Billy Joel’s An Innocent Man released

First posted 5/30/2008; updated 9/22/2020.

An Innocent Man Billy Joel

Released: August 8, 1983 Peak: 4 US, 2 UK, 12 CN, 3 AU Sales (in millions): 7.0 US, 0.9 UK, 13.3 world (includes US and UK) Genre: pop/rock singer-songwriter

Tracks: Song Title (date of single release, chart peaks) Click for codes to singles charts. Easy Money An Innocent Man (12/17/83, 10 US, 1 AC, 8 UK, 16 CN, 23 AU) The Longest Time (3/24/84, 14 US, 1 AC, 25 UK, 36 CN, 15 AU, gold single, airplay: 2 million) This Night (6/23/84, 78 UK) Tell Her about It (7/17/83, 1 US, 1 AC, 17 AR, 4 UK, 5 CN, 9 AU, gold single, airplay: 2 million) Uptown Girl (9/24/83, 3 US, 2 AC, 22 AR, 1 UK, 4 CN, 1 AU, platinum single, airplay: 2 million) Careless Talk Christie Lee Leave a Tender Moment Alone (6/23/84, 27 US, 1 AC, 29 UK, 58 CN, 76 AU, airplay: 2 million) Keeping the Faith (1/19/85, 18 US, 3 AC, 81 CN) Total Running Time: 40:25

Rating: 3.939 out of 5.00 (average of 15 ratings) Awards:

About the Album: “Recording The Nylon Curtain exhausted Billy Joel, and even though it had a pair of…hits” AMG with “Pressure” and “Allentown,” it was his first album since 1976’s Turnstiles to fail to generate a top-10 song. His previous two albums had been #1’s and Nylon Curtain’s 2 million in sales were impressive by anyone else’s standards, but were a letdown compared to his three previous albums which had sold at least 7 million each. “Since he labored so hard at the record, he decided it was time for a break – it was time to record an album just for fun. And that’s how his homage to pre-Beatles pop, An Innocent Man, was conceived: it was designed as a breezy romp through the music of his childhood.” AMG “This collection of barefaced salutes to Otis Redding, Frankie Valli and ‘Stand by Me’ was unabashedly corny in its re-creation of ‘50s pop and ‘60s R&B.” DB “The opener Easy Money is a slice of Stax/Volt pop-soul, via the Blues Brothers (quite possibly the inspiration for the album).” AMG Elsewhere, “he’s effortlessly spinning out infectious, memorable melodies in a variety of styles, from the Four Seasons send-up Uptown Girl and the soulful Tell Her About It to a pair of doo wop tributes, The Longest Time and Careless Talk.” AMG “He’s in top form as a craftsman throughout the record. Only once does he stumble on his own ambition (This Night, which appropriates its chorus from Beethoven).” AMG Otherwise, “Joel has rarely sounded so carefree either in performance or writing, possibly due to Christie Lee Brinkley, a supermodel who became his new love prior to An Innocent Man.” AMG “There was no denying the exuberance and joy in what he called his ‘valentine’ to his second (but not last) wife.” DB This is “his Christie Brinkley State of Mind album.” DB “He can’t stop writing about her throughout the album – only three songs, including the haunted title track, aren’t about her in some form or fashion. That giddiness is infectious.” AMG That’s probably why the album became his biggest in terms of charting singles. “Tell Her About It” was a #1 hit, “Uptown Girl” hit the top 3, and the title cut was also a top-10 hit. Beyond those three, he charted with three more top-40 hits from the album with “The Longest Time,” “Leave a Tender Moment Alone,” and “Keeping the Faith.”

Resources and Related Links: Billy Joel’s DMDB Encyclopedia entry AMG All Music Guide review by Stephen Thomas Erlewine DB David Browne (6/07). Blender magazine. Pages 114-5.