes Billy’s voice to slightly higher than it should.

For reference here is the same track remastered to restore the intended vocal sound.

Okay, now let’s get to the song. In the originally released version Billy Joel sounds like Freddy Mercury, so much so that if you told me this was a Queen demo I would absolutely believe it. Of course, any resemblance to Queen is purely accidental but it opens up a world of possibilities.

Legend states that when Billy Joel first heard the finished version of Cold Spring Harbor he pulled it off the turntable, ran outside and in a rage threw the record down the street. This story is probably apocryphal because throwing a record down the street is littering and just plain rude. Back on Long Island in the 70’s it was not acceptable to just let records fly around recklessly. Remember, in 1971 Billy Joel wasn’t a rock star, he wasn’t even a local star he was just a 22 year old musician struggling to catch a break, he had not yet reached the stage in his life where he could just throw records around on the streets at least not without apologizing later and cleaning up the mess. 

Record throwing legends aside, Billy was probably very angry. What was supposed to be his big break was now, to him, a mess and to make matters worse he had signed a 10 year deal with Artie Ripp’s label Family Productions who insisted on releasing the record as it had been mastered. It would be 12 years before a remastered version would correct the problems with the vocals but even this remastering had it’s own set of problems: Much of the backing orchestration is stripped out and most notably, “You Can Make Me Free” is cut down by several minutes (and a new drum track is added) which is a shame because the longer version, of “You Can Make Me Free” is one of the high points of the album. I would go so far as to say it’s a good song (seriously), sure it borrows heavily from Paul McCartney’s late period Beatles work but if being influenced by Paul McCartney was a crime, our prisons would be overflowing with musicians.

Hearing this song, I wonder how music history might have changed if “You Can Make Me Free” had been a hit upon it’s release. Imagine this: “Cold Spring Harbor”, mastered at the wrong speed becomes a huge worldwide smash and “You Can Make Me Free’s” mix of “You Never Give Me Your Money” style Paul McCartney and “You’re My Best Friend” style Queen dominates the charts in 1971 and 1972. At the 1972 Grammy Awards, Billy Joel NOT Carly Simon wins best new artist. This has two notable effects on Billy Joel: First he decides that all future releases need to be mastered at the same incorrect speed as his debut album. He then spends all of 1973 unsuccessfully trying to train himself to sing live at a higher pitch. When this proves unsuccessful he decides to never again perform live, retreating to the studio to work on “Rubber Soul” style follow up. This is all, of course, a flight of fancy on my part but that doesn’t mean “You Can Make Me Free” isn’t fun to listen to. Perhaps Billy Joel has other surprises in store for me.

Tags: cold spring harbor

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January 02, 2012
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Song: She’s Got A Way

Album: Cold Spring Harbor (1971)


Billy Joel and I have a few things in common: we’re both from Long Island, we’re both bad drivers and we’ve both married uptown girls. The difference is I’m still married to one. I don’t know what Billy Joel thinks of me but I have never liked him, or at least I’ve never liked his music. Much of my dislike is due to the sound of his music and the lyrics which are not good, but there’ more to it than that. There’s plenty of bad music that I enjoy or at least manage to ignore but for years I’ve had a strong aversion to Billy Joel and I’m not really sure why. The best I can guess is proximity. I grew up close to where Billy Joel grew up and as a result I heard Billy Joel nearly non stop until I moved away from Long Island. 

When I moved I went as far away from Long Island as I could but I discovered that I couldn’t get away from Billy Joel, he was all over the Los Angeles classic rock stations too. At least in LA I didn’t have to regularly explain why I didn’t like The Piano Man, I just ignored him, until now.

Ten seconds into this project and I’m already regretting my decision to take this on. The first thing that jumps out about the songs on “Cold Spring Harbor” is the sound of Billy’s voice; it’s too high. The singer of this song sounds nothing like the guy who would later torment me via classic rock radio. 

According to legend and wikipedia, the original version of Cold Spring Harbor was mastered incorrectly causing Billy Joel’s voice to sound higher than normal.

Once the shock of the voice wears off two things come to mind: The first is the fact that Billy sounds like he’s playing the song very tentatively on the piano, like he’s either unsure of the tune or he’s broken into the studio and isn’t sure if he’s allowed to play the piano. The second thing I notice is that it sounds like he tried to write his own version of Paul McCartney’s “Maybe I’m Amazed”  but only finished half of it.

The idea that Billy Joel ‘borrowed” part of “Maybe I’m Amazed”  is an interesting but unlikely scenario though.  I’m about to surprise myself by saying this, but I think Billy Joel deserves more credit than to accuse him of ripping off McCartney’s song. While Maybe I’m Amazed was included on Paul McCartney’s first solo album “McCartney” in 1970 it was not released as a single and did not become a hit until a live version was released on “Wings Across America” in 1976. While it’s likely that Billy Joel heard the original version, I’m assuming that the similarities are mere coincidence. Since this project is just getting underway I don’t want to start making accusations against anyone.

However there is a parallel between these two songs. Just like “Maybe I’m Amazed,” a live version of “She’s Got A Way” was later released and became a hit. Prior to today I had never heard the original version of this song but I knew the live hit version which appeared on “Songs in the Attic” 10 years after this release. The 1981 version will get more attention later but for now I’m focusing on the original.

In spite of, or perhaps because of the similarities to McCartney’s “Maybe I’m Amazed” I have to admit that this song isn’t half bad. It’s easy to listen to in that early 70’s singer songwriter kind of way. It’s unfortunate that so few people heard this on it’s initial release, had this become a hit in the early 70’s Billy Joel’s career could have gone in another direction and I might still live on Long Island.

Tags: cold spring harbor she's got a way Paul McCartney