On November 9, 1973, forty-four years ago, the second studio album, Piano Man, by singer-songwriter, Billy Joel, was released. Amazing! It was recorded in September of 1973, at Devonshire Sound Studios in Los Angeles, California.
As the single from the album, Piano Man,
has a special place in my heart, I used something unique; instead of
the standard LP recording as my tribute, I'm using this 1986, 6
LP Box set, Mawell House Coffee & J.C. Penny Presents "The Piano Man".
The exterior of the boxed set is completely black and blank; totally devoid of information, print or graphics. I don't know if there is any other album set like this; albums, yes, box sets?
The set is an interview with Billy Joel as well as him playing some of his music. It includes the breaks for commercials from Mawell House Coffee and J. C. Penney, as well as program notes. These records setup to play 3 hours continuously with a total of 6 hours.
The program notes declare, "Piano Man is a fictionalized retelling of Joel's experiences with people he met as a lounge singer in Los Angeles."
In the sixties I had a friend, John, who sang and played piano in elegant hotel lobby lounge bars in the SF Bay Area and San Diego. I remember sitting at the bar in a lounge on the 20th floor at the top of a hotel and seeing the planes fly BY the window, NOT over the hotel, as they landed at nearby San Diego International. Scary!
John was handsome and had curly hair that hung over his forehead and eyes, one of which looked the other way when he looked at you. It completely intrigued me as possibly the hair had something to do with the wandering eye. I hung out with him, eventually found out, no, and got a peak behind the piano man mask; he was an interesting man.
I spent hours sipping Jack Daniels and singing, along with everybody in the bar, the standards and musicals of the day that he played and had a grand old time. As I was in my early twenties and hadn't learned to pace myself yet, there were times when the day after wasn't so grand, but that's another story. So, when Piano Man came along I had a personal connection to it and could relate to its message. With a piano, a harmonica and sincere lyrics (link below) sung lustily by Joel, the song captured the feeling of that time of my life.
The original version of the song with Joel at the piano and singing, as well as a terrific version of him performing with Elton John are on YouTube (links below).
There are cue sheets of the 6 hour program about the material and information on the recordings for radio programming included with the set. On the first page there is a note directed to station managers with this warning:
hour 2: cue sheet & record, side 1 & 2
hour 3: cue sheet & record, side 1 & 2
hour 4: cue sheet & record, side 1 & 2
hour 5: cue sheet & record, side 1 & 2
hour 6: cue sheet & record, side 1 & 2
The exterior of the boxed set is completely black and blank; totally devoid of information, print or graphics. I don't know if there is any other album set like this; albums, yes, box sets?
The set is an interview with Billy Joel as well as him playing some of his music. It includes the breaks for commercials from Mawell House Coffee and J. C. Penney, as well as program notes. These records setup to play 3 hours continuously with a total of 6 hours.
box set front cover
The program notes declare, "Piano Man is a fictionalized retelling of Joel's experiences with people he met as a lounge singer in Los Angeles."
In the sixties I had a friend, John, who sang and played piano in elegant hotel lobby lounge bars in the SF Bay Area and San Diego. I remember sitting at the bar in a lounge on the 20th floor at the top of a hotel and seeing the planes fly BY the window, NOT over the hotel, as they landed at nearby San Diego International. Scary!
John was handsome and had curly hair that hung over his forehead and eyes, one of which looked the other way when he looked at you. It completely intrigued me as possibly the hair had something to do with the wandering eye. I hung out with him, eventually found out, no, and got a peak behind the piano man mask; he was an interesting man.
I spent hours sipping Jack Daniels and singing, along with everybody in the bar, the standards and musicals of the day that he played and had a grand old time. As I was in my early twenties and hadn't learned to pace myself yet, there were times when the day after wasn't so grand, but that's another story. So, when Piano Man came along I had a personal connection to it and could relate to its message. With a piano, a harmonica and sincere lyrics (link below) sung lustily by Joel, the song captured the feeling of that time of my life.
The original version of the song with Joel at the piano and singing, as well as a terrific version of him performing with Elton John are on YouTube (links below).
box set back cover
There are cue sheets of the 6 hour program about the material and information on the recordings for radio programming included with the set. On the first page there is a note directed to station managers with this warning:
"Discretionary note to Managers
The word “masterbate” is used in the song “Captain Jack” in hour one, segment three, and although it is difficult to decipher, Billy sings “fucking fool” in the song “Laura” in hour five, segment one.
If you want to edit out these words, it can be done by dubbing the record to tape and removing the words, editing the phrase, or inserting it backwards to keep the flow.
Both songs have been played over the years in their entirely, but only you know your audience and the time of day the program will be aired. Sorry for any inconvenience in this matter."
(I thought that was great!)
cue sheet, page 1
hour 1: cue sheet & record, side 1 & 2
Piano Man peaked at number 25 on the Billboard Hot 100, and at #4 on the Adult Contemporary singles chart and became his signature song. In 2016, the Library of Congress selected Piano Man for preservation in the National Recording Registry for its "cultural, historic, or artistic significance."
Tracklist:
A Hour 1 30:00
B Hour 1 30:00
C Hour 2 30:00
D Hour 2 30:00
E Hour 3 30:00
F Hour 3 30:00
G Hour 4 30:00
H Hour 4 30:00
I Hour 5 30:00
J Hour 5 30:00
K Hour 6 30:00
L Hour 6 30:00
Credits:
Executive Producer – Keith MacGregor
Notes:
This 6 LP Boxset is a interview with Billy Joel with playing alot of his music, breaking for commercials from Mawell House Coffee and JC Penny. These records setup to play 3 hours continuously with a total of 6 hours.
Produced exclusively for REMN
Communications by Sonic Workshop
All rights reserved. Property REMN Communication Corp. 1986
Billy Joel – Mawell House Coffee & J.C. Penny Presents "The Piano Man"
Label: REMN Corp. – REMN-RS 1002BJ
Format: 6 × Vinyl, LP, Compilation, Unofficial Release, Box Set
Country: US
Released: 1986
Genre: Rock
Style: Interview
Viewfinder links:
Piano Man lyrics
Billy Joel articles/mentions
Piano Man on YouTube:
Billy Joel ~ The Piano Man
Billy Joel & Elton John ~ The Piano Man
John and Joel a perfect match!
Styrous® ~ Thursday, November 9, 2017
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