UNREST’S MARK ROBINSON TACKLES BILLY JOEL'S DISCOGRAPHY (PART 3: TURNSTILES & THE STRANGER) (Ep. 235)

Discograffiti is the deep-dive podcast for music obsessives. In this episode, host Dave Gebroe talks with the epitome of DIY punk spirit (who can also write a pop hook like the best of ‘em), the great Mark Robinson (of Unrest, Grenadine, Air Miami, Flint Flon, Uncomfortable Police, et al), and together they discuss Billy Joel’s entire recorded output with commentary, stories, and star ratings for every release. If you’re a long-time listener, then you know that Dave has harbored a long-time hatred of Billy Joel…so why the sudden turnaround in taste? Discograffiti’s Mark Robinson Tackles Billy Joel (But Only Metaphorically) Series dissects every last release Billy Joel’s ever had a hand in creating. Part 3 tackles the two mid-1970s records that, after their release, wound up turning him into a superstar: Turnstiles & The Stranger.

Here are just a few of the many things that Mark discusses with Discograffiti in this podcast:

• The audible differences between the original James Guercio-produced version of Turnstiles and his self-produced, released version;
• The band that Billy poached in order to find the musicians with whom he’d spend most of his career playing;
• The Turnstiles track that most Billy Joel die-hards hold to their hearts as an all-time favorite;
• What generally happens when Billy tries his hand at reggae;
• The massive producer that almost helmed The Stranger before Phil Ramone stepped in;
• The mind-blowing level of success which The Stranger achieved;
• The song Billy wanted to drop from the track list, which wound up exploding wildly;
• The hit whose melody Billy had accidentally stolen before re-writing it as “Movin’ Out”;
• The connective thread between 10cc’s “I’m Not In Love” and “Just The Way You Are”;
• The three separate songs that were combined into “Scenes From An Italian Restaurant”;
• Why, regardless of your favorite Billy Joel track, “Vienna” may just be Billy Joel’s best song of all time;
• And an in-depth deep dive on every song off Turnstiles and Streetlife Serenade.

Listen: linktr.ee/discograffiti

I support a wife and a six-year-old son with Discograffiti as my sole source of income. 

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