An Innocent Man

Template:About Template:Use mdy dates {{safesubst:#invoke:Unsubst-infobox||$params=italic_title,name,type,longtype,artist,cover,border,alt,caption,released,recorded,venue,studio,genre,length,language,label,director,producer,compiler,chronology,prev_title,prev_year,year,next_title,next_year,misc|$extra=italic_title,longtype,border,caption,language,director,compiler,chronology,year,misc|$aliases=italic title>italic_title,Italic title>italic_title,Name>name,Type>type,image>cover,Cover>cover,Border>border,Alt>alt,Caption>caption,Longtype>longtype,Artist>artist,Released>released,Recorded>recorded,Venue>venue,Studio>studio,Genre>genre,Length>length,Language>language,Label>label,Director>director,Producer>producer,Compiler>compiler,Chronology>chronology,Misc>misc|$flags=override|$B={{#ifeq:{{#invoke:Is infobox in lead|main|[Ii]nfobox [Aa]lbum}}|true|{{#if:Template:Has short description | |Template:Short description|noreplace}}}}{{#invoke:Infobox|infobox}}Template:Template other Template:Category handler Template:Main other{{#invoke:Check for unknown parameters|check|unknown=Template:Main other|preview=Page using Template:Infobox album with unknown parameter "_VALUE_"|ignoreblank=y|italic_title |type |name |image |cover |border |alt |caption |longtype |artist |released |recorded |venue |studio |genre |length |language |label |director |producer |compiler |prev_title|prev_year|next_title|next_year|chronology|year|misc}}{{#if:{{#invoke:String|match|error_category=Music infoboxes with Module:String errors|A|1=The Nylon Curtain1982Greatest Hits – Volume I & Volume II1985studioAn Innocent ManBillyJoel AnInnocentMan.jpgBilly Joel Template:Start date<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>Spring, 1983*Chelsea Sound

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An Innocent Man is the ninth studio album by American singer-songwriter Billy Joel, released on August 8, 1983. The concept album is a tribute to the American popular music of Joel's adolescent years with Joel paying homage to a number of different and popular American musical styles from the late 1950s and early 1960s, most notably doo-wop and soul music.<ref name="Billy Joel Website Interview">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> The album cover artwork was taken on the front steps of 142 Mercer Street,<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> just north of the intersection of Mercer and Prince Street in the SoHo neighborhood of Manhattan, New York City.<ref>Template:Citation</ref>

BackgroundEdit

In an interview about the making of the album, Joel talks about the fact that at the time that he was recording An Innocent Man, he was newly divorced from his first wife, Elizabeth Weber, and was single for the first time since achieving rock star status. He had the opportunity to date supermodels such as Elle Macpherson and Christie Brinkley, and because of these experiences, he said, "I kind of felt like a teenager all over again."<ref name="Billy Joel Website Interview" /> Joel started writing songs in the same styles as pop songs that he remembered from his teenage years, citing pop music from the late 1950s and early 1960s, including "early R&B songs and The Four Seasons, and the Motown music, soul music." According to Joel, the various songs were not meant to be autobiographical, and instead center around various made-up characters.<ref name="Interview 1984">Archived at Ghostarchive Template:Cbignore and the Wayback Machine Template:Cbignore: {{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}Template:Cbignore</ref>

Joel explained, "When you're gonna write [songs for a new album], you write what you're feeling. And I didn't fight it. The material was coming so easily and so quickly, and I was having so much fun doing it. I was kind of reliving my youth. ... I think within 6 weeks I had written most of the material on the album." Joel also said that he was pleasantly surprised to have hit records in the 1980s with retro songs like the mostly a cappella doo wop song "The Longest Time".<ref name="Billy Joel Website Interview" /> The song "Easy Money", which was made as a tribute to early R&B, was initially written for the 1983 film of the same name starring Rodney Dangerfield and was the song that "kicked off" the creation of An Innocent Man, according to Joel.<ref name="Interview 1984"/> Dangerfield later made a cameo appearance at the end of the music video for the song "Tell Her About It", as an exchange for Joel's song in support of Dangerfield's movie. The song "Christie Lee" describes a narrative about a saxophone player who has his heart broken by a woman he falls in love with, whom he later realizes is only interested in him for his saxophone skills.<ref name="Interview 1984"/>

Chart performanceEdit

The album featured three Billboard Top 10 hit singles: "Tell Her About It" (No. 1), "Uptown Girl" (No. 3) and "An Innocent Man" (No. 10). Four other singles were released from the album: "The Longest Time" (No. 14), "Leave a Tender Moment Alone" (No. 27), "Keeping the Faith" (No. 18) and "This Night" (US B-side of "Leave a Tender Moment Alone"). "Tell Her About It" and "Uptown Girl" garnered international success—"Uptown Girl" reached No. 1 in the UK, Australia and New Zealand. An Innocent Man remained on the US Pop album chart for 111 weeks, becoming Joel's longest charting studio album behind The Stranger. For over a year, the album remained on the charts in the UK, Japan and Australia.

Critical receptionEdit

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Like his three previous efforts, Joel's An Innocent Man received a nomination for the 26th Grammy Award for Album of the Year, although the award went to Michael Jackson's Thriller. The album was also nominated for a Grammy for Best Male Pop Vocal Performance for "Uptown Girl", but again was beaten by Thriller.

Track listingEdit

All songs by Billy Joel, except for the chorus for "This Night", which is credited on the sleeve to Joel and L. v. Beethoven.

The track listing on the LP is slightly different from that on the cassette and original CD pressings, with the latter swapping the places of "The Longest Time" and "Uptown Girl". However, on the actual cassette shell and disc label, the songs are listed (and play) in the correct order as printed on the LP.

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PersonnelEdit

Billy Joel – lead and backing vocals, Baldwin SF-10 acoustic piano, Fender Rhodes electric piano, Hammond B-3 organ
Liberty DeVitto – drums
Doug Stegmeyer – bass guitar
David Brown – electric and acoustic lead guitars
Russell Javors – electric and acoustic rhythm guitars
Mark Rivera – backing vocals, tenor saxophone, percussion; alto saxophone on "Keeping the Faith", "This Night" and "Christie Lee"

Additional personnel

Tom Bahler – backing vocals
Rory Dodd – backing vocals
Frank Floyd – backing vocals
Lani Groves – backing vocals
Ullanda McCullough – backing vocals
Ron Taylor – backing vocals
Terry Textor – backing vocals
Eric Troyer – backing vocals
Mike Alexander – backing vocals
Eric Gale – electric guitar on "Easy Money"
Richard Tee – acoustic piano on "Tell Her About It"
Leon Pendarvis – Hammond B-3 organ on "Easy Money"
Ralph MacDonald – percussion on "Leave a Tender Moment Alone" and "Careless Talk"
Toots Thielemans – harmonica on "Leave a Tender Moment Alone"
"String Fever" – strings
Ronnie Cuber – baritone saxophone on "Easy Money", "Careless Talk", "Tell Her About It" and "Keeping the Faith"
Jon Faddis – trumpet on "Easy Money"
David Sanborn – alto saxophone on "Easy Money"
Joe Shepley – trumpet on "Easy Money", "Careless Talk", "Tell Her About It" and "Keeping the Faith"
Michael Brecker – tenor saxophone on "Careless Talk", "Tell Her About It" and "Keeping the Faith"
John Gatchell – trumpet on "Careless Talk", "Tell Her About It" and "Keeping the Faith"

ProductionEdit

Producer – Phil Ramone
Engineers – Jim Boyer and Bradshaw Leigh
Assistant Engineers – Mike Allaire and Scott James
Production Coordinator – Laura Loncteaux
Mastered by Ted Jensen
Horn and String arrangements – David Matthews
Background vocal arrangements – Tom Bahler
Musical Advisor – Billy Zampino
Photography – Gilles Larrain
Cover Design – Christopher Austopchuk and Mark Larson

Studios

Recorded at Chelsea Sound and A & R Recording, Inc., New York, NY.
Mixed at A & R Recording, Inc., New York, NY.
Mastered at Sterling Sound, New York, NY.

AccoladesEdit

Grammy AwardsEdit

Template:Awards table |- | width="35" align="center" rowspan="2"|1984 || An Innocent Man || Album of the Year<ref name="26GN">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> || Template:Nom |- |"Uptown Girl" || | Best Pop Vocal Performance – Male<ref name="26GN" /> || Template:Nom

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American Music AwardsEdit

Template:Awards table |- | style="width:35px; text-align:center;" rowspan="2"|1983 || Billy Joel (performer) || Favorite Pop/Rock Male Artist<ref name="ROTN">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>|| Template:Nom |- | "Tell Her About It" || Favorite Pop/Rock Video<ref name="ROTN" /> || Template:Nom |-

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ChartsEdit

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Weekly chartsEdit

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Weekly chart performance for *An Innocent Man*
Chart (1983–1984)	Peak position
Australian Albums (Kent Music Report)Template:Sfn	3
Icelandic Albums (Tónlist)<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>	3
Japanese Albums (Oricon)<ref name="Jachart">{{#invoke:citation/CS1\|citation	CitationClass=web }}</ref>	3

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Year-end chartsEdit

1983 year-end chart performance for *An Innocent Man*
Chart (1983)	Position
Australian Albums (Kent Music Report)Template:Sfn	11
Canada Top Albums/CDs (RPM)<ref>Template:Cite magazine</ref>	42
Dutch Albums (Album Top 100)<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1\|citation	CitationClass=web }}</ref>	74
Japanese Albums (Oricon)<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1\|citation	CitationClass=web }}</ref>	18
New Zealand Albums (RMNZ)<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1\|citation	CitationClass=web }}</ref>	29
UK Albums (Gallup)<ref>Template:Cite book</ref>	25

1984 year-end chart performance for *An Innocent Man*
Chart (1984)	Position
Australian Albums (Kent Music Report)Template:Sfn	6
Canada Top Albums/CDs (RPM)<ref>Template:Cite magazine</ref>	31
Japanese Albums (Oricon)<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1\|citation	CitationClass=web }}</ref>	58
New Zealand Albums (RMNZ)<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1\|citation	CitationClass=web }}</ref>	1
UK Albums (Gallup)<ref>Template:Cite magazine</ref>	9
US Billboard 200<ref>Template:Cite magazine</ref>	4

1985 year-end chart performance for *An Innocent Man*
Chart (1985)	Position
Australian Albums (Kent Music Report)Template:Sfn	62
US Billboard 200<ref>Template:Cite magazine</ref>	67

Decade-end chartsEdit

Decade-end chart performance for *An Innocent Man*
Chart (1980–1989)	Position
Australian Albums (Kent Music Report)Template:Sfn	12

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CertificationsEdit

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ReferencesEdit

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BibliographyEdit

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