Billy Joel - An Innocent Man

Fittingly for an album celebrating early- to mid-'60s pop and blue-eyed soul, An Innocent Man (1983) spun off six hit singles. Between the social concerns of The Nylon Curtain and this record's bopping tempos and blaring horns, Joel was at a peak of craftsmanship--the ultimate proof perhaps being the Chipmunks' rendition of "The Longest Time," which did absolutely nothing to diminish the song's winning charm. Much of America's enduring affection for Joel stems from this disc, and rightly so. --Rickey Wright Amazon.com essential recording

I love Billy Joel, but this album was the only one I didn't care for.

Billy tries a doo-wop theme with this album, and it is clearly evident in more than 50% of the songs. My favorite song on here is probably the title track and "Leave A Tender Moment Alone." I have always been ticked off that Joel is probably best known for "Uptown Girl," which is probably his crappiest song ever. I truly hope that this song isn't forever associated with Billy in music history. I understand what he was trying to do in re-creating a retro-50's theme, but to me it lacks his quality of songwriting and song variation that we see in the albums surrounding this one (Nylon Curtain & The Bridge). Sorry to upset some die hard fans here, but come on, if this album is in the top 5 of your Billy Joel collection, youv'e probably been "Sleeping With The Television On" for too long already! November 9, 2008

Billy's Gold

Slightly toning down the rock feel of Nylon Curtains and re-establishing the jazzy feel with a doo-wop influence seen in the laid back "The Longest Time," "This Night," and "Careless Talk."
Highlights include the heartfelt love plea "An Innocent Man", The feel-good "Tell Her About It", very much in the style of Joel's late 70s work, the upbeat "Uptown Girl" with it's doo-wop background and the jiving "Keeping The Faith".
Billy Joel is one artist who managed to blaze across the 70's, 80s and 90's without ever losing his pace, keeping rhythm with the musical fashions while maintaining his own distinctive Joel style and making sure his music remains classic forever. November 3, 2008

A Fantastic Tribute To The Pioneers Of Rock And Roll.

After 1982's dark "The Nylon Curtain" brought him critical success but disdain commercially, Billy Joel looked to the music of his youth as inspiration for his next project. The result wound up as a full-on tribute to Motown, The Four Seasons, street corner Doo Wop groups, Little Richard, Carole King, and ptjer sounds of his youth.

The album's six hit singles - the Motown raveup "Tell Her About It," (# 1 on The Hot 100), the immortal Frankie Valli inspired "Uptown Girl," the uplifting Carole King meets Ben E. King meets John Lennon title track (# 10), the charming a capella "The Longest Time," (# 14), the reggae tinged bopper "Keeping The Faith," (# 18), and the soulful, Ray Charles inspired "Leave A Tender Moment Alone" (# 27) - are among the finest pop singles ever crafted, delicately structured and perfectly executed. All prove Billy's indespensable genius in the pop world. His ability to sell a song is surpassed only by Sinatra.

The non-singles definitely hold their own. "Easy Money" kicks the album off in high gear with its fast pace and rip roaring horn and organ licks. The mid tempo "Careless Talk" and the Little Richard inspired rocker "Christie Lee" are solid tracks, but it's "This Night" that is the keeper. A Platters inspired love song, it's a wonderful, soulful ballad with a chorus lifted from Beethoven and a melody perfect for dancing, even if it's "Only a slow dance." The harmonies on the chorus are almost Heavenly.

"An Innocent Man" is a pure pop masterpiece filled with great memorable songs. Get it immediately if you do not already own it. August 18, 2008

Love it and him!

Glad I got this CD!! And I'm going to get to see him in concert - life is goo! November 1, 2007

My shark skin jacket and ditty-bop shades

If you look at the albums "Glass Houses" and "The Nylon Curtain" as the first two parts of a trilogy, then Billy Joel finished his timeline with the flawless "An Innocent Man." On "Glass Houses," Joel attacked the modern sound of the 80's, cutting his classic pop with new wave edge to show he could make modern music. "The Nylon Curtain" confronted the boomer generation with a song-cycle firmly rooted in the VietNam War, The Beatles and The Doors. And with "An Innocent Man," Joel stepped back in music one more time, to strike at his 50's adolescence. This was probably the closest thing to an autobiography that Joel ever recorded, and it is easily the strongest selection of songs he'd ever recorded. He even makes the case in "Keeping The Faith," singing

"I would not be here now
if I didn't have the hunger.
And I'm not ashamed to say
that the wild boys were my friends.
Cause I never felt the desire
till their music set me on fire
and then I was saved."

The ten songs on "An Innocent Man" run the gamut from the Dion doo-wop of "The Longest Time" to the Four Seasons pop of "Uptown Girl." Joel is obviously having a blast on this material; rarely has he ever sounded this light-hearted or infectious. While that might have to do with his new love at the time, supermodel "Christy Lee" Brinkley happens to be the subject of much of the album, every song here has a great melody and catchy choruses abound. In his effort to make a tribute to the fifties (kind of the way he wanted to prove his edgier 80's style on "Glass Houses"), Joel crafted a classic on "An Innocent Man." June 14, 2007

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