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Just the Way You Are (Billy Joel song)

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"Just the Way You Are"
Song
B-side"Get It Right the First Time"
"Just The Way You Are"
Billy Joel's "Just The Way You Are" from The Stranger
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"Just the Way You Are" is a song by Billy Joel and the third track from his 1977 album The Stranger that became Joel's first US Top 10 (reaching #3) and UK Top 20 single, as well as Joel's first gold single in the US. The song also topped the Billboard Easy Listening Chart for the entire month of January 1978.

"Just the Way You Are", which won the 1979 Grammy Awards for Record of the Year and Song of the Year, turned Joel's chart career, which had largely stalled out by early 1975, into long-lasting success. The song also coincidentally tied another of his #3 hits, his last US Top 10 single, "The River of Dreams", for most weeks on the Hot 100 of any of his singles, at 27.

Background

In an interview on the Howard Stern Radio Show on November 16, 2010, Joel revealed that the inspiration for writing this tune (more specifically the name of the song and how it sounds in the chorus) was directly taken from the last line in the Frankie Valli and the Four Seasons song "Rag Doll;" which incidentally was also a larger inspiration for Joel's later song, "Uptown Girl".[1] The song, which Joel had written for his first wife (and also his business manager at the time) Elizabeth Weber, was not liked by either Joel or his band, and Joel had originally decided against making the track a part of the album. But Joel has stated that, at the request of both Linda Ronstadt and Phoebe Snow (both were recording in other studios in the same building at the time), Joel agreed to put the song on the final mix.[2] However, the album's producer, Phil Ramone, later contradicted Joel's claim, stating in an interview that they could not afford to exclude the song because Joel did not have that much material to choose from for the album.[3]

After Joel and Weber split in 1982, Joel rarely performed the song live after 1986 until the 2000s, and Joel has publicly stated that he disliked playing the song live in the wake of his divorce from his first wife. He noted that during performances of the song around the time of his first divorce, his drummer Liberty DeVitto would jokingly parody the lyrics in the chorus as "She got the house. She got the car."[4]

When "Just the Way You Are" was released as a single, it was shortened by over a minute. The differences are the removal of the second verse and an earlier fade. A live performance of the song was also used as a music video. On February 18, 1978, the song peaked at #3, and Joel performed a shorter version of the song as the musical guest that day on Saturday Night Live (along with "Only the Good Die Young"). The single version was included in the first release of Greatest Hits Volume I & Volume II, but the full album version was restored for the remastered release of that compilation.

The saxophone solo was played by Phil Woods, a well-known jazz performer and Grammy award winner. Woods was criticized by some purists in the jazz community for playing on a rock session, but in fact he had already played previously on such sessions both for Steely Dan and for Paul Simon. The performance here on a hit record undoubtedly exposed him to a wider audience and introduced his music to rock fans.[5]

Chart performance

Track listing

7" U.S. and UK single (1977)
  1. "Just the Way You Are" – 3:27
  2. "Get It Right the First Time" – 3:54

Other versions

Since its initial release in 1977, the song has been covered by many artists including: Barry White (in 1978), Isaac Hayes (on his album For The Sake Of Love, in 1978), Ahmad Jamal (instrumental version, on his album One, in 1978), Lenny Dee (instrumental version in 1978), Hank Crawford (instrumental version, on his album Cajun Sunrise, in 1978), Ray Conniff (on the album Ray Conniff Plays The Bee Gees & Other Great Hits, in 1978), John Holt (in 1978), José José (in Spanish “Te Quiero Tal Como Eres” on his album Lo Pasado Pasado, in 1978), José Feliciano (live in 1978), Dionne Warwick (live in 1978), Andy Williams, Donny Osmond dueting with Cheryl Ladd (on The Donny & Marie Show, in 1978), Shirley Bassey, Les McCann (on his album The Man, in 1978), Grant Green (instrumental version, on his last session album Easy, in 1978), Grover Washington, Jr. (instrumental version, on his album Reed Seed, in 1978), Johnny Mathis as a duet with Deniece Williams (in 1978), Rodney Arias (on his album Live! in 1979), Engelbert Humperdinck (on his album Last Of The Romantics, in 1979), Kenny Rogers with Dottie West (on their duet album Classics, in 1979), Frank Sinatra (on his album Trilogy: Past Present Future, in 1980), Cilla Black (on her album Especially For You, in 1980), Gerry and the Pacemakers (on their album Ferry Cross The Mersey, in 1981), Rosemary Clooney (on her album With Love, in 1981). The Hi-Lo's (on their album Now, in 1981), Mina (on her album Finalmente Ho Conoscuito Il Conte Dracula…, in 1985), Diana Krall (on her album Live in Paris, in 2002), Donny Osmond (in 2005), Maggie Gyllenhall (in the 2005 film Happy Endings), Tor Endresen (on his album Now and Forever, in 2005), Mario Biondi (on his live CD I Love You More, in 2007), Deana Martin (on her album Volare, in 2009), Harry Connick, Jr. (on his album Your Songs, in 2009), Ska Rangers (on The Hangover Part II: Original Motion Picture Soundtrack in 2011), Natalia Dicenta (on her release Colours, in 2013), Billy Joel's daughter Alexa Ray Joel (in 2013) [17]

Billy Joel also performed a revised version of his song with lyrics by Tony Geiss on Sesame Street (in 1988) where he sang to Oscar the Grouch along with Marlee Matlin who translated into sign language.

Joel has performed the song as a duet in live performances with Elton John during their Face to Face tours together.

See also

References

  1. ^ [1] Billy Joel interview on The Howard Stern Show (11/16/10)
  2. ^ Billy Joel - The Republican Interview
  3. ^ The Stranger: 30th Anniversary Edition. "Making of The Stranger Documentary. 2008
  4. ^ Rose, Charlie. "Billy Joel Interview." The Charlie Rose Show, 1993.
  5. ^ Gordon Bock, "Phil Woods' Sax Keeps Showing Up." Dallas Morning News, August 6, 1978, p. 8 C.
  6. ^ "Billy Joel – Just the Way You Are". ARIA Top 50 Singles.
  7. ^ Collectionscanada.gc.ca
  8. ^ "Billy Joel – Just the Way You Are". Top 40 Singles.
  9. ^ ""Just the Way You Are" on the South African Singles Chart". Springbok Radio. July 28, 1978. Retrieved September 25, 2010.
  10. ^ "Billy Joel: Artist Chart History". Official Charts Company.
  11. ^ "Billy Joel Chart History (Hot 100)". Billboard.
  12. ^ Whitburn, Joel (2002). Top Adult Contemporary: 1961-2001. Record Research. p. 127.
  13. ^ * Zimbabwe. Kimberley, C. Zimbabwe: singles chart book. Harare: C. Kimberley, 2000
  14. ^ https://www.collectionscanada.gc.ca/rpm/028020-119.01-e.php?&file_num=nlc008388.0070a&type=1&interval=50&PHPSESSID=t56uu31t7cn19047mvut6bemv1
  15. ^ http://nztop40.co.nz/chart/?chart=3867
  16. ^ http://www.musicoutfitters.com/topsongs/1978.htm
  17. ^ http://billyjoel52ndstreetserenade.blogspot.co.uk/2015/10/trying-some-new-fashion.html
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