The Stranger from Billy Joel is an album I know unfortunately. My first real girlfriend loved Billy Joel. We could say she had bad taste in men. I never understood why she liked me and Billy Joel. He is like the poor man’s Bruce Springsteen, if Springsteen played the piano and sang about the working class. Maybe I should say he is the poor man’s Elton John, if John decided to sing about normal people. Anyway, Laura and I did not last long. It must have been her fault; she listened to horrible music. She was there when I needed a friend. She protected me a bit from predators. We lost contact because I moved a lot and she got married. I heard some years ago that she died giving birth. I do have some bad memories with her too, but I forgive her.
There is only one song “Just the Way You Are” that I sort of like, probably due to nostalgia. We say this to people, but all I see around me is couples trying to change each other. Maybe a second song is “Only the Good Die Young“, but to a lesser degree. It is a false song. The good do not always die young. It became popular due to the Christians protesting it. If you want a song to become popular, then make the Christians angry.
After listening to the whole album can I say that I still feel the same about Joel. He does absolutely nothing for me. He is not a horrible singer, but he is not a great singer either. His music does not move me to feeling anything. 5/10.
an ocean roars 