Glass Houses - A Billy Joel Podcast

• EP 137 - Tour Retrospective: Glass Houses Tour (1980-81)

  Billy Joel banked on his recent success when he wrote and recorded the 1980 album Glass Houses. The songs were much more streamlined and guitar-driven than his previous two platinum-selling releases, and arranged to be played in arenas and coliseums rather than theaters and colleges.  But, just as the record’s New Wave leanings drew ire from the critics, the Glass Houses tour received mixed reactions. Almost every pundit who applauded Joel’s songwriting and his band’s energy was met by another who felt the songs were hollow and the shows lackluster. Of course, many of the songs are still concert staples today. And, Billy still sells out the world’s largest and most celebrated venues 45 years after their release.  That makes it even harder to believe Billy’s 8 plus-month, worldwide tour from 1980 to 1981 could have been his last run at the superstar level. Join us, as we explore the dates, setlists, and reviews of Billy Joel’s Glass Houses tour. ------   Email us: ⁠[email protected]⁠   Glass Houses - A Billy Joel Podcast on the web / social media: Website: ⁠https://www.glasshousespod.com⁠ Facebook: ⁠https://www.facebook.com/glasshousespodcast/⁠ Instagram: ⁠https://www.instagram.com/glasshousespod/⁠ Twitter / X: ⁠https://x.com/glasshousespod⁠  Discord: ⁠https://discord.gg/6G6cMRFu7T⁠ Youtube: ⁠https://www.youtube.com/@glasshousespod⁠   Support the podcast: Paypal: ⁠https://paypal.me/glasshousespod⁠ Venmo: @MGrosvenor   Produced by Michael Grosvenor & Jack Firneno for Glass Houses Media, LLC Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

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• EP 136 - Album Retrospective: Glass Houses (Part 3)

  Today, we know Glass Houses as one of Billy Joel’s biggest albums. The 1980 release became his third-consecutive album to quickly go platinum. It kept the band playing some of the biggest venues in the world, and features a handful of songs that are still  live staples. At the time, however, it was a drastic departure from Billy’s previous hit records. He’d shed much of the classical and jazz influences that marked The Stranger and 52nd Street. The scaled-back arrangements reflected then-modern New Wave and Power Pop with a more stripped-down and guitar-driven approach.  It was the first time in arguably a decade that Billy made a conscious effort to create an album based on the popular music of the time. As a result, more critics were lukewarm, and even hostile, to the songs.  Over time, the record cemented its status as a seminal release. After all, it’s the one we named this podcast after. Now, we’re finally giving it an official listen-through.  Join us as we drop the needle on Billy Joel’s 1980 album Glass Houses. ------   Email us: [email protected]   Glass Houses - A Billy Joel Podcast on the web / social media: Website: https://www.glasshousespod.com Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/glasshousespodcast/ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/glasshousespod/ Twitter / X: https://x.com/glasshousespod  Discord: https://discord.gg/6G6cMRFu7T Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@glasshousespod   Support the podcast: Paypal: https://paypal.me/glasshousespod Venmo: @MGrosvenor   Produced by Michael Grosvenor & Jack Firneno for Glass Houses Media, LLC Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

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• EP 135 - Album Retrospective: Glass Houses (Part 2)

  Billy Joel’s 1980 release, Glass Houses, is considered classic rock in 2025. But at the time,  listeners and critics heard a huge leap into then-current New Wave – and not necessarily a good one.  The album was a stripped-down departure from the more lush arrangements on the Stranger and 52nd Street, released in 1977 and 1978  respectively. Some contemporary reviewers applauded the songwriting and genre hopping. Others, expecting something closer to Steely Dan or Dire Straits, were disappointed to hear songs much more informed by Elvis Costello and The Knack.  Ultimately, Glass Houses spawned several hit songs and concert staples including You May Be Right, Don’t Ask Me Why, and It’s Still Rock and Roll to Me. It continued Joel’s streak of chart-toppers and platinum-selling albums, and is still one of his most popular releases. In our second of four Glass Houses episodes, we’re comparing what the critics had to say in print, and how listeners responded with album and ticket sales. Join us as we dig deep into the initial mixed reception and ultimate triumph of this classic album. ------   Email us: [email protected]   Glass Houses - A Billy Joel Podcast on the web / social media: Website: https://www.glasshousespod.com Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/glasshousespodcast/ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/glasshousespod/ Twitter / X: https://x.com/glasshousespod  Discord: https://discord.gg/6G6cMRFu7T Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@glasshousespod   Support the podcast: Paypal: https://paypal.me/glasshousespod Venmo: @MGrosvenor   Produced by Michael Grosvenor & Jack Firneno for Glass Houses Media, LLC Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

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• EP 134 - Album Retrospective: Glass Houses (Part 1)

  With a pair of award-winning, chart-topping albums under his belt, Billy Joel entered A&R Recording in 1979 with the intention of abandoning the sound that made him a superstar. He did so by showcasing the musicians who were instrumental to his success.  The result was Glass Houses. Released on March 12, 1980, the album lurched Billy out of the classically-informed, jazz-influenced, singer-songwriter idiom he’d cultivated over three releases. Written in the wake of Punk and New Wave, his first record of the decade was stripped down, guitar-focussed and often confrontational.  Glass Houses was the second of Billy’s solo albums, and his first since 1976 to not use session musicians. With the backing  tracks recorded almost completely live, it put his tight knit backing band, now known as the Lords of 52nd Street, front and center.  The stylistic shift yielded a platinum-selling record with a handful of Top Ten hits and concert staples to this day. It also set the precedent for Billy’s genre-hopping success throughout the 80s. But, in retrospect, it was an album that could have flopped, and one that could only have been successful in a brief timeframe.  In our first of four episodes covering Glass Houses, we’ll explore the making of the record, from what was on the charts at the time, to how the songs evolved from rough demos to polished gems, and when and how the band put it all together.  Join us as we dig deep into the making of Glass Houses.  ------   Email us: [email protected]   Glass Houses - A Billy Joel Podcast on the web / social media: Website: https://www.glasshousespod.com Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/glasshousespodcast/ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/glasshousespod/ Twitter / X: https://x.com/glasshousespod  Discord: https://discord.gg/6G6cMRFu7T Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@glasshousespod   Support the podcast: Paypal: https://paypal.me/glasshousespod Venmo: @MGrosvenor   Produced by Michael Grosvenor & Jack Firneno for Glass Houses Media, LLC Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

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• EP 133 - Billy Joel On Late Night TV Part 3 (1986-2024)

  Even though Billy Joel was a superstar by the 1980s, he still had to promote each new album. That included appearances on late night television shows.  Billy was never a fan of music videos or performing on television, saying music shouldn’t have to be a visual art. But as the landscape of late night shows changed over the years, he found more opportunities that suited his style.  He offset his spotlight moments on Late Night with David Letterman by sitting in with Paul Schaffer’s famed house band. His revamped live band got the spotlight in late 80s and early 90s Saturday Night Live appearances. Later, Billy debuted new songs and revisited his back catalog with his live band and members of the show’s musical groups while visiting other late-night hosts.  Then, as his 2010s renaissance blossomed with his Madison Square Garden residency, Billy guested on network programs that made the cultural leap into online and viral videos.  Join us as we dig deep into Billy Joel’s late night TV appearances from 1986 to 2024. ------   Email us: [email protected]   Glass Houses - A Billy Joel Podcast on the web / social media: Website: https://www.glasshousespod.com Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/glasshousespodcast/ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/glasshousespod/ Twitter / X: https://x.com/glasshousespod  Discord: https://discord.gg/6G6cMRFu7T Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@glasshousespod   Support the podcast: Paypal: https://paypal.me/glasshousespod Venmo: @MGrosvenor   Produced by Michael Grosvenor & Jack Firneno for Glass Houses Media, LLC Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

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