This is a new feature I'm trying on the blog. Each Tuesday will feature two songs that share a common bond. The bond may be thematic, sonic or in underappreciated classic status whatever the niche they will be shared here. First up is Billy Joel who is thoroughly nestled in my top 20 pop artist of all time. His musicianship is utterly amazing when he gets behind the piano. In his early efforts he seemed so influenced by Ray Charles that the critics called him derivative. As he progressed he developed a knack telling these stories that engulfed the listener and painted a very distinct picture of life of the every man. This song is about the woman who a man loves in spite of the fact that she is ruining him. 45 seconds in hip hop heads will recognize the piano that was masterfully sampled by Marley Marl which leads to our second selection.
2 comments:
Very nice find there,sir! Some of the craziest samples come from something totally unexpected (source-wise), and like 180 degrees from what the originator intended. Billy Joel is a bad boy though, in his own right. The joint he had walking through his old high school singing acapella - "I haven't been there for the longest time...". One of my favs, and not to even mention the vids for the classic "Uptown Girl" or "We Didn't Start the Fire". The guys a flat out one of a kind. G-Rap... his body of work just speaks for itself. I think he suffered from the same thing as Rakim; the younger heads couldn't match them in the booth, so it was like "never give this man any great tracks!!!" I'm thankful that Nas jumped on "Fast Life" just so that his greatness could be exemplified "live the life of rowdy packin' fifty calis/ rock lizard Bally's/ while we do our drug deal in dark alley..." Listening to that cut was like watching two NFL backs on opposing teams both run for 200 yards in the same game.
Well stated Reg, I think those lyrical giants on there worst days could still summon a 16 to smash many of today's stars. I think they don't get the shine because of that intimidation. I wish someone would give them a shot whether it's a producer or an artist, just don't let them fade into bolivion as Mike Tyson would say. There are greats from other genres that the current participants won't let die. Jack White hooks up with his heroes to do some work. We should have that same appreciation.
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