Ranking: Songs from Billy Joel - The Stranger

  It took Billy Joel 3 albums on Columbia before number four broke him in a big way.  Today The Stranger is a diamond selling album.  Its fate when first released in 1977 was far away from those sales projections.  But the lead single, "Just the Way You Are" peaked at #3 and the album had three more top 40 singles.  The momentum carried over in to 1978 when 52nd Street became his first number one album.  Never a critics favorite, Joel's music was often dismissed by critic during his peak as slight.  But listeners, including me, disagreed.  The Stranger remains my favorite Billy Joel album.

1.  Only The Good Die Young

2.  Movin' Out (Anthony's Song)

3.  Just The Way You Are

4.  Vienna

5.  Songs From An Italian Restaurant

6.  She's Always A Woman

7.  The Stranger

8.  Get It Right the First Time

9.  Everybody Has A Dream