“The Stranger”: The Jewel In Billy Joel’s Crown

It took five albums to rocket Billy Joel from mere respected artist to global superstar. The album that did it? 1977’s The Stranger.

The front cover shows Billy clad in a suit and bare feet in bed, fixated on a theatrical mask alluded to on the titular track. Boxing gloves (a former endeavor of Joel’s) hang on the wall. It’s a black-and-white photo with a mild noir vibe. The back of the album shows sharp-dressed Billy with his band and producer Phil Ramone at a now-defunct red-sauce restaurant in Hell’s Kitchen. This, too, will echo one of the classic tracks within.

The Stranger is a rock and roll masterpiece. Some tracks have fared better than others, but each features Billy’s superb story-telling and musicianship. The Stranger made it into the Grammy Hall of Fame and sold over 10 million units. It conjures up the late 1970s to perfection while remaining a timeless treat.

The album opens with the catchy “Anthony’s Song (Movin’ Out)”, a New Yawk-flavored screed about a young man’s desire to dodge the pointlessly materialistic, soul-killing work he’s been raised to pursue. It concludes with a revved-up motor from bassist Doug Stegmeyer’s Corvette.

“The Stranger” is a mystery, open to interpretation. The title track opens with Joel’s contemplative whistle, then kicks in with raw power. It ponders the masks we all wear, the secrets we keep, and what they do to our psyches. “Though you drown in good intentions, you may never quench the fire/you’ll give in to your desire when the stranger comes along.” Dark lyrics from a young man.

Next up is “Just the Way You Are,” a misty ballad about a man asking his beloved to remain unchanged. Despite some blowback about the notion of trying to keep romantic partners static and contained, this love song was a common wedding dance for the era.

The most masterful track is “Scenes From an Italian Restaurant,” which closes out Side One. It’s an operatic confection about the fate of high school “it” couple Brenda and Eddie (or “BrenderandEddie” as Billy enunciates it), viewed through the reminiscences of former classmates. Brenda and Eddie were the duo who had a high gloss to them as teens. But their early marriage flamed out quickly. It speaks to the fragile humanity of our perceived heroes.

Side Two opens with “Vienna,” which has become more popular as subsequent generations embrace this startlingly beautiful tune. Billy advises an intense young girl to go easy and enjoy life. According to Joel, it’s a metaphor for the serene old age that eludes us when we double-down on superficial ambition.

“Only the Good Die Young” features Joel vehemently trying to talk his Catholic high-school crush into sleeping with him. (Spoiler alert: No indication that his line was successful.) It got a lot of extra press when the Catholic church censored it.  Understandable, perhaps, with lyrics like “I’d rather laugh with the sinners than cry with the saints/the sinners are much more fun/Darlin’, only the good die young.” Joel maintains that this song was “…never anti-Catholic, only pro-lust.”

“She’s Always a Woman” is a romantic but edgy ballad to his first wife Elizabeth, who was both his manager and a tough businesswoman. He acknowledges her problematic behavior while conceding that she is still his beloved. Next is the underappreciated rocker “Get it Right the First Time.” It’s a breath of fresh air as Billy goes into witty self-deprecation mode.

The closing track is the exquisite “Everybody Has a Dream,” written in 1971 and intended for Cold Spring Harbor. It found its rightful place on The Stranger. “Everybody Has a Dream” is a gospel-infused ode to a man’s desire to shake his “quiet desperation” and share his life with the woman he loves. With a sublime Joe Cocker-esque delivery, it’s a stunning finale. The ending whistle/keyboard riff from “The Stranger”  ties everything together, a superb end to the album that skyrocketed Billy Joel to the level of legend.

-Ellen Fagan

Photo: Billy Joel (Getty Images)