“Each Sunday, Pitchfork takes an in-depth look at a significant album from the past, and any record not in our archives is eligible. Today we revisit Billy Joel’s greatest album, a sublimely crafted breakthrough that finds the meeting ground of the romantic and the mundane.”
“In 1977, Joel’s fifth and best album replaced Simon and Garfunkel’s Bridge Over Troubled Water as Columbia Records’ top seller to date, establishing Joel as a titan of adult contemporary — America’s answer to Elton John. The Stranger also marked the beginning of Joel’s long-term collaboration with producer Phil Ramone, who distilled the Piano Man’s […]”
