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River of Dreams

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AMG AllMusic Guide: Pop Albums:

River of Dreams

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Home > Library > Entertainment & Arts > Pop Albums

  • Artist: Billy Joel
  • Rating: StarStar
  • Release Date: August 10, 1993
  • Total Time: 49:12
  • Type: Lyrics are included with the album, Enhanced CD-ROM
  • Genre: Rock

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Wikipedia on Answers.com:

River of Dreams

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Home > Library > Miscellaneous > Wikipedia
For the song, see The River of Dreams.
 This article needs additional citations for verification. Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. (June 2007)
River of Dreams
Studio album by Billy Joel
Released August 10, 1993 (1993-08-10)
Recorded The Boathouse at the Island Boatyard, Shelter Island, NY
Cove City Sound Studios, Glen Cove, NY
The Hit Factory, New York, NY 1993
Genre Rock
Length 49:10
Label Columbia
Producer Billy Joel
Danny Kortchmar
Joe Nicolo
David Thoener
Billy Joel chronology
Storm Front
(1989)		 River of Dreams
(1993)		 Greatest Hits Volume III
(1997)
A Voyage on the River of Dreams
Australian 1994 Boxed set cover
Professional ratings
Review scores
Source Rating
Allmusic 2/5 stars [1]
Deseret News (Positive)[2]
Entertainment Weekly 10/12 stars (A-) [3]
The Los Angeles Times 2/4 stars[4]
The New York Times (Not rated)[5]
Robert Christgau (dud) [6]
Rolling Stone 4/5 stars [7]

River of Dreams is the 12th studio album by Billy Joel, released in 1993. This is the last pop album made by Joel, and presented a much more serious tone as a whole, dealing with issues such as trust and long-lasting love; it was rumored that the themes of trust and betrayal, particularly certain lyrics from the songs "A Minor Variation" and "The Great Wall of China", stem from Joel's legal disputes with his former manager and ex-brother-in-law, Frank Weber, who reportedly[citation needed] embezzled millions of dollars from Joel and used dubious accounting practices to cover it up.

The album cover was a painting by Joel's then-wife, Christie Brinkley. In 1993, Rolling Stone gave her the Top Picks award for "The Best Album Cover of the Year".[8]

Contents

Track listing

All songs written and composed by Billy Joel.

  1. "No Man's Land" – 4:48
  2. "The Great Wall of China" – 5:45
  3. "Blonde Over Blue" – 4:55
  4. "A Minor Variation" – 5:36
  5. "Shades of Grey" – 4:10
  6. "All About Soul" – 5:59
  7. "Lullabye (Goodnight, My Angel)" – 3:32
  8. "The River of Dreams" – 4:05
  9. "Two Thousand Years" – 5:19
  10. "Famous Last Words" – 5:01

A Voyage on the River of Dreams

A Voyage on the River of Dreams is an Australian 3-CD box set released in 1994, which includes the studio album, River Of Dreams, along with a 6-track live CD from the '93–'94 River Of Dreams tour, plus a Questions & Answers CD recorded at Princeton University.[9] This boxed set made the charts in Australia (#33) and New Zealand (#47), the only places besides Japan where the set was officially released.[10]

Disc one (River of Dreams – Studio Album) - as per original album

Disc two (Billy Joel Live)

All songs written and composed by Billy Joel, except where noted

  1. "Goodbye Yellow Brick Road" (Elton John/Bernie Taupin)
  2. "No Man's Land"
  3. "The Ballad of Billy the Kid"
  4. "Lullabye (Goodnight, My Angel)"
  5. "The River of Dreams"
  6. "A Hard Day's Night" (Lennon–McCartney)
Disc 3 (Questions & Answers Disc)
  1. "Q & A recorded at Princeton University"

Accolades

Grammy Awards

Year Nominated work Award Result
1994 River of Dreams Album of the Year[11] Nominated
"The River of Dreams" Song of the Year[11] Nominated
Record of the Year[11] Nominated
Best Pop Vocal Performance – Male[11] Nominated

Charts

Peak positions

Chart (1993) Position
Australian ARIA Albums Chart[12] 1
Austrian Albums Chart[13] 2
Canadian RPM Albums Chart[14] 6
Dutch Mega Albums Chart[15] 23
German Media Control Albums Chart [16] 2
Hungarian Albums Chart[17] 33
Italian Albums Chart[18] 17
Japanese Oricon Albums Chart[19] 3
New Zealand Albums Chart [20] 1
Norwegian VG-lista Albums Chart[21] 9
Swedish Albums Chart[22] 30
Swiss Albums Chart[23] 2
UK Albums Chart [24] 3
United States Billboard 200[25] 1

Certifications and sales

Region Certification Sales/shipments
Austria (IFPI Austria)[26] Platinum 50,000x
Canada (Music Canada)[27] 3× Platinum 300,000^
Germany (BVMI)[28] Platinum 500,000^
Japan (Oricon Charts) 241,000[A][29][30]
Netherlands (NVPI)[31] Gold 50,000[32]
Sweden (GLF)[33] Gold 50,000^
Switzerland (IFPI Switzerland)[34] Gold 25,000x
United Kingdom (BPI)[35] Platinum 300,000^
United States (RIAA)[36] 5× Platinum 5,000,000^

^shipments figures based on certification alone
xunspecified figures based on certification alone
  • A^ Combined sales of standard edition and its expanded reissue.

Year-end charts

Chart (1993) Position
Australian Albums Chart[37] 7
Austrian Albums Chart[38] 14
Canadian Albums Chart[39] 27
Italian Albums Chart[18] 78
Japanese Albums Chart[40] 79
Swiss Albums Chart[41] 17
UK Albums Chart[42] 43
US Albums Chart[43] 23

Musicians

  • Zachary Alford: Drums
  • Phillip Ballou: Choir, Chorus
  • Katreese Barnes: Choir, Chorus
  • Tommy Byrnes: Guitar
  • Richie Cannata: Tenor Sax
  • Dennis Collins: Choir, Chorus
  • Schuyler Deale: Bass
  • Lew Del Gatto: Orchestra Manager
  • Liberty DeVitto: Drums
  • Will Downing: Choir, Chorus
  • Laurence Etkin: Trumpet
  • Wrecia Ford: Vocals
  • Diane Garisto: Choir, Chorus
  • Arno Hecht: Baritone Sax
  • Lonnie Hillyer: Bass
  • Jeff Jacobs: Synthesizer
  • Stephanie James: Choir, Chorus
  • Billy Joel: Vocal, Piano, Clavinet, Organ, Hammond Organ, Organs, Keyboards, Synthesizer, Background Vocals
  • Color Me Badd: Backing Vocals on 'All About Soul'
  • Devora Johnson: Choir, Chorus
  • Jef Lee Johnson: Bass
  • Steve Jordan Drums
  • Curtis Rance King, Jr.: Choir Conductor, Choir Contractor
  • Doug Kleeger Technical Support
  • Danny Kortchmar: Guitar
  • Andy Kravitz: Percussion
  • Osvaldo Melindez: Trombone
  • Ira Newborn: Orchestration
  • Jim Saporito: Percussion
  • Marlon Saunders: Choir, Chorus, Vocals
  • Frank Simms: Background Vocals
  • George Simms: Background Vocals
  • T.M. Stevens: Bass
  • Crystal Taliefero: Vocal Arrangement, Vocals
  • Chuck Treece: Bass
  • Mike Tyler: Guitar
  • Leslie West: Guitar
  • Brenda White-King: Choir, Chorus
  • B. David Witworth: Vocals

References

  1. ^ River of Dreams at Allmusic
  2. ^ Boren, Ray (1989-06-18). "`RIVER OF DREAMS' FEATURES WELL-CRAFTED SONGS". deseretnews.com. Deseret News. http://www.deseretnews.com/article/309240/RIVER-OF-DREAMS-FEATURES-WELL-CRAFTED-SONGS.html. Retrieved 2011-08-31. 
  3. ^ Sandow, Greg (1993-08-13). "River of Dreams Review". ew.com. Entertainment Weekly. http://www.ew.com/ew/article/0,,307650,00.html. Retrieved 2011-08-31. 
  4. ^ Willman, Chris (1993-08-22). "BILLY JOEL - "River of Dreams"". articles.latimes.com. The Los Angeles Times. http://articles.latimes.com/1993-08-22/entertainment/ca-26187_1_billy-joel. Retrieved 2011-08-31. 
  5. ^ Holden, Stephen (1993-08-08). "RECORDINGS VIEW; Billy Joel, A Pundit Of Suburbia". nytimes.com. The New York Times. http://www.nytimes.com/1993/08/08/arts/recordings-view-billy-joel-a-pundit-of-suburbia.html?src=pm. Retrieved 2011-08-31. 
  6. ^ Christgau, Robert. Consumer Guide Reviews: Billy Joel. Retrieved 2011-06-29.
  7. ^ Kara Manning (1993-08-19), "Music Reviews: River of Dreams by Billy Joel", Rolling Stone, archived from the original on 2011-08-29, http://web.archive.org/web/20080807151720/http://www.rollingstone.com/artists/billyjoel/albums/album/314062/review/6067567/river_of_dreams 
  8. ^ "Christie Brinkley biography". Official website. http://www.christiebrinkley.com/bio.html. Retrieved 2009-03-19. 
  9. ^ "Billy Joel – A Voyage On the River of Dreams Australia Box Set". Eil.com. 1994-10-14. http://eil.com/shop/moreinfo.asp?catalogid=34487. Retrieved 2011-08-25. 
  10. ^ Steffen Hung (1994-11-27). "Billy Joel – A Voyage On the River of Dreams". australian-charts.com. http://australian-charts.com/showitem.asp?interpret=Billy+Joel&titel=A+Voyage+On+The+River+Of+Dreams&cat=a. Retrieved 2011-08-25. 
  11. ^ a b c d "THE 36TH GRAMMY NOMINATIONS : Grammy Nods: The Populists Lead the Way : Awards: Sting, who already has 10 Grammys, earns six nominations. The competition includes Whitney Houston, Billy Joel and R.E.M.". article.latimes.com. The Los Angeles Times. 1994-01-07. http://articles.latimes.com/1994-01-07/entertainment/ca-9453_1_grammy-awards. Retrieved 2011-08-29. 
  12. ^ "australian-charts.com Billy Joel – River of Dreams". Australian Recording Industry Association. http://australian-charts.com/showitem.asp?interpret=Billy+Joel&titel=River+Of+Dreams&cat=a. Retrieved 2011-08-08. 
  13. ^ "Billy Joel – River of Dreams – austriancharts.at". http://austriancharts.at/showitem.asp?interpret=Billy+Joel&titel=River+Of+Dreams&cat=a. Retrieved 2011-08-19. 
  14. ^ "Top Albums/CDs - Volume 58, No. 9, September 11, 1993". RPM. http://www.collectionscanada.gc.ca/rpm/028020-119.01-e.php?&file_num=nlc008388.2234&type=1&interval=20&PHPSESSID=c6btf3r8hs459qqt5ln3o3dcv5. Retrieved 2011-10-03. 
  15. ^ "dutchcharts.nl Billy Joel – River of Dreams". dutchcharts.nl. MegaCharts. http://dutchcharts.nl/showitem.asp?interpret=Billy+Joel&titel=River+Of+Dreams&cat=a. Retrieved 2011-08-29. 
  16. ^ "Album Search: Billy Joel" (in German). Media Control. http://www.charts.de/search.asp?search=billy+joel&x=0&y=0&cat=a&country=de. Retrieved 2011-08-08. 
  17. ^ http://www.mahasz.hu/?menu=slagerlistak&menu2=archivum
  18. ^ a b "Hit Parade Italia - Gli album più venduti del 1993" (in Italian). hitparadeitalia.it. http://www.hitparadeitalia.it/hp_yenda/lpe1993.htm. Retrieved 2011-10-03. 
  19. ^ ビリー・ジョエル-リリース-ORICON STYLE-ミュージック "Highest position and charting weeks of River of Dreams by Billy Joel" (in Japanese). oricon.co.jp. Oricon Style. http://www.oricon.co.jp/music/release/d/236209/1/ ビリー・ジョエル-リリース-ORICON STYLE-ミュージック. Retrieved 2011-08-29. 
  20. ^ "charts.org.nz – Billy Joel – River of Dreams". Recording Industry Association of New Zealand. http://charts.org.nz/showitem.asp?interpret=Billy+Joel&titel=River+Of+Dreams&cat=a. Retrieved 2011-08-29. 
  21. ^ "norwegiancharts.com Billy Joel – River of Dreams". http://norwegiancharts.com/showitem.asp?interpret=Billy+Joel&titel=River+Of+Dreams&cat=a. Retrieved 2011-08-29. 
  22. ^ "swedishcharts.com Billy Joel – River of Dreams". Sverigetopplistan. http://swedishcharts.com/showitem.asp?interpret=Billy+Joel&titel=River+Of+Dreams&cat=a. Retrieved 2011-08-29. 
  23. ^ "Billy Joel – River of Dreams – hitparade.ch". http://hitparade.ch/showitem.asp?interpret=Billy+Joel&titel=River+Of+Dreams&cat=a. Retrieved 2011-08-08. 
  24. ^ "Chart Stats – Billy Joel – River of Dreams". UK Albums Chart. http://www.chartstats.com/release.php?release=46173. Retrieved 2011-08-29. 
  25. ^ Allmusic – River of Dreams > Charts & Awards > Billboard Albums
  26. ^ "Austrian album certifications – Billy Joel – River of Dreams" (in German). IFPI Austria. http://www.ifpi.at/?section=goldplatin.  Enter Billy Joel in the field Interpret. Enter 'River of Dreams' in the field Titel. Select album in the field Format. Click Suchen
  27. ^ "Canadian album certifications – Billy Joel – River of Dreams". Music Canada. http://www.musiccanada.com/GPSearchResult.aspx?st=%27%27River+of+Dreams%27%27&sa=Billy+Joel&smt=0. 
  28. ^ "Gold-/Platin-Datenbank (Billy Joel; River of Dreams)" (in German). Bundesverband Musikindustrie. http://www.musikindustrie.de/gold_platin_datenbank/?action=suche&strTitel=%27%27River+of+Dreams%27%27&strInterpret=Billy+Joel&strTtArt=alben&strAwards=checked. 
  29. ^ Oricon Album Chart Book: Complete Edition 1970-2005. Roppongi, Tokyo: Oricon Entertainment. 2006. ISBN 4-87131-077-9. 
  30. ^ a-ビリー・ジョエル "Yamachan Land (Japanese Chart Archives) – Albums Chart Daijiten – Billy Joel" (in Japanese). Original Confidence. 2007-12-30. http://www7a.biglobe.ne.jp/~yamag/album/al_billyjoel.html a-ビリー・ジョエル. Retrieved 2011-08-29. 
  31. ^ "Dutch album certifications – Billy Joel – River of Dreams" (in Dutch). Nederlandse Vereniging van Producenten en Importeurs van beeld- en geluidsdragers. http://www.ifpi.nl/nvpi/pagina.asp?pagkey=60463. 
  32. ^ NVPI "de branchevereniging van de entertainmentindustrie". http://ifpi.nl/nvpi/pagina.asp?pagkey=60461#resultaat NVPI. Retrieved 2011-08-17. Note: User needs to enter "Billy Joel" in the "Artiest" field and click below "zoek" button.
  33. ^ "Guld- och Platinacertifikat − År 1987−1998" (in Swedish) (PDF). IFPI Sweden. http://www.ifpi.se/wp/wp-content/uploads/guld-platina-1987-1998.pdf. 
  34. ^ "The Official Swiss Charts and Music Community: Awards (Billy Joel; River of Dreams)". Hung Medien. http://www.swisscharts.com/search_certifications.asp?search=Billy+Joel+%27%27River+of+Dreams%27%27. 
  35. ^ "British album certifications – Billy Joel – River of Dreams". British Phonographic Industry. http://www.bpi.co.uk/certifiedawards/search.aspx.  Enter 'River of Dreams' in the field Search. Select Title in the field Search by. Select album in the field By Format. Click Go
  36. ^ "American album certifications – Billy Joel – River of Dreams". Recording Industry Association of America. http://www.riaa.com/goldandplatinumdata.php?artist=%22%27%27River+of+Dreams%27%27%22.  If necessary, click Advanced, then click Format, then select Album, then click SEARCH
  37. ^ ARIA Charts "End Of Year Charts – Top 50 Albums 1993". Australian Recording Industry Association. http://www.aria.com.au/pages/aria-charts-end-of-year-charts-top-50albums-1993.htm ARIA Charts. Retrieved 2011-08-29. 
  38. ^ "Austriancharts.at – Jahreshitparade 1993". Hung Medien. http://austriancharts.at/1993_album.asp. Retrieved 2010-05-30. 
  39. ^ "RPM Top 100 Albums of 1993". RPM. http://www.collectionscanada.gc.ca/rpm/028020-119.01-e.php?&file_num=nlc008388.2332&type=1&interval=20&PHPSESSID=c6btf3r8hs459qqt5ln3o3dcv5. Retrieved 2011-10-03. 
  40. ^ 1993年 アルバム年間TOP100 "Oricon Year-end Albums Chart of 1993" (in Japanese). http://www.geocities.jp/object_ori/1993a.html 1993年 アルバム年間TOP100. Retrieved January 1, 2011. 
  41. ^ "Hitparade.ch – Schweizer Jahreshitparade 1993". Hung Medien. http://hitparade.ch/year.asp?key=1993. Retrieved May 29, 2011. 
  42. ^ "UK best albums 1993". http://uktop40.republika.pl/najlep%20sprzalbumy%20uk%201993.html. Retrieved 2011-08-19. 
  43. ^ "CHART: Billboard Top Pop Albums of 1993". http://www.rcmscnf.tk/chart-billboard-top-pop-albums-of-1993. Retrieved 2011-08-22. 
Preceded by
Sleepless in Seattle (soundtrack)
by Various artists		 Billboard 200 number-one album
August 28 – September 17, 1993		 Succeeded by
In Pieces by Garth Brooks
Preceded by
The Lobbyist by Diesel		 Australian ARIA Albums Chart number-one album
August 29 – September 25, 1993		 Succeeded by
Bat out of Hell II: Back into Hell
by Meat Loaf
Preceded by
The Classic Collection by Little River Band		 New Zealand Chart number-one album
September 26, 1993		 Succeeded by
Bat out of Hell II: Back into Hell
by Meat Loaf
Billy Joel
Studio albums
Live albums
Compilations
Tours
Singles
DVDs
See also
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Commentators
Key figures
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World Series
AL Championship
NL Championship
All-Star Game
Lore
Music

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