Vienna by Billy Joel

Songs
1

I think I had this one in my head after reading an article earlier in the year: ‘No one understands a woman in her 20s like Billy Joel’: gen z finds solace in anti-hustle anthem Vienna | Billy Joel | The Guardian

Essentially Billy Joel is cool again. In a very specific context. He’s always been cool to me - one of my earliest memories is being allowed to stay up for a televised concert (I must have been about four or five). And we’d listen to his albums in the car throughout my childhood.

I’ve basically funked the original up a bit (there are some chords going into and out of the chorus which feel slightly funky somehow). What I should have realised is that upping the tempo on a song where the lyrics are already a mouthful might not be the greatest idea in the world… :joy:

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I think a mouthfuil of Billy Joels lyrics gains something by being funked up a little. Nothing of them is swallowed or lost in your delivery. In fact, they come across stronger here than in the original recording.

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Billy Joel has definitely always been cool!
The increase in tempo, the horns, the piano motif now on guitar, all sounds good to me.

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4

I am a big Billy Joel fan - and I know this song well. I love The Stranger album. I really like this uptempo guitar led version - it has a more dramatic flair and more depth too. Love the bits of organ and trumpet. Awesome guitar work - changing up that kind of classical piano intro and outro into those cool guitar solos - awesome. This was such a treat!

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What an awesome re-imagining of this one - and it’s one of my favorite Billy Joel songs! When I was a kid taking piano lessons, I learned to play it.
Super cool soulful vibe - strong vocal, bold guitars, and wonderful embellishments of horns and organ. I love everything about this!

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Very cool take on this classic. I hear the funky guitar…great vocal, as always, and a tasty solo!

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The article intrigued me in a big way. Curious, I took a fresh listen cuz I probably hadn’t listened to this song since I was in my 20s. Yeah, there’s something about it - giving me chills as it took me back to my 20s. As for your version, it is so David Taro/Beatles cool. The tempo with that funky guitar is bringing me to tears! Love it!