Customer Reviews

River of Dreams

5 star:		(4)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

I just celebrated my 38th birthday, which may explain why I like this album so much. River of Dreams is a collection of retrospective, introspective songs. Shades of Grey sounds like a mature version of Angry Young Man. No Man's Land looks at what our consumer-driven society has brought about. The Great Wall of China is a lament of opportunities lost, while Lullabye is a hopeful vision of who were are. A wonderful, thoughtful mix.

This is one of my favorite Billy Joel Albums. It is full of depth and feeling, also of closure.I think each of his abums he has ever put out sets a theme and this one is no different.This is is a retrospective of his life at that time. Divorce to Christy and love for Alexa.A time of change, especially apparent in the last song. "Famous last words." The Lyrics are profound. This is a must for any one who likes Billy's music, for it is a true work of art

It's hard to believe that the last studio album Billy Joel recorded was way far back in 1993. And it's kind of sad that this is the only studio album he's released in last two decades. Joel could do much better than this album, possibly the weakest one in his catalogue.

Still every pop album Joel ever released always had at least one great track or two on it, and this album was no exception. The title track, "River of Dreams" is a fantastic song: an interesting mix of gospel, soul, and doo wop. And it deservedly became Joel's last big hit.

But the rest of the album is pretty forgettable. There are no other songs here that come close to matching the high point of the title track and most of the songs sound forced and uninspired. A few are among the worst songs Joel ever wrote.

My vote for worst Billy Joel song ever is split between the nauseating "All About Soul," a ham-handed love song about his soon-to-be-ex wife Christie Brinkley , or "Blonde Over Blue," another song about Christie that tries to sound romantic but winds up sounding awkward and insincere. Both tracks are certainly a long ways away from the giddy love songs that Joel wrote for Christie on "An Innocent Man."

Also, Joel's songwriting craft seemed to have peaked in the early-to-mid 1980's, and by 1993, Joel was far from that peak. His previous two albums, "Storm Front" and "The Bridge," had been uneven at best. And unfortunately, "River of Dreams" was worse than either of those albums. Despite the insistence, in one of Joel's choruses, that "it's all about soul," his album was pretty soulless.

I've been collecting Billy Joel's music from his beginnings and this album I missed when it got out, but I'm glad I could get it, it's great music.

This is the second Billy Joel album I got which was released in 1993, when I was too busy to cover American music and cared less. I got it just recently. I love this album, because some of the tracks really have rock edge.

The first track, NO MAN'S LAND has the rock style John Mellemcamp may be very good at, but Billy also has rock spirit just as JM. THE GREAT WALL OF CHINA is my favorite track, full of groovy edge. 6th track ALL ABOUT SOUL, which was released as a single in Japan, sounds most familiar. LULLABYE has classic Billy Joel ballad, really brilliant. Overall, the album sounds true to his real self, and a great one though not his best work.

Verdict: Great Adult Rock work
Rating: 86 out of 100
Recommended for: Every Billy Joel fans. 70s and 80s rock fans.

I added this to my Billy Joel collection and I am very glad that I did. Although there were a few songs on here that I never heard before I really enjoyed it.

Is this billy joel? what is this?the cover looks bogus.I guess I have to base this album on the merit of the music.after sampling it it doesnt seem to have that joel passion.I dont want to bash it but it does not seem to be near the effort he could have put into it.mediocure at best.