An Innocent Man
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- For the 1989 movie starring Tom Selleck, see An Innocent Man (film).
| An Innocent Man | ||
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| Studio album by Billy Joel | ||
| Released | August, 1983 | |
| Recorded | Chelsea Sound and A&R Recording, Inc., New York, NY | |
| Genre | Rock | |
| Length | 40:25 | |
| Label | Columbia | |
| Producer(s) | Phil Ramone | |
| Professional reviews | ||
|---|---|---|
| Billy Joel chronology | ||
| The Nylon Curtain (1982) |
An Innocent Man (1983) |
Greatest Hits, Vols. 1 & 2 (1973-1985) |
An Innocent Man is an album by American singer/songwriter Billy Joel, released in 1983 (see 1983 in music). It featured three Billboard Top 10 hit singles: "Tell Her About It", which reached #1, "Uptown Girl", which peaked at #3 and "An Innocent Man", which peaked at #10. A further three songs were released from the album: "The Longest Time", "Leave A Tender Moment Alone", and "Keeping the Faith".
This album is Joel's tribute to the music of his childhood. Joel considers this a "singer's album," and pays homage to a number of different musical styles, including:
- "Tell Her About It" - An homage to Motown
- "Uptown Girl" - An homage to Frankie Valli and The Four Seasons
- "The Longest Time" - An homage to the doo-wop style made popular in the mid-1950's. This song required 14 background vocal tracks, each of which were done by Joel and pieced together in production.
- "This Night" - Uses Beethoven's Pathetique Sonata as the basis for the chorus.
Contents |
[edit] Track listing
All songs by Billy Joel, except for the chorus for "This Night," credited on the sleeve to L. V. Beethoven.
- "Easy Money" – 4:04
- "An Innocent Man" – 5:17
- "The Longest Time" – 3:42
- "This Night" – 4:19
- "Tell Her About It" – 3:52
- "Uptown Girl" – 3:17
- "Careless Talk" – 3:48
- "Christie Lee" – 3:31
- "Leave a Tender Moment Alone" – 3:56
- "Keeping the Faith" – 4:41
[edit] Personnel
- Billy Joel - Baldwin acoustic piano (SF-10), Fender Rhodes, Hammond B-3, vocals, background vocals
- Liberty DeVitto - drums
- Doug Stegmeyer - bass
- David Brown - electric guitar, acoustic guitar, lead guitar
- Russell Javors - electric guitar, acoustic guitar, rhythm guitar
- Mark Rivera - alto saxophone, tenor saxophone, percussion
- Ralph MacDonald - percussion on "Leave a Tender Moment Alone" and "Careless Talk"
- Leon Pendarvis - Hammond B-3 on "Easy Money"
- Richard Tee - acoustic piano on "Tell Her About It"
- Eric Gale - electric guitar on "Easy Money"
- "String Fever" - strings
- Ronnie Cuber - baritone saxophone on "Easy Money", "Careless Talk", "Tell Her About It" and "Keeping the Faith"
- Jon Faddis - trumpet on "Easy Money"
- David Sanborn - alto saxophone on "Easy Money"
- Joe Shepley - trumpet on "Easy Money", "Careless Talk", "Tell Her About It" and "Keeping the Faith"
- Michael Brecker - tenor saxophone on "Careless Talk", "Tell Her About It" and "Keeping the Faith"
- John Gatchell - trumpet on "Careless Talk", "Tell Her About It" and "Keeping the Faith"
- Tom Bahler - background vocals
- Rory Dodd - background vocals
- Frank Floyd - background vocals
- Lani Groves - background vocals
- Ullanda McCullough - background vocals
- Ron Taylor - background vocals
- Terry Textor - background vocals
- Eric Troyer - background vocals
- Mike Alexander - background vocals
Solos
- "Toots" Thielemans - harmonica on "Leave a Tender Moment Alone"
- Mark Rivera - alto saxophone on "Keeping the Faith", "This Night" and "Christie Lee"
[edit] Production
- Producer: Phil Ramone
- Engineers: Jim Boyer, Bradshaw Leigh
- Assistant engineers: Mike Allaire, Scott James
- Production coordinator: Laura Loncteaux
- Mastering: Ted Jensen
- Horn and string arrangements: David Matthews
- Background vocal arrangements: Tom Bahler
- Musical advisor: Billy Zampino
- Photography: Gilles Larrain
- Cover design: Christopher Austopchuk, Mark Larson
- Recorded at Chelsea Sound and A & R Recording, Inc., New York, NY
- Mixed at A & R Recording, Inc., New York, NY
- Mastered at Sterling Sound, New York, NY
[edit] Charts
Album - Billboard (North America)
| Year | Chart | Position |
|---|---|---|
| 1983 | Pop Albums | 4 |
| 1983 | The Billboard 200 | 4 |
Singles - Billboard (North America)
| Year | Single | Chart | Position |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1983 | "Tell Her About It" | Club Play Singles | 38 |
| 1983 | "Tell Her About It" | Mainstream Rock | 17 |
| 1983 | "Tell Her About It" | Pop Singles | 1 |
| 1983 | "Tell Her About It" | The Billboard Hot 100 | 1 |
| 1983 | "Uptown Girl" | Adult Contemporary | 2 |
| 1983 | "Uptown Girl" | Adult Contemporary | 14 |
| 1983 | "Uptown Girl" | Mainstream Rock | 22 |
| 1983 | "Uptown Girl" | Pop Singles | 3 |
| 1983 | "Uptown Girl" | The Billboard Hot 100 | 3 |
| 1983 | "An Innocent Man" | The Billboard Hot 100 | 10 |
| 1984 | "Leave a Tender Moment Alone" | The Billboard Hot 100 | 27 |
| 1984 | "The Longest Time" | The Billboard Hot 100 | 14 |
| 1985 | "Keeping the Faith" | The Billboard Hot 100 | 18 |
| 1985 | "The Longest Time" | The Billboard Hot 100 | 34 |
| Billy Joel Albums |
|---|
| Studio Albums |
| Cold Spring Harbor – Piano Man – Streetlife Serenade – Turnstiles – The Stranger – 52nd Street – Glass Houses The Nylon Curtain – An Innocent Man – The Bridge – Storm Front – River of Dreams – My Lives |
| Greatest Hit Collections |
| Greatest Hits, Vols. 1 & 2 – Billy Joel - The Ultimate Collection – The Essential Billy Joel – Greatest Hits, Vol. 3 The Complete Hits Collection: 1973–1997 – Piano Man: The Very Best of Billy Joel |
| Live Albums |
| Songs in the Attic – КОНЦЕРТ – 2000 Years: The Millennium Concert – 12 Gardens Live |
| Other Albums and Projects |
| Fantasies & Delusions (performed by Richard Joo) – Movin' Out |
| See also: Billy Joel |
