On March 28, 2024, Billy Joel performed the 100th concert of his long-running residency at New York’s Madison Square Garden. Just months later, on July 25, Joel brought down the curtain on the ten-year residency with its 104th date (and the singer-songwriter’s 150th overall show at the venue). On May 29, Columbia and Legacy will bring that landmark 100th show, featuring special guest Sting, to DVD and Blu-ray. The 100th: Live at Madison Square Garden – The Complete Concert finds Joel in reflective yet rocking mode as he performs a string of…
The Second Disc’s Guide to Record Store Day Black Friday 2025
From all of us here at Second Disc HQ to all of you, we hope you’ve enjoyed a wonderful Thanksgiving in the company of beloved family and friends. (And with plenty of delicious food, too!) Now, Record Store Day’s annual Black Friday event is upon us, so we’re spotlighting a dozen of the most eagerly anticipated releases arriving to your local independent brick-and-mortar record shop! Here are our personal picks for RSD BF must-haves; visit Record Store Day’s official website for a list of participating retailers. Happy Listening, and have a great…
The Weekend Stream: November 22, 2025
Welcome to another edition of The Weekend Stream, The Second Disc’s review of notable catalogue titles (and some new ones, too!) making digital debuts. A real grab bag for you before the Thanksgiving holiday: cut songs from Broadway comedies, rarities from a ’60s soul/rock legend, an inexplicably remastered charity single, rare 12″ mixes and remastered jazz. Have a listen, won’t you?? Various Artists, Monty Python’s Spamalot (Original Broadway Cast Recording/20th Anniversary Edition) (Decca Broadway) (Apple / Amazon) Something to (always) look on the bright side of life over: a new reissue of the music…
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Power to Consume: Legacy Unveils Record Store Day Black Friday Slate with Prince, Miles Davis, Bob Dylan, Billy Joel, More
We’re continuing our look at this year’s Record Store Day Black Friday releases with a rundown of the nine titles coming your way on Friday, November 28 from Legacy Recordings. These include classics from Miles Davis, Prince, and Billy Joel, a rarity from Bob Dylan, a spirited Danny Elfman soundtrack, and more! Click here for a list of participating Record Store Day shops, and stay tuned for more RSD Black Friday news here at The Second Disc! Cage the Elephant, Live from The Vic in Chicago (RCA/Legacy) (2LP – Yellow and Black Splatter vinyl;…
Release Round-Up: Week of September 26
Welcome to this week’s Release Round-Up, featuring a selection of the new titles available today. As an Amazon affiliate, we earn from qualifying purchases.’ Spike Jones in Stereo: A Spooktacular in Screaming Sound! (Omnivore) CD: Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K. / Amazon Canada / Omnivore Recordings LP: Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K. / Amazon Canada / Omnivore Recordings The late, great Spike Jones’ side-splittingly spooky 1959 album In Stereo: A Spooktacular in Screaming Sound! returns from Omnivore Recordings in time for Halloween as freshly remastered from the original tapes. Led by an illustrious company including Paul Frees (Boris Badenov, The Haunted Mansion’s Ghost Host), Thurl Ravenscroft (“You’re…
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The Weekend Stream: August 2, 2025
Welcome to another edition of The Weekend Stream, The Second Disc’s review of notable catalogue titles (and some new ones, too!) making digital debuts. This week brings new (and vintage) tracks from some of pop’s greatest women, rarities from Captain Beefheart, even more Billy Joel (in a slightly different way) and a tribute to one of the greatest discographies you can download for free. Chappell Roan, “The Subway” (Island) (Apple / Amazon) Does last year’s biggest pop star have a new album coming out? After dropping country-flavored “The Giver” earlier this year, the “Pink…
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Now We’re Gonna Get the Whole Story: A Deep Dive Into Billy Joel’s Documentary Soundtrack
If you thought the dust had settled after watching all five hours of the documentary Billy Joel: And So It Goes (both halves are now streaming on HBO Max), you may be…wrong! Legacy Recordings has dropped an incredible digital trove of music as a companion piece to the film: a seven-hour, 155-track anthology that’s packed with more than 60 unreleased tracks and available to stream or download! As we’d previously reported in our chat with John Jackson, Joel’s archive director, a soundtrack was in the works alongside the release of the film. “If we…
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He’s Got a Way: An Interview with John Jackson, Billy Joel’s Archive Director
Even if you think you know everything about the Piano Man, the new documentary Billy Joel: And So It Goes, is sure to shine a light on one of pop/rock’s most enduring singer/songwriters–and not just through the revelations therein. Tucked in every corner of the two-part feature (the second part premieres Friday, July 25 alongside the already-available first on HBO Max) is a trove of rare, unseen or brilliantly restored material from Joel’s formidable career: session outtakes, candid behind-the-scenes video, hard-to-track-down interviews, promotional films and concerts aplenty. If you’ve followed Joel’s career…
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The Weekend Stream: June 14, 2025
Welcome to another edition of The Weekend Stream, The Second Disc’s review of notable catalogue titles (and some new ones, too!) making digital debuts. This week we’ve got it all, from Bakersfield country to Billy Joel on Broadway; actors who sing and singer-songwriters who act in short films; Tony Joe White going disco and Josh Groban’s hits going super-size. You’ll find something to love – we guarantee it! Wynn Stewart, Songs of Wynn Stewart (Capitol Nashville) (Apple / Amazon) After starting his major label career in the mid-’50s on Capitol, country singer/songwriter Wynn Stewart…
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A “Souvenir” from Sony Music Japan: An Expansion of Billy Joel’s ‘Streetlife Serenade’
Here’s a belated 50th anniversary present for Billy Joel fans: a new, Japan-exclusive collector’s edition of his third studio album, 1974’s Streetlife Serenade. Available February 19, this lavish deluxe version – which follows a similar package for its predecessor Piano Man last year – includes many similar extras. The 7″ cardboard packaging includes lyrics and liner notes in English and Japanese (including a CD-sized replica of the original booklet that came with the Japanese LP), replicas of four international 45 RPM single picture sleeves (Portuguese, German, Dutch and Japanese), two obi strips (including…
The Weekend Stream: February 3, 2024
Welcome to another edition of The Weekend Stream, The Second Disc’s review of notable catalogue titles making digital debuts. Another vintage Madonna single, rarities from Andy Williams and Cab Calloway, and a comeback we’re still processing all await you below… Billy Joel, “Turn the Lights Back On” (Columbia) (iTunes / Amazon) No, we can’t believe it either. On Thursday, Billy Joel released only his third original pop song since 1993’s River of Dreams. (The last two were in 2007: “All My Life,” a Great American Songbook-style number written for his then-wife, chef Katie Lee,…
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Somewhere Along the Line: Japanese Expansion of Billy Joel’s ‘Piano Man’ Includes Quad Mix, New-to-CD Tracks
Japan can’t get enough of the Piano Man! Shortly after Sony Music’s Japanese division released a newly-compiled collection of live odds and ends by Billy Joel, the label will next put out a deluxe edition of Joel’s sophomore album (and first in a long line of albums for Columbia Records), 1973’s Piano Man. Billed as a 50th anniversary edition (a few months late) and ostensibly meant to tie into his Japanese tour dates later this month, the 2CD/1DVD set features a few extra features for die-hard collectors. The original album will be presented…
Holiday Gift Guide Review: Billy Joel, “The Vinyl Collection Vol. 2”
On July 25, 2024, Billy Joel will play his 150th lifetime show at New York’s Madison Square Garden. It will be the 104th show of the first-of-its-kind residency which began in 2014. Remarkably yet unsurprisingly, his final ten shows are already sold out. More remarkably – but just as unsurprisingly to anyone who’s followed the singer-songwriter over the past 30 years – he’s filled the cavernous arena 100+ times over the past decade without introducing a single new song. (His last two pop songs as of this writing were 2007’s “All My…
I’ll Meet You Anytime You Want: Billy Joel’s “Live Through the Years” Comes to CD
On January 24, 2024, Billy Joel will take the stage at the Tokyo Dome for his first concert in Japan since 2008. To commemorate the occasion, Sony Japan is revisiting the 2019 digital release Live Through the Years on December 20 in the Blu-Spec CD2 format (playable on all CD players). It’s being expanded from 20 tracks to a whopping 32. Of those, 13 are worldwide CD premieres, and six are new to Japanese CD; all have been freshly remastered for this debut physical release. In essence, this is an entirely new…
Release Round-Up: Week of November 3
Welcome to another packed Release Round-Up, featuring a selection of the many titles available today! As an Amazon affiliate, we earn from qualifying purchases. The Beatles, Now and Then (Apple/Capitol/UMe) Various Formats including CD single: The Beatles Online Store 7-inch clear single: Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K. / Amazon Canada 7-inch blue single: Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K. / Amazon Canada 12-inch black vinyl: Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K. / Amazon Canada Target-exclusive red 12-inch single: Target.com “Now and Then.” No matter who’s listening, the title conjures the ghosts of the past that we all confront. The voice of John Lennon – not far-removed, but viscerally present –…
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Keeping the Faith: Second Billy Joel Vinyl Box Coming Soon
Call it another matter of trust: Legacy Recordings is releasing a second Billy Joel vinyl box. The Vinyl Collection, Vol. 2, releasing November 3, brings newly remastered and repressed LP versions of Joel’s final six studio albums – Glass Houses (1980), The Nylon Curtain (1982), An Innocent Man (1983), The Bridge (1986), Storm Front (1989) and River of Dreams (1993) – plus the debut vinyl pressing of Joel’s classical compositions set Fantasies & Delusions (2001) and the premiere audio release of his beloved Live from Long Island concert special, broadcast 40 years ago. All the audio has been transferred from…
The Weekend Stream: June 24, 2023
Welcome to The Weekend Stream, a relaxing review of notable digital-only catalogue titles. There may be no CD or vinyl, but there’s plenty of great new/old music to float you into the weekend. This week, we’re changing things up with a triplicate of great new songs out digitally, from favorite bands, up and comers and living legends alike – plus the latest digital catalogue and Joe’s tribute to a Broadway original. John Williams & Anne-Sophie Mutter, Helena’s Theme (for Violin and Orchestra) (Walt Disney Records) (iTunes / Amazon) Next Friday, Disney releases…
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The Weekend Stream: April 22, 2023
Welcome to The Weekend Stream, a relaxing weekly review of notable digital-only catalogue titles. There may be no CD or vinyl, but there’s plenty of great new/old music to usher you into the weekend. Follow up your Record Store Day with a few digital versions of the latest exclusive vinyl releases, plus rare live material from Bruce Springsteen, rare studio material from Little Richard, one of Billy Joel’s first bands, a new way to hear an old favorite by The Police and even more! Billy Joel, Live At The Great American Music…
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The Second Disc’s Record Store Day 2023 Shopping Guide
Record Store Day! It’s that time again where music lovers and vinyl flippers get together at their favorite physical music retailers and wait in line to snag some treasured albums – almost all of which are pressed on vinyl instead of CD (or, you know, sold on secondary marketplaces for above their retail value). It’s certainly easy to be cynical about this stuff, but the crux of the idea still lives: find some music that moves you, something from an old favorite you’ve maybe never heard before, and let the joy of…
Everybody Loves You Now: Legacy’s RSD Slate Includes Billy Joel, Dolly Parton, Miles Davis, Carole King, More
The Record Store Day list is out, and the announcements are pouring in! This year, Legacy Recordings will mark the April 22, 2023 event at independent record stores everywhere with more than a dozen titles from many of the biggest names in classic pop, rock, jazz, hip-hop, reggae, country, and beyond. (One release, from Pearl Jam, will see a CD release in addition to the expected vinyl.) You’ll find the entire list below, with descriptions provided by the label. Visit RecordStoreDay.com for a full list of participating U.S. stores! Miles Davis, Turnaround:…
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Release Round-Up: Week of November 4
Welcome to this week’s Release Round-Up, featuring a selection of the new titles in stores today! Billy Joel, Live at Yankee Stadium (Columbia/Legacy) 2CD/Blu-ray: Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K. / Amazon Canada 3LP: Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K. / Amazon Canada Billy Joel’s Live at Yankee Stadium, originally released on video, is getting a major makeover. The concert film, shot on June 22 and 23, 1990, has been restored and remixed from original audio and video elements for a 2CD/Blu-ray or 3LP package. Eleven of the tracks have never been released in any format. The ground-up restoration of Live at Yankee Stadium includes the…
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It’s a Pretty Good Crowd for a Stadium: Billy Joel’s ‘Live At Yankee Stadium’ Gets Newly Restored for New Release
Billy Joel and New York stadiums are a match made in heaven for fans of the Piano Man. Of course, he’s been packing them in with a regular residency at Madison Square Garden that’s nearly spanned 100 shows since 2014. In 2008, he brought a galaxy of stars to Shea Stadium (including Paul McCartney, on a return trip to the field) before the Mets’ old home was torn down. In 2015, he played a set at Nassau Coliseum on Long Island, the last event before its renovation – and two years later,…
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The Weekend Stream: April 9, 2022
Welcome to The Weekend Stream, a relaxing weekly review of notable digital-only catalogue titles. There may be no CD or vinyl, but there’s plenty of great new/old music to discover! And after a week away, you better believe we’re coming in hot! Billy Joel, 50 Years of the Piano Man (Columbia/Legacy) (Apple Music / Amazon) On the surface, this 50-track digital compilation-cum-playlist looks like a typical algorithmic survey of Joel’s five-decade career, with all the great radio hits rising to the top. But dig deeper and you’ll discover six tracks making their…
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Keeping the Faith: Billy Joel’s “Japanese Singles Collection” Arrives on 2 CDs and 1 DVD
Last weekend, Billy Joel played his first concert of 2022 at Hollywood, Florida’s Hard Rock Hotel and Casino; he’s scheduled to resume his long-running residency at New York City’s Madison Square Garden on February 12 after a brief postponement due to the Omicron variant. The piano man is celebrating his 50th year as a solo artist with a variety of projects including the recent release of The Vinyl Collection Vol. 1 which reissued albums from his first decade. Over in Japan, the end of 2021 saw a new 2CD/DVD collection from Sony. …
Holiday Gift Guide Review: Billy Joel, “The Vinyl Collection, Vol. 1”
By his own account, Billy Joel stumbled into the singing part of the singer-songwriter equation. He explained of his 1971 debut Cold Spring Harbor, “I wrote this album not as a singer-songwriter, but as a songwriter. I was thinking of other people doing the material on this album. But the advice I got from people in the music business was, ‘Well, if you want people to hear your songs, make an album. And then you go out on the road and you do shows and you promote your album. I thought, ‘This…
