Careless Talk Awkwardly Social Media
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The Billy Joel song-by-song Podcast that takes you from the high to the low, to the end of the show, for the rest of our lives. Each episode explores a song from Billy Joel's catalog, its meaning, composition and often the biography of the Piano Man himself.
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You Look So Good To Me
Ah, we look so good to be back in your podcast feeds. This week we continue our journey after a brief hiatus (we're a bit like British television—we make it when we want to make it) and discuss Billy Joel's hit that sounds like it should accompany flying burger patties while lettuce, tomatoes and onion splash into a pool of water.
Buy the Songs:
You Look So Good To Me - iTunesYou Are So Beautiful To Me - Joe Cocker - iTunes More Today Than Yesterday - Spiral Starecase - iTunes
References:
Bielen, Kenneth G. The words and music of Billy Joel. Santa Barbara, Calif: Praeger, 2011. -
S01E06 - Turn Around
Turn around, turn around and we will comment on this song that we're pretty sure is just a knock off of "Hand Bags and Glad Rags." Also we hear from more listeners and discuss about Billy Joel's recent statement agaisnt white supremacy and anti-semitism.
Buy the Songs:
Turn Around - iTunesHandbags and Gladrags - Big George Webley (The Office) - iTunes Handbags and Gladrags - Rod Stewart - iTunes Ring Worm - Van Morrison - iTunesOne Down - Ben Folds - iTunes
Album Cover - Rod Stewart - An Old Raincoat Wont Ever Let You Down
References:
Schruers, Fred. Billy Joel: the definitive biography. New York: Three Rivers Press, 2015. -
S01E05 - Falling of the Rain
Explore the passage of time with Billy Joel! This week Corinne defends the word "twee," and we have an in studio chat with singer/songwriter Allye Gaietto about Joni Mitchell, questionable mnemonic devices and why the piano is so damn fast.
Buy the songs:
Falling of the Rain (album version) - iTunesFalling of the Rain (live version 1972) - iTunesThe Cricle Game - iTunes
Allye Gaietto - allyeg.com - allyeg.bandcamp.com The Junk Food Junkies (a band she's in) - junk-food-junkies.bandcamp.com
Billy Joel Playing Falling of the Rain in 2015
Corinne's wall of cats -
S01E04 - Why Judy Why
Billy Joel gets whiny... unless "she" isn't who we think "she" is. In this episode, Corinne digs into Billy Joel's family to find out. We also hear from our first caller, and analyze the harmonic twist and turns of an instrumental bridge in the worst key ever.
In this episode we briefly touch on the topics of depression and suicide. If you need someone to talk to the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline is available 24 hours a day at 1-800-273-8255. An international directory of similar services can be found here.
Buy the songs:
Why Judy Why - iTunesYesterday - iTunes For No One - iTunes
Text References:
Schruers, Fred. Billy Joel: the definitive biography. New York: Three Rivers Press, 2015.
Davis, Sheila. Successful lyric writing: a step-by-step course and workbook. Cincinnati, OH: Writers Digest, 1988. -
S01E03 - Everybody Loves You Now
This week on Careless Talk: white bodies, fake harmonicas, guitars—we must be comparing Billy Joel to Bob Dylan. We welcome songwriter, Dylan fan and native Minnesotan, Jonathon Hackett to examine track 3 from Cold Spring Harbor, “Everybody Loves You Now.”
Find our guest, Jonathon Hackett, on BandCamp - https://jonathonhackett.bandcamp.com
Buy the Songs:
Everybody Loves You Now - iTunes Like a Rolling Stone - iTunes Positively 4th Street - iTunes
References:
Schruers, Fred. Billy Joel: the definitive biography. New York: Three Rivers Press, 2015.
MacFarlane, Thomas. Experiencing Billy Joel: a listeners companion. Lanham ; Boulder ; New York ; London: Rowman et Littlefield, 2016. -
S01E02 - You Can Make Me Free
Hey, it's the first good episode, and our first episode with a guest! Coincidence? Definitly not when you have a guest with a resume like Gary Rue (And also: http://www.newmusicarts.org/, and hey, I just really like this song of Gary's: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SGTezmDP_sM)
In this episode, musician and songwriting professor Gary Rue helps us explore the influence of The Beatles on Billy Joel—and pretty much anyone who picked up a musical instrument after February 9th, 1964.
Purchase the song: iTunes
For visual reference:
McCartney album back cover
Cold Spring Harbor cover