52nd Street (album)

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52nd Street
Studio album by Billy Joel
Released	October, 1978
Recorded	A & R Recording, Inc., New York City
Genre	Rock
Length	40:26
Label	Columbia
Producer(s)	Phil Ramone
Professional reviews
All Music Guide link Rolling Stone Album Guide, 3rd Edition Robert Christgau (B-) link
Billy Joel chronology
The Stranger (1977)	52nd Street (1978)	Glass Houses (1980)

52nd Street is the sixth studio album by Billy Joel, released in 1978. It was also the first of many Joel albums to top the Billboard charts, along with his first Grammy win. (see 1978 in music). The track "My Life" benefited from the exposure it received when producers of the situation comedy Bosom Buddies used the song (performed by a different singer) as its theme. 52nd Street also became, in 1982, the first album to ever be released on compact disc. [1]

Three songs reached the top 100 in the United States, helping to boost the success of the album. "My Life" reached #3, "Big Shot" reached #14, and "Honesty" reached #24. The album was also successful with critics, winning the 1979 Grammy for Album of the Year.

In 2003, the album was ranked number 352 on Rolling Stone magazine's list of the 500 greatest albums of all time.

Contents 1 Track listing 2 Personnel 3 Charts 4 Awards

[edit] Track listing

All songs by Billy Joel.

1. "Big Shot" – 4:03
2. "Honesty" – 3:53
3. "My Life" – 4:44
4. "Zanzibar" – 5:13
5. "Stiletto" – 4:42
6. "Rosalinda's Eyes" – 4:41
7. "Half a Mile Away" – 4:08
8. "Until the Night" – 6:35
9. "52nd Street" – 2:31

[edit] Personnel

• Billy Joel – piano, vocals
• Doug Stegmeyer – bass, background vocals
• Liberty DeVitto – drums
• Richie Cannata – saxophones, organ, clarinet
• Steve Khan – electric guitar, acoustic guitar
• Freddie Hubbard – trumpet on "Zanzibar"
• Mike Mainieri – vibes and marimba on "Zanzibar" and "Rosalinda's Eyes"
• David Spinozza – acoustic guitar on "Honesty"
• Donnie Dacus – background vocals on "My Life"
• Peter Cetera – background vocals on "My Life"
• David Friedman – orchestral chimes and percussion on "Until the Night"
• Ralph MacDonald – percussion on "Rosalinda's Eyes" and "Half a Mile Away"
• Eric Gale – electric guitar on "Half a Mile Away"
• Frank Floyd – background vocals on "Half a Mile Away"
• Babi Floyd – background vocals on "Half a Mile Away"
• Zack Sanders – background vocals on "Half a Mile Away"
• Milt Grayson – background vocals on "Half a Mile Away"
• Ray Simpson – background vocals on "Half a Mile Away"
• George Marge – sopranino recorder on "Rosalinda's Eyes"
• Hugh McCracken – nylon string guitar on "Until the Night" and "Rosalinda's Eyes"
• Robert Freedman – horn and string orchestration on "Until the Night" and "Honesty"
• Dave Grusin – horn orchestration on "Half a Mile Away"
• David Nadien – concertmaster

[edit] Charts

Albums

Country	Charts			Sales
	Peak position	Weeks	Certification
United States	1(8)	76	7x Platinum
Austria	4	12
Japan	8	83[2]		370,000 [3]
United Kingdom	10	43	Gold
Sweden	18	8

Singles

Country	Single	Position	Weeks
United States	"My Life"	3
Switzerland	"My Life"	4	8
Austria	"My Life"	11	12
Japaｎ	"My Life"	37	16
United States	"Big Shot"	14
United States	"Honesty"	24
Japan	"Honesty"	53	22

[edit] Awards

Grammy Awards

Year	Winner	Category
1979	52nd Street	Album of the Year

v • d • e 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

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