Truly great live albums are as rare as hen's teeth when scrutinised closely, but this 1981 live recording from Billy Joel could very well be the greatest of them all.

Why? Well, the hardest task in producing a live album is to give it a character of it's own, unique from the albums from which it's songs are derived. It's a great challenge for a live album to hold it's own in the face of better production in the studio, and to give it 'authenticity' when so many of the live elements are doctored with later production. 'Songs in the Attic' packs a punch that it's studio sources cannot match. The reasons for this are owing to four elements:

i) Joel and Producer Phil Ramone went for Joel's 'undiscovered' tracks - the songs that predated BJ's ascendency to fame with the massive success of 'The Stranger' in 1977. By eschewing the last 5 years of hits, the 'Songs in the Attic' album captured fresh and definitive versions of reasonably unheard tracks. Most importantly, these were genuinely great compositions that deserved to be reassessed in the wake of Joel's newfound fame.

ii) These were the first versions of these songs to feature Joel's live band. Ramone knew that Joel's band had the character and passion to belt out better versions of these tracks than the more insipid original studio recordings. It's a rare claim, but I can say without any concessions that these are perfect live performances from the musicians; particularly by De Vito's pounding, atmospheric drumming and Richie Cannata's brilliant multi-instrumental work. There are no better versions of any of these songs on any other live or studio album. 'Captain Jack', 'Miami 2017' and 'I've loved these days' send chills up your spine, and there is NO filler on this record.

iii) So often futzed on live albums, Ramone's production work and mixing here is astonishingly perfect. He wouldn't have done better in a studio. In fact, Ramone's taste for an overly-clean studio sound was nicely tempered by the grit of the live environment. Unwittingly, it might have actually added a dimension to his production style. The decision to capture some tracks in a stadium setting and others in an intimate club works superbly as a production motif.

iv) Billy Joel is caught here at the absolute peak of his powers, both as a singer and instrumentalist. He's completely 'in touch' with the meaning of these songs and the passion is so overt, it can't help but grab you. Anyone intrigued by what has driven Joel's illustrious career should start with this album. It's where he tells all of his old secrets.

This album is so utterly unique it almost deserves to be compared more with his studio output than his other live albums. There are no hits here (excepting perhaps 'Say Goodbye to Hollywood') but every track is magnificent. If you want a live version of his hits, go for the fantastic new release '12 Gardens' (2006). Whilst being a terrific showcase for Joel's hits, it's not quite the equal of the transcendent, perfect live experience of 1981's 'Songs in the Attic' which is unlikely to be equalled by any artist soon.

Even if you are a casual Billy Joel fan you should love this album. This is the best live album I have heard. It has the feel of actually being there, the energy fills the room, but it doesn't have the scratchy or drowned out sound that so many live albums have. I listened to this even before it was digitally remastered and it was excellent then. What makes this recording so special is that you hear a lot of Joel songs that aren't played on the radio, and frankly I am too young to know if they ever were played back in the 70s & 80s. These songs are really good too, it gives you a further appreciation for Joel's talent and songwriting ability. Too often you get a best of or live album from a performer and the only tolerable songs are the ones you were already familiar with. Not so here. Buy it now!

Billy Joel recorded a fair number of studio albums before breaking through to the big time with 1977's "The Stranger." Credit him for taking a chance and recording the live album "Songs in the Attic" rather than merely issuing a restrospective of his early career. Some of these version are actually superior to the original studio versions, most notably the teenage ... anthem "Captain Jack" and the self-referential "The Ballad of Billy the Kid." But even when not a substantial improvement, like with "Say Goodbye to Hollywood," or the ballad "You're My Home," they don't lose anything. Credit Joel also for NOT including his one pre-stardom hit "Piano Man," the definitive version of which he had already recorded.

Overall, a solid live album from Joel that neatly sums up his pre-stardom career.

By the time 1981 rolled around, Billy Joel had established himself as a legitimate superstar. Billy would have seven studio albums under his belt but had yet to make a live album. Billy Joel's 1981 release "Songs in the Attic" would be a live album with a different spin. The main purpose of this album was: 1) To provide a live collection of Billy Joel songs; 2) To focus around "Old Billy Joel" songs from early in his career - songs that had almost been forgotten about - or not heard much by the average fan. As a result, Billy provides a "live" album with a different spin when you compare it to many other live releases. Overall Billy succeeds in providing this spin while providing a very good album.

I look at Billy Joel's career as having three phases. The first phase is what I call "Old Billy Joel". This basically includes all of his material from "Cold Spring Harbor" through "Turnstiles". These are perhaps the strongest days as the piano sound, but they also contain most of Joel's least heard material. The next phase is what I call "Middle Billy Joel". This was his most successful period and covers from "The Stranger" to "Billy Joel Greatest Hits Volume 1 and 2". Joel would go through a transition during this phase - expanding his musical horizons and exploring different avenues. The final phase is the "Later Billy Joel" phase - this covers "The Bridge" to "River of Dreams". In this phase, Billy would start to incorporate some of his older styles of music while not abandoning his desire to continue to explore new avenues. While "Songs in the Attic" was released in the "Middle Billy Joel" (Phase 2) period, all of the music comes from "Old Billy Joel" (Phase 1).

"Songs in the Attic" provides 11 tracks from the "Old Billy Joel" phase. The songs are distributed from the four albums from this period: "Cold Spring Harbor" ("She's Got a Way", "Everybody Loves You Now"); "Piano Man" ("You're My Home", "The Battle of Billy the Kid", "Captain Jack"); "Streetlife Serenade" ("Streetlife Serenader", "Los Angelenos"); "Turnstiles" ("Say Goodbye to Hollywood", "Summer, Highland Falls", "I've Loved These Days", "Miami 2017 (Seen the Lights Go Out on Broadway)". While this collection does contain some well-known songs such as "Say Goodbye to Hollywood" and "Captain Jack", I give credit for Billy Joel for going out on a limb an stay away from the more commercially known hits. In the liner notes, Billy does explain that he looked to include songs that had a lot of passion when played live. Many of the old songs translated into some very passionate performances. He explains that "Piano Man" wasn't included because it sounds similar live as it does on the studio version. Once again, Billy succeeds at including a collection of songs that display passion. Ath the same time, I would have liked to have seen more than two songs from both "Cold Spring Harbor" and "Streetlife Serenade".

When I review a live album, I usually prefer the album to basically be a full recording of a concert. In other words, I prefer the tracks come a single night's performance and be arranged in the order that they were played in concert. I normally am not one for edited concerts or live compilations. However, as far "Songs in the Attic" goes, I feel I have to bend my rule. Billy Joel's intent wasn't to release a live album, but to bring visibility to the passion and the energy generated from those older songs. While I still would have liked to seen all of these songs from a single performance, this might have been a very difficult thing to accomplish.

There are no poor performances on this collection, however there are going to be some tracks that stand out above some of the others. I was very surprised that it was "She's Got a Way" was the single that garnered the most attention. While it's a nice song, I would definitely categorize it as one of the album's weaker tracks. Perhaps one of the best songs is "Los Angelenos". This is often a forgotten song when looking at the Billy Joel music portfolio. While we think of Billy as a "New York Kind of Guy", Billy did spend some of the early years of his career in California. Billy delivers an outstanding passion and energy of this song - complete with good use of Synthesizers. When it comes to forgotten tunes, many forget about some of the outstanding tracks on Billy's debut "Cold Spring Harbor". One standout song on "Cold Spring Harbor" is "Everybody Loves You Now". When you listen to the live version included on "Songs in the Attic", you will hear an even better version of this track. Finally, the live version of "Miami 2017 (Seen the Lights Go Out on Broadway)" is another Billy tune that gets forgotten about. This version will eclipse the version that was found on "Turnstiles" - and once again succeeds in delivering the passion that was a goal Billy had set forward when making this collection.

The enhanced version of this collection includes video versions of three of the songs on this collection: "Say Goodbye to Hollywood", "Los Angelenos", and "You're My Home". These videos aren't going to be the best in terms of quality, but they may still satisfy the Billy Joel fan. The liner notes for "Songs in the Attic" are outstanding - especially for a live collection. There are two write-ups - one by producer Phil Ramone and one by Billy himself. Also included in the liner notes are lyrics - something very unusual for a live and/or compilation album. Overall, this is a very good live collection. Not only will this satisfy the serious Billy Joel fan, but someone who has a casual interest will want to check this out as well. Highly recommended.

Songs in the Attic is a wonderful glimpse at a performer at his peak. Coming off of the huge commercial success of Glass Houses and 52nd Street, Billy changes gears completely. Instead of releasing a live album that recycles his more recent hits, he dusts off some of his earlier work and presents it to us in a live setting.

You can see in these performances the brilliance and passion of an artist who is completely committed to his material. Whether it be the intimacy of "You're My Home" performed in a small club or the intensity of "Captain Jack" in a large arena, each performance seems perfectly set in the appropriate venue.

Billy Joel is at his absolute best here. I particularly recommend "Songs" to the fan who has only seen Billy in his more mundane concerts of the last few years, often paired with Elton John. This album shows you a performer at his creative peak.