River of Dreams

River of Dreams is the twelfth studio album by American singer-songwriter Billy Joel, released on August 10, 1993. River of Dreams presented a more serious tone than found in Joel's previous albums, 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 embezzled millions of dollars from Joel and used dubious accounting practices to cover it up.[7]

For the song, see The River of Dreams. For the Hayley Westenra album, see River of Dreams: The Very Best of Hayley Westenra.

River of Dreams
Studio album by
Billy Joel
ReleasedAugust 10, 1993 (1993-08-10)
Recorded1992
StudioThe Boathouse at the Island Boatyard, Shelter Island, NY
Cove City Sound Studios, Glen Cove, NY
The Hit Factory, New York City
GenreRock
Length49:10
LabelColumbia
ProducerBilly 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 box set cover
Singles from River of Dreams
  1. "The River of Dreams"
    Released: July 19, 1993 (UK) September 1, 1993 (US)
  2. "All About Soul"
    Released: 1993
  3. "No Man's Land"
    Released: 1993
  4. "Lullabye (Goodnight, My Angel)"
    Released: 1994
Music video
"The River of Dreams" on YouTube
Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
Allmusic[1]
Deseret News(Positive)[2]
Entertainment Weekly (A-)[3]
The Los Angeles Times[4]
The New York Times(Not rated)[5]
Rolling Stone[6]

Since the release of this album, Joel has stopped recording studio albums as a performer but he continues to tour, record occasional singles and released a classical album featuring solo piano performed by Hyung-ki "Richard" Joo titled Fantasies & Delusions in 2001.

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]

Background

In the summer of 1992, Billy Joel held a series of writing and recording sessions on Shelter Island, New York;[9] these sessions eventually produced seven tracks,[10] self-produced by Joel.[11]

Joel was dissatisfied with the results, and so, on the recommendation of Don Henley, he brought in session guitarist Danny Kortchmar for another take on the songs. Kortchmar agreed to produce, provided he be allowed to use session musicians on the recordings, to which Joel agreed. Only one song from the Shelter Island sessions, "Shades of Grey", would make the final album in its original produced form.[11]

Track listing

All songs were written and composed by Billy Joel.

Side one
  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
Side two
  1. "All About Soul" – 5:59
  2. "Lullabye (Goodnight, My Angel)" – 3:32
  3. "The River of Dreams" – 4:05
  4. "Two Thousand Years" – 5:19
  5. "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.[12] This box set made the charts in Australia (No. 33) and New Zealand (No. 47), the only places besides Japan where the set was officially released.[13]

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) – 5:08
  2. "No Man's Land" – 5:44
  3. "The Ballad of Billy the Kid" – 5:52
  4. "Lullabye (Goodnight, My Angel)" – 3:40
  5. "The River of Dreams" – 5:28
  6. "A Hard Day's Night" (Lennon–McCartney) – 3:20

Disc three (Questions & Answers Disc)

  1. "Q & A recorded at Princeton University"

Personnel
  • Billy Joel – lead vocals, clavinet (1, 4), Hammond organ (1, 4, 6, 8, 10), acoustic piano (2, 6–10), organ (2, 9), backing vocals (2), synthesizers (3, 8), keyboards (5)
  • Jeff Jacobs – synthesizers (2), additional programming (8)
  • Tommy Byrnes – guitar (1, 3, 5, 6)
  • Danny Kortchmar – guitar (1–4, 6, 8–10)
  • Leslie West – guitar (1, 2, 4)
  • Mike Tyler – guitar (8)
  • T.M. Stevens – bass (1, 2, 4, 6, 9, 10)
  • Lonnie Hillyer – bass (3, 8)
  • Schuyler Deale – bass (5)
  • Jeff Lee Johnson – bass (8)
  • Chuck Treece – bass (8)
  • Zachary Alford – drums (1, 2, 3, 4, 6, 8)
  • Liberty DeVitto – drums (5)
  • Steve Jordan – drums (9, 10)
  • Jim Saporito – percussion (2)
  • Andy Kravitz – percussion (8)
  • Arno Hecht – baritone saxophone (4)
  • Richie Cannata – tenor saxophone (4)
  • Osvaldo Melindez – trombone (4)
  • Laurence Etkin – trumpet (4)
  • Ira Newborn – orchestration (2, 6–8)
  • Lewis Del Gatto – orchestra manager (2, 6–8)
  • Frank Simms – backing vocals (1, 2, 8)
  • George Simms – backing vocals (1, 2, 8)
  • Color Me Badd – guest vocals (6)
  • Wrecia Ford – backing vocals (6, 8)
  • Marlon Saunders – backing vocals (6, 8)
  • Crystal Taliefero – backing vocals (6, 8), vocal arrangement (6, 8)
  • B. David Witworth – backing vocals (6, 8)
  • Curtis Rance King, Jr. – choir conductor and contractor (6)
  • Choir on "All About Soul" – Phillip Ballou, Katreese Barnes, Dennis Collins, Will Downing, Frank Floyd, Diane Garisto, Stephanie James, Devora Johnson, Marlon Saunders and Corliss Stafford

Production

  • Producers – Danny Kortchmar (Tracks 1–4 & 6–10); Billy Joel (Track 5).
  • Associate Producer on Track 5 – David Thoener
  • Co-Producer on Track 8 – Joe Nicolo
  • A&R – Don DeVito
  • Production Coordinator – Bill Zampino
  • Engineers – Carl Glanville (Tracks 1–7, 9 & 10); Joe Nicolo and Phil Nicolo (Track 8).
  • Assistant Engineers – Dan Hetzel and Brian Vibberts (Tracks 1–7, 9 & 10); Dick Grobelny (Track 8).
  • Recorded by Jay Healy, Bradshaw Leigh, Bob Thrasher and Dave Wilkerson.
  • Mixing – Niko Bolas (Tracks 1–4, 6, 7, 9, 10); David Thoener (Track 5); Joe Nicolo and Phil Nicolo (Track 8).
  • Assistant Mixing on Track 8 – Dick Grobelny
  • Mastered by Ted Jensen at Sterling Sound (New York, NY).
  • Technical Support – Andrew Baker*, Lester Baylinson, Steve Bramberg, Laura Delia, Jon "J.D." Dworkow*, Greg Garland, Peter Goodrich, David Hewitt, Dave Hofbauer, Doug Kleeger, Howie Mendelson, Larry DeMarco, Artie Smith and Courtney Spencer.
  • Art and Commerce – Jeff Schock
  • Art Direction – Christopher Austopchuk
  • Cover Artwork – Christie Brinkley
  • Design – Sara Rotman
  • Photography – Glen Erler

Aftermath

River of Dreams stands as Billy Joel's most recent studio album of original materials in the pop/rock genre. Joel has often stated that the album itself was designed to stand as his final record and that while he still composes music, he no longer writes within the pop/rock music vein and has no more interest in the recording industry.[14] Accordingly, Joel's succeeding one-off studio album Fantasies & Delusions which was released in 2001 was an instrumental album of classical piano pieces containing no pop songs whatsoever. However, there is currently a petition online at Change.org created by a group of Billy Joel fans asking him to put out at least one more studio album with new songs of original materials in the pop/rock genre.[15]

Accolades

Grammy Awards
Year Nominee / work Award Result
1994River of DreamsAlbum of the Year[16]Nominated
"The River of Dreams"Song of the Year[16]Nominated
Record of the Year[16]Nominated
Best Pop Vocal Performance – Male[16]Nominated

Charts

Certifications and sales
Region CertificationCertified units/sales
Australia (ARIA)[50] 3× Platinum 210,000^
Austria (IFPI Austria)[51] Platinum 50,000*
Canada (Music Canada)[52] 3× Platinum 300,000^
Germany (BVMI)[53] Platinum 500,000^
Ireland (IRMA)[54] 2× Platinum 30,000^
Japan (RIAJ)[55] Platinum 241,000[lower-alpha 1][56][57]
Netherlands (NVPI)[58] Gold 50,000[59]
New Zealand (RMNZ)[60] Platinum 15,000^
Sweden (GLF)[61] Gold 50,000^
Switzerland (IFPI Switzerland)[62] Platinum 50,000^
United Kingdom (BPI)[63] Platinum 300,000^
United States (RIAA)[64] 5× Platinum 5,000,000^
Summaries
Europe (IFPI)[65] 5× Platinum 5,000,000*

* Sales figures based on certification alone.
^ Shipments figures based on certification alone.

  1. Combined sales of standard edition and its expanded reissue.

References
  1. River of Dreams at AllMusic
  2. Boren, Ray (June 18, 1989). "'RIVER OF DREAMS' FEATURES WELL-CRAFTED SONGS". deseretnews.com. Deseret News. Retrieved August 31, 2011.
  3. Sandow, Greg (August 13, 1993). "River of Dreams Review". ew.com. Entertainment Weekly. Retrieved August 31, 2011.
  4. Willman, Chris (August 22, 1993). "BILLY JOEL – "River of Dreams"". articles.latimes.com. The Los Angeles Times. Retrieved August 31, 2011.
  5. Holden, Stephen (August 8, 1993). "RECORDINGS VIEW; Billy Joel, A Pundit Of Suburbia". nytimes.com. The New York Times. Retrieved August 31, 2011.
  6. Kara Manning (August 19, 1993), "Music Reviews: River of Dreams by Billy Joel", Rolling Stone, archived from the original on August 7, 2008
  7. Goldman, Andrew (May 24, 2013). "Billy Joel on Not Working and Not Giving Up Drinking". New York Times. Retrieved January 3, 2014.
  8. "Christie Brinkley biography". Official website. Retrieved March 19, 2009.
  9. "River of Dreams article". ONE FINAL SERENADE: THE SONGS OF BILLY JOEL (BILLY JOEL FAN SITE). Retrieved July 13, 2019.
  10. Tony Walker (December 1, 2011), Billy Joel Shelter Island Sessions Part 1-No Mans Land-Large.m4v, retrieved July 13, 2019
  11. Schruers, Fred (2014). Billy Joel. Crown Archetype. pp. 218–220. ISBN 978-0-8041-4019-5.
  12. "Billy Joel – A Voyage On the River of Dreams Australia Box Set". Eil.com. October 14, 1994. Retrieved August 25, 2011.
  13. Steffen Hung (November 27, 1994). "Billy Joel – A Voyage On the River of Dreams". australian-charts.com. Retrieved August 25, 2011.
  14. "Billy Joel on Turning 70, Donald Trump and Why He Writes Music Just For Himself Now". Rolling Stone. Retrieved May 30, 2019.
  15. "Fans are petitioning Billy Joel to release a new album". 98.7 The River. February 18, 2019.
  16. "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. January 7, 1994. Retrieved August 29, 2011.
  17. "australian-charts.com Billy Joel – River of Dreams". Australian Recording Industry Association. Retrieved August 8, 2011.
  18. "Billy Joel – River of Dreams – austriancharts.at". Retrieved August 19, 2011.
  19. "Top Albums/CDs – Volume 58, No. 9, September 11, 1993". RPM. Archived from the original on June 1, 2016. Retrieved October 3, 2011.
  20. "Top 10 Sales in Europe" (PDF). Music and Media. American Radio History. October 30, 1993. Retrieved December 29, 2019.
  21. "dutchcharts.nl Billy Joel – River of Dreams". dutchcharts.nl. MegaCharts. Retrieved August 29, 2011.
  22. "Billboard". September 4, 1993.
  23. Pennanen, Timo (2006). Sisältää hitin – levyt ja esittäjät Suomen musiikkilistoilla vuodesta 1972 (in Finnish) (1st ed.). Helsinki: Kustannusosakeyhtiö Otava. p. 263. ISBN 978-951-1-21053-5.
  24. "Album Search: Billy Joel" (in German). Media Control. Retrieved August 8, 2011.
  25. "MAHASZ".
  26. "Tonlist Top 40". DV. Retrieved February 9, 2017.
  27. "Top 10 Sales in Europe" (PDF). Music and Media. American Radio History. September 4, 1993. Retrieved December 29, 2019.
  28. "Hit Parade Italia – Gli album più venduti del 1993" (in Italian). hitparadeitalia.it. Retrieved October 3, 2011.
  29. "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]. oricon.co.jp (in Japanese). Oricon Style. Retrieved August 29, 2011.
  30. "charts.nz – Billy Joel – River of Dreams". Recording Industry Association of New Zealand. Retrieved August 29, 2011.
  31. "norwegiancharts.com Billy Joel – River of Dreams". Retrieved August 29, 2011.
  32. "Hits of the World". Billboard. April 12, 1993. Retrieved February 9, 2012.
  33. Salaverri, Fernando (September 2005). Sólo éxitos: año a año, 1959–2002 (1st ed.). Spain: Fundación Autor-SGAE. ISBN 84-8048-639-2.
  34. "swedishcharts.com Billy Joel – River of Dreams". Sverigetopplistan. Retrieved August 29, 2011.
  35. "Billy Joel – River of Dreams – hitparade.ch". Retrieved August 8, 2011.
  36. "The Official Charts Company – Billy Joel – River of Dreams". Official Charts Company. Retrieved August 29, 2011.
  37. Allmusic – River of Dreams > Charts & Awards > Billboard Albums
    • Zimbabwe. Kimberley, C. Zimbabwe: albums chart book. Harare: C. Kimberley, 2000
  39. "End Of Year Charts – Top 50 Albums 1993". Australian Recording Industry Association. ARIA Charts. Retrieved August 29, 2011.
  40. "Austriancharts.at – Jahreshitparade 1993". Hung Medien. Retrieved May 30, 2010.
  41. "RPM Top 100 Albums of 1993". RPM. Retrieved October 3, 2011.
  42. "Dutch Charts = dutchcharts.nl". Retrieved August 29, 2011.
  43. "1993年 アルバム年間TOP100" [Oricon Year-end Albums Chart of 1993] (in Japanese). Archived from the original on November 4, 2012. Retrieved January 1, 2011.
  44. "The Top 50 Albums of 1993". Retrieved February 4, 2015.
  45. "Hitparade.ch – Schweizer Jahreshitparade 1993". Hung Medien. Retrieved May 29, 2011.
  46. "UK best albums 1993". Archived from the original on September 27, 2012. Retrieved August 19, 2011.
  47. "CHART: Billboard Top Pop Albums of 1993". Retrieved August 22, 2011.
  48. "End Of Year Charts – Top 50 Albums 1994". Australian Recording Industry Association. ARIA Charts. Retrieved August 29, 2011.
  49. "CHART: Billboard Top Pop Albums of 1994". Retrieved August 22, 2011.
  50. Ryan, Gavin (2011). Australia’s Music Charts 1988–2010 (PDF ed.). Mt Martha, Victoria, Australia: Moonlight Publishing. p. 146.
  51. "Austrian album certifications – Billy Joel – River of Dreams" (in German). IFPI Austria.
  52. "Canadian album certifications – Billy Joel – River of Dreams". Music Canada.
  53. "Gold-/Platin-Datenbank (Billy Joel; River of Dreams)" (in German). Bundesverband Musikindustrie.
  54. "The Irish Charts - 1994 Certification Awards - Multi Platinum". Irish Recorded Music Association.
  55. "Japanese album certifications – ビリー・ジョエル – River of Dreams" (in Japanese). Recording Industry Association of Japan. Select 1993年10月 on the drop-down menu
  56. Oricon Album Chart Book: Complete Edition 1970–2005. Roppongi, Tokyo: Oricon Entertainment. 2006. ISBN 4-87131-077-9.
  57. "a-ビリー・ジョエル" [Yamachan Land (Japanese Chart Archives) – Albums Chart Daijiten – Billy Joel] (in Japanese). Original Confidence. December 30, 2007. Archived from the original on February 8, 2012. Retrieved August 29, 2011.
  58. "Dutch album certifications – Billy Joel – River of Dreams" (in Dutch). Nederlandse Vereniging van Producenten en Importeurs van beeld- en geluidsdragers. Enter 'River of Dreams' in the "Artiest of titel" box.
  59. "de branchevereniging van de entertainmentindustrie". NVPI. Archived from the original on October 8, 2011. Retrieved August 17, 2011. Note: User needs to enter "Billy Joel" in the "Artiest" field and click below "zoek" button.
  60. "New Zealand album certifications – Billy Joel – River of Dreams". Recorded Music NZ.
  61. "Guld- och Platinacertifikat − År 1987−1998" (PDF) (in Swedish). IFPI Sweden.
  62. "The Official Swiss Charts and Music Community: Awards (Billy Joel; River of Dreams)". IFPI Switzerland. Hung Medien.
  63. "British album certifications – Billy Joel – River of Dreams". British Phonographic Industry. Select albums in the Format field. Select Platinum in the Certification field. Type 'River of Dreams' in the "Search BPI Awards" field and then press Enter.
  64. "American album certifications – Billy Joel – River of Dreams". Recording Industry Association of America. If necessary, click Advanced, then click Format, then select Album, then click SEARCH. 
  65. "IFPI Platinum Europe Awards – 1994". International Federation of the Phonographic Industry. Missing or empty |url= (help); |access-date= requires |url= (help)
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