Sunday, February 16, 2014

I Think I Have A Favorite

As I told you yesterday, k-ster and I just went to our local symphony's performance with Jim Witter's The Piano Men.

Money totally well spent.

I've been a fan of Billy Joel since early in the 80s and a fan of Elton John since the 90s.  I remember my mother listening to Billy Joel CDs in the house and it seems like I heard it in the car too.

I found Elton John myself in high school and I can't even remember why.  There was one tape of his that I played just about to death in high school and college.  I don't know the name of it, I just remember taping it from someone's tape and then I put it in the stereo in my truck and I believe it might have stayed in there for the entire time I drove that truck.

Remember Elton John's album The One?  I hate that album.  It made me stop liking Elton John for a while.  Then he did The Lion King and I resumed my like for him, but if I hear one of those songs from The One, I immediately shut it off.

Remember Billy's Joel's album River of Dreams?  The one that had the cover designed by Christie Brinkley and then they got divorced right after it came out?  I remember my roommates and I being like "how can they get divorced, she just did his album cover???"

Note to self:  if you want to preserve your marriage to a performer, don't paint his album cover.  Especially if you're a supermodel and you're Christie.

I wasn't as much of a fan of that album as I was of his others, but I definitely like it better than Elton John's The One.

Both of those albums came out while I was in college.  And both were lackluster.  That intrigues me.

I definitely agree with Jim Witter that their best work was written in the 70s.

But last night, I discovered something that shocked me.

I like one of them better than the other!  If you asked me before the show we saw, I would have said I like them both equally.

I think they both play the piano like nobody's business and I couldn't even tell you who I think is better at playing.

I like both of their voices a lot.  They are both easy to sing to, which is something that I think influences all of us when we decide if we like a song or not.  If we can't sing it, we probably don't feel a  connection with it.

My decision could be influenced by the fact that I've seen him in concert, but I think I like Billy Joel better!    I'm shocked!  Maybe it's the way Jim Witter performed them, or the order he chose to put them, or maybe there's no method to my choice.

But yes, I like Billy Joel better than Elton John.  Sorry, Elton.

I would easily go see either or both (wish I had when they were doing their tour together!) in concert and I would gladly pay or go for free, but if I could only go to see one, I think I would choose Billy Joel again.

What about you?  Have you seen either?  Do you like one better than the other?  Do you also prefer to listen to songs you can actually sing?

Linking here:
http://www.the-chicken-chick.com/2014/02/clever-chicks-blog-hop-74-featuring.html

3 comments:

  1. I haven't seen either one live, but I know I like Billy Joel a little better. I tried hard to get a sitter tonite so I could see them, but no luck. And I offer good bribery incentives, too.

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  2. Billy Joel. I'm really into
    Elton John, but his catalogue is more spotty to me. Billy Joel never disappoints. I remember listening to an innocent man all the time as a kid. Erin and I knew all the words to keepin the faith and we didn't even know what half of them were. :)

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  3. Billy Joel. Hands down. No contest. HUGE fan of Billy Joel since high school. (nevermind when that was! LOL)

    Thank you for sharing with the Clever Chicks Blog Hop!

    Kathy Shea Mormino
    The Chicken Chick
    http://www.The-Chicken-Chick.com

    ReplyDelete

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