Four studio and two live projects will hit the format on April 5th
Six of the albums from Billy Joel’s The Vinyl Collection, Vol. 1 are coming to vinyl individually on April 5th via Sony’s Legacy Recordings. Cold Spring Harbor, Streetlife Serenade, Turnstiles, 52nd Street, Songs in the Attic, and the double Live at The Great American Music Hall 1975 will be reissued on standard-weight black vinyl.
Cold Spring Harbor, first released on November 1, 1971, was named after a favorite spot located on Long Island Sound near Joel’s hometown. The album introduced the world to Billy Joel, singer-songwriter, who, at the beginning of a new decade, was already penning future standards like “She’s Got a Way” and “Everybody Loves You Now.” The album charted in the United States (No. 158), Japan (No. 44) and the United Kingdom (No. 95).
Streetlife Serenade, Joel’s third studio album, was originally released on October 11, 1974, and marked the first time he deployed synthesizers on a record. His live shows from the period often featured the instrumental, “Root Beer Rag” and the short song, “Souvenir,” was a frequent encore. The album introduced “The Entertainer,” a key composition in his repertoire. A Top 40 album in the United States (No. 35), Streetlife Serenade charted in Australia (No. 85) and Canada (No. 16) and has been certified RIAA platinum in the United States.
Originally released May 19, 1976, Turnstiles is Joel’s fourth studio album, and was a celebration of the artist’s return to New York with tracks directly referencing his love for his hometown: “Summer, Highland Falls,” “Miami 2017 (I’ve Seen the Lights Go Out on Broadway)” and the classic “New York State of Mind,” most recently covered by a star-studded cast of musicians, artists and celebrities for a new music video, a PSA lensed in all five boroughs, made in support of the volunteer organization, #NYCNext. Turnstiles also premiered “Say Goodbye to Hollywood,” Joel’s sonic tribute to the Ronettes, the quintessential New York girl group; in 1977, Ronnie Spector released her cover of the song, backed by the E Street Band. Turnstiles peaked at No. 122 in the United States, charted in Australia (No. 12) and Japan (No. 286) and has been certified Platinum by the RIAA.
Originally released October 11, 1978, 52nd Street, Joel’s sixth studio album, was his first to hit No. 1 on the Billboard 200. Exploring new musical directions, Joel and returning producer, Phil Ramone, added jazz musicians to the studio ensemble and created an album that generated three Top 40 singles–“My Life” (No. 3), “Big Shot” (No. 14) and “Honesty” (No. 24) – and won two Grammys including the 1980 Grammy for Album of the Year and Best Pop Vocal Performance, Male. One of the first albums to be commercially released on the then-emerging compact disc format, 52nd Street pays tribute to one of the centers of New York City’s mid-century jazz scene, the fabled 52nd Street, where the album was recorded a block away from the CBS Building. Jazz trumpeter Freddie Hubbard plays the riffs on “Zanzibar,” a featured sound in a 2021 TikTok trend. The RIAA has certified the album 7x Platinum.
Originally released in September 1981, Songs in the Attic, Joel’s first live album, features top-flight performances recorded in concert in June-July 1980, curated specifically to introduce new fans to his earlier 1970s material following the phenomenal mainstream success of The Stranger. In the nearly ten years – and hundreds of concerts – since he’d recorded his debut, Billy Joel and his touring ensemble had become one of the tightest, most electrifying live bands in the world honing Billy’s songs into the concert gems heard on Songs in the Attic. The album peaked at No. 8 on the Billboard 200 while charting in Australia (No. 9), Canada (No. 21), Japan (No. 3), New Zealand (No. 30), Norway (No. 12), Sweden (No. 38) and the United Kingdom (No. 57). Songs in the Attic has been certified 3x Platinum by the RIAA.
Live at The Great American Music Hall 1975 was recorded at The Great American Music Hall in San Francisco on June 1975 during the Streetlife Serenade Tour. The set introduces the earliest available recordings of future Turnstiles classics “James” and “New York State Of Mind” into Joel’s catalog, and includes examples of Joel’s loving imitations of Joe Cocker, Elton John, and Leon Russell — a staple of his early concerts.
