BILLY JOEL The Stranger

Coincidentally, the same week that the title track of one of the year’s biggest sellers and most acclaimed albums - ’Bat Out of Hell’, was released as a single, so too Billy Joel’s title track to his turning point LP ’The Stranger’ was also released in Australia. The former managed to get to #26, while the latter only managed #59. ’The Stranger’ album was a work of art from start to finish. The hit single ’Just the way you are’ is a classic, whilst tracks such as ’Only the good die young’. ’Moving Out’ ’She’s always a woman’ and ’Scenes from an Italian Restaurant’ helped make this album one of the best selling of the year, and indeed one of the best loved of the decade. I especially admire the Phil Ramone production on the album and this track, is filled with quintessential Billy Joel elements - a killer arrangement, a kick ass but at times sensitive vocal, a melody eminently hummable, and a haunting lyric, whilst still