New York State of Mind

"New York State of Mind" is a song written by Billy Joel which initially appeared on the album Turnstiles in 1976. While not a hit when it was first released, it has received much more frequent airplay in recent years.^[1] "New York State of Mind" enjoyed a resurgence in popularity and radio airplay after the 2001 September 11 attacks, and is frequently played after New York Mets, New York Knicks and New York Rangers games. It also frequently appears on playlists of adult contemporary and oldies formatted radio stations that broadcast in the New York City market.

Inspiration

Joel wrote the song after returning to the East Coast from Los Angeles, where he had spent the previous three years. In fact, most of Turnstiles deals with Joel's cross-country relocation, including "Say Goodbye to Hollywood", "I've Loved These Days", "Summer, Highland Falls", and "Miami 2017 (Seen the Lights Go Out on Broadway)."

Lyrics

The lyrics of "New York State of Mind", in particular, read like an ode to a lost love.^[1] After a vacation from reality, "a holiday from the neighbourhood", it is the city's authentic grit he's missed: "now I need a little give and take, The New York Times, The Daily News". Joel views New York as the place where he is most comfortable, even if he has been to many different locations and enjoyed himself there as well,^[1] perhaps getting "high in the Rockies under the evergreens".

The song drops a reference to the Hudson River as well as locations in New York City: Chinatown and the Riverside. When Joel plays the song live, especially in New York State or the New York metropolitan area, he sometimes modifies the lyrics to reflect the venue he is performing in or some surrounding towns.^{[citation needed]}

Covers

The song has been covered by Barbra Streisand, Shirley Bassey, Oleta Adams, The Mark-Almond Band and numerous jazz artists like Carmen McRae, Diane Schuur, Mel Tormé (who adapted the lyrics to pine for Tokyo) and Tony Bennett, who also sang an opposing viewpoint in "I Left My Heart in San Francisco". Country artist Garth Brooks performed the song with Joel in a duet during Brooks' Central Park concert special. Muppets Dr. Teeth and The Electric Mayhem performed the song on episode 2.9 of The Muppet Show featuring Madeline Kahn, for use as a so-called UK spot^[2]. This performance was reused as a main segment in episode 3.1 guest-starring Kris Kristofferson and Rita Coolidge^[3]. Muppet Rowlf performed a version on his solo album Ol' Brown Ears is Back^[3]. The song was also covered by Adam Pascal and was featured in the Broadway Cares: Home for the Holidays album. Garfield sang a variant of song called "New Dog State of Mind" in the 2004 movie Garfield: The Movie. In 1994, rapper Nas released his debut album, Illmatic, and named the second track; "N.Y. State of Mind". In an episode of Saturday Night Live, Zach Braff changed the lyrics to be about New Jersey. Jane Krakowski sang an impromptu a cappella version of the song in episode 102 of the popular NBC series 30 Rock when her character Jenna Maroney bursts into song at a yacht party, much to the shock and chagrin of everyone on board. Cerie, the ditzy young receptionist asks "Is that a real song?"

References