Songs in the Attic

Songs in the Attic is the first live album by Billy Joel, released in 1981.

Songs in the Attic
Live album by Billy Joel
Released	September 14, 1981
Recorded	June–July 1980 during Glass Houses tour
Genre	Pop rock
Length	48:00
Label	Family Productions/Columbia
Producer	Phil Ramone
Billy Joel chronology
Glass Houses (1980) Songs in the Attic (1981) The Nylon Curtain (1982)
Billy Joel live chronology
Songs in the Attic (1981) Концерт (1987)
Singles from Songs in the Attic
"Say Goodbye to Hollywood (Live)" Released: March 1981 "You're My Home (Live)" Released: July 1981 "She's Got a Way (Live)" Released: January 1982

Professional ratings

Review scores
Source	Rating
AllMusic	[1]
Rolling Stone	[2]
Rolling Stone Album Guide, 3rd Edition	[3]

At the time of its release, it was the first widely available appearance of music from his first album, Cold Spring Harbor, released in 1971.

In the liner notes, Joel writes that Songs in the Attic introduced his earlier work to fans who had come to know his work after The Stranger. In that earlier work, most of the instruments were played by session musicians while Joel himself sang and played piano, keyboards, and harmonica. But by the late 1970s, Joel had a fairly consistent touring/recording band and wanted to showcase his songs as played by his band.

The single-releases included: "Say Goodbye to Hollywood" and "She's Got a Way", which made the top 25, and "You're My Home". In Japan, "Los Angelenos" was also available in 1981.[4]

A series of promotional music videos were filmed. Though the concert filming may have been staged for the occasion, the audio versions are nonetheless different from the live recordings featuring on the live album. A total of five promo videos were filmed: four of them recorded at Sparks and one in a recording studio. At least two of them were not released as worldwide official singles.[5] "Everybody Loves You Now" (not a single) directed by Steve Cohen (live at Sparks); "You're My Home" directed by Steve Cohen (live at Sparks); "Los Angelenos" (not a single, though a Japanese 7" vinyl was in existence) directed by Steve Cohen (live at Sparks); "Say Goodbye to Hollywood" directed by Steve Cohen (live at Sparks); "She's Got a Way" live in a studio, also a different version from the live album.[4]

Track listing

All songs written by Billy Joel.

Side one

1. "Miami 2017 (Seen the Lights Go Out on Broadway)" – 5:05
   • Performed June 24, 1980, at Madison Square Garden, New York, NY
2. "Summer, Highland Falls" – 3:03
   • Performed July 23, 1980, at The Bayou, Washington, D.C.
3. "Streetlife Serenader" – 5:17
   • Performed July 20, 1980, at St. Paul Civic Center, St. Paul, MN
4. "Los Angelenos" – 3:48
   • Performed July 10, 1980, at Toad's Place, New Haven, CT
5. "She's Got a Way" – 3:00
   • Performed June 1980 at Paradise Rock Club, Boston, MA
6. "Everybody Loves You Now" - 3:08
   • Performed July 23, 1980, at The Bayou, Washington, D.C.

Side two

7. "Say Goodbye to Hollywood" – 4:25
   • Performed July 14, 1980, at Milwaukee Arena, Milwaukee, WI
8. "Captain Jack" – 7:16
   • Performed July 5, 1980, at Spectrum, Philadelphia, PA
9. "You're My Home" – 3:07
   • Performed July 23, 1980, at the Bayou, Washington, D.C.
10. "The Ballad of Billy the Kid" – 5:28
    • Performed June 24, 1980, at Madison Square Garden, New York, NY
11. "I've Loved These Days" – 4:35
    • Performed July 16, 1980, at The Horizon, Chicago, IL

Personnel

• Billy Joel – vocals, pianos, synthesizer, harmonica
• David Brown – electric guitar (lead), acoustic guitar (lead)
• Richie Cannata – saxophones, flute, organ
• Liberty DeVitto – drums, percussion
• Russell Javors – electric guitar (rhythm), acoustic guitar (rhythm)
• Doug Stegmeyer – bass guitar
• Phil Ramone - producer
• Ted Jensen at Sterling Sound, NYC - mastering
• James Boyer - Recording Engineer
• Bradshaw Leigh - Recording Engineer
• Larry Franke - Recording Engineer

Charts

Weekly charts Chart (1981–82) Position Australian Albums (Kent Music Report)[6] 9 Canadian Albums (RPM)[7] 21 Japanese Albums (Oricon)[8] 3 New Zealand Albums (RIANZ) [9] 30 Norwegian Albums (VG-lista) [10] 12 Swedish Albums (Sverigetopplistan)[11] 38 UK Albums (OCC) [12] 57 US Billboard 200 [13] 8 West German Albums (Media Control)[14] 51

Year-end charts Chart (1981) Position Australian Albums Chart[6] 53 Canadian Albums Chart[15] 69 Chart (1982) Position US Billboard 200[16] 98 Certifications/Sales Region Certification Certified units/sales Japan (Oricon Charts) — 286,000[8] United States (RIAA)[17] 3× Platinum 3,000,000^^ ^^ Shipments figures based on certification alone.

References

1. Songs in the Attic at AllMusic
2. White, Timothy (November 12, 1981). "Songs In The Attic". Rolling Stone. Retrieved 25 October 2020.
3. DeCurtis, Anthony; Henke, James; George-Warren, Holly, eds. (1992). The Rolling Stone Album Guide (3rd ed.). Random House. p. 370. ISBN 0679737294.
4. http://billyjoel52ndstreetserenade.blogspot.co.uk/p/single.html
5. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T2zjVszdiXA&index=1&list=PL7yz
6. Kent, David (1993). Australian Chart Book 1970–1992. St Ives, NSW: Australian Chart Book. ISBN 0-646-11917-6.
7. "Top Albums/CDs - Volume 35, No. 16". RPM. 1981-11-14. Retrieved 2013-11-10.
8. Oricon Album Chart Book: Complete Edition 1970-2005. Roppongi, Tokyo: Oricon Entertainment. 2006. ISBN 4-87131-077-9.
9. "charts.nz - Billy Joel - Songs in the Attic". charts.nz. Recording Industry Association of New Zea Land. Retrieved 2013-11-08.
10. "norwegiancharts.com Billy Joel - Songs in the Attic". Hung Medien, norwegiancharts.com. VG-lista. Retrieved 2013-11-08.
11. "swedishcharts.com Billy Joel - Songs in the Attic". Hung Medien, swedishcharts.com (in Swedish). Sverigetopplistan. Retrieved 2013-11-08.
12. "Billy Joel > Artist > Official Charts". UK Albums Chart. Retrieved 2013-11-08.
13. "allmusic ((( Songs in the Attic > Charts & Awards > Billboard Albums )))". AllMusic. Retrieved 2011-03-19.
14. "Album Search: Billy Joel - Songs in the Attic" (in German). Media Control. Retrieved 2013-11-08.
15. "Top 100 Albums of 1981". RPM. 1981-12-26. Archived from the original on 2012-10-20. Retrieved 2013-11-11.
16. "Billboard.BIZ: Top Pop Albums of 1982". billboard.biz. Archived from the original on 2013-01-15. Retrieved 2014-04-25.
17. "American album certifications – Billy Joel – Songs in the Attic". Recording Industry Association of America. Retrieved 25 July 2012. If necessary, click Advanced, then click Format, then select Album, then click SEARCH.