Rating: 8/10
Okay, I wasn’t planning on reviewing any more Billy Joel albums. Especially not this one, since it’s usually ranked as one of his worst (it was his debut, so let’s all be nice). However, one of my favorite BJ songs ever is on this album (you’ll see which one that is at the end of the ranking), so I decided to give it a listen. And honestly, this was much better than I was expecting. Is it as advanced lyrically and musically as most of his later work? No. But is there still serious enjoyment to be had out of this album? Very much so.
With that being said, I shall let the ranking of Billy Joel’s first studio album, Cold Spring Harbor, begin!
PS: For some reason I really love this album’s title. I don’t know why.
10. Nocturne (Track 9)
Look, this is a beautiful piano piece. However, it has no lyrics, so naturally, it’s not my favorite.
9. You Look So Good to Me (Track 7)
Okay, like I said, there’s enjoyment to be had out of every song on this album, because they’re all quite good and lovely to listen to. And I’d even say that this song stands out sonically from the other songs on Cold Spring Harbor. But melodically and lyrically, it’s just not my favorite.
8. Turn Around (Track 6)
This is a really nice song. It contributes nicely to the flow of the album and Billy sounds great. However, it didn’t amaze me amidst all the other absolute gems on this album.
7. Why Judy Why (Track 4)
There are times when I really regret making song rankings the format of my album reviews, and it’s usually when I’m dealing with an album that has such strong songs all throughout – songs that are pretty much all equal in strength. That’s what I’m feeling right now, and I’m actually really struggling to come up with this ranking. Nonetheless, this is a gentle and sweet song, but it’s not a favorite.
6. You Can Make Me Free (Track 2)
We’ve now reached my favorites from the album! Yay! When I first listened to this album, when this song came on I figured it was going to be in my top 3 because I liked it so much. It’s kind of Paul McCartney-esque, which I really liked, and it’s just very pleasant to listen to. The lyrics aren’t too interesting, though, so I’m gonna put it here. I definitely like it though.
5. Everybody Loves You Now (Track 3)
THE PIANO IN THIS SONG. INCREDIBLE. It’s not very often that I would describe a song that’s led by a rapid, angry piano rhythm as a bop, but this is honestly a bop. Billy is very salty in this song, as he’s singing about someone who’s forgotten where they came from in light of newfound fame and popularity. This song also features the album’s title, when Billy sings the lyric, “But you ain’t got the time to go to Cold Spring Harbor no more.” So overall, this is a salty, fast-paced piano-bop.
4. Falling of the Rain (Track 5)
“Once upon a time, in the land of misty satin dreams, there stood a house and a man who painted nature scenes. He painted trees and fields and animals and streams. And he stayed and he didn’t hear the falling of the rain.” This song is magical. The piano is gorgeous, the melody is enchanting, and the lyrics sound like something straight out of a fairy tale. Honestly, the piano sounds like falling rain, which is adds a really special beauty to this song. Also, Billy’s voice sounds beautiful and he carries the melody so well. “So now the boy becomes the man who sits and paints all day, but the girl with the braids in her hair has gone away. And it seems that time has brought things to an end. Nothing’s changed, because you can’t stop the falling of the rain.”
3. Got to Begin Again (Track 10)
My my my, what a beautiful note to end this album on. Gentle and comforting, Got to Begin Again is a declaration of working through the ups and downs you’ll face in life, knowing you’ll wake up again the next morning and keep moving forward. I see this song as a sequel to the song I’m gonna talk about next, which is really cool. Billy sings this song with such tender care and earnestness, and he really makes this song feel like a breath of fresh air after lots of hardship and struggle. “Well, it’s been quite a while since I lifted my head, and I’m sure the light will hurt my eyes. I see the way that I’ve been spendin’ my days, and reality has caught my by surprise.”
2. Tomorrow Is Today (Track 8)
“I don’t care to know the hour because it’s passing anyway. I don’t have to see tomorrow because I saw it yesterday. So I listen for an answer but the feeling seems to stay, and what’s the use of always dreaming if tomorrow is today?” Okay, so I said that I thought that Got to Begin Again is a sequel to this song, and I’ll explain why. This song is about wasting away your hours, feeling as if nothing really matters, and getting ready to give up on life (yeah, it’s a serious topic, and the story behind this song is really sad). Got to Begin Again, after the brief interlude of Nocturne, comes right after this song, and it talks about picking your head up and choosing to carry on even though you’ve experienced great pain. This is a beautiful song, and very much worth a listen because the emotion behind the lyrics is wonderfully expressed through Billy’s singing and instrumentation that goes behind it. “Still I’m waiting for the morning but it feels so far away. And you don’t need the love I’m giving, so tomorrow is today.”
1. She’s Got a Way (Track 1)
“She’s got a way about her. I don’t know what it is, but I know that I can’t live without her. She’s got a way of pleasing. I don’t know what it is, but there doesn’t have to be a reason anyway.” Okay, if I had first listened to this album without having heard any of the songs prior, I don’t think this song would be as high up. However, this song was actually one of the first Billy Joel songs I ever listened to, so I have a very strong emotional connection to it that has caused it to take the number one spot on this list. This song just means a lot to me and I don’t really know why. Maybe it’s because it’s essentially anything that you could ever want to hear from your partner. This song, for starters, is a beautiful piano ballad that is beautifully and delicately sung, and it has this raw, rough quality to it (which is actually due to an issue in the mastering process) that makes it feel so genuine. But beyond how it sounds, it’s a song about being so completely in love with a person, that even though you can’t quite pinpoint what it is about them, you know that they’re the one for you. It’s undeniably corny, but it’s a beautiful, beautiful song and I love it to pieces. “And she’s got a light around her. And everywhere she goes, a million dreams of love surround her everywhere.”
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