Joel R. Beeke,christopher W. Bogosh

One of the world's and Japan's most beloved songwriters and melody makers, and the one and only piano man, Billy Joel. He is back with a live version of "Billy Joel Greatest Hits," which offers an overview of his half-century career with masterful performances from each decade. Based on his "Live Through the Years," which was previously released only as digital, this special Japanese edition 2-CD set features a carefully selected selection of famous performances of hit songs and representative songs from his four decade career from the 1970s to the 2000s, with a significant amount of additional songs. The 2-CD set contains 32 songs (including 13 world premiere CD releases and 6 Japan premiere CD releases). 2023 mastering.

Japanese original release. 2021 digital remastering. To commemorate the 50th anniversary of Billy's solo debut, this product contains all the singles (excluding 12cm maxi-singles) released in Japan between 1973 and 1993 in the same order as the US 7inch single versions…

Having scored three multi-platinum hits in a row, Billy Joel took a breather, releasing his first live album, Songs in the Attic, as he worked on his ambitious follow-up to Glass Houses. Joel wisely decided to use the live album as an opportunity to draw attention to songs from his first four albums. Apart from "Piano Man," none of those songs had been heard by the large audience he had won with The Stranger. Furthermore, he now had a seasoned backing band that helped give his music a specific identity – in short, it was an opportunity to reclaim these songs, now that he had a signature sound. And Joel didn't botch the opportunity – Songs in the Attic is an excellent album, ranking among his very best work. With the possible exception of the Turnstiles material, every song is given a fuller, better arrangement that makes it all spring to life. "Los Angelenos" and "Everybody Loves You Now" hit harder in the live setting, while ballads like "She's Got a Way," "Summer, Highland Falls," and "I've Loved These Days" are richer and warmer in these versions. A few personal favorites from these albums may be missing, but what is here is impeccable, proving that even if Joel wasn't a celebrity in the early '70s, his best songs of the era rivaled his biggest hits.