Most Helpful Customer Reviews
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14 of 14 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Everybody's Talkin' 'bout the New Sound..., June 11, 2003
Billy's 1980 opus was such a huge hit that it's easy to forget how enduring his songs really are. "Glass Houses" was Billy's "rock" album, and while some weak production (an ongoing problem for Billy) cuts the edge, he focused on a simplicity in the songwriting that really served his voice well. "You May Be Right" is a calculated, if irresistable, first single, but the real standouts are the dark "All for Leyna" (in which he sort of warms up for "Laura" on "Nylon Curtain"), the wonderful "Sleeping With the Television On," and the delicate, gorgeously-structured "Through the Long Night."Even the misfires are thoroughly entertaining. "Close to the Borderline" lacks the punch to fulfill its post-punk ambitions, and the lyrics are awfully dated, but it's still a delightful anguished-yuppie number, and a nice preview of the more powerful, if equally unsubtle, "Pressure." "C'Etait Toi" meanders a bit, and Billy gets bogged down in bad French, but it's a pop charmer. Then there are the hits..."Sometimes a Fantasy," "Don't Ask Me Why," the almost novelty-hit "It's Still Rock and Roll to Me." They were all hits for a damn good reason...they have great hooks, Billy sings 'em like he means 'em, and they get better with every listen. Billy would hit his Beatlesque stride with "Nylon Curtain" and find a stronger rock sound with "Storm Front," but it's great to hear him playing with both format on "Glass Houses."
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10 of 10 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Billy Rocks My World!, May 19, 2001
Sure, I am but a mere one year older than this album, and while people in my generation groove to the likes of all the Christinas, Britneys, NSyncs and Backstreets, I take a trip back 20 years to when singers actually wrote their songs and sang about what mattered most -- not what about would make a great video. Billy is a Rock and Roll genius, and of his 15 albums, this is the ONE I could not live without!It has just enough of his hits on it ("You May Be Right," "It's Still Rock and Roll to Me," and "Don't Ask Me Why") for those who aren't fanatics. But, the core of the album (as with most of Billy's work) is the unreleased songs: "Sometimes a Fantasy," "All for Leyna," and "Sleeping with the Television On," plus the others. These are the songs that you fall in love with and listen to on repeat (or, at least I do.) They are "Glass Houses," and each is its own masterpiece written by the single best singer/songwriter of 3 consecutive decades. Go ahead... Listen and fall in love. Nostalgia it isn't. Great music it is. The 80s feel to the music only adds to its meaning and makes you appreciate that an album 21 years old can become your favorite for the next 21 years.
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6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
First album, March 19, 2006
This was my first album ever. I was in third grade. It was this, and Disco Duck, so, you can guess which one stood the test of time. The other album, Glass Houses, was great too! I was too young to understand why being a straight A student meant you thought too much, but, I knew that if you got bad grades, you were cool, and some day, I might have a white boy's afro, wear a leather member's only jacket, and throw a rock through my rich girlfriend's glass house. What do you want from me...I was eight years old when I first heard this album. Thanks to this album I conned my Grandparents into buying me a sax, and then a key board, and then a leather jacket, and, eventually, drums. So, thanks to Billy Joel's Glass Houses, my life would never, ever follow a linear path on the road most travelled. One thing that does stand out, other than the fact that this album still blows away every album I have bought since...the whole star spangled banner playing with the bars and tone sound leading into the song. No one these days will understand what that sound means, which makes it even better. When ever I listen to this album, it always reminds me of a simpler time when every house had one phone, no answering machine, no internet, and a TV with 3 channels on a dial that played the national anthem or star spangled banner as we all fell asleep in the living room....you know...when families all actually hung out with each other. Thank you Billy.
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by Billy Joel 
